Monogenetic basaltic volcanic systems, despite their considerable smaller size and shorter lifetime compared to polygenetic volcanoes, can have complex pre-eruptive histories and composite volcanic facies architectures. Their source-to-surface investigation is essential for our better understanding of monogenetic volcanism and requires high-resolution mineral-scale analyses.In this study, we focus on diversely zoned olivine crystals and their spinel inclusions from alkaline basaltic volcanics that are the result of mixing of numerous magmas, crystals and fragments of various origins. The Fekete-hegy volcanic complex is one of the largest and most composite eruptive centers in the intracontinental monogenetic Bakony-Balaton Highland Volcanic Field (western Pannonian Basin, Eastern Central Europe). It is a compound multi-vent system built up by multiple eruption episodes: initial maar-forming phreatomagmatic eruptions were followed by massive lava flows and magmatic explosive activity. We performed stratigraphically controlled sampling in order to reveal the history of the successively erupted magma batches represented by the distinct eruptive units, as well as to discover the petrogenetic processes that controlled the evolution of the magmatic system.The juvenile pyroclasts of the phreatomagmatic eruption products (unit 1) contain a remarkably diverse mineral assemblage including five different olivine types and three distinct spinel groups. In addition, they comprise various xenoliths. Based on detailed textural investigations combined with in situ electron microprobe analyses, high-resolution laser ablation ICP-MS trace element mapping and single spot measurements on the
IntroductionMineral-scale studies on various volcanic rocks have long been demonstrated as being key to understanding sub-volcanic systems. As minerals respond both texturally and compositionally to changing magmatic environments, they retain abundant information concerning the history of magmatic compositions and processes in their crystal growth stratigraphy (e.g., Davidson et al., 2007;Ginibre et al., 2007;Blundy and Cashman, 2008;Streck, 2008). Thus, detailed investigation of the textures, zoning patterns and compositions of rock-forming minerals allows us to detect distinct populations and to reveal the origins of single crystals, making it a powerful tool in discovering the evolution of magmatic systems.Olivine crystals are valuable recorders of deep-seated petrogenetic processes and involved magmas. Their high-resolution textural, zoning and chemical analysis provides a particular insight into the pre-eruptive evolution of various magmatic systems (e.g.