Aniceti

At the Aniceti geosite, it is possible to observe the mixing of magmas within the Basic Complex.

To explain the composition of many volcanic rocks, scientists have long hypothesised that magmas of different compositions mixed together. In this outcrop, which originally lay at a depth of around 17 km, the mixing of magmas was ‘frozen in place at its point of origin’.

Fine-grained, dark grey gabbro bodies, relatively rich in magnesium and iron, are embedded within the light grey diorite , which originated from a different magma that was significantly poorer in magnesium and iron. This mixing did not result in a single hybrid magma due to the excessive temperature difference between the two melts.