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Gold Occurrence in the Black Cloud 3 Orebody, Leadville Mining District, Lake County, Colorado

Matthew D. Gray, Spencer R. Titley

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Abstract

Abstract Gold is an important constituent of many carbonate-hosted massive sulfide ores of the Colorado mineral belt. Within the Leadville district of the Colorado mineral belt gold has been recovered in substantial amounts from such ores. A detailed petrographic and electron mi-croprobe study of one such Leadville orebody, the Black Cloud 3, was undertaken in order to characterize the gold occurrence. Three styles of gold occurrence, including a complex Au-Ag-Bi-Te mineral assemblage, are documented. Gold occurs in the massive sulfide ore as native grains contained predominantly in pyrite, as electrum grains contained within cross-cutting sulfide veinlets, and as electrum and Au-Ag tellurides included in a bismuth-tellurium mineral assemblage also containing hessite (Ag2Te), tellurobismuthite (Bi2Tes), volynskite (AgBiTe2), chalcopyrite, galena, quartz, matildite (AgBiS2), and coloradoite (HgTe).

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What this paper is about

Abstract Gold is an important constituent of many carbonate-hosted massive sulfide ores of the Colorado mineral belt. Within the Leadville district of the Colorado mineral belt gold has been recovered in substantial amounts from such ores. A detailed petrographic and electron mi-croprobe study of one such Leadville orebody, the Black Cloud 3, was undertaken in order to characterize the gold occurrence. Three styles of gold occurrence, including a complex Au-Ag-Bi-Te mineral assemblage, are documented. Gold occurs in the massive sulfide ore as native grains contained predominantly in pyrite, as electrum grains contained within cross-cutting sulfide veinlets, and as electrum and Au-Ag tellurides included in a bismuth-tellurium mineral assemblage also containing hessite (Ag2Te), tellurobismuthite (Bi2Tes), volynskite (AgBiTe2), chalcopyrite, galena, quartz, matildite (AgBiS2), and coloradoite (HgTe).

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Available abstract

Abstract Gold is an important constituent of many carbonate-hosted massive sulfide ores of the Colorado mineral belt. Within the Leadville district of the Colorado mineral belt gold has been recovered in substantial amounts from such ores. A detailed petrographic and electron mi-croprobe study of one such Leadville orebody, the Black Cloud 3, was undertaken in order to characterize the gold occurrence. Three styles of gold occurrence, including a complex Au-Ag-Bi-Te mineral assemblage, are documented. Gold occurs in the massive sulfide ore as native grains contained predominantly in pyrite, as electrum grains contained within cross-cutting sulfide veinlets, and as electrum and Au-Ag tellurides included in a bismuth-tellurium mineral assemblage also containing hessite (Ag2Te), tellurobismuthite (Bi2Tes), volynskite (AgBiTe2), chalcopyrite, galena, quartz, matildite (AgBiS2), and coloradoite (HgTe).

Key concepts: Geology, Table (database), Tonne, Mining engineering, Carbonate, Mineral resource classification, Geochemistry, Archaeology

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Gold Occurrence in the Black Cloud 3 Orebody, Leadville Mining District, Lake County, Colorado — Research Paper | ScholarLens