formaciones rocosas en diferentes paises. llamada “silica vuggy” o “cuarzo oqueroso”. Esta roca tan lixiviada es frecuentemente el encajante de las menas, con un halo de alteración argílica avanzada, que está gradado hacia fuera a illita, illita/esmectita o esmectita dependiendo de la paleotemperatura.
2. High Sulphidation Vuggy Silica - Textural Atlas
This is collection of images of vuggy silica, from various high-
sulphidation systems around the world. These have not been
adequately attributed - If you can identify the source please advise.
Contributions of images and descriptions will be gratefully
appreciated and fully attributed.
John C. Menzies
Continental Copper
3. High-Sulphidation, Vuggy silica Samples
South America
• Casale – Chile
• Alturas – Chile
• Salares Norte – Northern Chile
• Veladero – Argentina
• El Indio – Chile
• La Coipa – Chile
• Atlas – Chile
• Pierina - Peru
High Sulphidation Vuggy Silica - Textural Atlas
14. Pierina - Peru
Unoxidized pumice-tuff altered by vuggy silica. Vugs (black) record the locations of leached
pumice fragments. Dark areas indicate fine-grained Stage I pyrite intergrown with quartz. Native
sulfur (S) occurs locally in vugs
Rainbow, A et al., The Pierina epithermal Au-Ag deposit, Chemical Geology, 2005
16. High-Sulphidation, Vuggy silica Samples
Asia - Australia
• Wafi Golpu – Papua New Guinea
• Peak Hill – Australia
• Khvav – Cambodia
• Miwah – Indonesia
• Tujuh Burkit – Indonesia
• Chinkuashih – Taiwan
• Iwato Arabira - Japan
• Tampakan – Philippines
• Martabe – Sumatra , Indonesia
• Alas, Sumatra, Indonesia
High Sulphidation Vuggy Silica - Textural Atlas
17. Vuggy Silica, Wafi Golpu PNG
Vuggy Silica with Covellite, Wafi Golpu PNG Photo Credit: Doug Menzies
The Wafi gold deposits and the related Golpu porphyry copper-gold deposit around 1
km to the north-east, are both parts of a complex hydrothermal system comprising
porphyry, as well as high and low sulphidation Cu-Au mineralisation, often with
overprinting alteration relationships. These deposits fall within the Morobe Goldfield in
Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea, approximately 60 km south-west of the port of
Lae and 70 km NNW of the Hidden Valley project. (#Location: 6° 53'S, 146° 27'E).
The mineralised system is reflected at surface by a zone of disseminated pyrite
surrounding areas of higher gold content within an advanced argillic, quartz-alunite
lithocap. Mineralisation and alteration are associated with a Miocene to Pliocene
intrusive complex whose influence is spread over an area of 9 sq. km, centred on the
Miocene Golpu diorite to dacite porphyry plug and a late stage overprinting diatreme
breccia.
The 800 x 400 m maar-diatreme breccia pipe has steep-dipping margins and comprises
a polymictic milled matrix breccia. Several phases of xenolith bearing Wafi dacite
porphyry intrusions cut the milled matrix breccia about the pipe margins, as possible
endogenous domes. The late-mineral Heking Andesite cuts the dacite porphyry.
Potassic alteration within the concealed Golpu diorite porphyry has been dated at 14 Ma
and is cut by the diatreme breccia, which is inferred to be associated with the later
intrusion event leading to the epithermal gold mineralisation, dated of 13 Ma from alunite
within the high sulphidation alteration
Reserves and resources at the end of August were (Newcrest Mining ASX Release, 29
August, 2012):
• Indicated Resource - 810 Mt @ 0.92% Cu, 0.64 g/t Au, 1.1 g/t Ag;
• Inferred Resource - 190 Mt @ 0.80% Cu, 0.61 g/t Au, 1.0 g/t Ag;
• TOTAL Resource - 1000 Mt @ 0.90% Cu, 0.63 g/t Au, 1.1 g/t Ag;
• Probable Reserve - 450 Mt @ 1.2% Cu, 0.86 g/t Au, 1.4 g/t Ag.
Credit: Port Geoscience
21. Massive High-Sulphidation vuggy silica at
The Cliffs and The Hills prospects
Private & Confidential
Khvav Project – A Very Large Epithermal System
Khvav Cambodia
34. Miwah - Indonesia
Early vuggy silica with heterolithic
relicts of single crystals
Low density and partially oxidized
vuggy silica with grooves partially
filled with goethite.
Mulja, T., Heriawan, M., Supomo, Boby., The Miwah high sulphidation Au-Ag Deposit, Ore Geology Reviews, 123, 202
Miwah
35. Miwah - Indonesia
Massive silica resulting from late
silicification of vuggy silica (29 ppm
Au)
Mulja, T., Heriawan, M., Supomo, Boby., The Miwah high sulphidation Au-Ag Deposit, Ore Geology Reviews, 123, 202
36. Tampakan - Philippines
Vuggy silica with enargite-digenite in vugs, Tampakan Cu-Au Porphyry, Cotabato,
Mindanao
Courtesy – Doug Kirwin
48. Cerro Quema, Azuero Peninsula, Panama
Vuggy silica with pyrite and chalcopyrite mineralization
Perello, J., Garcia, A. and Creaser, R., Porphyry-related high-sulfidation mineralization early in Central American Arc development: Cerro Quema
deposit, Azuero Peninsula, Panama
49. High-Sulphidation, Vuggy silica Samples
North America
• Summitville – Colorado USA
• Goldfields – Nevada USA
• North Island Copper – BC Canada
High Sulphidation Vuggy Silica - Textural Atlas
53. High-Sulphidation, Vuggy silica Samples
Europe
• Recsk – Hungary
• Bor - Serbia
High Sulphidation Vuggy Silica - Textural Atlas
54. Recsk - Hungary
Takacs, A. et. Al Ore Mineralogy and Fluid Inclusion Constraints on the Temporal and Spatial Evolution of a High Sulfidation Epithermal Cu-Au-Ag
Deposit in the Recsk Ore Complex, Hungary, Economic Geology, 2017. https://doi.org/10.5382/econgeo.2017.4517
Sulfide bearing vuggy silica (Lahóca Hill, R-377 drillhole, 103.9 m)
The dacitic crystal tuff and diatreme breccia complex at Lahóca Hill hosts high-sulfidation epithermal Cu-Au-Ag ore mineralization within vuggy quartz bodies, various
types of hydrothermal and volcanic breccias, and ore-bearing quartz stockwork. The host volcanic units are characterized by advanced argillic alteration, with
kandite clay minerals that enclose irregular-lentoid and dissected vuggy quartz breccia bodies.
