The ultramafic cumulated series, Gardiner Complex, East Greenland. Cumulates in a shallow level magma chamber of a nephelinitic volcano

The ultramafic cumulate series of the ultramafic, alkaline and carbonatite bearing Gardiner complex in East Greenland is divided in: 1) Contact zone of plagio-clase-bearing alkaline rocks chilled to the surrounding gneisses and alkaline lavas; 2) a banded sequence of dunites to mt-pyroxenites; 3) a zoned dunite — cpx-dunite ring and 4) in the centre of the complex ol-pyroxenites and mt-pyroxenites.

The zones and bands are superimposed with gradational contacts and are increasingly younger towards the centre of the complex. Primocrysts and intercumulus phases, which are equivalent to phenocryst phases in magmatic liquids show that these rocks accumulated from nephelinitic to nepheline-hawaiitic magmas and the contact rocks from less alkaline basanitic magma types similar to the regional alkaline magmas.

The cumulates apparently formed in a magma chamber of a nephelinitic volcano, resting on the regional basalts of the Kangerdlugssuaq area.