Quaternary deformation of the Isthmus and Gulf of Corinthos (Greece)

Interdisciplinary data suggest that the Quaternary, late Holocene, and present-day deformation patterns of the Isthmus of Corinthos, Greece, are very similar and can be compared to a platelike body under torsion. This hypothesis is consistent with the vertical differential motions observed in the adjacent Corinthiakos Gulf. A possible explanation is that the back-arc compressional zone is much wider than formerly believed and extends to an area of normal faulting, parallel to the direction of the compression. This stress field produces a central bulging in the southern coast and a depression in the northern coast of the Corinthiakos Gulf; the easternmost ends of this depression and bulging are the southern and northern parts of the isthmus, tilted to the east and to the west, respectively.