Alluvial rubies and sapphires are found in palaeodrainage deposits along the Cudgegong-Macquarie River system, central eastern New South Wales, Australia. A pink to red suite contains Cr (up to 0.6 wt.% Cr2O3) as the main chromophore, exceeding Fe (up to 0.5 wt.%Fe2O3). Corrosive etching suggests a prior xenocrystic Mesozoic-Cenozoic basaltic transport, while Cr2O3/Ga2O3to Fe2O3/TiO2ratios indicate an original metamorphic source. Syngenetic mineral inclusions include Al-rich diopside, meionite and anatase. The Al-rich diopside (‘fassaite’) contains extremely high Al2O3(20–21 wt.%). A blue-green suite contains Fe (up to 0.8 wt.% Fe2O3) as a dominant chromophore, while a rare nepheline-anorthoclase composite inclusion supports a magmatic phonolitic origin. The Cudgegong- Macquarie ruby formation is compared with a garnet granulite origin proposed for Thailand rubies and a xenolith of corundum-bearing garnet granulite from Ruby Hill, Bingara, Australia. Clinopyroxenecorundum thermometry suggests the Cudgegong-Macquarie rubies formed atT>1000–1300ºC, a high equilibrationTfor proposed lithospheric granulites. These rubies form a distinctive suite compared to other rubies from Australian and SE Asian basalt fields, but have some similarities with eastern Thailand rubies.
The Miocene Table Cape vent erupted a diverse mantle-crust xenolith suite within its fractionated nephclinitic matrix. Assemblages include mantle metaperidotites, garnet-metawebsterites and rarer garnet-metadinopyroxcnites, garnet-metawehrlires, metawcbstetites and crustal two-pyroxene granulites. Most metapyroxenites and granulites represent the Ti-Al-bearing augite suite and their bulk geochemistry indicates transitional olivine basalt magmatic affinities. Metasomatised, hydrous lithologies are only rarely present. Co-existing pyroxenes in the xenoliths provide re-equilibration temperature estimates from 860-1075°C (for the whole suite) and temperature-pressure estimates for the garnet metawebsterites from 1055-1070°C and 1.2-1.4 GPa. This gives a Miocene mantle geotherm gradient at least 80-l 30°C higher than the Southeast Australian (SEA) western Victorian geotherms. However, considerations of Moho depths from new seismic surveys below Table Cape (�32 km) suggest that the indicated geotherm is more strongly pcrrurbed in its lower levels than at the mantle-crust transition. This localised perturbation is attributed to adjacent magma chamber activity in the mantle (Boat Harbour basalts) just prior to Table Cape vent activity. Tasmanian Miocene geotherms (Table Cape, Bow Hill) achieve relatively high gradients and reinforce sugges tions of local variation in East Australian geothermal gradients. They illustrate the potential complexities in comparing xenolith-derived geotherms from diff erent areas in general, both from thermometer/barometer selection and from associated magmatic heat inputs.
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