Large volumes of magma emplaced and deposited within sedimentary basins can have an
impact on the architecture and geological evolution of these basins. Over the last
decade, continuous improvement in techniques such as seismic volcano-stratigraphy
and 3D visualisation of igneous bodies has helped increase knowledge about the architecture
of volcanic systems buried in sedimentary basins. Here, we present the complete architecture
of the Maahunui Volcanic System (MVS), a middle Miocene monogenetic volcanic field
now buried in the offshore Canterbury Basin, South Island of New Zealand. We show
the location, geometry, size, and stratigraphic relationships between 25 main intrusive,
extrusive and sedimentary architectural elements, in a comprehensive volcano-stratigraphic
framework that explains the evolution of the MVS from emplacement to complete burial
in the host sedimentary basin. Understanding the relationships between these diverse
architectural elements allows us to reconstruct the complete architecture of the MVS,
including its shallow (<3 km) plumbing system, the morphology of the volcanoes, and
their impact in the host sedimentary basin during their burial. The plumbing system
of the MVS comprises saucer-shaped sills, dikes and sill swarms, minor stocks and
laccoliths, and pre-eruptive strata deformed by intrusions. The eruptive and associated
sedimentary architectural elements define the morphology of volcanoes in the MVS,
which comprise deep-water equivalents of crater and cone-type volcanoes. After volcanism
ceased, the process of degradation and burial of volcanic edifices formed sedimentary
architectural elements such as inter-cone plains, epiclastic plumes, and canyons.
In-sights from the architecture of the MVS can be used to explore for natural resources
such as hydrocarbons, geothermal energy and minerals in buried and active volcanic
systems elsewhere.
