Moldanubian Zone
The Moldanubian Zone is in the regional geology of Europe a tectonic zone formed during the Variscan or Hercynian Orogeny (400 to 300 million years ago, during the Devonian and Carboniferous periods). The Moldanubian Zone crops out in the Bohemian Massif and the southern part of the Black Forest and Vosges and contains the highest grade metamorphic rocks of Variscan age in Europe. The Moldanubian Zone was introduced by German geologist Franz Kossmat in 1927. It has a generally higher grade of metamorphism than the Saxothuringian Zone to the northwest. The contact between the two is a thrust  over which the Moldanubian Zone moved over the Saxothuringian Zone during the Variscan Orogeny. In the east the Moldanubian Zone is thrusted over the Moravo-Silesian Zone, which is also generally lower grade. Geology. The Moldanubian Zone of the Bohemian Massif can be divided into two tectonic units: the Teplá-Barrandian Zone (or "Bohemicum") and the Moldanubian Zone sensu stricto ("Moldanubicum"). The last contains large granitoid plutons and nappes. Moldanubicum. The Moldanubicum or Moldanubian "sensu stricto" consists of high grade metamorphic rocks. The protoliths may have a Proterozoic age, but their origins or ages are mostly unknown. The tectonostratigraphy of  the Moldanubian Zone sensu stricto is divided into three main units: Intrusions. These three tectonic units and their contacts are cut off by large batholith intrusions of late Variscan ages. The largest ones are the South Bohemian Batholith and the Central Bohemian Batholith. They consist of many different generations of intrusions often cutting through each other. Tectonic history. The Moldanubian Zone is interpreted as the lower crust of a microcontinent called Cadomia or Armorica. This small piece of continental crust was sandwiched in between the larger continents of Laurussia (to the north) and Gondwana (to the south) during the Variscan  Orogeny. Some authors think the microcontinent stretched far enough to also encompass the pre-Variscan basement of the Armorican Massif, others think a string of small microcontinents more reasonable.