JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 38 NUMBER 6
Magmatic Evolution and Tectonic Setting of
the Iberian Pyrite Belt Volcanism
J. MITJAVILA, J. MARTÍ∗ AND C. SORIANO
INSTITUTE OF EARTH SCIENCES ‘JAUME ALMERA’, CSIC, LLUIS SOLÉ I SABARÍS S/N, 08028 BARCELONA, SPAIN
RECEIVED ON JUNE 1, 1996 REVISED TYPESCRIPT ACCEPTED FEBRUARY 4, 1997
The Iberian Pyrite Belt, which extends from Portugal to Spain in
southwest Iberia, constitutes one of the world’s largest reservoirs
of massive sulphide deposits. Volcanic-hosted massive sulphide
mineralization occurs at several stratigraphic horizons within an
Early Carboniferous volcano-sedimentary package formed of tur-
biditic siliciclastic deposits and basaltic, intermediate and silicic
volcanic rocks. Volcanic rocks do not show significant temporal or
spatial variations in the stratigraphic sequence of the Iberian Pyrite
Belt and mainly occur as shallow intrusions into wet marine
sediments with some minor lavas, hydroclastic rocks and volcanogenic
sediments. A geochemical study, including major, trace and rare
earth elements, and Sr and Nd isotopes, of the least altered volcanic
rocks has been carried out to determine the primary magmatic affinity
and tectonic setting of the Iberian Pyrite Belt volcanism. Most of
the basaltic rocks are continental tholeiites, but a few samples show
an alkaline affinity. The origin of the basaltic rocks and their
diversity of compositions are explained by a single mixing model
between E- and N-MORB (mid-ocean ridge basalt) and as-
similation of crustal material. Calc-alkaline intermediate and silicic
rocks include basaltic andesites, andesites, dacites and rhyolites.
Volumetrically, dacites and rhyolites are the most abundant. Inter-
mediate and silicic rocks are not related by fractional crystallization,
nor is there a relationship between the basaltic and calc-alkaline
rocks by the same process. We suggest that in the Iberian Pyrite
Belt silicic calc-alkaline magmas were generated on a large scale
by the invasion of continental crust by mafic magmas generated in
the underlying upper mantle. The diversity of compositions shown
by dacites and rhyolites can mainly be explained either by differences
in the composition of the source rocks or by different degrees of
partial melting of upper-crust rocks. Andesites, however, formed by
mixing between basaltic magmas and upper-crust material. The new
geochemical data agree with previously published tectonostratigraphic
data which suggest that the Iberian Pyrite Belt volcanism formed
on the South Portuguese plate owing to strike-slip tectonics. This
local extensional tectonic setting was related to transtension as a
∗Corresponding author. Telephone: 34-3-330 27 16. Fax: 34-3-411 00
12. e-mail: joan.marti@ija.csic.es
PAGES 727–755 1997
result of oblique continental collision that followed the subduction
of the South Portuguese plate beneath the Ossa Morena plate. This
tectonically driven magmatism does not have a modern analogue,
but it is not inconsistent with the proposed geodynamic evolution of
the studied area. This model gives insights into the petrology and
geochemistry of strike-slip settings in the continental part of sub-
ducting plates, a region usually poorly constrained from a petrological
point of view.
KEY WORDS: calc-alkaline volcanism; isotope geochemistry; strike-slip
tectonics; Iberian Pyrite Belt
INTRODUCTION
Volcanic-hosted massive sulphide deposits are mainly
associated world-wide with calc-alkaline submarine vol-
canism. Petrological and geochemical data, together with
stratigraphic and structural studies, have been of major
importance in constraining geological models of the vol-
canism associated with massive sulphide deposits. In-
tegrated studies in areas such as the Kuroko province in
Japan (Ohmoto, 1983), the Mount Read Volcanics in
Tasmania (Crawford et al., 1992), and the Mount Windsor
Volcanics in northwestern Australia (Stolz, 1995), have
revealed that this volcanism may be developed during
different stages of the subduction process, always being
located on the overriding plate.
This paper documents the petrology and geochemistry
of the volcanism of the Iberian Pyrite Belt, an Early
Carboniferous metallogenic province that extends from
Portugal to Spain in southwest Iberia and constitutes
 Oxford University Press 1997
 JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY
one of the world’s largest reservoirs of massive sulphide
deposits. Despite the economic significance of this area,
the volcanic rocks have not been studied extensively and
most of the existing geodynamic models proposed to
explain the origin of volcanism and associated massive
sulphide deposits are not based upon petrological and
geochemical data. Thus, in spite of the existence of
several studies aimed at characterizing the geochemistry
of volcanic rocks (Rambaud, 1969; Strauss, 1970; Hamet
& Delcey, 1971; Lécolle, 1977; Routhier et al., 1977;
Priem et al., 1978; Soler, 1980; Strauss et al., 1981;
Munhá, 1983; Möller et al., 1983; Schütz et al., 1988),
and some studies focused on the stratigraphy and tectonic
setting of the Iberian Pyrite Belt (Schermerhorn, 1971;
Strauss & Madel, 1974; Ribeiro et al., 1983; Oliveira,
1990; Silva et al., 1990; Quesada et al., 1994; Giese et al.,
1994), the nature and evolution of the volcanism are
still poorly known. Geochemical data (elementary and
isotopic) are mainly concerned with the Portuguese sector
of the Iberian Pyrite Belt. In contrast, petrological and
geochemical data relating to the volcanic rocks from the
Spanish sector, which includes the eastern part of the
Iberian Pyrite Belt, are relatively scarce.
In this paper, we describe and interpret the magmatic
evolution and tectonic setting of the Iberian Pyrite Belt
volcanism. The volcanic rocks comprise basalts, andesites,
dacites and rhyolites which mainly appear as shallow
intrusions into wet marine sediments with some minor
lavas, hydroclastic rocks and volcanogenic sediments.
The detailed stratigraphy established by Soriano (1997)
shows a lack of significant temporal and spatial variations
in the distribution of volcanic rocks. We report new
major, trace and rare earth element (REE), and Sr–Nd
isotope data from the Spanish sector of the Iberian
Pyrite Belt which have been integrated with previous
petrological and geochemical data, mainly from the Por-
tuguese sector. A comprehensive geodynamic model,
which differs from those deduced from other volcanic-
hosted massive sulphide deposit areas, is proposed to
explain the origin and evolution of the Iberian Pyrite
Belt volcanism. We also discuss the genetic relationship
of the different rock types found in this volcanism.
GEOLOGICAL SETTING
The sector of the European Variscan Orogen that crops
out in the western Iberian Peninsula is known as the
Iberian Massif (Lotze, 1945), where five major Variscan
geological units were distinguished by Julivert et al. (1974)
(Fig. 1). Recent studies on the boundary between the
South Portuguese Zone and the Ossa Morena Zone have
interpreted it as a major suture of the European Variscan
Orogen (Munhá et al., 1986; Crespo-Blanc & Orozco,
1988; Quesada, 1991). This suture is interpreted as a
VOLUME 38 NUMBER 6 JUNE 1997
thrust that emplaces the Ossa Morena Zone structurally
above the South Portuguese Zone (Fig. 1) and is linked
to a major geological boundary of similar characteristics
in the southern British Isles (Crespo-Blanc & Orozco,
1991). Thus, the South Portuguese Zone was accreted
to the rest of the Iberian Massif during the Variscan
Orogeny (Ribeiro et al. 1990) and represents the con-
tinental crust of a tectonic plate whose oceanic crust was
totally subducted under the continental crust of the Ossa
Morena Zone (Quesada et al., 1994).
The Iberian Pyrite Belt is one of the four Variscan
structural units distinguished by Quesada (1991) in the
South Portuguese Zone (Figs 1 and 2). It is bounded to
the north by the Pulo do Lobo oceanic terrane and to
the south by the Baixo Alentejo Flysch Group. The main
feature of the Iberian Pyrite Belt is the occurrence of
polymetallic sulphide deposits associated with basic and
silicic volcanic rocks which are interbedded with Early
Carboniferous turbiditic siliciclastic deposits. Sedi-
mentation of these deposits is continuous through the
stratigraphic sequence of the Iberian Pyrite Belt and no
internal unconformities have been observed. Deposition
of these rocks took place in a submarine continental
platform environment (Oliveira, 1983, 1990) from bottom
and turbidity currents.
Volcanic rocks interbedded with marine sediments are
concentrated in the central part of the Iberian Pyrite
Belt stratigraphic sequence, whereas they are lacking in its
upper and lower parts. Strauss (1970) and Schermerhorn
(1971) distinguished three lithostratigraphic units ac-
cording to the presence or absence of volcanic rocks and
volcanism-related hydrothermal alteration. From the base
to the top, these stratigraphic units are as follows:
(1) The Phyllite and Quartzite unit is composed of
phyllites, quartzites and conglomerates deposited on a
continental platform (Oliveira, 1990). Rare limestone
lenses bearing conodont fauna are located at the top of
the unit and indicate a Lower to Upper Famennian age
(Fig. 3). Its base never crops out throughout the Iberian
Pyrite Belt.
(2) The Volcano-Sedimentary Complex is the strati-
graphic unit which contains the ore deposits. Most of
the volcanic rocks are shallow intrusive bodies which
show irregular shapes and contacts with the host rocks.
Therefore, the lower and upper boundaries and the
thickness of the Volcano-Sedimentary Complex are vari-
able. The sediments interbedded with the volcanic rocks
are mainly turbiditic platform deposits with oceanic fauna
such as radiolaria. Rare limestone lenses bearing con-
odont fauna are located at the top of the unit and indicate
a Lower to Upper Viséan age (Fig. 3).
(3) The Culm Group is the uppermost stratigraphic
unit in the Iberian Pyrite Belt. Its top has been eroded
and cannot be observed. Shales and sandstones deposited
from turbidity currents are the main lithologies. Facies
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 MITJAVILA et al. MAGMATIC EVOLUTION AND TECTONIC SETTING OF THE IBERIAN PYRITE BELT

Fig. 1. Tectonostratigraphic terrane map of the South Portuguese Zone and the southern part of the Ossa Morena Zone. Adapted from
Quesada (1991). Inset: Variscan geological units of the Iberian Massif ( Julivert et al., 1974). CZ, Cantabrian Zone; ALZ, Asturian–Leonese
Zone; CIZ, Central Iberian Zone; OMZ, Ossa Morena Zone; SPZ, South Portuguese Zone. Adapted from Julivert et al. (1974).

distributions strongly suggest flysch sedimentation (Olive-
ira, 1990). Goniatite fauna found at the base of the unit
indicate an Upper Viséan age (Fig. 3).
Hydrothermal alteration took place during and shortly
after the volcanism of the Volcano-Sedimentary Complex
(Munhá, 1990). Oxygen, hydrogen and sulphur isotopic
compositions (Munhá & Kerrich, 1980; Barriga & Ker-
rich, 1984) demonstrate that these hydrothermal pro-
cesses involved the interaction of magmatic fluids with
seawater.
All of the above-mentioned rocks of the Iberian Pyrite
Belt were metamorphosed and deformed during the
Variscan Orogeny. A regional low-grade metamorphism
of zeolite to greenschist facies increases from south to
north across the Iberian Pyrite Belt and the South Por-
tuguese Zone, and towards the base of the stratigraphic
sequence (Munhá, 1990). Large intrusive bodies of gran-
itic, tonalitic and dioritic composition, which appear at
the northeastern part of the South Portuguese Zone and
the southern part of the Ossa Morena Zone, are thought
to be responsible for this regional metamorphism and its
north to south polarity (Dallmeyer et al., 1993; De La
Rosa et al., 1993).
Variscan tectonics in the Iberian Pyrite Belt is char-
acteristic of a fold and thrust belt with a southward
vergence. Thrust sequences followed a piggy-back pro-
pagation mode, and related folds developed an axial plane
cleavage sometimes transecting the fold axes (Ribeiro et
al., 1983). An increase in the cleavage intensity is seen
from south to north across the entire South Portuguese
Zone (Silva et al., 1990), and is probably related to a
thermal control on the development of ductile structures
by large intrusives in the northeastern part of the South
Portuguese Zone. The detachment level of the thrusts is
found at the base of the Palaeozoic sequence of the South
Portuguese Zone (Ribeiro et al., 1983).
STRATIGRAPHY OF THE VOLCANO-
SEDIMENTARY COMPLEX
The Volcano-Sedimentary Complex is characterized by
the presence of a monotonous sequence (500–800 m

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 JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY
Fig. 2. Geological map of the Spanish sector of the Iberian Pyrite Belt showing the location of the stratigraphic sections in Fig. 4 [modified
after Instituto Geológico y Minero de España (1982)].
thick) of Late Devonian–Early Carboniferous sandstones
and shales with shallow sub-horizontal intrusions of ba-
saltic, intermediate and silicic compositions, and minor
interbedded lavas, hydroclastic rocks and volcaniclastic
sediments (Fig. 4). A detailed revision of the stratigraphy
of the Volcano-Sedimentary Complex (Soriano, 1997)
has revealed that the emplacement of these intrusives
took place at different levels in the stratigraphic sequence
and that they are interfingered with the host sediments.
This has caused some misinterpretations of the volcanic
events represented in the Volcano-Sedimentary Com-
plex, such as the distinction of several well-separated
volcanic episodes made by Instituto Geológico y Minero
de España (1982), which we will discuss in a later section.
Previous studies of the Iberian Pyrite Belt volcanism
suggested the occurrence of primary pyroclastic deposits
(Schermerhorn, 1976; Lécolle, 1977). However, most of
the volcaniclastic deposits found in the studied area
are not of pyroclastic origin. They were formed by
hydroclastic fragmentation and erosion of submarine
lavas and domes (Soriano, 1997).
The palaeogeographic and stratigraphic distribution of
volcanic rocks in the Volcano-Sedimentary Complex is
relatively haphazard (Fig. 4), but some trends can be
inferred from stratigraphic sections throughout the Iber-
ian Pyrite Belt. In the south and southwestern part of
VOLUME 38 NUMBER 6 JUNE 1997
the Iberian Pyrite Belt silicic rocks are mostly found in
the lower part of the Volcano-Sedimentary Complex
sequence, whereas in the north and northeastern part
very shallow silicic intrusives are located at its top (Fig.
4). Despite this trend, silicic intrusives also appear at the
top of the Phyllite and Quartzite unit in the north and
east of the Iberian Pyrite Belt.
Andesitic rocks do not crop out in the southwesternmost
part of the studied area. They mainly appear as shallow
intrusives above and below felsic volcanics in the central
part of the Iberian Pyrite Belt, and can also intrude either
the top of the Phyllite and Quartzite Unit or the highest
levels of the Volcano-Sedimentary Complex. In the
northeasternmost part of the Iberian Pyrite Belt andesitic
rocks are always below silicic volcanics in the stratigraphic
record (Fig. 4). On the other hand, basaltic rocks are
widely distributed and do not show any specific strati-
graphic or palaeogeographic position.
PETROGRAPHY OF VOLCANIC
ROCKS
Felsic rocks range in composition from dacite to rhyolite.
Most of them appear as shallow intrusives which show
peperitic textures developed at the contacts between
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 MITJAVILA et al.

731
Fig. 3. Ages of geological events in the South Portuguese Zone. The method used in dating any particular event is shown in the lower row. The numbers in the Van den Boogaard &
Schermerhorn column refer to the following papers: 1—Van den Boogaard & Schermerhorn, 1981; 2—Van den Boogaard & Schermerhorn, 1975a; 3—Van den Boogaard & Schermerhorn,
1980; 4—Van den Boogaard & Schermerhorn, 1975b.
MAGMATIC EVOLUTION AND TECTONIC SETTING OF THE IBERIAN PYRITE BELT
 JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 38 NUMBER 6 JUNE 1997

Fig. 4. Stratigraphic sections of the Volcano-Sedimentary Complex in the Iberian Pyrite Belt (see Fig. 2 for location).

intrusions and wet sediments (Boulter, 1993a, b). Oc- hydroclastic deposits. Other field structures such as flow-
casionally, felsic rocks reached the oceanic floor as ex- banding foliation, flow autobrecciation and soft-sediment
trusive domes giving rise to short-length lava flows and intrusions through columnar jointing of volcanic rocks

732
 MITJAVILA et al. MAGMATIC EVOLUTION AND TECTONIC SETTING OF THE IBERIAN PYRITE BELT
also support a shallow intrusive emplacement for most
of the silicic volcanic rocks.
Rhyolitic rocks are mainly composed of albite and
quartz phenocrysts and minor biotite phenocrysts (par-
tially or totally replaced by chlorite). Occasionally, K-
feldspar may also be present. A felsitic groundmass is
characteristic of rhyolites, which also show perlitic and
spherulitic textures. Plagioclase phenocrysts and those
parts of the groundmass enriched with plagioclase mi-
crolites are often altered to calcite, muscovite and sericite.
Accessory minerals in dacites and rhyolites include ap-
atite. Dacites usually show porphyritic and glomero-
porphyritic to massive coherent textures. Embayed and
curviplanar quartz phenocrysts, subhedral albitized pla-
gioclase, and rare biotite phenocrysts and clino-
pyroxene microphenocrysts are set in a micro-
crystalline quartz–feldspar groundmass.
Intermediate volcanic rocks are porphyritic to glo-
meroporphyritic andesites with subhedral prismatic pla-
gioclase, occasionally albitized, clinopyroxene
phenocrysts, Fe-oxides, and rare quartz and biotite
(mostly chloritized), embedded in a microcrystalline
groundmass of microlitic plagioclase and microcrystalline
quartz. They usually have amygdales filled with chlorite,
calcite, epidote and quartz. Plagioclase phenocrysts are
often altered to calcite, muscovite and epidote, and the
groundmass can be altered to chlorite. Field exposures
of andesites can show highly irregular, sometimes chilled,
contacts with the host sediments, and frequently have
columnar and spheroidal jointing. Two of the studied
samples contained olivine phenocrysts, together with
clinopyroxene and a Ca-rich plagioclase. This suggests
the presence of restricted basaltic andesites in the vol-
canism of the Iberian Pyrite Belt.
Basaltic rocks show massive, intergranular, equi-
granular and minor porphyritic textures. Subhedral clino-
pyroxene and plagioclase (mostly albitized) frequently
show intergrowing of crystals. In most of the rocks the
clinopyroxene is a pale-coloured augite. However, a
few basaltic samples contain a titaniferous salite, which
suggests an alkaline affinity. In the porphyritic varieties
the groundmass contains plagioclase microlites and mi-
crocystalline augite. Minor subhedral crystals of olivine
and Fe–Ti oxides are also present in all basaltic rocks.
Chlorite, epidote and calcite usually fill original vesicles
but also appear as secondary minerals replacing original
components of the rock. Field exposures occasionally
show minor pillows and chilled margins developed at the
contacts with host sediments.
GEOCHEMISTRY
Methods
Fifty-nine new samples have been analysed for major
and trace elements, and REE (Table 1). The analytical
733
procedures used were inductively coupled plasma mass
spectrometry (ICP-MS) after fusion for major elements
analysis plus Ba, Sr, Y and Zr; ICP-MS after HF digestion
for trace metals (Cu, Pb, Zn, Ag, Ni, Cd, Bi, V and Be);
X-ray fluorescence (XRF) pressed pellet for the elements
Ga, Sn, S, Nb and Rb; and instrumental neutron ac-
tivation analysis (INAA) for Au, As, Co, Cr, Cs, Hf, Sb,
Sc, Ta, Th, U and REE. All the analyses were performed
at ACTLABS (Canada) following standard procedures
for each method. The detection limits are indicated in
Table 1. The standards used by ACTLABS were:
CCRMP SY-2, MRG-1, SY-3, USGS G-2, W-2 and
AGV-1. Some of the standards have been run in duplicate
and the results obtained do not differ from the certified
values. The selection of the samples was done with the
aim of covering all the Spanish sector of the Iberian
Pyrite Belt and all the volcanic rock types present. The
rocks show varying degrees of alteration, therefore care
was taken in selecting the less altered rocks after detailed
petrographic study.
Twelve of these samples were selected for analysis of
Rb–Sr and Sm–Nd isotope geochemistry (Table 2). These
12 samples are the least altered and cover all the rock
types recognized in the Iberian Pyrite Belt. The samples
were ground to fine powder and acid washed for 45 min
at 50°C to remove alteration products. Sample dissolution
and chemical separation methods for Rb, Sr, Sm and
Nd followed standard procedures. Blank levels averaged
0·1 ng for Nd and 0·2 ng for Sr. Samples were analysed
using a Finnigan MAT 262 mass spectrometer at the
University of Oslo (Norway). Sm and Nd were loaded
onto Re filaments of a double Re filament assembly and
run as metal ions. Sr was run in a single Ta filament.
Nd isotopes were measured using a single-jump triple-
collector dynamic routine. Sr was measured in static
multi-collection mode. Analyses of inter-laboratory stand-
ards gave the values of 143Nd/144Nd=0·511092±10 for
the Johnson & Matthey JMC321 Nd standard and of
87
Sr/86Sr=0·710177±12 for the NBS 987 Sr standard.
Alteration of volcanic rocks
The volcanic rocks of the Iberian Pyrite Belt were affected
by several alteration and modification processes, which
include low-temperature hydration of glass (probably
caused by seawater percolation), hydrothermal alteration,
and regional low-grade metamorphism (greenschist fa-
cies). All these processes have changed the primary chem-
istry of the rocks, with significant gains and losses of
several elements and oxidation of Fe.
Mobility of chemical components of volcanic rocks
affected by hydrothermal alteration and low-grade meta-
morphism has been extensively documented (Wood et
al., 1976; Floyd & Winchester, 1978; MacLean & Kran-
idiostis, 1987; MacLean & Barret, 1993). To better
 Table 1: Major, trace and rare earth element analyses of volcanic rocks and one sediment ( FP-52) from the Spanish sector of the Iberian
Pyrite Belt; the trace element detection limits are 3r
Method Detec. limits FP-109 FP-80 FP-91 FP-34 FP-91A FP-20 FP-118 FP-114 FP-7 FP-40 FP-105 FP-31 FP-117 FP-15 FP-16 FP-57 FP-119 FP-102 FP-116 FP-150

Fusion ICP SiO2 0·05 44·06 45·04 46·23 46·28 46·44 46·78 47·12 47·41 48·17 48·17 48·19 48·66 49·04 51·86 51·96 52·26 53·38 54·73 55·32 56·09
TiO2 0·05 1·45 0·64 1·64 1·66 1·62 1·83 1·62 1·40 1·09 1·36 2·06 1·42 1·65 1·31 0·97 1·55 1·47 0·91 1·20 0·67
Al2O3 0·02 14·18 18·32 15·26 15·06 15·50 13·20 15·68 15·43 16·56 15·76 14·59 15·83 15·84 16·04 13·62 11·97 16·05 16·99 16·47 17·32
Fe2O3 0·002 10·79 8·33 10·40 12·80 10·22 11·01 9·88 10·24 9·19 8·07 10·85 9·93 10·83 8·52 10·90 9·34 8·92 8·61 7·75 5·26
MnO 0·02 0·13 0·13 0·16 0·18 0·16 0·17 0·17 0·12 0·14 0·12 0·20 0·17 0·14 0·09 0·15 0·16 0·17 0·15 0·14 0·07
MgO 0·03 6·10 11·11 4·61 6·43 4·48 4·28 6·62 10·74 8·19 5·61 6·63 7·68 7·19 5·87 6·06 6·61 5·84 4·72 4·21 2·03
CaO 0·02 7·89 10·27 17·25 9·23 17·21 8·85 9·11 5·61 8·08 13·45 10·34 9·67 7·86 8·10 9·82 8·77 4·81 5·69 4·82 7·52
Na2O 0·02 2·57 1·38 0·46 4·01 0·24 3·01 3·88 4·23 2·59 2·26 2·86 2·90 2·96 3·91 3·37 3·65 5·02 2·89 4·51 0·95
K2O 0·005 0·32 0·38 0·05 <0·01 <0·01 2·35 0·31 0·08 0·62 0·83 0·40 0·53 0·49 0·30 0·53 0·35 0·38 1·15 0·78 3·26
P2O5 0·01 0·19 0·10 0·22 0·22 0·21 0·60 0·23 0·21 0·11 0·24 0·26 0·19 0·25 0·15 0·22 0·23 0·22 0·13 0·19 0·13
LOI 11·98 4·10 2·98 3·46 2·85 7·25 5·08 4·38 4·57 3·77 3·16 2·77 3·32 3·54 2·13 4·34 3·52 3·19 3·89 6·26
JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY

TOTAL 99·65 99·79 99·26 99·34 98·95 99·33 99·70 99·85 99·33 99·64 99·55 99·75 99·57 99·69 99·73 99·23 99·80 99·17 99·27 99·55
Recalculated 100 %
water free

734
SiO2 50·26 47·07 48·02 48·27 48·32 50·80 49·80 49·66 50·83 50·25 49·99 50·18 50·95 53·94 53·24 55·07 55·44 57·02 58·00 60·12
TiO2 1·65 0·67 1·70 1·73 1·69 1·99 1·71 1·47 1·15 1·42 2·14 1·46 1·71 1·36 0·99 1·63 1·53 0·95 1·26 0·72
Al2O3 16·17 19·15 15·85 15·71 16·13 14·33 16·57 16·16 17·48 16·44 15·14 16·32 16·46 16·68 13·95 12·61 16·67 17·70 17·27 18·57
VOLUME 38

Fe2O3 12·31 8·71 10·80 13·35 10·63 11·96 10·44 10·73 9·70 8·42 11·26 10·24 11·25 8·86 11·17 9·84 9·26 8·97 8·13 5·64
MnO 0·15 0·14 0·17 0·19 0·17 0·18 0·18 0·13 0·15 0·13 0·21 0·18 0·15 0·09 0·15 0·17 0·18 0·16 0·15 0·08
MgO 6·96 11·61 4·79 6·71 4·66 4·64 7·00 11·25 8·64 5·85 6·88 7·92 7·47 6·11 6·21 6·97 6·07 4·92 4·41 2·18
CaO 9·00 10·73 17·92 9·63 17·91 9·61 9·63 5·88 8·53 14·03 10·73 9·97 8·17 8·42 10·06 9·24 5·00 5·93 5·05 8·06
Na2O 2·93 1·44 0·48 4·18 0·25 3·26 4·10 4·43 2·73 2·36 2·97 2·99 3·08 4·07 3·45 3·85 5·21 3·01 4·73 1·02
K2O 0·37 0·40 0·05 0·01 0·01 2·55 0·33 0·08 0·65 0·87 0·41 0·55 0·51 0·31 0·54 0·37 0·39 1·20 0·82 3·49
NUMBER 6

P2O5 0·22 0·10 0·23 0·23 0·22 0·66 0·24 0·22 0·12 0·25 0·27 0·20 0·26 0·16 0·23 0·24 0·23 0·14 0·20 0·14
Total 100·01 100·01 100·00 100·00 99·99 99·99 100·00 100·00 99·98 100·00 99·99 100·00 100·00 100·00 100·00 100·00 99·98 99·99 100·01 100·01
Ba 3 p.p.m. 92 64 13 30 17 488 109 37 445 213 121 75 97 145 87 121 48 223 254 251
Sr 1 p.p.m. 147 146 371 114 354 649 159 205 289 535 233 182 166 344 229 193 112 297 162 227
Y 1 p.p.m. 25 17 32 31 37 22 32 28 27 20 44 28 35 24 32 39 31 32 31 23
JUNE 1997

Zr 3 p.p.m. 135 38 124 65 130 97 142 123 54 46 170 95 167 63 62 99 143 145 165 130
XRF pressed pellet Ga 5 p.p.m. 25 13 25 18 28 21 19 16 14 21 21 16 21 18 21 20 18 20 20 24
Sn 5 p.p.m. <5 <5 3 <5 8 <5 8 <5 6 <5 <5 6 <5 <5 6 <5 9 10 <5 <5
S 50 p.p.m. 250 < 50 <50 1350 < 50 1155 <50 1830 100 1615 1925 <50 1000 <50 <50 330 < 50 < 50 < 50 < 50
Nb 2 p.p.m. 9 2 6 13 6 43 10 9 3 16 8 8 11 3 3 7 9 7 9 5
Rb 2 p.p.m. 17 17 <2 2 4 59 7 4 14 17 9 12 12 3 21 10 8 51 10 96
 Total digestion ICP Cu 1 p.p.m. 12 20 36 43 39 20 30 28 35 53 20 24 34 25 36 34 18 8 29 14
Pb 5 p.p.m. <5 <5 15 <5 <5 5 5 7 16 40 <5 23 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5
Zn 1 p.p.m. 76 48 83 105 61 101 97 68 139 131 79 79 78 63 77 69 74 77 69 70
Ag 0·5 p.p.m. 0·7 <0·4 <0·4 0·5 0·5 0·5 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 0·6 <0·4 0·6 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 0·5 0·6 0·6 <0·4
Ni 1 p.p.m. 9 253 107 62 92 49 76 221 67 101 60 58 100 43 40 57 11 17 83 12
MITJAVILA et al.

Cd 0·5 p.p.m. 0·5 0·5 <0·5 <0·5 0·8 <0·5 1 0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 0·5 0·7 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 0·6 0·6 0·5 <0·5
V 1 p.p.m. 184 86 194 164 210 126 182 159 157 112 243 191 209 150 226 170 205 126 170 76
Be 2 p.p.m. <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2
INAA Au (p.p.b.) 5 p.p.b. <5 5 <5 <5 7 <5 6 <5 <5 <5 6 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 7 <5
As 1 p.p.m. 4 <2 10 <2 9 2 10 7 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 6 9 <2 <2 <2 4 2
Co 0·1 p.p.m. 29 61 63 89 60 42 50 53 45 56 42 39 42 42 67 47 34 28 35 44
Cr 0·5 p.p.m. 66 310 230 150 240 49 220 410 200 120 220 240 250 130 130 200 110 49 180 28
Cs 0·2 p.p.m. 2 <0·5 <0·5 0·7 <0·5 12 <0·5 1·1 1·1 0·7 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 2·1 1·3 1·7 <0·5 1 <0·5 6
Hf 0·2 p.p.m. 3·8 1 3·2 3 3·8 4·2 3·3 3 2·7 2 4·4 2·7 1·9 3·3 2·6 3·2 3·6 3·9 4·2 3·9
Sb 0·1 p.p.m. 1 <0·2 1·4 0·3 1·3 2·3 0·3 <0·2 0·3 0·5 0·2 <0·2 0·2 5·7 0·6 0·9 <0·2 0·5 0·3 3·4
Sc 0·01 p.p.m. 31 19 33 30 36 13 35 30 35 15 42 40 36 29 40 32 35 28 30 16
Ta 0·3 p.p.m. <1 <1 2 2 2 2 <1 <1 <1 2 <1 <1 1 <1 2 1 1 <1 <1 1
Th 0·1 p.p.m. 2·6 <0·5 1 0·9 1·4 4·1 1·5 1·4 2·7 1 2·2 0·9 2·1 1·8 0·8 0·9 2·9 4·8 3·9 3·2
U 0·1 p.p.m. <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 1 <0·5 <0·5 0·9 0·6 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 0·8 0·9 <0·5 <0·5
La 0·5 p.p.m. 9·5 2·8 8 9·7 8·4 29·1 10 9·5 12·2 9·6 11·6 6·2 12·9 8·8 6·7 10·5 13·6 16·2 16·3 13·2
Ce 1 p.p.m. 23 8 21 22 23 56 26 26 28 20 31 16 31 21 17 26 29 36 36 32

735
Nd 1 p.p.m. 13 6 14 13 14 26 14 19 16 10 17 11 18 10 12 15 15 19 18 14
Sm 0·01 p.p.m. 3·5 1·6 3·7 3·4 4·1 5·6 3·9 3·8 3·5 2·6 5·1 3·1 4·5 3 3·4 4·2 4 4·1 4·3 3·2
Eu 0·05 p.p.m. 1·1 0·6 1·3 1·3 1·4 1·8 1·2 1 1·1 1·1 1·7 1·1 1·2 1·1 1·4 1·4 1·3 1·1 1·4 1
Tb 0·1 p.p.m. 0·9 0·6 0·9 0·9 0·7 1 0·8 <0·5 0·8 0·6 0·9 0·6 0·9 0·8 0·8 0·8 0·7 0·8 0·9 0·6
Yb 0·05 p.p.m. 2·2 1·5 3·1 2·5 3·4 1·3 2·9 2·6 2·4 1·3 3·9 2·5 3·3 2·2 2·8 2·9 2·8 2·6 2·9 2·3
Lu 0·01 p.p.m. 0·32 0·21 0·44 0·34 0·51 0·19 0·42 0·38 0·4 0·2 0·56 0·35 0·47 0·33 0·41 0·45 0·41 0·4 0·43 0·33

Method Detec. limits FP-84 FP-144 FP-83 FP-101 FP-100 FP-97 FP-154 FP-95 FP-94 FP-93 FP-19 FP-134 FP-27 FP-17 FP-5 FP-49 FP-137 FP-22 FP-133 FP-79

Fusion ICP SiO2 0·05 57·31 59·08 59·54 60·29 61·09 62·00 62·10 62·25 62·76 63·38 65·99 67·37 67·48 68·08 69·77 72·06 72·96 73·56 73·69 73·96
TiO2 0·05 0·80 0·86 0·75 0·62 0·79 0·82 0·62 0·82 0·79 0·75 0·45 0·33 0·53 0·35 0·68 0·11 0·32 0·29 0·19 0·20
Al2O3 0·02 15·84 16·17 16·53 14·94 16·88 14·17 15·15 13·59 14·96 15·30 16·36 15·17 12·97 14·97 11·27 13·47 12·15 12·67 12·01 13·16
Fe2O3 0·002 6·16 7·97 6·22 5·78 6·35 6·62 3·38 6·67 6·22 5·06 3·02 4·32 6·11 3·49 4·78 1·56 2·45 1·75 1·93 2·66
MnO 0·02 0·05 0·03 0·09 0·09 0·16 0·08 0·04 0·11 0·10 0·07 0·02 0·05 0·09 0·03 0·08 0·02 0·03 0·02 0·03 0·03
MgO 0·03 4·26 2·01 4·36 2·97 1·92 2·93 0·76 4·20 2·52 1·71 1·65 1·55 0·88 1·91 1·25 2·94 2·71 0·37 0·39 0·77
CaO 0·02 3·41 3·07 4·36 7·48 1·89 2·57 6·41 3·76 4·10 5·93 1·92 2·29 3·60 1·11 1·56 0·27 0·16 0·92 0·25 1·79
Na2O 0·02 5·25 6·28 3·79 2·57 6·20 5·02 6·11 5·12 3·94 4·40 3·02 4·63 3·78 3·62 4·70 1·84 1·20 4·96 0·90 3·89
K2O 0·005 0·75 0·65 0·56 0·41 0·48 1·18 0·11 0·91 1·58 0·24 4·06 1·63 1·72 3·03 3·15 2·76 3·83 2·76 8·89 2·48
P2O5 0·01 0·13 0·18 0·11 0·09 0·15 0·11 0·11 0·13 0·13 0·14 0·10 0·12 0·13 0·08 0·14 0·03 0·06 0·08 0·04 0·06
LOI 4·17 3·39 3·44 3·11 3·94 2·66 3·31 2·04 2·44 1·89 2·55 2·25 1·58 2·23 2·02 2·87 2·92 0·69 0·44 0·90
Total 98·14 99·69 99·73 98·34 99·85 98·16 98·10 99·60 99·54 98·87 99·13 99·71 98·87 98·89 99·41 97·93 98·79 98·06 98·74 99·90
MAGMATIC EVOLUTION AND TECTONIC SETTING OF THE IBERIAN PYRITE BELT
 Table 1: continued
Method Detec. limits FP-84 FP-144 FP-83 FP-101 FP-100 FP-97 FP-154 FP-95 FP-94 FP-93 FP-19 FP-134 FP-27 FP-17 FP-5 FP-49 FP-137 FP-22 FP-133 FP-79

Recalculated 100%
water free
SiO2 60·99 61·35 61·83 63·31 63·70 64·92 65·51 63·81 64·63 65·35 68·33 69·13 69·36 70·43 71·64 75·80 76·10 75·55 74·96 74·71
TiO2 0·85 0·89 0·78 0·65 0·82 0·86 0·65 0·84 0·81 0·77 0·47 0·34 0·54 0·36 0·70 0·12 0·33 0·30 0·19 0·20
Al2O3 16·86 16·79 17·17 15·69 17·60 14·84 15·98 13·93 15·41 15·78 16·94 15·57 13·33 15·49 11·57 14·17 12·67 13·01 12·22 13·29
Fe2O3 6·56 8·28 6·46 6·07 6·62 6·93 3·57 6·84 6·41 5·22 3·13 4·43 6·28 3·61 4·91 1·64 2·56 1·80 1·96 2·69
MnO 0·05 0·03 0·09 0·09 0·17 0·08 0·04 0·11 0·10 0·07 0·02 0·05 0·09 0·03 0·08 0·02 0·03 0·02 0·03 0·03
MgO 4·53 2·09 4·53 3·12 2·00 3·07 0·80 4·31 2·60 1·76 1·71 1·59 0·90 1·98 1·28 3·09 2·83 0·38 0·40 0·78
CaO 3·63 3·19 4·53 7·85 1·97 2·69 6·76 3·85 4·22 6·11 1·99 2·35 3·70 1·15 1·60 0·28 0·17 0·94 0·25 1·81
JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY

Na2O 5·59 6·52 3·94 2·70 6·46 5·26 6·45 5·25 4·06 4·54 3·13 4·75 3·89 3·75 4·83 1·94 1·25 5·09 0·92 3·93
K2O 0·80 0·67 0·58 0·43 0·50 1·24 0·12 0·93 1·63 0·25 4·20 1·67 1·77 3·13 3·23 2·90 3·99 2·83 9·04 2·51
P2O5 0·14 0·19 0·11 0·09 0·16 0·12 0·12 0·13 0·13 0·14 0·10 0·12 0·13 0·08 0·14 0·03 0·06 0·08 0·04 0·06
Total 99·99 100·00 100·02 100·01 100·00 100·00 100·00 100·00 100·00 100·00 100·01 100·00 100·00 100·01 99·99 100·00 100·00 100·01 100·02 100·00

736
Ba 3 p.p.m. 146 125 196 94 89 173 37 201 351 64 467 378 347 390 408 627 246 420 413 663
Sr 1 p.p.m. 182 220 288 180 153 102 675 81 200 126 119 153 158 76 185 35 30 125 28 148
Y 1 p.p.m. 27 16 26 27 29 25 22 28 35 30 29 46 82 30 72 49 25 35 74 42
VOLUME 38

Zr 3 p.p.m. 125 91 114 115 167 133 100 115 148 154 114 172 195 73 171 58 150 70 273 169
XRF pressed pellet Ga 5 p.p.m. 19 10 25 17 16 20 15 14 20 22 28 21 26 25 21 23 16 13 21 28
Sn 5 p.p.m. <5 7 10 7 6 7 <5 7 7 11 5 <5 8 <5 11 8 <5 <5 10 6
S 50 p.p.m. <50 <50 <50 <50 <50 <50 <50 <50 <50 <50 <50 <50 280 <50 <50 <50 535 <50 < 50 <50
Nb 2 p.p.m. 7 8 8 8 8 7 4 7 10 11 9 9 11 6 17 7 7 6 15 8
NUMBER 6

Rb 2 p.p.m. 34 20 24 13 21 35 4 28 54 6 165 68 39 79 117 157 132 58 148 39

Total digestion ICP Cu 1 p.p.m. 2 32 11 8 7 17 10 18 13 12 10 7 6 2 8 2 7 3 2 7
Pb 5 p.p.m. <5 9 5 7 14 12 9 12 23 24 20 39 16 <5 17 <5 <5 10 14 20
Zn 1 p.p.m. 74 78 77 59 138 79 22 69 73 60 95 81 98 30 87 38 35 24 80 40
Ag 0·5 p.p.m. 0·5 <0·4 <0·4 0·4 <0·4 <0·4 0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4
Ni 1 p.p.m. 9 16 16 13 2 2 4 16 11 8 8 7 3 5 3 4 4 3 3 5
JUNE 1997

Cd 0·5 p.p.m. <0·5 <0·5 0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 0·6 <0·5 <0·5 0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 0·5 <0·5
V 1 p.p.m. 103 67 124 129 90 97 102 120 98 83 42 19 2 48 32 4 42 18 <1 7
Be 2 p.p.m. <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 2 <2 2 <2 3 2 <2 <2 <2 <2
 INAA Au (p.p.b.) 5 p.p.b. 13 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 17 <5
MITJAVILA et al.

As 1 p.p.m. 5 <2 23 <2 4 3 <2 <2 <2 <2 10 25 9 <2 6 2 14 2 <2 <2
Co 0·1 p.p.m. 21 21 19 38 14 19 30 29 27 25 36 30 64 37 38 48 21 51 40 37
Cr 0·5 p.p.m. 62 14 130 82 18 42 23 170 66 29 11 8 <1 7 <1 <1 <2 <1 <2 <2
Cs 0·2 p.p.m. 1 0·9 <0·5 <0·5 1 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 11 1·8 1·4 3·5 1·1 9·4 2 1·2 1 <0·5
Hf 0·2 p.p.m. 1·6 3·2 3·6 3·7 3·7 3·3 2·6 3·5 4·4 4·3 6 5·3 9·6 4·5 8·5 4·9 3·9 4·1 8·3 2·7
Sb 0·1 p.p.m. 2 0·4 3·7 0·4 0·3 0·3 0·3 0·3 0·3 0·4 7·8 1·1 0·4 0·5 0·7 0·7 1 0·4 <0·2 0·3
Sc 0·01 p.p.m. 20 17 25 25 19 26 15 25 21 19 14 11 16 12 12 7·2 12 8·2 11 8·8
Ta 0·3 p.p.m. <1 <1 2 2 <1 <1 1 <1 2 2 2 <1 4 2 2 2 1 3 2 2
Th 0·1 p.p.m. 5·1 1·5 4·8 4·4 5·3 4·3 2·1 3·5 6·5 6·4 12 11 8·7 5·2 14 15 6·9 7·9 11 6
U 0·1 p.p.m. 1·4 0·6 2·3 1·3 0·9 0·8 1 0·8 2 1·9 3·1 2·6 1·9 1·7 3 3 2·1 2·3 4 1·1
La 0·5 p.p.m. 17·2 9·5 15·1 16·4 16·1 18 9·7 12·2 23·5 22·2 29 29·6 31 16·1 44·3 35·2 15·4 21·1 38·3 74·8
Ce 1 p.p.m. 38 21 34 38 32 39 24 31 50 44 66 59 71 36 98 72 17 47 89 47
Nd 1 p.p.m. 20 12 15 14 16 19 12 20 23 18 30 24 36 15 46 41 15 20 43 21
Sm 0·01 p.p.m. 3·6 3 3·5 3·3 3·7 4·1 2·9 3·7 4·8 4·1 6·1 5·5 9 3 10 7·2 3·1 4·3 9·2 4·6
Eu 0·05 p.p.m. 0·9 1 1 0·8 0·9 0·9 0·7 0·8 1·2 1 1·2 1·1 2·1 0·8 1·5 0·8 0·6 0·9 1·7 1
Tb 0·1 p.p.m. 0·7 <0·5 0·9 0·6 0·7 0·9 0·8 <0·5 0·8 0·9 1·1 1·1 2·1 0·7 2 1·5 0·7 1·1 2·2 1·2

737
Yb 0·05 p.p.m. 2·5 1·4 2·5 2·4 2·7 2·5 1·6 2·6 3·1 2·7 2·8 3·9 8·1 3·3 7·3 4·7 3 3·3 7·2 3·5
Lu 0·01 p.p.m. 0·37 0·23 0·38 0·35 0·37 0·39 0·19 0·38 0·44 0·4 0·38 0·58 1·22 0·52 1·03 0·69 0·47 0·46 1·04 0·53

Method Detec. limits FP-78 FP-128 FP-29 FP-130 FP-111 FP-122 FP-131 FP-121 FP-46 FP-127 FP-112 FP-113 FP-45 FP-129 FP-25 FP-107 FP-110 FP-28 FP-52

SiO2 0·05 73·99 74·92 75·05 75·19 75·41 75·70 75·82 76·06 76·24 76·34 76·72 77·03 77·04 78·13 78·21 79·27 80·11 82·61 64·50
TiO2 0·05 0·18 0·14 0·38 0·17 0·06 0·14 0·16 0·12 0·26 0·14 0·05 0·06 0·25 0·13 0·14 0·12 0·10 0·10 0·38
Al2O3 0·02 12·29 11·65 10·38 12·81 11·50 13·97 11·41 12·41 12·07 10·97 11·88 12·26 11·77 10·55 11·37 11·04 12·13 9·24 15·16
Fe2O3 0·002 3·40 2·94 2·07 1·96 1·15 0·91 2·15 1·34 1·68 1·19 0·40 0·53 1·42 1·62 1·08 0·37 0·49 1·01 4·09
MnO 0·02 0·02 0·03 0·02 0·01 0·01 <0·01 0·01 0·04 0·03 <0·01 <0·01 <0·01 0·02 0·03 0·01 <0·01 <0·01 <0·01 0·03
MgO 0·03 2·82 3·11 2·20 2·35 1·48 0·49 0·10 0·24 0·33 0·22 0·59 0·36 0·30 0·25 0·05 0·22 0·72 0·07 4·07
CaO 0·02 0·31 0·54 0·69 1·90 0·08 0·16 0·41 0·20 1·94 0·09 0·06 0·09 0·33 0·35 <0·01 0·22 0·19 0·41 0·83
Na2O 0·02 0·99 1·18 2·19 1·37 1·01 4·56 3·68 4·28 4·54 1·83 1·09 2·19 4·32 1·18 4·31 3·15 0·25 4·94 0·56
K2O 0·005 2·66 2·34 4·58 1·00 6·94 2·16 4·22 4·04 1·11 6·17 6·90 5·98 2·07 6·52 3·83 4·82 3·33 0·32 4·39
P2O5 0·01 0·06 0·08 0·06 0·09 0·02 0·04 0·04 0·04 0·07 0·06 0·03 0·03 0·06 0·07 0·02 0·03 0·03 0·02 0·05
LOI 3·12 2·78 1·79 1·95 1·89 1·69 0·33 0·64 0·88 1·10 1·21 1·15 1·23 0·77 0·56 0·69 2·27 0·59 4·00
Total 99·84 99·71 99·42 98·80 99·53 99·82 98·33 99·40 99·15 98·11 98·93 99·68 98·82 99·58 99·59 99·93 99·62 99·31 98·06
MAGMATIC EVOLUTION AND TECTONIC SETTING OF THE IBERIAN PYRITE BELT
 Table 1: continued
Method Detec. limits FP-78 FP-128 FP-29 FP-130 FP-111 FP-122 FP-131 FP-121 FP-46 FP-127 FP-112 FP-113 FP-45 FP-129 FP-25 FP-107 FP-110 FP-28 FP-52

Recalculated 100%
water free
SiO2 76·50 77·29 76·87 77·64 77·23 77·14 77·37 77·01 77·58 78·69 78·51 78·18 78·94 79·07 78·98 79·88 82·29 83·68 68·57
TiO2 0·19 0·14 0·39 0·18 0·06 0·14 0·16 0·12 0·26 0·14 0·05 0·06 0·26 0·13 0·14 0·12 0·10 0·10 0·40
Al2O3 12·71 12·02 10·63 13·23 11·78 14·24 11·64 12·57 12·28 11·31 12·16 12·44 12·06 10·68 11·48 11·12 12·46 9·36 16·12
Fe2O3 3·52 3·03 2·12 2·02 1·18 0·93 2·19 1·36 1·71 1·23 0·41 0·54 1·46 1·64 1·09 0·37 0·50 1·02 4·35
MnO 0·02 0·03 0·02 0·01 0·01 0·01 0·01 0·04 0·03 0·01 0·01 0·01 0·02 0·03 0·01 0·01 0·01 0·01 0·03
MgO 2·92 3·21 2·25 2·43 1·52 0·50 0·10 0·24 0·34 0·23 0·60 0·37 0·31 0·25 0·05 0·22 0·74 0·07 4·33
CaO 0·32 0·56 0·71 1·96 0·08 0·16 0·42 0·20 1·97 0·09 0·06 0·09 0·34 0·35 0·01 0·22 0·20 0·42 0·88
JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY

Na2O 1·02 1·22 2·24 1·41 1·03 4·65 3·76 4·33 4·62 1·89 1·12 2·22 4·43 1·19 4·35 3·17 0·26 5·00 0·60
K2O 2·75 2·41 4·69 1·03 7·11 2·20 4·31 4·09 1·13 6·36 7·06 6·07 2·12 6·60 3·87 4·86 3·42 0·32 4·67
P2O5 0·06 0·08 0·06 0·09 0·02 0·04 0·04 0·04 0·07 0·06 0·03 0·03 0·06 0·07 0·02 0·03 0·03 0·02 0·05
Total 100·00 100·00 99·99 100·00 100·02 100·01 100·00 100·01 100·00 100·01 100·01 100·01 99·99 100·02 100·00 100·01 100·01 100·01 100·00

738
Ba 3 p.p.m. 265 549 414 157 420 67 303 412 158 605 431 442 205 385 486 329 134 144 424
Sr 1 p.p.m. 42 38 75 141 23 23 55 27 157 54 27 23 39 45 37 74 11 86 13
Y 1 p.p.m. 30 64 31 65 51 58 65 39 35 65 56 50 37 57 50 28 37 62 77
VOLUME 38

Zr 3 p.p.m. 164 133 84 176 78 110 261 96 69 88 80 83 71 160 120 135 88 48 202
XRF pressed pellet Ga 5 p.p.m. 19 23 13 26 22 20 24 20 17 22 22 15 15 23 20 8 22 10 23
Sn 5 p.p.m. 9 8 8 14 <5 5 7 9 <5 9 10 12 <5 12 9 7 <5 6 <5
S 50 p.p.m. <50 <50 1405 <50 <50 <50 <50 205 <50 <50 <50 <50 <50 <50 <50 170 <50 <50 <50
Nb 2 p.p.m. 6 15 6 19 9 7 15 5 6 17 9 10 8 15 14 8 6 10 14
NUMBER 6

Rb 2 p.p.m. 67 111 125 34 160 105 75 106 50 153 189 182 77 163 71 80 135 19 210
Total digestion ICP Cu 1 p.p.m. 6 8 12 11 3 2 2 <1 2 2 2 2 3 2 2 6 2 32 2
Pb 5 p.p.m. <5 24 22 20 14 <5 9 9 12 7 <5 <5 <5 15 6 5 5 6 <5
Zn 1 p.p.m. 47 100 86 102 34 17 38 39 19 20 16 2 20 58 48 5 15 12 63
Ag 0·5 p.p.m. <0·4 <0·4 0·5 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4 <0·4
Ni 1 p.p.m. 2 4 3 4 3 2 4 4 2 2 4 2 3 3 2 2 3 2 2
JUNE 1997

Cd 0·5 p.p.m. <0·5 0·5 1·8 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5 <0·5
V 1 p.p.m. 5 2 40 3 <1 5 3 5 15 2 <1 3 7 <1 2 2 <1 3 9
Be 2 p.p.m. <2 2 <2 2 2 <2 <2 <2 2 <2 2 <2 <2 2 2 <2 2 2 2
 MITJAVILA et al.

INAA Au (p.p.b.) 5 p.p.b. <5 <5 <5 5 11 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 17 9 <5 <5 <5 <5 13 <5 <5
As 1 p.p.m. <2 <2 110 16 <2 <2 2 12 2 2 <2 <2 19 2 3 <2 <2 <2 3
Co 0·1 p.p.m. 26 20 44 23 54 54 64 44 49 58 28 25 41 48 69 70 35 73 14
Cr 0·5 p.p.m. <2 <2 <1 <2 <2 <2 <2 <2 <1 <1 <2 <2 <1 <2 <1 <2 <2 <1 <1
Cs 0·2 p.p.m. 2·2 3·7 2 2·3 4 3 <0·5 1 2·6 1·9 3 1·9 3·9 3 1·1 0·8 10 <0·5 9·9
Hf 0·2 p.p.m. 5·3 5·9 4 7·1 3·7 4·8 9 4·4 3·8 5·3 3·1 4 4 6 7·2 4·6 4·1 <0·5 11
Sb 0·1 p.p.m. 0·2 1 2·4 3·1 1·4 0·9 0·7 0·7 0·9 0·9 1·7 <0·2 2 0·7 1·4 0·7 6·8 0·3 1·4
Sc 0·01 p.p.m. 8·5 15 11 17 6·7 6·3 5·2 4·5 6·8 15 7 7·1 5·6 13 2·9 4·9 6·2 2·3 18
Ta 0·3 p.p.m. 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 2 2 3 2 2 1 3 4 4 2 4 2
Th 0·1 p.p.m. 7·1 12 6·6 14 15 16 11 14 7·9 12 15 13 6·2 11 9·7 8·8 14 9·1 13

739
U 0·1 p.p.m. 1·7 3·6 3·4 3·1 4·4 2·9 1·9 3·8 2 3 4·4 3 2 3·5 2·4 3·6 3·4 2·3 2·1
La 0·5 p.p.m. 15·2 32·3 14·3 38·7 20·9 51·2 33·3 28·7 17·6 32·3 22·2 5·9 17·8 32·4 34·2 13·1 18·6 25·1 41·3
Ce 1 p.p.m. 33 74 33 78 51 101 77 62 37 74 48 17 38 74 69 34 47 56 92
Nd 1 p.p.m. 15 36 14 48 24 44 42 28 17 33 29 6 16 38 35 18 15 21 44
Sm 0·01 p.p.m. 3·5 8·1 3·2 9·9 6·3 9 8·5 5·2 3·6 8 6·7 2·1 3·9 8·1 8·1 4·4 3·1 6 8·9
Eu 0·05 p.p.m. 0·7 1·3 0·8 1·6 0·4 1 1·6 0·5 0·5 1·1 0·4 0·2 0·7 1·1 1·3 0·7 0·3 0·5 1·7
Tb 0·1 p.p.m. 1 1·9 0·7 2·1 1·5 1·5 2 1·1 0·9 1·4 1·6 1·2 0·9 1·9 1·6 1 1·2 1·6 1·9
Yb 0·05 p.p.m. 3·9 6·3 2·9 6·8 6 5·3 6·5 4 2·8 5·8 6·1 5·4 3·4 5·6 5 3·4 4·5 5·7 6·7
Lu 0·01 p.p.m. 0·6 0·91 0·42 0·99 0·87 0·75 0·93 0·6 0·4 0·86 0·89 0·78 0·53 0·78 0·69 0·45 0·63 0·81 1·04
MAGMATIC EVOLUTION AND TECTONIC SETTING OF THE IBERIAN PYRITE BELT
 Table 2: Isotopic compositions of Sr and Nd for the selected 12 samples
87 87 87
Sample Rb (p.p.m.) Sr (p.p.m.) Sr/86Sr(0) 2r Rb/86Sr eSr(0) f(Rb/Sr) Sr/86Sr(368 Ma) eSr(368)

FP-91 Basalt 0·27 412·78 0·703884 18 0·00190 −8·742 −0·9770 0·703874 −2·74
FP-40 Basalt 16·94 591·93 0·703775 18 0·08275 −10·3 0·0006 0·703342 −10·30
FP-20 Basalt 69·71 864·07 0·704526 18 0·23333 0·3718 1·8214 0·703304 −10·82
FP-15 Basalt 4·74 386·91 0·704491 16 0·03546 −0·122 −0·5712 0·704305 3·39
FP-102 Andesite 47·81 342·79 0·706687 16 0·40347 31·047 3·8787 0·704573 7·21
FP-154 Andesite 1·64 759·37 0·704237 16 0·00624 −3·732 −0·9245 0·704204 1·95
FP-83 Andesite 19·17 358·46 0·705480 2 0·15468 13·907 0·8704 0·704670 8·56
FP-5 Dacite 113·99 189·55 0·713245 16 1·74077 124·13 20·0492 0·704125 0·91
FP-27 Dacite 46·60 173·27 0·708350 18 0·77818 54·643 8·4097 0·704273 2·96
JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY

FP-46 Rhyolite 46·36 150·51 0·710941 16 0·89145 91·428 9·7793 0·706270 31·33
FP-130 Rhyolite 34·46 157·9 0·709951 18 0·63163 77·375 6·6376 0·706642 36·58
FP-79 Rhyolite 34·50 157·27 0·708287 16 0·63474 53·752 6·6752 0·704961 12·73

740
143 145 147 143
Sample Sm (p.p.m.) Nd (p.p.m.) Nd/144Nd(0) 2r Nd/144Nd 2r Nd/144Nd eNd(0) f(Sm/Nd) Nd/144Nd(368 Ma) eNd(368)
VOLUME 38

FP-91 Basalt 3·77 13·27 0·512789 13 0·348393 1 0·1718 2·938 −0·1263 0·512375 4·10
FP-40 Basalt 1·90 6·03 0·512809 7 0·348441 3 0·1904 3·337 −0·0315 0·512350 3·63
FP-20 Basalt 0·92 2·05 0·512713 11 0·348527 5 0·2713 1·459 0·3797 0·512059 −2·05
FP-15 Basalt 2·25 8·68 0·512686 28 0·348454 3 0·1569 0·938 −0·2019 0·512308 2·80
NUMBER 6

FP-102 Andesite 4·70 20·66 0·512461 9 0·348449 5 0·1376 −3·454 −0·3001 0·512129 −0·68
FP-154 Andesite 2·26 10·86 0·512511 22 0·348436 6 0·1257 −2·476 −0·3606 0·512208 0·85
FP-83 Andesite 4·14 18·68 0·512425 1 0·348432 13 0·1339 −4·156 −0·3189 0·512102 −1·21
FP-5 Dacite 5·10 18·90 0·512497 1 0·348391 6 0·1632 −2·75 −0·1701 0·512104 −1·18
FP-27 Dacite 9·89 39·12 0·512649 8 0·348421 3 0·1528 0·207 −0·2226 0·512281 2·26
JUNE 1997

FP-46 Rhyolite 2·79 13·94 0·512379 8 0·348416 3 0·1209 −5·048 −0·3852 0·512088 −1·49
FP-130 Rhyolite 4·26 16·41 0·512462 6 0·348426 3 0·1571 −3·433 −0·2008 0·512083 −1·58
FP-79 Rhyolite 4·49 20·55 0·512453 9 0·348418 3 0·1320 −3·601 −0·3285 0·512135 −0·57
 MITJAVILA et al. MAGMATIC EVOLUTION AND TECTONIC SETTING OF THE IBERIAN PYRITE BELT
constrain the changes caused by the alteration processes
on the primary geochemistry of the Iberian Pyrite Belt
volcanic rocks, and to evaluate the relative mobility
of chemical elements, factor analysis of the principal
components has been used. This method has been largely
used to reveal the elemental association that, in this
case, could be an indication of remobilization owing to
secondary processes (Howarth & Sinding-Larsen, 1983).
The factors obtained give some clues that confirm the
mobility of some elements, already deduced by pet-
rography and geochemistry. Thus, Na, Pb, Co, Si, Al,
K, Ba and Cu, and to a smaller degree Rb, Mg, Ni, Sr,
Cr and Th, should be considered as mobile elements,
i.e. elements redistributed during secondary alteration in
the Iberian Pyrite Belt. The mobility of some of these
elements differs depending on the rock type. A similar
situation is found in other palaeovolcanic areas [see, e.g.
Thorpe et al. (1993)].
General classification and description of
geochemical data
The chemical compositions of the studied volcanic rocks
are shown in Table 1. Major element analyses have been
recalculated on a 100% water free basis to minimize the
effects of alteration by removing variations owing to
different loss on ignition values. The Nb/Y vs Zr/TiO2
variation diagram (Fig. 5; Winchester & Floyd, 1977) has
been used to establish a broad classification of the studied
volcanics. This diagram shows the existence of different
types of rocks, which have already been deduced in the
field and from the petrographical studies.
Major elements
Major element compositions of basaltic rocks from the
Spanish sector of the Iberian Pyrite Belt (see Table 1)
indicate that most of them are sub-alkaline basalts and
that a few samples show a slightly alkaline affinity. This
is suggested by the relatively high TiO2 (>1·2) and P2O5
(~0·2) contents (see Table 1), the low contents in Zr and
the low (<2) Y/Nb ratio (Fig. 6). The presence of alkaline
and tholeiitic affinities in the basaltic rocks has also been
suggested for the Portuguese sector of the Iberian Pyrite
Belt (Munhá, 1983). Normative compositions, however,
indicate that no undersaturated basalts are present in the
studied samples, which are classified as saturated (olivine-
and hypersthene-normative) and oversaturated (quartz-
normative) basalts. This would suggest that all the basaltic
rocks analysed here are tholeiites. In this case, however,
the use of normative compositions is questionable as
they are highly influenced by the effects of secondary
alteration.
Basaltic rocks show characteristic positive correlation
between Fe2O3t/MgO vs TiO2 or Fe2O3t, which indicates
741
that these basalts do not show calc-alkaline fractionation
trends. Munhá (1983) found the same characteristics in
the basalts from the Portuguese sector of the Iberian
Pyrite Belt. The rest of the major elements show a high
dispersion of values, mainly those which are more mobile
during secondary alteration (Na, Ca, Al, etc.), whereas
K and P values are less varied. Some of the observed
variations may be primary, such as the contents in Ti
and Mg, which may reflect the fractionation of some
ferromagnesian minerals. These variations in Ti and Mg
are accompanied by strong variations in Ni and Cr, and
to a lesser degree Co, which agree with ferromagnesian
mineral fractionation.
Basaltic andesites and andesites can be distinguished by
their major element contents along with the petrographic
analysis. Only one sample analysed in this study is a
basaltic andesite: FP-119. It shows the highest Ti, Fe and
Mn contents of the andesitic group and the lowest K
content, whereas it shows intermediate concentrations of
Al, Ca and Na. The rest of the andesites show a clear
general decreasing trend for Ti, Fe and Mg, whereas the
silica content increases. Two groups of andesites can be
considered depending on their MgO content, which show
two divergent correlations with Ti, Fe and V contents.
Also, the Fe2O3t/MgO ratios vs Fe2O3t, Ti, Ti/V, etc.
show the same divergent correlations. Munhá (1983)
found similar subdivisions for the Portuguese andesites.
These two groups of andesites do not show any pref-
erential stratigraphic or geographic position.
The most evolved rocks in the Iberian Pyrite Belt
volcanism, which are volumetrically dominant, are rep-
resented by dacites and rhyolites. A gradual geochemical
transition exists between the two groups of rocks. Despite
the fact that secondary alteration has caused a significant
change in the original composition of these rocks, with
a high perturbation of the Al, K, Na and Si contents,
several general tendencies can be established. Ti, Fe, Ca
and P show an increasing depletion towards the most
evolved rocks, whereas no tendency is apparent for Na
and K. Mg is higher for the Si-poor rhyolites than for
the dacites or the Si-rich rhyolites. These differences in
Mg content are similar to those observed in the andesites,
and may reflect either compositional changes related to
the presence of secondary chlorite crystals or differences
in the composition of the source rocks.
Trace elements
Trace element compositions (Table 1) have been plotted
in a Hofmann diagram (Hofmann, 1988) where the
samples are normalized to primitive mantle but plotted
by their degree of compatibility in the continental crust,
which is a better way to visualize the influence of such
crust (Hofmann, 1988) (Fig. 7). In the basaltic rocks the
normalized concentrations of compatible elements (Ni,
 JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY
Fig. 5. Classification of the studied rocks on a Winchester & Floyd (1977) diagram.
Fig. 6. TiO2 vs Y/Nb diagram. Two samples fall in the alkaline field,
whereas the rest fall on the continental tholeiites and mid-ocean ridge
basalt (MORB) fields. Fields are after Floyd & Winchester (1975).
Mg, Co, Fe) show significant variations and positive
correlations among the different samples. On the other
hand, the variations observed in the normalized con-
centration of the incompatible elements (Rb, Pb, U, Th,
Ba, K) do not show any correlation among the different
samples of this group of rocks. The variation observed
in the compatible elements suggests differences in the
primary source of these basalts (differences in the source
or different degrees of partial melting), or fractionation
of ferromagnesian minerals which affects the contents of
Ni, Mg, Cr, etc. Thus, in Fig. 7, FP-80 and FP-114 plot
between the primitive mantle values and the continental
VOLUME 38 NUMBER 6 JUNE 1997
crust normalized values. They also have the highest
contents in Ni, Cr and Mg, suggesting that these samples
represent the most primitive basalts in the studied area,
and that they formed by high degrees of partial melting
of a peridotitic mantle source. Less primitive basalts (FP-
15, FP-16, FP-1097 and FP-20) have similar con-
centrations of compatible elements to the continental
crust but show higher normalized concentrations of the
incompatible elements than the average crust, without
any possible correlation. Their low contents of compatible
elements suggest that they originated by lower degrees
of partial melting, or that they suffered fractionation of
primitive minerals during their ascent. The incongruent
enrichment in incompatible elements suggests that these
basalts could also have assimilated continental crust. In
addition, secondary alteration may have had a moderate
influence on the content of some incompatible elements.
For instance, all the basaltic rocks show a negative
anomaly in Cu, which is clearly associated with a sec-
ondary origin related to the ore deposition process.
Trace element contents of andesitic rocks do not show
typical intermediate values between basalts and the more
evolved rocks. On the contrary, their trends appear to
be independent of the rest of the volcanic rocks from the
studied area. In some cases, trace element contents of
andesites are similar to the contents either of the basaltic
or the dacitic rocks. This suggests that andesites are not
related either to basalts or to dacites or rhyolites by
fractional crystallization.
742
MITJAVILA et al. MAGMATIC EVOLUTION AND TECTONIC SETTING OF THE IBERIAN PYRITE BELT

Fig. 7.

743
 JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 38 NUMBER 6 JUNE 1997

Fig. 7. Elements from all the studied rocks normalized to primitive mantle in order of incompatibility in the continental crust (Hofmann, 1988).
Average continental crust after Taylor & MacLennan (1985) has also been plotted for comparison as shaded circles. The basalts and rhyolites
have been plotted in separate diagrams to increase clarity.

Andesites are characterized by an irregular distribution
of highly incompatible elements (Fig. 7), absence of K
and Na anomalies (except for sample FP-150, which has
a positive anomaly in K and a negative one in Na), lower
Mg and Ni contents than the basalts, and a strong positive
anomaly of Sn and a negative anomaly of Cu. As with the
basaltic rocks, the behaviour of the highly incompatible
elements may indicate different source characteristics.
However, the original contents of Pb, U, Th, Rb and
Nb are clearly masked by secondary alteration. The
absence of Na and K anomalies implies that these ele-
ments were not highly mobilized. The anomalies in Sn
and Cu, which are found in nearly all rock types, are
clearly related to the ore-forming event.
Incompatible element contents of dacites and rhyolites
are extremely variable and they do not depend on the
silica content variation, i.e. samples with the same silica
content have large differences (hundreds of p.p.m.) of
Ba, Zr, Th, U, Hf, etc., in both rock types. Dacites are
the volcanic rocks from the Iberian Pyrite Belt which
show normalized concentrations (Fig. 7) of trace elements
closer to the average continental crust (see Taylor &
McLennan, 1985). However, many dacites are slightly
enriched in some incompatible elements with respect to
the continental crust. Samples FP-154, FP-93 and FP-
17, however, show extremely low values of Pb, Ba, K,
Nb, Sn and Sr. Most of the dacites show negative
anomalies in Ti and Cu, and a positive anomaly in Sn.
All the rhyolites show a very similar trend, with increasing
negative anomalies in Sr, Eu, Ti, Ca and Fe, and positive
anomalies in K and Sn as silica content increases (Fig.
7).

744
 MITJAVILA et al. MAGMATIC EVOLUTION AND TECTONIC SETTING OF THE IBERIAN PYRITE BELT
REE
In the REE normalized to chondrites (Nakamura, 1974)
diagram (Fig. 8) it is possible to observe that most of the
normalized concentrations of the basaltic rocks show a
relatively flat pattern and are limited by two extreme
samples (FP-20 and FP-80). Sample FP-20 shows the
highest fractionation between light REE (LREE) and
heavy REE (HREE) [(La/Lu)n=5·78], i.e. it has the
maximum La content and the minimum Lu content of
all the group. Sample FP-80, however, shows an almost
flat pattern with a positive Tb anomaly and a fractionation
value between Lan and Lun of 1·37. As has been indicated
before, FP-80 represents the most primitive basalt of the
studied area. The rest of the basalts show (La/Lu)n values
ranging from 1·68 to 4·95. This, together with the Eu/
Sm values (0·26–0·42), and the relative flat trends of the
REE normalized to chondrite, suggests that most of the
basaltic rocks from the Spanish sector of the Iberian
Pyrite Belt have the characteristics of tholeiites from
continental settings [see Cullers & Graff (1984) and
references therein]. Samples which show high LREE/
HREE ratios are those with a slightly alkaline affinity.
Basaltic andesites and andesites show, in general,
homogeneous patterns with low fractionation between
LREE and HREE. (La/Lu)n is 3·42 for the basaltic
andesite, and is slightly higher (3·91–4·83) for the andes-
ites (Fig. 8). The main difference among the REE patterns
of these rocks is the Eu anomaly. The basaltic andesite
and one andesite show no Eu anomaly (Fig. 8), whereas
the rest of the andesites show an increasing Eu anomaly
not related to any other geochemical feature, thus in-
dicating the existence of different original plagioclase
compositions in the andesitic group, or variations on f(O2)
during crystallization. These changes in the plagioclase
composition are not reflected in the other REE. Sample
FP-144 shows the same fractionation between LREE and
HREE but with very low values and with a straight
pattern (except for Lu). This feature may also indicate
differences in the source, but factor analysis suggests that
this sample has been significantly altered.
REE normalized diagrams of dacites and rhyolites (Fig.
8) show parallel patterns except for three samples of
rhyolite, which have irregular patterns. The fractionation
between LREE and HREE is (La/Lu)n=3·14–6·93 for
the dacites, and (La/Lu)n=2·48–5·26 for the rhyolites.
Two extreme rhyolitic samples have a value of 0·73
(sample FP-113) and 7·03 (sample FP-122). The Eu
anomaly is clearly defined and reaches a maximum value
in the intermediate members of the group. One dacitic
sample shows low normalized contents in Yb and Lu
(Fig. 8) with respect to the rest. These differences in the
Yb and Lu normalized contents have no equivalent in
the other elements, at least for the same samples, sug-
gesting that secondary alteration has probably masked
745
the primary character of these rocks. The parallelism
shown by most of the normalized patterns of the dacites
and rhyolites indicates the existence of different degrees
of partial melting in the formation of these two groups
of rocks, and precludes mixing or assimilation between
them. Only the previously mentioned anomalous rhy-
olites may have undergone such processes, as is reflected
by the REE normalized pattern.
Isotope geochemistry and age of the
Iberian Pyrite Belt volcanism
Sr and Nd isotopic compositions have been obtained in
12 selected samples comprising 4 basalts, 2 andesites, 3
dacites and 3 rhyolites. The results are shown in Table
2. Initial ratios, as well as e values, have been calculated
for the age of 368 Ma, as we will discuss below. The
constants used for all the calculations are: 87Sr/86SrUR
(0)=0·7045, 87Rb/86SrUR (0)=0·0827, kRb=1·42×10–11/
year for the Rb/Sr method, and 143Nd/144NdCHUR (0)=
0·511847, 143
Sm/144NdCHUR (0)=0·1967, kSm=
–12
6·54×10 /year for the Sm/Nd couple.
To constrain the age of the Iberian Pyrite Belt vol-
canism, several methods have been applied by different
workers (see Fig. 3 for details). The difficulty of dating
these rocks by isotopic means is that they have undergone
a low-grade metamorphism. Some of these radiometric
ages are those of the metamorphism, and others (see Fig.
3 for references) correspond to the age of the plutonic
rocks responsible for such metamorphism. Hamet &
Delcey (1971) obtained an Rb/Sr age of 376 Ma for a
group of six rhyolites from Portugal. This age has already
been recalculated with the new decay constant (kRb=
1·42×10–11/year) and is statistically indistinguishable
from our result (see below). Priem et al. (1978) dated the
metamorphism which affects the Volcano-Sedimentary
Complex in Portugal using the Rb/Sr method and ob-
tained an age of 308±10 Ma, after recalculating it with
the new decay constant. Dallmeyer et al. (1993), with the
use of the 40Ar/39Ar method, have obtained a cooling
age of 335–342 Ma for the intrusive bodies and the
associated low-grade metamorphism in the Ossa Morena
Zone. Finally, De la Rosa et al. (1993) have obtained an
errorchrone for pluton emplacement at the north of the
South Portuguese Zone by including in their data the
age obtained by Dallmeyer et al. (1993) in adjacent units.
In this study, whole-rock K–Ar dating has been per-
formed on some samples to check the possibility of using
this method with the less altered samples or at least to
date the metamorphic phase. All the ages obtained are
younger than the age of the metamorphism itself. This
suggests that Ar has been removed (and probably K has
been added) also after the metamorphic phase, as a
continuous process. Thus K–Ar ages in this case have
 JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY

746
VOLUME 38
NUMBER 6
JUNE 1997

Fig. 8. REE normalized to chondrites after Nakamura (1974) for the studied rocks.
 MITJAVILA et al. MAGMATIC EVOLUTION AND TECTONIC SETTING OF THE IBERIAN PYRITE BELT
no geological meaning and no further discussion of these
results will be presented here.
Using the isochron method with the Sr isotopic com-
position on whole-rock samples, divided into basaltic and
calc-alkaline rocks, we have obtained an age of 368±64
(1r error) Ma for the calc-alkaline suite (andesites, dacites
and rhyolites). This isochron age was calculated using
the Model 3 solution of the Yorkfit calculation, which
assumes that scatter is due to analytical error plus nor-
mally distributed error in initial 87Sr/86Sr, i.e. it takes
into account not only the analytical error, but also the
geological error. The basaltic rocks alone, however, give
ages inconsistent with the stratigraphy and with very
high 1r errors.
Using the Nd isotopic composition, the isochron age
is 369±150 Ma. This calculation assumes Model 3, as
before, and is the isochron for all the samples studied
independently of their composition. If the age is calculated
by groups of rocks (calc-alkaline and basalts separately)
the ages obtained are meaningless and the 1r errors are
larger than the age itself. In contrast to the use of two
different isochrons calculated with the Rb/Sr method,
the use of a single Sm/Nd age for all samples can be
accepted, because the decay of Rb into Sr is twice as
fast as the decay of Sm into Nd. Thus, for the age that
we are studying (368 Ma) and for the Sm/Nd method,
it is possible to consider all the samples as members of
the same group.
The age obtained, 368±62 Ma, is statistically in agree-
ment with the ages obtained by other workers (Fig. 3)
using radiometric and palaeontological methods. The
high 1r error on the final age is probably related to the
high dispersion of isotopic values owing to the use of
different rock types from different stratigraphic units.
DISCUSSION OF RESULTS
Temporal and spatial evolution of
volcanism
According to Instituto Geológico y Minero de España
(1982) and Oliveira (1990), the volcanism of the Iberian
Pyrite Belt has been divided into five volcanic episodes:
(1) initial acid volcanism; (2) basic volcanism; (3) middle
acid volcanism; (4) upper acid volcanism; (5) intrusive
diabases. This division is based on the stratigraphic
position of volcanic rocks, their petrographic texture, and
the occurrence of sediments between volcanic packages.
Thus, two volcanic rocks separated by a sedimentary
interval in any stratigraphic section have, until now, been
interpreted as two different volcanic events in time,
the highest stratigraphic position corresponding to the
youngest volcanic event.
Most of the volcanics in the Iberian Pyrite Belt are
shallow intrusives, ranging in depth from tens of metres
747
below the sea-floor up to 1000 m (Soriano, 1997). Thus,
their apparent position in the stratigraphic sequence does
not necessarily indicate a time relation with other volcanic
rocks in the same section. Also, many of these shallow
intrusions show interfingering with the host sediments
and give the appearance, in the same stratigraphic profile,
of different intrusive events. In addition, some of the
former volcanic episodes were defined based on the
general assumption that some of them were represented
by primary pyroclastic rocks. However, a detailed study
of the field relationships and textures of the volcanic
rocks has revealed that nearly all the volcanic rocks from
the Spanish sector of the Iberian Pyrite Belt are intrusive
with some minor extrusive silicic domes which have
produced small lavas and associated hydroclastic vol-
canogenic deposits (Soriano, 1997).
Field characteristics of the calc-alkaline and basaltic
intrusives indicate that they were emplaced nearly always
at very shallow depths into wet sediments (Boulter, 1993a,
1993b; Soriano, 1997). Volcanic intrusions reached rel-
ative higher positions in the stratigraphic succession as
sedimentation progressed and, consequently, as the thick-
ness of sediments increased (Soriano, 1997). This fact,
together with the presence of some lavas and volcanogenic
sediments interbedded at different levels of the Volcano-
Sedimentary Complex, suggests that volcanism was more
or less continuous during the entire deposition of the
volcano-sedimentary package, which covers a time span
of ~30 m.y. (see Fig. 3).
The calc-alkaline rocks show a preferential distribution
in the stratigraphic sequence depending on their pa-
laeogeographic position. They are preferentially con-
centrated towards the top of the stratigraphic series in
the north and northeast of the Iberian Pyrite Belt, whereas
intermediate and silicic volcanics appear mainly at the
base of the stratigraphic sequence in the south and
southwest of the Spanish sector of the Iberian Pyrite Belt.
The different positions in the stratigraphic sequence of
calc-alkaline rocks do not necessarily indicate the ex-
istence of different volcanic episodes affecting the whole
Iberian Pyrite Belt. More probably, these differences
represent a migration of the focus of calc-alkaline vol-
canism to the northeast, as suggested by Monteiro &
Carvalho (1987), probably related to the asynchronicity
in the opening of the main fractures that controlled
the subsidence of the sedimentary basins. This is also
indicated by the irregular structure of the basin and by
the migration of the depocentres (Soriano, 1997).
The basaltic rocks, which are most commonly intrusive,
do not show any stratigraphic or palaeogeographic con-
trol and appear throughout the stratigraphic sequence
of the Volcano-Sedimentary Complex. In the Portuguese
sector, Munhá (1983) found a stratigraphic control in
the distribution of tholeiitic and alkaline basalts, which
 JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 38
were concentrated at the base and the top of the strati-
graphic sequence, respectively. This relationship, how-
ever, has not been observed in the Spanish sector, where
basaltic rocks with both affinities appear as intrusives in
any part of the stratigraphic sequence.
Therefore, the previous division of the Iberian Pyrite
Belt volcanism into several volcanic episodes should be
abandoned, at least for the Spanish sector, as it has no
meaning in terms of magmatic and volcanic evolution.
Based on palaeogeographic distribution, stratigraphic po-
sition, petrography and field textures (Soriano, 1997), we
consider the volcanism of the Iberian Pyrite Belt as a
continuous, long-lived, volcanic episode which resulted
from a magmatic event coeval with the tectonic processes
that controlled the formation of basins where the Iberian
Pyrite Belt sedimentary succession was deposited. Differ-
ent pulses may logically be distinguished in this volcanism,
suggesting the existence of alternating active and less
active periods. However, this does not indicate any
change in the tectonic conditions that caused this vol-
canism or in the nature of its products. The geodynamic
framework of this volcanism and the origin of the as-
sociated sedimentary basins are discussed in a later sec-
tion.
Origin of basalts
The trace elements and REE compositions and the high
Sr/Nd values (>20) shown by some of the basaltic rocks
from the Iberian Pyrite Belt suggest that they originated
in the asthenospheric mantle (see Zindler et al., 1981).
These basalts are the most primitive of the studied area
and derive from different mantle sources that can be
internally related to the E- and N-MORBs by a single
mixing model calculation (Figs 9 and 10). The rest of the
basaltic rocks may be explained by assimilation–fractional
crystallization (AFC) processes or more likely by mixing of
the mantle-derived basaltic magmas with crustal materials
(Figs 9 and 10). They have lower Sr/Nd values, which
indicate that they fractionated plagioclase, assimilated
crustal material or assimilated magmas derived from
crustal melts.
The influence of continental crust on the primary
magmas of some of the basaltic rocks from the Iberian
Pyrite Belt is also shown on the Ce/Nb–Th/Nb diagram
and by the ratio Th/Nb (Figs 10 and 11). The Ce/
Nb–Th/Nb diagram (Fig. 10) shows how almost all the
basaltic samples plot inside an area that represents mixing
between E-MORB, N-MORB and continental crust.
Isotopic compositions confirm mixing as the most plaus-
ible mechanism to explain the diversity of compositions
shown by the basaltic rocks from the Iberian Pyrite Belt
and their relationship with the other volcanic rocks (Figs
12 and 13).
748
NUMBER 6 JUNE 1997
Petrological and geochemical data presented in pre-
vious sections demonstrate that most of the basaltic rocks
from the Iberian Pyrite Belt have a tholeiitic affinity and
that a few samples show a slightly alkaline affinity. This
difference between the two types of basalts is indicated
by the Y/Nb values, by their TiO2 and P2O5 contents
(see Table 1), by the LREE–HREE fractionation, the
lack of mantle xenoliths or cumulates, and the absence
of normative Ne. The presence of both types of basalts
is common in different geodynamic settings and the
distinctive chemical features of tholeiites and alkaline
basalts are related to different degree of partial melting
from the same source region (Moore et al., 1995).
The mixing model between E- and N-MORB used to
explain the origin of the most primitive basaltic rocks
does not discriminate between the origin of both tholeiitic
and alkaline affinities in the same basaltic volcanism.
However, the existence of tholeiitic and alkaline affinities
may be explained by different degrees of partial melting
of a peridotitic mantle (see Carmichael et al., 1974; Hall,
1987; Wilson, 1989), as is suggested by the REE patterns
shown by the basaltic rocks studied here. The higher
degree of partial melting is reflected in the lower LREE/
HREE ratio of tholeiites with respect to that of the basalts
with a slightly alkaline affinity and by the flat patterns
of the normalized REE.
Origin of intermediate and silicic rocks
Trace elements and REE compositions of intermediate
and silicic rocks from the Iberian Pyrite Belt demonstrate
that they are not related by fractional crystallization
processes. Munhá (1983), using classical geochemical
data, also concluded that no fractional crystallization is
involved in the formation of the evolved rocks. That
researcher suggested that andesites directly derived from
partial melting of the mantle, but their high Sr content
precludes that possibility. Isotopic compositions reveal
that andesites (samples FP-83 and FP-102) fall in a more
evolved position than the dacites (Figs 12 and 13), having
very similar Nd isotope ratios to rhyolites but different
Sr isotope ratios. This suggests that the andesites may
have formed by direct mixing of mantle-derived basalts,
which follow the mantle array, with young upper-crust
material. Also, the Sr isotopic and absolute compositions,
and the Zr/Nb, La/Sm and Ce/Th (Figs 9 and 10), and
the low Sm/Nd ratios, confirm this point, as andesites
are numerically between FP-40 (or even FP-91) and
upper-crust average. The fact that andesites have higher
eSr and lower eNd than dacites implies that there is no
relation by fractional crystallization between andesites
and rhyolites through the dacites.
The high variation in eNd, Sr (p.p.m.), Rb (p.p.m.) and
Nd (p.p.m.), together with the low variation in eSr shown
 MITJAVILA et al. MAGMATIC EVOLUTION AND TECTONIC SETTING OF THE IBERIAN PYRITE BELT

Fig. 9. La/Sm normalized to chondrites vs Zr/Nb. The hyperbola represents a single mixing model with the end-members in sample FP-20
and N-MORB. The mixing line passes through E-MORB, and samples FP-40, FP-34, FP-31 and FP-80. Sample FP-20 is the most LREE–HREE
fractionated basalt (Fig. 12), with clear tholeiitic characteristics, whereas FP-80 is the more primitive of the studied rocks and has a flat REE
pattern (Fig. 12). From FP-80 and FP-31, two mixing or AFC lines depart towards sample FP-7 (one clearly contaminated basalt which also
falls in the field occupied by the rest of the samples, the continental crust, and the analysed sediment).

by the dacites, and the high variation on eSr with almost
no variation of eNd, Sr (p.p.m.) and Nd (p.p.m.) shown
by the rhyolites (Fig. 13), suggests that they are derived
by different degrees of partial melting of different crustal
rocks. Moreover, despite the fact that sample FP-5 (dacite)
has coincident Nd (p.p.m.) and eNd with FP-83 (andesite),
dacite samples appear not to be related by fractional
crystallization to any of the andesites. This last point is
demonstrated by the lower values in eSr of the dacites
with respect to the andesites and [for two dacites (FP-
27 and FP-154)] by the higher values of eNd with respect
to the andesites (Fig. 13). Furthermore, there is no relation
between dacites and rhyolites by fractional crystallization
(see Fig. 12). In contrast, the eSr of the analysed dacites
(Fig. 12) is nearly the same. This could suggest that
dacites are genetically related to them by fractional
crystallization and, as shown in Fig. 12, they can be
derived by the same process from a mixing product
between basalts and rhyolites. However, as we have seen,
the differences in concentration of some trace elements
and REE (mainly Sr), and the high variation of the eNd,
demonstrates that not all of the dacitic samples support
fractional crystallization as their genetic process. Thus,
most of the dacites, like the rhyolites, can each be
considered as an individual case of partial melting of
crustal material of different type (variations in Sr and
Nd concentrations) and age (differences in eSr and eNd).
Only samples FP-5 and FP-27 could be considered to be
generated by fractional crystallization processes from a
mixture between basalts and rhyolites.
The presence of high-silica content rhyolites is char-
acteristic of both sectors of the Iberian Pyrite Belt (Munhá,
1983; this work). Despite the fact that this high silica
content may be due to a secondary silicification [most
of these rocks have been classified as quartz keratophyres
by previous workers (Soler, 1980)], it may also be a
primary feature. This is also suggested by the fact that
the high-silica content rhyolites show the highest negative
Eu anomaly. Silica-rich rhyolites are typical of areas
with bimodal volcanism rather than being generated

749
 JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY
Fig. 10. Ce/Nb vs Th/Nb. This diagram demonstrates the influence
of continental crust on the evolution of some basaltic rocks from the
Iberian Pyrite Belt. Most of the basaltic samples plot inside a mixing
triangle with the three end-members E-MORB, N-MORB and average
continental crust (Taylor & MacLennan, 1985). Three samples (FP-
16, FP-15 and FP-7) fall out of the triangle towards an external end-
member, which for samples FP-15 and FP-16 could be the analysed
sediment, and for sample FP-7 could be an artefact owing to its
secondary modification.
by fractional crystallization processes from calc-alkaline
andesites (Christiansen & Lipman, 1972). We suggest
that the high silica content that characterizes some of
the Iberian Pyrite Belt rhyolites is a primary character
probably owing to differences in the source, consistent
with an origin by partial melting of upper crust driven
by basaltic magmas.
Therefore, geochemical and isotopic data presented in
this paper negate any relationship by pure fractional
crystallization between basalts, intermediate rocks and
silicic rocks. This fact, together with the volumetric
predominance of silicic rocks and the widespread oc-
currence of basaltic volcanism, suggests that in the Iberian
Pyrite Belt calc-alkaline silicic magmas were generated
on a large scale by the invasion of continental crust by
mafic magmas generated in the underlying upper mantle.
Mantle-derived magmas can provide large quantities of
heat for partial melting and assimilation of lower- and
upper-crustal rocks (Huppert & Sparks, 1988; Kaczor et
al., 1988; Grunder, 1995). The diversity of compositions
shown by dacites and rhyolites can be explained either
by differences in the composition of the source rocks or
by different degrees of partial melting of upper-crust
rocks. In contrast, andesites formed by direct mixing of
mantle-derived basalts with young upper-crust material,
rather than by partial melting of lower crust induced by
VOLUME 38 NUMBER 6 JUNE 1997
Fig. 11. Nb vs. Th plot for the studied basalts. There is a clear positive
ratio between Th and Nb that relates the two end-members FP-80 and
FP-20 with other samples which plot on the same line. It seems a
typical fractional crystallization (FC) line, but it passes over the lower-
crust composition, suggesting that it may be coincident with a mixing
or contamination line. There are three other trends: the first shows
increasing Nb and constant Th and relates samples FP-31, FP-34 and
FP-40 by partial melting processes (these samples occupy intermediate
positions on the hyperbola in Fig. 16); the second, which is not as clear
as the others, relates some of the basalts to the basaltic andesites and
to the sediment sample; the third line shows a high increase in Th and
constant Nb and connects samples FP-16, FP-15 and FP-7. These three
samples always follow the same pattern, which suggests mixing with
source materials that are rich in Th but poor in Nb (see also Fig. 10).
An increase in Th with no modification in Nb may be explained by
secondary alteration or sediment assimilation.
Fig. 12. Diagram of 87Sr/86Sr vs SiO2. A three end-member mixing
(trend 1) can be established taking as end-members FP-91, FP-20 and
the rhyolite FP-130 (taken as an isotopic equivalent of the continental
crust in this area). It is also feasible to consider the rhyolite FP-79 as
the evolved end-member (trend 2). From these mixing fields a regular
FC pattern can be observed for the dacites, but it is not consistent with
Nd isotope data nor with trace element contents. Andesites can be
considered as mixing products.
the intrusion of mantle-derived magmas or by direct
partial melting of the upper mantle.
750
 MITJAVILA et al. MAGMATIC EVOLUTION AND TECTONIC SETTING OF THE IBERIAN PYRITE BELT
Fig. 13. eNd isotope composition vs. eSr isotope composition diagram.
Sample FP-40 falls on the mantle array and is very close to E-MORB.
Sample FP-91 is slightly deviated towards the pattern defined by the
other recent continental volcanism [see the review by Wörner et al.
(1986)] which is followed by FP-15 (a basalt with high influence of the
upper crust or sediment). Sample FP-20 falls between HIMU and EMI.
This sample coincides with the zone equivalent to the North Atlantic
Scottish Tertiary volcanic provinces (Carter et al., 1978). These authors
explain this field as being produced by contamination of granulites
from the lower crust. With this distribution of basalts on the eNd vs. eSr
plot, one can deduce mixing and evolution lines towards the rhyolitic
end-members to explain the origin of all the studied rocks.
Geodynamic setting and origin of the
Iberian Pyrite Belt volcanism
Tectonostratigraphic terrane analysis of the South Por-
tuguese Zone and the southern part of the Ossa Morena
Zone (Oliveira, 1990; Eden, 1991; Quesada, 1991) has
revealed the occurrence of several well-differentiated
geological domains which have a specific significance in
terms of Variscan plate tectonics evolution (Fig. 1). Thus,
from north to south the tectonostratigraphic terranes of
the South Portuguese Zone are:
(1) The Beja–Acebuches ophiolitic complex, which has
recently been interpreted as an Early Devonian oceanic
complex (Munhá et al., 1986; Quesada et al., 1994) and
which represents an oceanic crust of the South Portuguese
plate subducted beneath the continental crust of the Ossa
Morena plate in Upper Famennian to Lower Car-
boniferous times (Silva et al., 1990).
(2) The Pulo do Lobo oceanic accretionary prism,
which is an oceanic terrane composed of siliciclastic
sediments of Lower to Upper Devonian age (Oliveira et
al., 1986) deposited on an oceanic lithosphere.
(3) The intracontinental Iberian Pyrite Belt volcanic
terrane, which is composed of marine turbiditic deposits
and shallow calc-alkaline and basaltic sill-complexes that
intruded over a continental well-differentiated crust
(Munhá, 1983). Fauna of turbiditic deposits and isotopic
dating of shallow intrusions indicate a Late Devonian to
Early Carboniferous age (Fig. 3).
751
(4) The Baixo Alentejo Flysch Group, which is com-
posed of a thick sequence of syntectonic turbiditic deposits
of Upper Viséan to Namurian age (Oliveira, 1990) and
is bounded to the south by the Iberian Pyrite Belt terrane
with a thrust plane that dips to the north (Quesada,
1991). At the north of the Baixo Alentejo Flysch Group
the southern part of the Ossa Morena Zone is considered
to represent a continental terrane with calc-alkaline arc-
related volcanism associated with the subduction of the
Beja–Acebuches ophiolite (Santos et al., 1987).
The geological characteristics and boundaries of these
tectonostratigraphic domains and the occurrence of a
well-defined suture between the South Portuguese and
the Ossa Morena Zones (Munhá et al., 1986; Silva et al.,
1990; Crespo-Blanc & Orozco, 1991; Dallmeyer et al.,
1993; Giese et al., 1994; Quesada et al., 1994) have led
to a general consensus on the tectonic evolution of the
area. From Upper Devonian (Frasnian and Famennian)
through the entire Carboniferous Period the South Por-
tuguese and the Ossa Morena plates were continuously
converging. This plate convergence evolved with time
from a subduction of South Portuguese oceanic lith-
osphere beneath continental Ossa Morena crust to a
continental collision of both plates (Monteiro & Carvalho,
1987; Silva et al. 1990; Giese et al. 1994; Quesada et al.,
1994). In such a moving plates scenario the Iberian Pyrite
Belt volcanism took place. The tectonic style of the
Iberian Pyrite Belt terrane (Soriano, 1996, 1997), as with
the rest of the South Portuguese Zone terranes (Ribeiro
et al., 1983), also agrees with such a geodynamic evolution,
as most of the structures clearly show an east–west trend
and south vergence.
Such a consensus, however, does not surround the
interpretation of the tectonic setting of the Iberian Pyrite
Belt, which has been considered to have formed in a
variety of settings. These include: (1) a convergent plate
boundary, in an island arc generated over a subduction
zone (Schütz et al., 1988); (2) extensional tectonics as-
sociated with back-arc spreading developed on the South
Portuguese continental plate and involving a subduction
of the Ossa Morena Zone (Soler, 1973); (3) extensional
tectonics associated with the initial stages of a back-arc
spreading developed on a continental plate (Munhá,
1983); (4) a forearc basin developed on the continental
crust of an overriding plate, the Ossa Morena Zone
(Monteiro & Carvalho, 1987).
These different interpretations of the tectonic setting
of the Iberian Pyrite Belt are in part due to the lack of
a precise interpretation of the nature of the associated
volcanism. Most of the previous studies concerning the
tectonic setting of the Iberian Pyrite Belt have con-
centrated on the interpretation of its stratigraphical and
structural features, but have not considered in detail
whether the characteristics of volcanism were compatible
with the various proposed tectonic settings. To determine
 JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 38
the validity of the previous interpretations of the Iberian
Pyrite Belt tectonic setting, we compare them with the
petrological and geochemical data presented in this study.
Mineralogical and geochemical data of the Iberian
Pyrite Belt volcanics (Routhier et al., 1977; Soler, 1980;
Munhá, 1983; this paper) indicate a clear continental
crust affinity for the calc-alkaline rocks. This precludes
a certain number of tectonic settings for the Iberian
Pyrite Belt volcanism. On the basis of this evidence, and
in accordance with previous workers (Schermerhorn,
1975; Munhá, 1983), an island arc setting must be
rejected, as the volume of rhyolites and dacites in the
Iberian Pyrite Belt is too high compared with modern
analogues of island arc environments (Carmichael et al.,
1974; Baker, 1982; Gill, 1981; Wilson, 1989). A well-
developed lower and upper continental crust is necessary
to explain the geochemistry of the Iberian Pyrite Belt
volcanism. In addition, basaltic rocks do not show any
subduction-related affinity. They have higher TiO2 and
Fe2O3t contents, and lower K, Sr and Zr contents than
typical subduction-derived basaltic magmas (Carmichael
et al., 1974; Wilson, 1989), and they do not have hydrous
minerals. In addition, andesitic rocks also differ min-
eralogically from typical island-arc andesites, which nor-
mally have orthopyroxene.
Basalt and rhyolitic associations such as those observed
in the Iberian Pyrite Belt are commonly found in ex-
tensional tectonic setting such as continental rifts or
continental back-arcs. However, mineralogical and geo-
chemical compositions of the Iberian Pyrite Belt volcanics
do not show any evidence of a subducting slab de-
hydration such as invariably occurs in back-arc volcanism
(Tarney et al., 1977; Weaver et al., 1979; Wilson, 1989).
Calc-alkaline basalts are also a common feature in mod-
ern back-arcs (Weaver et al., 1979; Wilson, 1989), but
none of the basalts in the Iberian Pyrite Belt have
this calc-alkaline pattern. Moreover, the sequence of
tectonostratigraphic domains described above is clearly
inconsistent with a back-arc setting for the Iberian Pyrite
Belt volcanism. The geochemical features of this vol-
canism also differ from the distinctive characteristics of
modern and ancient intracontinental rift zones [alkaline
nature, enrichment in large ion lithophile elements
(LILE)] (see Bailey, 1983; Wilson, 1989).
A fore-arc location should be also rejected in the light
of several features: some influence of a subducting slab
should be observed in the geochemistry of the Iberian
Pyrite Belt volcanics if they had formed in a fore-arc
zone developed above the continental crust that overrides
a subducting oceanic crust. On the other hand, the nature
(an accretionary prism) and actual position of the Pulo
do Lobo oceanic terrane and the Baixo Alentejo Flysch
Group with respect to the Iberian Pyrite Belt (Monteiro
& Carvalho, 1987; Giese et al., 1988; Silva et al., 1990;
752
NUMBER 6 JUNE 1997
Quesada et al., 1994) preclude its location in a fore-arc
setting.
Recently, Silva et al. (1990), Giese et al. (1994) and
Quesada et al. (1994) have proposed a new interpretation
for the Iberian Pyrite Belt volcanism based on terrane
analysis. They suggest that local extensional tectonics,
related to transtension owing to oblique collision, de-
veloped in the continental crust of the South Portuguese
plate during a continental collision of the South Por-
tuguese and the Ossa Morena plates. This strike-slip
tectonics caused the opening of pull-apart basins, where
submarine terrigenous sedimentation occurred, as well
as the bimodal volcanism which characterizes the Iberian
Pyrite Belt. The location of the Iberian Pyrite Belt as-
sumed by this model is consistent with the geodynamic
framework described above, and also with the palaeo-
geographic reconstruction of the area (Soriano, 1997).
However, there is not a clear modern analogue that can
be used to define the main geochemical guidelines of
such a volcanism. Previous models of collision-zone mag-
matism do not consider this possibility (see Harris et al.,
1986) and no indications of the geochemical signature
of this magmatism exist. Despite this fact, we consider
that the geochemical and isotopic data presented in this
study are compatible with this tectonic setting.
The ultimate source for the Iberian Pyrite Belt vol-
canism is the asthenospheric mantle, where large volumes
of tholeiitic, and occasionally alkaline, basaltic magmas
originated. Extensive melting of the asthenospheric
mantle was probably induced by rapid decompression
caused by the effect of regional strike-slip tectonics which
affected the entire continental crust and probably the
lithospheric mantle, thus causing a restricted lithospheric
thinning. The large LREE depletion and the absence of
Eu anomaly observed in most of the studied basaltic
rocks are compatible with a continental breakup setting
(see Cullers & Graf, 1984). It is important to note,
however, that the Iberian Pyrite Belt did not form in a
post-collisional extensional setting. The strike-slip tec-
tonics responsible for the opening of the basin and the
associated volcanism developed as a direct response to
the oblique continental collision between the Ossa Mo-
rena and the South Portuguese plates, which lasted
from Middle Devonian until Late Carboniferous, and
culminated with the Variscan orogeny in that area. Thus,
in such a scenario the existence of significant lithospheric
stretching caused by the relaxation of compressional
stresses is unlikely as the compression had not ceased.
Basaltic magmas invaded a relatively thick continental
crust causing both assimilation of crustal materials and
extensive melting of upper-crust rocks. This gave rise to
the formation of andesites and silicic rocks, respectively.
The magmatic process that gave rise to the Iberian
Pyrite Belt volcanism was, thus, intimately related to
the tectonic regime which controlled the opening and
 MITJAVILA et al. MAGMATIC EVOLUTION AND TECTONIC SETTING OF THE IBERIAN PYRITE BELT
evolution of the sedimentary basin. This process was
pulsating rather than continuous, as is indicated by
changes in the structure of the basin with time and in
the position of the depocentres (Soriano, 1997). These
pulses caused different intensities of decompression in
the mantle and this would explain the existence of
differences in the degree of partial melting of the as-
thenospheric mantle, which would explain the existence
of tholeiitic and alkaline affinities for the basaltic magmas.
However, in the Spanish sector there is no evidence to
justify a sequence of events that could explain the tem-
poral evolution from tholeiites to alkaline basalts that
Munhá (1983) suggested for the Portuguese sector.
CONCLUSIONS
The Iberian Pyrite Belt volcanism is mainly represented
by shallow intrusives emplaced into wet turbiditic
siliciclastic deposits of early Carboniferous age.
Volumetrically, this volcanism can be considered as bi-
modal, with a predominance of basaltic rocks of tholeiitic
affinity and calc-alkaline silicic rocks, despite the presence
of some basalts with alkaline affinity and intermediate
calc-alkaline rocks. Differences in composition shown by
the basaltic rocks can be explained by a single mixing
model involving three end-members: E-MORB, N-
MORB and continental crust. Silicic calc-alkaline rocks
originated by large-scale partial melting of upper con-
tinental crust induced by the intrusion of basaltic magmas
generated in the underlying upper mantle. In contrast,
andesites originated by direct mixing of mantle-derived
basalts with young upper-crustal material. The volcanism
covers a long time span (15 m.y.) and does not show any
significant temporal or spatial variation. The existence
of tholeiitic and alkaline affinities in the basaltic rocks is
interpreted to be due to different degrees of partial
melting in the asthenospheric mantle caused by different
intensities of tectonically driven decompression. The new
geochemical and isotopic data are consistent with the
stratigraphic and structural data, which suggest that
the Iberian Pyrite Belt developed in a complex setting,
involving local extensional tectonics within the South
Portuguese Zone associated with strike-slip faulting
caused by an oblique continental collision with the Ossa
Morena plate. The continental collision extended longer
than the formation of the Iberian Pyrite Belt and in this
area culminated with the Variscan orogeny. This model
has no clear modern analogues, but we suggest that such
a tectonic setting should not be necessarily rare in the
geological record.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We thank Eusebio Lopera and Manuel Viladevall
for their helpful comments and discussions. Detailed
753
comments by Cecilio Quesada and an anonymous re-
viewer are also gratefully acknowledged. This research
was (in part) supported by the research project entitled:
‘Proyecto de investigación paleogeográfica y vol-
canológica en la Faja Pirı́tica del SW de España’ (ITGE—
Fundació Bosc i Gimpera). We thank the Instituto
Tecnológico y Geo Minero for giving us permission to
publish part of the results from that project.
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