This paper reviews the Mesozoic lithospheric architecture and explores the origin and Paleozoic evolution of the Lhasa terrane on the basis of geological and geochemical data currently available. The results show that the most plausible explanation for the origin of the Lhasa terrane is that it came from the northern Australia. The ca. 492 Ma bimodal metavolcanic rocks identified in the central Lhasa subterrane were likely developed in an active continental margin representing a part of a magmatic arc paleogeographically located in the northern Australian continent and may be a result of slab break-off of the subducting proto-Tethyan oceanic lithosphere.