IT has been proposed(1-5) that the low Ce/Pb ratio of subduction-relat
ed basalts, relative to their oceanic counterparts, arises by the pref
erential transfer of lead to the mantle wedge (overlying the subductin
g stab) by non-magmatic processes. Fluxing of the mantle wedge by low-
Ce/Pb fluids, generated by the dehydration of subducted oceanic crust,
is one mechanism favoured for this process (see, for example, ref. 5)
. Here we report the results of a series of high-pressure experiments,
which confirm that low-Ce/Pb fluids coexist with the dominant mineral
phases (garnet and clinopyroxene) produced during high-pressure dehyd
ration of altered basalt. Our results show that the production of subd
uction-zone magmas from mantle sources fluxed by basalt-derived fluid
is a mechanism by which relatively lead-rich, cerium-poor, mantle-deri
ved material is added to the continents. The lead enrichment of the Ea
rth's continental crust is thus a continuing process occurring at conv
ergent margins.