The Varesotto Imbricates encompass the tectonic units situated below and in front of the Upper Orobic Nappe, in analogy to the Lower Orobic Imbricates. Between the Lago Maggiore and the Lugano Fault, the Variscan basement of the Varesotto Imbricates is unconformably overlain by Permian volcanics and Mesozoic sediments with rapid lateral changes in thickness and facies.