Supercontinent cycles and crustal growth: insights from the assembly and breakup of Gondwana

Supercontinent cycles represent a fundamental control on the long-term evolution of Earth’s lithosphere, yet their role in governing net continental crustal growth remains debated. This review uses Gondwana as a natural laboratory to evaluate how supercontinent assembly, stabilization, and breakup influence the balance between juvenile crustal addition and crustal reworking and recycling. We integrate evidence from plate reconstructions, U–Pb geochronology, Lu–Hf and Sm–Nd isotope systems, sedimentary archives, structural geology, and geodynamic modeling to provide a process-based synthesis of Gondwana’s evolution from the Neoproterozoic to the Mesozoic. During assembly, prolonged subduction and arc magmatism contributed juvenile mantle-derived material, while continent–continent collision promoted crustal thickening, metamorphic differentiation, and enhanced preservation of continental lithosphere. However, isotopic data indicate that a substantial proportion of magmatism reflects reworking of pre-existing crust rather than net addition. Breakup of Gondwana was characterized by rifting, lithospheric thinning, and the emplacement of large igneous provinces, which introduced mantle-derived melts but also facilitated crustal removal through hyperextension, delamination, and sediment recycling. These coupled constructive and destructive processes indicate that crustal growth is not a unidirectional process but a dynamic balance operating across supercontinent cycles. Comparison with other supercontinents demonstrates that Gondwana follows a recurring global pattern in which assembly enhances crustal production and preservation, whereas breakup promotes lithospheric destabilization and recycling. The review further highlights the importance of accounting for preservation bias, sediment recycling, and isotopic uncertainties when interpreting crustal growth proxies. Overall, Gondwana provides key insights into how supercontinent dynamics regulate the long-term evolution of continental crust and its interaction with Earth-system processes.