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West Jiaodong Gold Field - Cangshang, Xiadian, Sanshandao, Linglong, Jiaojia, Jintingling, Xincheng, Taishang, Dayigezhuang, Wangershan, Jiehe, Hexi, Fushang, Daingezhuang, Pengjiakuang, Damoqujia, Hushan, Sizhuang, Majiayao, Shijia, Jiudian |
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Shandong, China |
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Au
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Super Porphyry Cu and Au
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IOCG Deposits - 70 papers
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All papers now Open Access.
Available as Full Text for direct download or on request. |
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The Cretaceous fault or shear zone controlled gold deposits of the western section of the Jiaodong Gold Province are located on the Jiaodong Peninsular of eastern Shandong Province, northern China, approximately 450 km south-east of Beijing. This western block of deposits is further divided into a western string known as the Zhaoyuan-Laizhou Gold Belt and another group to its northeast, the Penglai-Qixia Gold Belt. Most of the deposits in the former are concentrated in the northern half of the belt.
Latest update 25-Aug-2022 = addition of Jiudian description - see link below.
These deposits include Cangshang, Xiadian, Sanshandao, Linglong, Jintingling, Jiaojia, Xincheng, Wang'ershan, Jiehe, Hexi, Sizhuang, Fushang, Taishang, Daingezhuang, Hushan, Daliuhang, Majiayao, Shijia, Jiudian and Pengjiakuang, as well as Damoqujia, most of which are described below, plus ~300 smaller deposits and prospects.
Most of the deposits listed above in the two generalised gold belts are clustered along NNE-SSW trending faults spread over a broad, ~1250 x 50 km, NE-SW trending area. A third district, the Muping-Rushan Gold Belt, is located some 75 km to the SE, related to another series of NNE-SSW to NE-SW aligned faults, described in the separate East Jiaodong Gold Field record.
The Jiaodong Peninsular is on the southeastern portion of the North China craton, immediately north of the east-west trending Sulu Terrane, the easternmost part of the ultra-high pressure belt that marks the Late Permian to Early Jurassic suture with the Yangtze Craton to the south. The Jiaodong Gold Province is bounded to the west by the major, continental scale, NNE-SSW trending Tan-Lu fault zone and is separated from the Liaodong gold district on the Liaodong Peninsula, ~250 km to the north, by the Bohai Sea. It is made up of a sequence that includes the late Archaean (2.94 to 2.67 Ga with 3.0 to 3.4 Ga components) tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite and mafic to felsic volcanic and sedimentary rocks all of which have been subjected to amphibolite to granulite facies metamorphism to form the granulite, gneiss, amphibolite and biotite-bearing schists of the Jiaodong Group. These Archaean rocks are unconformably overlain by a Proterozoic sequence comprising:
• The Palaeoproterozoic Jinshan Group, which is composed of a sequence of mainly silty clastics and calcareous-magnesian carbonates with intercalated mafic to ultramafic volcanics which have all been metamorphosed to a suite of mica schist, quartz-feldspar-biotite gneiss, marbles and graphitic rocks.
• The Palaeoproterozoic Fenzishan Group, comprising fine-grained gneiss, mica-quartz schist, feldspathic quartzite, magnetite-bearing rocks, marble and graphitic rocks that are the result of upper greenschist to amphibolite facies metamorphism of silty clastic sediments, Mg-rich carbonates, and calcareous clastics and pelites.
These two groups were deposited between 2484 and 2381 Ma and metamorphosed during from 2224 to 1847 Ma (Luliang orogeny) and are overlain by,
• The Neoproterozoic lower greenschist facies limestones, dolomite, slate and phyllite of the Panglai Group.
All of these rocks have been subjected to multiple stages of granulite- to greenschist-facies metamorphism over the timespan 2945 to 1674 Ma. They are overlain by Mesozoic shales, clastics and volcanics and are intruded by voluminous Mesozoic (Jurassic to Cretaceous) Yanshanian age granitoid intrusives, which occupy over 40% of the terrane, and were emplaced in two episodes, 164 to 155 and 130 to 126 Ma, the first of which is largely due to anatectic reactivation of the basement rocks. The mineralised Yanshanian granites are grouped into three types, i). the 160 to 150 Ma Linglong biotite granite with a gneissic structure; ii). the 130 to 126 Ma Guojialing biotite-hornblende granodiorite; and iii). the medium to coarse-grained massive Luanjiahe granite, all of which are multiphase batholiths containing numerous xenoliths of Jiaodong Group basement rocks. They are typically calc-alkaline in character and are interpreted to have formed from anatectic reactivation of basement volcanic and sedimentary rocks.
The gold deposits of the 200 km long Jiaodong Gold Province together contain more than 1600 t of gold and in 2000 produced 55 t of gold. Approximately 80% of the reserves are in the 3500 sq. km Zhaoyuan-Laizhou gold belt within this province. Around 85% of the gold resources are spatially associated with the 3000 sq. km, 165 to 125 Ma Linglong and Guojialing Granites. Only 5% are hosted by Precambrian metamorphic rocks. The emplacement of gold is largely constrained to the time interval between 130 and 120 Ma.
Two main stages of deformation have been defined in the Jiaodong gold province during the late Mesozoic, the first of which was dominated by NW-SE oblique compression, producing a series of NNE- to NE-trending brittle-ductile shear zones with sinistral oblique reverse movements, followed by a later reactivation, expressed by brittle structures and half-graben basins. These structures are believed to be subsidiary to the major Tan-Lu fault. Deposits and clusters of deposits occur either on or within a few kilometres of these structures. They include the major Sanshandao-Cangshang Fault along the northwestern coastal section of the Peninsular on which the Sanshandao and Cangshang deposit clusters are developed, the Jiaojia-Xincheng Fault ~15 km to the SE where the Jiaojia, Xincheng, Wang'ershan, Hedong and Hexi deposits are located; the Zhaoyuan-Pingdu Fault, another 20 km to the SE which includes the Linglong group of gold deposits and Dayingezhuang; the Qi-Xia Fault, that is ~25 km to the SE, related to deposits of the Penglai-Qixia Gold Belt.
Two main types of gold deposit are recognised, namely: i). Linglong type large quartz vein systems, predominantly hosted within granites in second or third order brittle fractures, occurring as single or multiple, relatively continuous quartz veins; and ii). Jiaojia type, defined by disseminated and small veinlets/stockworks along first order regional faults and shear zones, surrounded by broad alteration halos and often concentrated along granite-metamorphic rock contacts.
Both types of gold deposits are similar in their geology and geochemistry. Ore mineral assemblages are dominantly pyrite, with lesser galena, sphalerite, chalcopyrite, pyrrhotite and arsenopyrite. Four stages of mineralisation recognised include: i). pyrite-quartz; ii). gold-bearing pyrite-quartz; iii). gold-bearing multiple metallic sulphides and quartz; and iv). quartz-carbonate. Gold and silver are mainly present as native gold and electrum and are concentrated in stages ii and iii. Alteration minerals are sericite, muscovite, sulphides (mainly pyrite, pyrrhotite and arsenopyrite), carbonates, K-feldspar, chlorite, and kaolinite. The mineralisation has returned radiometric ages of 100±4 to 135±5 Ma for eight major gold deposits, 5 to 20 m.y. younger than those of corresponding granitic intrusions in the same belt.
Representative example of significant deposits within the gold field include:
The Cangshang deposit is developed at the faulted (Cangshang Fault) contact between a hangingwall of Palaeoproterozoic Fenzishan Group metamorphics to the south-east and a footwall of Mesozoic Linglong granitoid to the north-west. The Cangshang Fault trends at around 40° and dips at 35 to 45° SE. It is part of the regional Sanshandao-Cangshang fault zone and has been mapped over a 7 km length and varies from 50 to 200 m in width.
In the vicinity of the ore deposit the Fenzishan Group comprises fine grained amphibolite (plagioclase-hornblende amphibolite with rare quartz and garnet) with lesser fine grained gneiss and hornblendite. The Linglong granitoid consists of fine to medium and even grained grey-white granodiorite. A series of post mineralisation pegmatite dykes also occur in the pit, as does an altered mafic dyke which cuts the orebody.
Alteration in the vicinity of the ore comprises silicification, sericite, pyrite, K-feldspar, chlorite and carbonate. A large alteration halo associated with the deposit is developed along the Cangshang Fault, with dimensions of 1900 m in length by 85 to 185 m in width, and is known to extend to at least 640 m depth. Three alteration suites have been outlined, as follows:
i). Zone 3 which occurs within the hangingwall Fenzishan Group amphibolite and takes the form of sericitic and chloritic sheared rock which extends for 60 m into the hangingwall.
ii). Zone 2, found in the immediate footwall of the ore, adjacent to and below the main fault zone and is charcaterised by strong pyrite alteration with sericite and silicification to form a pyrite-sericite-quartz rock.
iii). Zone 1, which is restricted to the footwall Linglong granitoid and is found below the Zone 2 alteration. It is the weakest of the three and comprises K feldspar, sericite and silicification.
The No. 1 Orebody contains 98% of the reserve and is predominantly controlled by the Cangshang Fault. It lies within the Zone 2 alteration zone and covers a width of as much as 50 m below the main fault plane. The orebody has a strike length of 1360 m, its mean thickness is 10 m, although it has a maximum width of 43.5 m and a mean grade of 4.81 g/t Au. The ore is mainly composed of pyritic, sericitic and silicified granite (as disseminations and a network of structurally controlled veinlets) with varying levels of brecciation, and lacks sharp boundaries - a cut-off of 2 g/t Au defines the ore zone. The ore pitches north at 35 to 40°. Sulphides include pyrite, sphalerite, galena, chalcopyrite and arsenopyrite. Pyrite is the most abundant and carries the gold which is also present as electrum and rare native gold. The principal gangue minerals are quartz, sericite, feldspar, calcite, barite and chlorite. Alteration sericite has been dated at 121 ±0.2 Ma.
The deposit supported one of the largest open pit gold mines in China in 2003 when it had a resource of more than 50 tonnes of gold. The average head grade in 2001 was 4.8 g/t Au.
The Xiadian deposit has reserves of >200 t of gold (Wei et al., 2017) and is regarded as a typical Jiaojia-type gold deposit. It is characterised by disseminated and stockwork ores enclosed by hydrothermally altered wall rocks. The deposit is located at the central section of the Zhaoyuan-Pingdu fault, which has been inferred to be a detachment fault (Charles et al., 2013), that in the Xiadian orefield, it developed at the contact between the Neoarchaean Jiaodong Group and the Late Jurassic Linglong granite. The Jiaodong Group, which is in the hangingwall of the fault, comprises biotite plagioclase gneiss, amphibolite and felsic granulite. The Linglong granite, which forms the footwall of the fault, is composed of medium-grained K feldspar, plagioclase, quartz and biotite granite that has been dated at 160 Ma (LA-ICP-MS U-Pb zircon, Ma et al., 2017). These granitic rocks, which have undergone early cataclasis and mylonitisation, coupled with the exhumation of the footwall along the detachment fault (Charles et al., 2013; Yang et al., 2016), were later subjected to intensive hydrothermal alteration. The Early Cretaceous Guojialing granite has been intersected in drilling at depth at one site within, and outcrop to the southwest of, the gold field. These granites have a Pb/Pb weighted mean age of 133 ±3 Ma (Zhang et al., 2010) and might be concealed at depth in the Xiadian deposit.
Intense hydrothermal alteration of the Linglong granite of the footwall along the detachment fault formed an alteration zone that is at least 100 m in width, 3000 m in length and 1000 m in depth. Four alteration assemblages have been recognised, from early to late, characterised by predominatly K feldspar, sericite, combined pyrite-sericite-quartz and carbonate. In the early K feldspar and sericite stages, the plagioclase and K feldspar of the granite were metasomatised by K feldspar and sericite. These were overlapped by later pyrite-sericite-quartz alteration, forming pyritic phyllic rocks, mica-rich pyritic phyllic rocks (Jiang et al., 2019) and quartz-rich pyritic phyllic rocks (Jiang et al., 2019). During the late carbonate stage, the phyllic rocks were overprinted by disseminated and/or veinlet carbonate minerals. Gold mineralisation is closely associated with the pyrite-sericite-quartz alteration, occurring as discontinuous lenticular gold mineralised bodies within that alteration zone. The gold ores occur as broad disseminated zones of mineralisation that mainly includes pyrite, sphalerite, chalcopyrite, galena, electrum and native gold (Jiang et al., 2019). Electrum and native gold are found in microcracks within pyrite and as intergranular grains between quartz and sericite or as inclusions in pyrite (Jiang et al., 2019). The gangue minerals include quartz, sericite and carbonate as well as residual feldspar and quartz of the granitic rocks. Fluid inclusions for the Xiadian gold deposit indicate that the homogenisation temperatures in the K feldspar stage range from 408 to 253°C, peaking at 340 to 300°C, with a mean of 326°C, and that the homogeneous temperatures of fluid inclusions in the pyrite-sericite-quartz alteration stage range from 335 to 176°C, peaking at 260 to 240°C with a mean of 253°C (e.g., Chai et al., 2017).
Ma et al. (2017) present precise in situ monazite U-Pb dating to constrain the age of the gold mineralisation, and possible genesis of the gold deposit. The earliest magmatic event at Xiadian is represented by the Linglong granite, which yielded a zircon LA-ICPMS U-Pb age of 159.5±0.9 Ma. Subsequent minor quartz-pyrite-molybdenite veining is dated at 124.8±2.1Ma by molybdenite Re-Os from a granitic pegmatite. These veins were formed close to the emplacement of the adjacent 126 to 130 Ma Guojialing granodiorite, and thus may be the product of post-magmatic hydrothermal activity. Ma et al. (2017) suggest these molybdenum-bearing hydrothermal fluids acted as a prelude to gold mineralisation and participated in the formation of the latter ore fluids. Gold mineralisation occurred at 120.0±1.4 Ma, determined by LA-ICPMS U-Pb dating on hydrothermal monazite from quartz-polymetallic sulphide veins. Prior to and after mineralisation, voluminous hydrothermally altered porphyritic diorite and fresh quartz diorite porphyry dykes were emplaced, with U-Pb ages of 121.3±1.4 and 115.8±1.9 Ma, respectively. Based on these geochronological data, Ma et al. (2017) suggests that the genesis of Xiadian deposit might be related to the craton destruction and lithosphere thinning in the North China Craton.
This Xiadian description is largely drawn from Jiang et al. (2020).
The Sanshandao gold deposit is located around 30 km north of Laizhou City and is confined to the major NE trending Sanshandao fault which cuts the Sanshandao Granodiorite, a member of the Guojialing granodiorite suite. The Sanshandao Granodiorite is a small NE-SW trending stock emplaced within mafic to intermediate gneisses and migmatised amphibolites of the Archaean Jiaodong Group. The deposit comprises a high density concentration of high grade quartz-sulphide veinlets and stockworks. The bulk of the ore is disseminated within highly fractured and altered Mesozoic granodiorite. This alteration is characterised by strong silicification, sericitisation, sulphidation and K-feldspar alteration. Ore most commonly occurs as disseminated gold within sericite-, quartz- and pyrite-altered granodiorite along the Sanshandao Fault with lesser K-feldspar, carbonate and locally chlorite. Mineralisation is also found to a lesser degree as gold-quartz vein/veinlet stockworks, predominantly within the latered granodiorite and occassionally in the Archaean gneiss. There are four stages of vein development as follows: a). Quartz-K feldspar-sericite, b). Quartz-pyrite ±arsenopyrite, c). Quartz-base metal sulphide and d). Quartz-carbonate.
Structures associated with the fault zone are characterised by early shearing and late brittle deformation over a zone that is some 200 m wide and 5 km in length. Six orebodies have been delineated, concentrated within dilational intervals of the major fault zone. The largest of these orebodies is over 1000 m in length, averages 0.4 to 6.2 m in thickness and has been traced to a depth of around 900 m. The ore zones trand at 20 to 40° and dip at between 30 and 50° SE. Grades range from 3 to 10 g/t Au. The Sanshandao deposits are said to contain more than 60 t of gold and together with the Cangshang deposit which is 5 km to the south-west on the same structure have a resource of approximately 107 t Au at an average grade of 6.1 g.t Au (in 2001).
The Linglong group of gold deposits are distributed over an area of 75 sq. km, including the Dongfeng, Jiuqyu, Xishan, Jiuqu, Dakaitou, Shuangding, Dongshan, Dakaitou and Vein-108 deposits. Gold occurs in large quartz veins within the Linglong and Guojialing Granites, with orebodies commonly concentrated at the intersection of NNE-, NE- and ENE-trending shear zones and faults. Over 540 significant auriferous quartz veins have been recognised, with lengths of from 100 to 5800 m, widths of 1 to 10 m (locally up to 100 m) and down dip extents of as much as 600 to 700 m. Ore grades vary from 3 to 32 g/t Au, mainly as gold or electrum in pyrite, or in quartz with pyrrhotite and local chalcopyrite, galena and spaherite. The principal alteration assemblages include white mica, pyrite, quartz, with lesser carbonate, chlorite, albite and K feldspar which typically surround veins over widths of a few metres.
The Linglong group of deposits contain more than 125 tonnes of Au at grades averaging 9.5 g/t Au (in 2001).
The Jintingling gold deposit is located to the SW of Zhaoyuan city and is ~3.5 km west of the Zhaoyuan-Pingdu Fault zone that hosts many of the Linglong group of deposits. It is mainly hosted within the Linglong Granite and contains transitional styles of mineralisation between vein- and dissemination/stockwork-styles. The deposit is composed of eight discontinuous lenticular ore bodies, the largest of which, Zone 3, has a length of >400 m and persists to a depth of ~500 m below the surface. This lode strikes north-south and is is cut by a NW-SE trending fault and a series of NW-SE to NNW-SSE trending mafic to intermediate dykes. Some diorite porphyry dykes, which are mainly composed of plagioclase, amphibole and biotite with rare clinopyroxene, have been subjected to sericitic and pyrite alteration. Consequently they are interpreted to be pre-mineral, whilst some quartz diorite porphyry dykes, composed of quartz, plagioclase, amphibole and biotite, are devoid of mineralisation and alteration, indicating they are post-mineral.
The deposit contains many millimetre to metre scale quartz and carbonate veins containing variable sulphides and sulphates, although not all are accompanied by economic gold grade. A number of different vein types have been recognised, as follows:
• V1 type: milky specularite-quartz veins, which often cut the K feldspar altered granite and are characterised by milky quartz intergrown with specularite, magnetite and pyrite. Pyrite is often enclosed in magnetite. They were formed prior to gold mineralisation.
• V2 type: milky quartz veins, which are commonly 1 to 2 cm thick and contain minor pyrite, with or without molybdenite. They often cut K feldspar altered granite. Quartz-molybdenite veins, some with minor pyrite, occur locally cutting the K feldspar altered granite and are 1 to 2 cm thick. The molybdenite contains minor gold, although the relationship between the two metals is unclear. These veins only contain a small amount of pyrite and gold and represent the early stages of gold mineralisation.
• V3 type: quartz-pyrite veins, which contain minor smoky quartz and a large amount of coarse-grained, euhedral pyrite, and often cut the V2 veining. Gold occurs as inclusions or micro-fissures fillings in pyrite.
• V4 type: quartz-polymetallic sulphide veins that comprise smoky quartz with a large amount of chalcopyrite and native Au and subordinate pyrite. Gold is often enclosed in chalcopyrite. V4 veining is seen to cut the V3, V2 and V1 veins.
• V5 type: quartz-carbonate veins, represented by large amounts of carbonate accompanied by a little quartz and sulphide minerals, occurring as the latest veins cross-cutting all other vein types.
The host granite and porphyry dykes have undergone hydrothermal alteration. This includes widespread K feldspar alteration of the host granite, which is cut by different types of barren and ore-bearing veins, as described above, indicating this alteration formed at an early stage. There is also intense phyllic alteration associated with smoky quartz veining, with subhedral pyrite and sericite, and minor sphalerite and chalcopyrite. Much of the gold was deposited along with this phyllic alteration which is usually cut by the quartz-polymetallic sulphide V4 veining. It is therefore most likely the phyllic alteration predated V4 veining and post-dated V3 veins. Massive silicification is also common and occurred over a relatively long time span.
The Jintingling deposit had reserves of >50 t of contained gold in 8 lenticular orebodies with average grades that range from 1.62 to 7.79 g/t Au (Wang et al., 2006).
This Jintingling description is drawn from Ma et al. (2017).
The Jiaojia-Xincheng group of gold deposits includes the Jiaojia, Xincheng, Wang'ershan, Hedong and Hexi deposits which occur along the contact between the Linglong and Guojialing Granites and Archaean amphibolite, gneiss and schist. The main control on vein trends are the moderately dipping NNE and NE striking faults and brittle-ductile shear zones. The larger orebodies are up to 1.2 km long, 2 to 4 m thick and extend down dip for as much as 850 m. Grades vary from 3 to 50, averaging around 10 g/t Au, occurring as stockworks and veinlets, and/or as disseminations in the altered wall rock. Ore and gangue assemblages in both veins and wall rock include pyrite, pyrrhotite, muscovite and K feldspar with lesser magnetite, electrum, gold, silver, chalcopyrite, galena, sphalerite, chlorite, siderite, ankerite, epidote, and locally including arsenopyrite. The widest halos comprise epidote and chlorite over widths of tens of metres outward from the mineralised shear zones. The Jiaojia deposit contains >125 tonnes of Au at grades averaging 7.3 g/t Au, while Xincheng has 85 t Au at grades of 7.2 g/t Au (in 2001).
The Wang'ershan gold deposit is located in the southern part of the Jiaojia goldfield and was discovered as a gold occurrence in 1961, with production starting in 1975, and by 2014 had an annual production rate 2.1 t of gold. Some twenty-four orebodies have since (to 2018) been discovered at Wang'ershan. The host to mineralisation and principal exposed rock in the Wang'ershan district is the Late Jurassic, ~160 Ma, Linglong biotite granite, which in the district is composed of biotite, feldspar and quartz. The ore-controlling structures are mainly the second-order, N- to NNE-trending Wang'ershan Fault and its subsidiary structures. The Wang'ershan Fault lies within the broader Jiaojia-Xincheng fault zone, and has a strike length of ~10 km and width of 2 to 200 m. It cuts the Linglong granite in the south at Wang'ershan, before following the contact between the Linglong granite in the footwall and the Guojialing granodiorite in the hanging wall >2 km to the north where it hosts the Fujia to Jiehe deposits. At Wang'ershan, the main Wang'ershan Fault (F1) and a subsidiary north-south trending fault (F5) control the occurrence of the No.s I, III, IV and 23, and No. V orebodies, respectively. F1 strikes at 0 to 25° and dips 40 to 66°W, and is marked by a 10 to 60 cm thick grey-white fault gouge which occurs over a strike length of ~4 km and within a fault width of 1 to 7 m. Cataclastic and brecciated rocks with 10 to 15 cm wide quartz-sulphide veins are observed along the fault, and indicate it was deformed under brittle conditions. F5, which strikes at 0 to 15° and dips at 25 at 57°W is mainly located in the hanging wall of, but also cross-cuts F1. A 10 to 30 cm band of fault gouge marks the last significant cataclastic event along the fault, with locally developed quartz-sulphide veins.
Five main orebodies, No.s I, III, IV, V and 23 account for >86% of the proved reserve at Wang'ershan. The largest of these, the No.I orebody, is characterised by quartz-pyrite vein- and veinlet-style mineralisation levels, and disseminated- and stockwork-style at deeper levels. The ore zone has a >900 m length following a strike of 5 to 15°, dipping at 45 to 60°NW, and ranges from 0.35 to 12.0 m in thickness, averaging 6.7 m. It extends from RL +85 m to below -900 m level, with a barren section between the -200 m and -300 m. The grade varies from 2.0 to 120.78, but is generally between 2 and 14 g/t Au.
The No. V orebody, controlled by F5, is the second largest. It is 35 to 140 m into the hanging wall of the No. I orebody, and is characterised by quartz-sulphide vein and disseminated mineralisation. It comprises a series of sub-parallel veins filling subsidiary, NE to NNE-trending fault structures striking at ~20° over a length of >600 m long, dipping at 40 to 50°NW, with thicknesses that range from 0.22 to 5.11, averaging 2.51 m. Grades vary from 2.26 to 86.69 g/t Au, but are generally between 3 and 14 g/t Au.
Hydrothermal alteration includes potassic, silica, sericite, sulphide, carbonate and sericite-quartz assemblages, and is restricted mainly to the vicinity of the F1 fault and its subsidiary structures. Potassic alteration, pre-dates gold and is characterised by K feldspar overprinting and replacing plagioclase, or surrounding primary K feldspar, extending for several tens of metres beyond the gold mineralisation. Silica, sericita, sulphides and sericite-quartz alteration post-date the potassic assemblage, and are coeval with gold mineralisation, whereas carbonates overlap other alteration phases, and mainly accompany late mineralisation. The disseminated and stockwork-style mineralisation comprise a pyrite-sericite-quartz gold-bearing assemblage are are developed closest to the fault gouge. These styles represent the bulk of the resource, and are associated with cataclasites and breccias. The quartz-pyrite and quartz-sulphide vein-style mineralisation, is the second important part of the resource, and is associated with extensional fractures in both the sericite-quartz and potassic alteration zones.
Ore minerals are predominantly pyrite, followed by chalcopyrite, galena and sphalerite, with minor native gold, pyrrhotite, tetrahedrite and siderite. Gangue minerals include quartz, sericite, calcite and minor chlorite. Gold is associated with silver, sulphur and copper, with silver being the only other economic by-product, with sub-economic sulphur, copper, lead and zinc. Gold is mainly medium- to fine grained, and occurs in fractures, although it is also intergranular and can occur as inclusions in sulphides. Pyrite is the most significant gold-bearing mineral, followed by quartz and other metal sulphides. The paragenesis of mineralisation can be divided into the following four stages (after Hu et al., 2020; Yang et al., 2017):
i). pyrite-quartz-sericite, which accompanied the early mineralisation, with subhedral to anhedral white quartz, and euhedral to subhedral coarse pyrite (Py-I) disseminated with the sericite and quartz;
ii). quartz-pyrite, characterised by quartz-pyrite veins or veinlets, or pyrite disseminated in the sericite-quartz altered granite or potassic alteration zone. Minerals include coarse cubic or subhedral pyrite (Py-II), white or greyish quartz (Qtz-a) and lesser sericite. Gold occurs in fractures or as inclusions in pyrite;
iii). quartz-sulphide, characterised by fine grained pyrite (Py- III) and polymetallic veins composed of chalcopyrite, galena, electrum, sphalerite, lesser pyrrhotite and Bi-Te-Pb-Au-Ag-bearing phases that crosscut Py-II, with euhedral to subhedral greyish quartz (Qtz-b). Gold is associated with these metal sulphides; and
iv). quartz-carbonate, characterised by calcite and quartz with lesser associated pyrite and siderite. Quartz-calcite veins cross-cut the stage 2 and 3 quartz-sulphide veins.
Stage ii). and iii). represent the main mineralising period.
Mineralisation appears to have developed in a complex dilation zone where the Wang'ershan Fault changes strike from north-south to NNE-SSW and back to north-south with the formation of mineralised en echelon NNE-SSW to NW-SE faults and veins. In this interval, the K feldspar alteration thickens drastically to >200 m in width, with sericite envelopes up to 50 m thick enclosing the mineralised vein systems (from diagrams in Hu et al., 2020).
Reserves in 2016 were >60 t of contained gold at a grade of 4.07 g/t Au (Yang et al., 2017).
This Wang'ershan description is drawn from Hu et al. (2020) and Yang et al. (2017).
The Sizhuang deposit occurs within the NNE striking and NW-dipping Jiaojia-Xincheng fault zone and several smaller faults which separates Archaean metamorphic rocks and the Mesozoic Linglong biotite granite (Miao et al., 1997; Yang et al., 2012) (Fig. 2). Orebodies and alteration zones of the Sizhuang and Jiaojia deposits connect at depth (Song et al., 2011). Sizhuang comprises a cluster of 163 orebodies have been discovered in the hydrothermally altered Linglong granite beneath the Jiaojia-Xincheng fault. These orebodies occur as pyrite-sericite-quartz alteration rocks and quartz-pyrite veins. Magmatic assemblages in the Linglong granite are commonly replaced by K feldspar alteration, overprinted by sericite alteration and crosscut by quartz-pyrite veins. Orebodies have planar and lensoid shapes, broadly parallel to the Jiaojia-Xincheng fault. The strike length of the largest orebody is ~480 m, with an average width of ~10.4 m and average down-dip length of ~772 m (Cui et al., 2008).
Where only weakly altered, the Linglong granite comprises biotite, magnetite, quartz and minor amount of pyrite. Four stages of alteration and mineralisation have been recognised:
Stage I is characterised by precipitation of quartz, pyrite, K feldspar and sericite, and is defined by white quartz veins containing minor coarse euhedral and subhedral pyrite with sparse gold. The plagioclase in the Linglong granite is commonly replaced by K feldspar, whilst both are overprinted by sericite alteration. The K feldspar alteration is crosscut by (pyrite)-white quartz veins that have sericitic selvages.
Stage II is characterised by pyrite, quartz and sericite accompanied by minor electrum, chalcopyrite, galena and pyrrhotite. Pyrite (Py-a) constitutes >90 vol.% of veins. The Stage II quartz-pyrite stockworks contain residual pyrite and white quartz veining of Stage I as fragments and crosscut the earlier sericite alteration zone. Electrum occurs as inclusions in Py-a indicating the approximately simultaneous precipitation of the two. Some chalcopyrite, galena and pyrrhotite occur as inclusions in Py-a. Most pyrite of Stage II is characterised by cataclastic textures.
Stage III was accompanied by precipitation of polymetallic minerals. Siderite veins crosscut Stage I white quartz veins, Stage II quartz-pyrite veins and pyrite-sericite-quartz altered rocks. Chalcopyrite, galena, sphalerite, pyrite (Py-b), electrum, pyrrhotite, magnetite and siderite crosscut and replace Py-b along fractures. Early Stage III, chalcopyrite, galena with minor electrum, pyrrhotite, pyrite, sphalerite and siderite crosscut Py-a and infill microfractures. Late stage III, resulted in an assemblage of chalcopyrite-magnetite-siderite-pyrrhotite replacing Py-a. Chalcopyrite is stable throughout Stage III.
Stage IV deposited quartz-calcite veins which crosscut quartz-pyrite veins.
The Sizhuang gold deposit contains known resources of >51.38 tonnes of gold with grades of from 1.0 to 25.0, averaging 4 to 5 g/t Au (Cui et al., 2008).
This Sizhuang description is drawn from Hu et al. (2020).
The Fushang, Taishang and Daingezhuang (or Dayingezhuang) deposits are found within the Linglong and Guojialing Granite plutons and are localised along faults and shear zones.
The Early Cretaceous Taishang deposit is 3 km east of the NE-SW trending Linglong Fault and hosts predominantly Jiaojia-type and lesser Linglong style vein mineralisation. It is the largest deposit in the Linglong goldfield, estimated to contain >108 tonnes of gold at a grade of 4.8 g/t Au, although Yang et al. (2016) indicate the pre-mining endowment totalled 326 t of contained gold, 71 t of which have been mined over the last 40 years. Mineralisation is hosted in the 165 to 150 Ma Jurassic Linglong biotite granite in th esouthern part of the Linglong Goldfield and is controlled by the NEE- to NE-trending Potouqing Fault near the northern end of the regional Zhaoping Fault system. In the mine area, the main ore controlling Potouqing Fault trends NEE to NE and dips SE, with a wave-like shape in plan view. It is tens of centimetres to several metres wide, with hydrothermal breccias and cataclastic rocks, and a continuous fault gouge 0.3 to 1.6 m in width. In the deposit area, the Potouqing Fault defines the boundary between the hanging wall Luanjiahe monzonitic granite and the footwall Linglong biotite granite. NEE- to NE-trending secondary faults are commonly a few hundred metres long, and occur in the footwall of the Potouqing Fault, within the Linglong granite. They are almost parallel to the major fault in plan view and dip to the SE or NW, and also partly control gold mineralisation. Some NNE-trending secondary faults that are tens to hundreds of metres in length are also found in the footwall of the Potouqing Fault. Well developed hydrothermal alteration in the footwall of the Potouqing Fault progresses over a width of a few hundred metres in the Linglong biotite granite from a proximal narrow sericite zone, followed by a wider zone of silica, and a thicker distal zone of potassic alteration. The hangingwall is characterised by a several metre wide zone of K feldspar alteration in the Luanjiahe monzonitic granite.
Two principal orebodies have been delineated, the No. I and No. II orebodies based on mineralisation styles. The No. I orebody, which constitutes 95% of the proved reserves at Taishang, is characterised by disseminated- and stockwork-veinlet style Jiaojia-type mineralisation. It is 200 to 800 m long, striking at 40 to 88° with a dip of 22 to 43°SE, and ranges from 1.8 to 30, averaging 9.4 m in thickness, and extends down dip from the 150 m level to below the -1200 m level. Grades vary from 1.01 to 18.83, averaging of 2.91 g/t Au. The No. II orebody, which only accounts for ~5% of proved reserves, is mainly in the footwall of the No. I orebody, characterised by auriferous quartz vein-style Linglong-type ores, and is composed of a series of subparallel veins
filling secondary, NEE- to NE-trending faults. This orebody is about 30 to 120 m long and comprises veins or lenses that strike at 46 to 53° and dip at 40 to 50°SE, ranging in thickness from 1.0 to 13 m. Grade vary from 1.07 to 40.44, averaging of 8.90 g/t Au.
Four mineralising stages have been identified for both styles, on the basis of cross-cutting relationships and mineralogical and textural characteristics, namely:
i). characterised by pyrite-quartz-sericite, and locally, pyrite-quartz veins, comprising milky white, subhedral to anhedral quartz, sericite and minor coarse to medium grained, euhedral to subhedral disseminated pyrite. Only minor gold was deposited during this stage;
ii). which is characterised by quartz-pyrite veinlets and stockworks developed within sericite-quartz altered rocks, or locally as auriferous quartz-pyrite veins hosted in secondary faults. Minerals are mainly pyrite and white-grey quartz with minor native gold, electrum, pyrrhotite and chalcopyrite. Pyrite is found as coarse euhedral cubes and as subhedral aggregates that coexist with pyrrhotite and chalcopyrite. Native gold and electrum generally
occur as irregular inclusions, or are hosted in open fractures, within pyrite.
iii). comprises quartz-pyrite-base metal sulphide and and gold minerals that occur as veins and veinlets cutting
the quartz-pyrite veins and veinlets of stage ii, or are found in veinlets and stockworks in disseminated mineralised zones. It includes ~10 vol.% pyrite, minor chalcopyrite, galena and sphalerite, with traces of tellurides, either adjacent to or in fractures in stage ii pyrite grains, or as subhedral aggregates. Gold commonly precipitates with base metal sulphides, or overgrows corroded concave margins of pyrite.
iv). is reflected by quartz-carbonate/calcite veins and veinlets, with trace pyrite, that cut the quartz-pyrite veinlets in the disseminated mineralisation, or the quartz-base metal sulphide veins. No visible gold has been identified in this stage.
Gold was mainly deposited stages ii and iii, with only minor amounts in the first stage. This Taishang summary is after Yang et al. (2016).
The Fushang deposit contains more than 43 tonnes of Au at grades averaging 6.3 g/t Au.
The Dayingezhuang gold deposit is located 18 km SW of the city of Zhaoyuan in the Jiaobei Terrane. The orebodies of the deposit are principally hosted in the Late Jurassic Linglong granite intrusion and are Jiaojia-type, composed of disseminated and stockwork-style ores within altered granites. The deposit mostly lies along the NE- to NNE-striking Linglong detachment fault, located near the central section of the regional Zhao-Ping Fault Zone, and structurally controls mineralisation and alteration (Yang et al., 2014). However, the deposit is offset near its centre by the WNW-ESE trending Dayingezhuang fault which is also mineralised (Deng et al., 2009; Yang et al., 2009). Gold mineralisation occurs in cataclasite, mylonite and breccia along the Linglong Detachment Fault, suggesting deposition in the brittle-ductile transition (Chai, et al., 2019).
There are three principal lithologic units in the Dayingezhuang area: i). metamorphic rocks of the Archaean Jiaodong Group, which is exposed in the eastern section of the deposit area, comprises amphibolite, paragneiss, schist and minor granulite; ii). a biotite monzonitic granite pluton (the Jurassic Linglong granite), which is composed of biotite-monzonitic granite, and occurs in the western part of the deposit where it forms the footwall of the Linglong detachment fault, and iii). numerous intermediate to mafic dykes.
The deposit is characterised by strong sericite, silica, pyrite and K feldspar alteration haloes in the wall rock. The bulk of the orebodies are made up of veinlet- or lode-style mineralisations that have irregular or lenticular shapes. More than 90 orebodies had been identified as of 2019. The No. 2 Orebody, to the north of the cross-cutting Dayingezhuang Fault, is the largest and most representative of these, containing 59% of the total proved gold reserves of the deposit. It is 930 m long and 10 to 30 m thick, dips at 18 to 51°E, and has an average ore grade of 4.01 g/t Au. The second largest is the No. 1 Orebody, to the south of the Dayingezhuang Fault, containing 34% of the total proved gold reserves of the deposit. It also trends NNE, dips at 27 to 40°E, has a length of ~740 m,and is 2 to 10 m thick with an average grade of 4.03 g/t Au. Major metallic minerals include pyrite, galena, sphalerite and chalcopyrite, and minor pyrrhotite and tetradymite. Of these pyrite is the most abundant, accounting for >75% of the total sulphides. Gangue minerals include quartz, K feldspar, sericite, chlorite, albite, muscovite, calcite and clay. Gold mostly occurs in its native form, followed by electrum. Native gold grains are mainly present in tiny fissures within pyrite, less commonly as inclusions in pyrite crystals and gangue minerals, and rarely intergrown with tetradymite. Silver occurs as hessite, followed by native silver which are mainly found as inclusions in sphalerite, galena and quartz, and rarely in coexistence with electrum and native gold. Extensive, well developed hydrothermal alteration is observed in the footwall of the Linglong Detachment Fault, and is characterised by K feldspar, albite, silica, sericite, pyrite, chlorite, carbonate and minor clay.
Both supergene and hypogene mineralisation is evident. The latter can be further divided into four hydrothermal stages:
i). pyrite-(K feldspar)-sericite-quartz - the main minerals are grey-white subhedral/anhedral quartz, sericite, K feldspar, coarse euhedral to subhedral disseminated pyrite, and variable amounts of albite and muscovite. No gold has been identified from this stage, suggesting it is pre-mineral.
ii). auriferous quartz-pyrite - characterised by auriferous quartz-pyrite veinlets or stockworks within the altered host rocks of the first stage, and comprise the syn-mineral stages. The mineral assemblage includes white-grey anhedral quartz and pyrite, with minor native gold, electrum, tetradymite,
and chalcopyrite. The auriferous quartz-pyrite veinlets from this stage contain an average grade of 3.61 g/t Au (Li and Li, 2014).
iii). quartz-gold-polymetallic sulphides - characterised by quartz-polymetallic sulphide veinlets within the altered host rocks, and locally by auriferous quartz-polymetallic sulphide veinlets in secondary faults of the Linglong detachment fault. The mineral assemblages include white-gray anhedral quartz, pyrite, galena, sphalerite, chalcopyrite, gold and silver minerals. This stage has an average grade of 6.64 g/t Au (Li and Li, 2014).
iv). quartz-carbonate, comprising by quartz-carbonate-pyrite veinlets that cut veins of the previous stages. No gold has been identified under reflected light in this stage with a grade of 0.06 g/t Au (Li and Li, 2014).
Gold was mainly deposited in the second and third stages. The deposit contains reserves of 170 t of contained gold with an average grade of 3.10 g/t Au which equates to ~55 Mt of ore.
This Dayingezhuang summary is drawn from Chai et al. (2019).
The Hushan deposit is located in the southern part of the Penglai-Qixia Gold Belt. It is controlled by the 23 to 40° trending and 45°SE dipping Taiqian-Douya Fault which developed along or close to the intrusive contact between hanging wall TTG gneisses of the Archaean Jiaodong Group and footwall of Late Jurassic Linglong monzogranite. This fault is characterised by multiple pulses of activity with compression during the early stages of mineralisation and extension in the late stage, forming a tectonic fracture alteration zone up to 200 m in width. The Taiqian-Douya Fault zone has two main fault planes, with disseminated and stockwork ore bodies develop along the footwall fault plane. More than 21 gold orebodies have been outlined, most of which are deeply concealed deposits (Liao et al., 2014). The individual orebodies are lens shaped within the overall alteration zone and have a range of gold grades, with the highest of 22.4 g/t, and an average gold grade of 2.68 g/t Au (Liao et al., 2014). The thickness of orebodies generally increases when the angle of the fault rotates from steep to shallow. The Hushan gold orebodies exhibit a unique two-stage gold mineralisation. The earlier of these is characterised by pyrite-sericite-quartz mineralisation and alteration and occurs in strongly fractured rocks. This mineralisation is subdivided into four zones representing the progressive development of the early stage mineralisation, namely: i). primary, weakly altered host Linglong granite; ii). sericite-quartz alteration of Linglong Granite; iii). pyrite-sericite-quartz associated with a pulse of fracturing and a new pule of hydrothermal fluids with higher gold grade and visible gold; iv). fractured host rock with pyrite-siderite veins. The second, or late stage mineralisation is characterised by pyrite-pyrrhotite-siderite-barite mineralisation and the occurrence of metal-sulphide veins with obvious geodes within the ore zone. Orebodies affected by this stage have a much higher average grades of as much as ~20 g/t Au. This stage has been subdivided into i). characterised by the widespread occurrence of pyrrhotite, developed in fractured early stage pyrite which it has replaced, and included as clasts; minor chalcopyrite occur as mineral inclusions in pyrrhotite, while additional new pyrite is deposited; ii). widespread introduction and occurrence of siderite and barite, particularly overprinting the fourth sub-stage of the early stage mineralisation. This substage also includes the deposition of coarse grained euhedral-subhedral pyrite which is cemented by siderite. This pyrite contains minor fine-grained inclusions of chalcopyrite, galena, sphalerite and pyrrhotite, as well as barite in veins with high grades of >20 g/t Au. Mineralisation fluids associated with of this second stage have a higher oxidation state than those of the earlier stage. The transition from compressional, reduced to extensional, oxidised is estimated to have occurred at ~120 Ma.
The deposit, which was discovered in 2011-12, contains in excess of 30 t of gold. The information in this summary is drawn from Yang et al. (2018).
The Daliuhang gold deposit lies within the central Penglai-Qixia belt and is hosted by the Guojialing granodiorite and pegmatite that were formed at 129.0 ±0.6 and 126.2±0.6 Ma, respectively. Syn-ore monazite, with a U-Pb age of 120.5 ±1.7 Ma, represents the timing of gold mineralisation. The deposit has a resource in excess of 20 tonnes of contained gold (Feng et al., 2020).
The Majiayao gold deposit is located within the Penglai-Qixia Gold District of the West Jiaodong Gold Field, ~20 km east of Qixia City in the central part of the Jiaobei terrane. In contrast to most Mesozoic granite-hosted gold deposits in the Jiaodong gold province, the Majiayao deposit represents a significant example hosted in the Archean high-grade metamorphic terrane. It is characterised by auriferous vein quartz mineralisation hosted by Precambrian metamorphic basement, the principal lithologies of which are Archaean plagioclase amphibolite and granular biotite tonalite. The tonalitic gneisses are usually grey to white and fine to medium grained, with blastic granitic and distinct gneissic or banded structures (Jahn et al., 2008; Wu et al., 2014). No Phanerozoic igneous bodies are evident, other than a few Mesozoic mafic to felsic dykes comprising lamprophyre, dolerite, dioritic porphyrite and granitic aplite have been mapped in the deposit area. The felsic intrusions of the region have been dated at 131 to 116 Ma (Li et al., 2019), consistent with the widespread early Cretaceous magmatic activities represented by Guojialing granodiorite and Aishan granitoids in this region (Yang et al., 2012; Li et al., 2018; Li et al., 2019).
The main mineralisation occurs in two discontinuous lenticular gold bearing bodies, No. I and II, which are hosted by NNW-trending secondary faults in the footwall of a nearby main NNE-trending regional fault. The host faults generally strike at 300 to 330° and dip 35 to 60°NE. Along strike and dip, The orebodies have a slightly 'wave-like' form along both strike and down dip and both pinch-out and branch. These bodies occur as lodes, lenses and stringers, with sharp contacts with wallrocks. The larger No. I orebody, generally strikes NW and dips at 36 to 43°NE, over a length of up to 900 m and thickness of 0.19 to 3.10 m. Au grades range from 1.00 to 30.75 g/t, with an average value of 5.41 g/t Au. The No. II orebody comprises three small discontinuous veins, with an average thickness of 0.5 m and an average grade of 16.16 g/t Au. Mineralization in both is predominantly gold-bearing quartz veins with alteration halos. Hydrothermal alteration occurs as centimetre to metre wide selvages to the veins but can be locally absent. It comprises an assemblage of sericite ±chlorite ±carbonate ±quartz and disseminated pyrite that is well developed on vein margins in the footwall and its development is closely related to gold mineralisation.
Four hydrothermal stages have been distinguished, as follows:
• Stage 1, a pre-ore stage mainly composed of barren coarse-grained milky quartz with minor fine-grained pyrite (Py1);
• Stage 2, characterised by banded quartz-pyrite veining, that is predominantly coarse-grained pyrite (Py2) usually occurring as cataclastic aggregates, accompanied by some gold grains, and partly replaced by the later sulphides. Fine magnetite grains are found as inclusion in pyrite or siderite. A few euhedral and subhedral xenotime crystals are distributed along pyrite grain boundaries, or intergrown with fine-grained pyrite within quartz. Minor monazite
grains, generally <20µm, commonly occur, either as inclusions, or in fractures within pyrite.
• Stage 3, is represented by gold-quartz-polymetallic sulphide veins, which include fined-grained clear quartz, pyrite (Py3), galena, sphalerite, chalcopyrite and minor gold grains. Py3 is fine-grained euhedral to subhedral, and ranges from several to tens of microns. Clusters of fine-grained Py3, accompanied by with chalcopyrite, galena and sphalerite, are found preferentially along micro-fractures and grain margins of coarse-grained Py2. Gold
grains are restricted to fractures within pyrite, and have an intimate association with galena and chalcopyrite veinlets. This is the main gold deposition stage. Hydrothermal iron-bearing carbonate and oxide mineral assemblages, including acicular specularite, magnetite, siderite ankerite and barite, are also well developed locally, and are closely intergrown with polymetallic sulphides in this phase.
• Stage 4 is marked by quartz-calcite- siderite veins, representing the waning of hydrothermal activity.
The Majiayao gold deposit has a proven reserve of >10 tonnes of gold with an average grade of 6.86 g/t Au.
This Majiayao description is drawn from Feng et al. (2021).
The Shijia gold deposit is located near Penglai City, Eastern Shandong Province, and is ~1 km NE of the small town of Daliuhang. It is a small to medium sized, granitoid-hosted, quartz-sulphide vein-type gold deposit. It is classified as a Linglong-type (quartz vein-type) gold deposit and occurs in the northern sections of the Qixia-Penglai Gold Belt. Mineralisation predominantly hosted by the Early Cretaceous Guojialing amphibole-bearing monzogranite and is strictly controlled by NNE to NE striking high-angle faults. Hydrothermal minerals include K feldspar, quartz, sericite, pyrite, sphalerite, galena, chalcopyrite, calcite and fluorite. The mineralogical and textural characteristics of ore minerals and the crosscutting relationships of the mineralised veins, suggest three mineralising stages: i). quartz-sericite-pyrite; ii). quartz-sulphide-gold; and iii). quartz-calcite-fluorite. The ore veins have undergone several deformation events subsequent to their formation, resulting in their deformation and discontinuity. Early Cretaceous dykes, including granitic pegmatite, lamprophyre, dolerite and granite porphyry, are found within the Shijia gold deposit, emplaced in the following order: pre-mineralisation, 129.7 ±1.6 Ma granitic pegmatite, followed by gold mineralisation and later 129.3 ±1.4 Ma lamprophyre, 128.3 ±1.3 Ma dolerite and 120.0 ±1.1 Ma granite porphyry (LA-ICP-MS U-Pb zircon). This indicates mineralisation was emplaced between 129.7 and 129.3 Ma, coinciding with the large-scale thinning of the North China Craton lithosphere during the Early Cretaceous, taken to suggest the deposition of mineralisation during and extensional tectonic regime.
The deposit has a reserve of >10 tonnes of contained gold at an average grade of 6.74 g/t Au.
This Shijia description is drawn from Feng et al. (2020).
The Jiudian gold deposit lies adjacent to the southern half of the regional Zhaoping fault zone in the southern section of the Zhaoyuan-Laizhou Gold Belt. It is part of the Zhaoye metallogenic belt, located within the Jiaobei Uplift, 25 km NW of the current northwestern margin of the Cretaceous Jiaolai sedimentary and volcanic basin (Li et al., 2015). The stratigraphy exposed in the deposit area includes amphibolite and biotite plagioclase gneiss of the Yetou Formation, that belongs to the Palaeoproterozoic Jingshan Group, which unconformably overlies the Neoarchaean Jiaodong Group.
The gold lodes are hosted by the Late Jurassic Cuizhao monzogranite of the regional Linglong Granite Complex and by the Late Jurassic Yunshan calc-alkaline granite batholith and in part by the Yetou Formation. The major regional NNE-SSW Zhaoping Fault, 3 to 9 km to the east, is the largest and most important ore-controlling structure, with most of the mineralised veins controlled by its associated NNE- to NE trending secondary faults. More than 20 auriferous quartz veins have been outlined at Jiudian, over an area of ~6 x 10 km. The No. 1 vein, the largest lode, is ~5 km long, strikes at 20 to 55° and dips at 60 to 80°NW. Some 11 ore shoots have been delineated within the No. 1 vein, with lengths of up to 220 m. The grade ranges from 1.52 to 67.83 g/t Au, averaging 4.57 g/t Au (Jiang and Zhang, 2008; Li et al., 2015).
Four stages of mineralisation have been recognised:
Stage 1 - pyrite-milky quartz, which is not gold bearing, but contains abundant quartz and minor pyrite. Intense sericitisation is associated with these veins, with an alteration assemblage of quartz and minor pyrite in addition to the sericite.
Stage 2 - pyrite-smoky grey quartz which represents the first gold event. It crosscuts the sericite alteration of the first stage. These veins are strongly controlled by the NNE-trending faulting and the associated secondary fractures, with widths ranging from several centimetres to tens of metres. Apart from smoky-grey quartz and pyrite, the main mineral assemblage includes abundant inclusions of galena, chalcopyrite, pyrrhotite and minor electrum. The principal gold minerals are electrum and native gold, which occur as microscale inclusions of up to 50 µm, or as veinlets infilling pyrite micro-cracks, or interstitially between pyrite grains.
Stage 3 - siderite-pyrrhotite-pyrite-quartz, with no obvious gold mineralisation, is characterised by an assemblage of quartz, pyrite, pyrrhotite, siderite and magnetite. Pyrite was locally replaced by pyrrhotite and magnetite, and is crosscut by siderite.
Stage 4 - quartz-siderite-polymetallic sulphides, which is the second and main gold event. It occurs as a siderite stockwork mineralisation with higher gold grades and a mineral assemblage that includes pyrite, siderite, quartz, marcasite, chalcopyrite, sphalerite, galena, magnetite, Pb-Bi-Ag sulphosalts, electrum and native gold.
The deposit has a reserve of >30 tonnes of contained gold at an average grade of 4.93 g/t Au.
This Jiudian description is drawn from Sun et al. (2022).
The Muping-Rushan Gold Belt deposit are some of the largest lodes and are found on the eastern end of the district, separate from the main grouping of deposits. Gold occurs mainly in pyrite- and polymetallic sulphide-quartz vein/veinlet stockworks. For details see the separate East Jiaodong Gold Field record.
For detail consult the reference(s) listed below.
The most recent source geological information used to prepare this decription was dated: 2022.
Record last updated: 25/8/2022
This description is a summary from published sources, the chief of which are listed below.
© Copyright Porter GeoConsultancy Pty Ltd. Unauthorised copying, reproduction, storage or dissemination prohibited.
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Hu, H.-L., Fan, H.-R., Santosh, M., Liu, X., Cai, Y.-C. and Yang, K.-F., 2020 - Ore-forming processes in the Wangershan gold deposit (Jiaodong, China): Insight from microtexture, mineral chemistry and sulfur isotope compositions: in Ore Geology Reviews v.123, 23p. doi.org/10.1016/j.oregeorev.2020.103600.
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