Sketch illustrating the Messinian salt deposition compared to the subsidence evolution in the Gulf of Lion, Provençal Basin and Western Sardinian conjugated margins. (a) Basin reconstruction at 16 Ma: the Corso-Sardinian block ceased the counter-clockwise rotation; the deep basin, composed by proto-oceanic crust and bordered by transitional crust, (Moulin et al., 2015; Afilhado et al., 2015) is characterized by a vertical subsidence. (b) Basin reconstruction at ∼5.6 Ma: the Messinian sea-level drop took place leading to the salt deposition above a thick pre-salt sequence. The initial salt thickness is considered constant except on the margin edges. (c) Basin reconstruction at present-day: after the reflooding and the end of the MSC (5.32 Ma) the Pliocene-Pleistocene sedimentation filled the basin and margins. Wide variations in salt morphologies are observed at present-day.

Croquis illustrant le dépôt de sel messinien comparé à l’évolution de la subsidence dans le Golfe du Lion, le Bassin Provençal et la marge conjuguée de la Sardaigne occidentale. a) Reconstruction du bassin à 16 Ma. b) Reconstruction du bassin à ∼5,6 Ma. c) Reconstruction du bassin à l’époque actuelle.