Carlin-Hardie-Pete Mine Area

Eureka County, Nevada, United States

GoldMercurySilverThalliumZincLeadCopper

⌖ Show on map USGS source ↗

Description

John Livermore and Robert Fulton of Newmont Exploration Co., Ltd.

Commodities

PrimaryGold

SecondaryMercury, Silver

TertiaryThallium, Zinc, Lead, Copper

Commodity typeM

Deposit

Deposit typedisseminated; replacement;; tabular lode

Model173: Sediment-hosted Au

Deposit sizeM

Orebody formirregular fingers and lenses

Ore controlHigh angle normal faults and their intersections apparently were channel ways for hydrothermal solutions. Most of the known orebodies occur in the upper 250 m of the Roberts Mountains Formation, principally within a unit consisting of interbedded dark gray, medium bedded, bioclastic limestone and thinly laminated, silty dolomitic limestone. A small amount of ore at the east end of the east orebody occurs in calcareous shale of the upper plate. High grades of gold probably are linked to increased permeability due to decarbonatization.The Roberts Mountains Thrust does not appear to localize ore either at the Carlin deposit or elsewhere in the district.

Materials

Ore mineralsGold, Electrum, Orpiment, Stibnite, Tennantite, Getchellite, Tetrahedrite, Galena, Sphalerite, Chalcopyrite, Covellite, Chalcocite, Molybdenite, Kaolinite, Sericite, Barite, Scheelite, Fluorite, Calcite, Dolomite, Illite, Pyrite, Realgar, Arsenic

GangueCinnabar

Geology

Host rockDolomite,Limestone,Shale · "Roberts Mountains Formation", "Popovich Formation", "Rodeo Creek Unit", "Vinini Formation"

Associated rockGranodiorite,Rhyodacite,Diorite,Quartz Diorite,Rhyolite,Metamorphic Rock

StructureThe Carlin Gold Mine is situated along the NNW-striking Carlin trend. Carlin occurs in the Lynn Window of the Roberts Mountains Thrust. Some workers believe the windows in the thrust are due to doming of the Paleozoic sediments by intrusions at depth. Carlin lies near the crest of the NNW-striking Tuscarora Mountains anticline. The regional scale Leeville fault system consists of numerous high angle fault strands that strike NNW and form an important ore-controlling feature along the eastern edge of mineralization., The greater Carlin-Hardie-Pete deposit area is generally contained within a triangular area bounded by three intersecting major fault systems: the NW-trending Castle Reef fault on the southwest, the NE-trending Hardie fault on the NE, and the NNW-trending Leeville fault on the east. \nWithin the mine area, three sets of high angle normal faults are recognized. In order of oldest to youngest, their attitudes are 1) N60-80W, dipping steeply north, 2) N45W to N-S, dipping in either direction from 60 degrees to vertical, 3) N40-60E, dipping 50-80 degrees either NW or SE. The third (youngest) set of faults have very minor offsets and may best be described as zones of shearing or rock shattering. Igneous dikes of intermediate composition have been emplaced along some faults.\n

Tectonic settingAntler Orogenic Belt

AlterationThe main alteration types present are decarbonatization, silicification, and argillization. In the main ore zone, Bakken (1990) has identified 5 mappable alteration types based on progressive carbonate dissolution (types 1, 2, and 3) and silica replacement (types 4 and 5). High grade gold is associated with type three alteration (complete carbonate removal and doubling of porosity). Jasperoids occur both along bedding planes and as fault fillings discordant to bedding. The discordant jasperoids average around 1 m thick and most often occupy structures striking N40-70E and dipping steeply south. Alteration and mineralization patterns tend to center around these jasperoid bodies.

Economic & production

Development statusProducer

Production years1965-1987

First production1965

Last production1987

Discovery year1962

Identification

Deposit ID10310467

MRDS IDM055452

Alternate namesCarlin Gold Mine, East Ore Zone, Carlin Main Ore Zone, Carlin West Ore Zone, Island, Hardie Footwall, Fence, Peregrine (Perry), Pete, Castle Peak, Crow, South Extension

RegionNA

Data scoreA

Coordinates40.91184, -116.32399

References

USBM, 1975, Mineral Industry Surveys: USBM Mercury QuarterlyNoble, L.L., Radtke, A.S., 1978, Geology of the Carlin Disseminated Replacement Gold Deposit, Nevada, Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology Report 32, p. 40-44.Roberts, R.J., et al., 1967, Geology and Mineral Resources of Eureka County, Nevada: Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology Bulletin 64.radtke, A.S. and Dickinson, F.W., 1976, Structural Controls and Genesis of Carlin Type Deposits: Open-File Report 76-I-39.US Bureau of Mines (Winnemucca) MILS No. 299, Ref. No. 3201100027, Mineral Property File 30.016.Roberts, R.J., et al., 1971, Gold-Bearing Deposits in North-Central Nevada and Idaho: Economic Geology, v6, 14 p.Radtke, A.S., 1985, Geology of the Carlin Ore Deposit, Nevada, USGS Professional Paper 1267.Bakken, B., 1990, Gold Mineralization, Wall-Rock Alteration, and the Geochemical Evolution of the Hydrothermal System in the Main Orebody, Carlin Mine, Nevada, Unpublished Ph.D. Dissertation, Stanford University.Newmont Gold Company, Annual Report for 1990.Ryneer, R., 1992, Economic History of the Carlin Trend, in Buffa, R. and Coyner, A., Eds., Geology and Ore Deposits of the Great Basin-Field Trip Guidebook Compendium, The Geological Society of Nevada, Reno, p. 838-843.Lewis, P., 1992, Carlin Mine Geology, in Buffa, R. and Coyner, A., eds., Geology and Ore Deposits of the Great Basin-Field Trip Guidebook Compendium, The Geological Society of Nevada, Reno, p. 854-858.Kuehn, C.A., 1989, Studies of Disseminated Gold Deposits near Carlin, Nevada: Evidence for Deep Geologic Settings of Ore Formation, Unpublished Ph. D. Dissertation, Pennsylvania State University, 350 p.Roberts, R. J., 1960, Alinement of Mining Districts in North-Central Nevada: USGS Prof. Paper 400-B, Art. 9, p. B17-B19.NBMG, 1994, MI-1993Nevada Division of Minerals, 1994Long, K.R., DeYoung, J.H., Jr., and Ludington, S.D., 1998, Database of significant deposits of gold, silver, copper, lead, and zinc in the United States; Part A, Database description and analysis; part B, Digital database: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 98-206, 33 p., one 3.5 inch diskette.Adella Harding, 10/9/2003, Elko Daily Free press article.Christensen, O. D., Knutsen, G. C., and Ekburg, C. E., 1987, Disseminated Gold Deposits of the Carlin Trend, Eureka and Elko Counties, Nevada: Society of Mining Engineers Preprint Number 87-84, 7p.Rocky Mountain Pay Dirt, June, 1988, p. 3a.Newmont Gold Company, 1987, Annual Report for 1986.Newmont Gold Company, 1988, Annual Report Form 10-K for 1987.Newmont Gold Company, 1990, Annual Report for 1989.Newmont Gold Company, 1992, Annual Report for 1991.Mcfarlane, D. N., 1991, Gold Production on the Carlin Trend, in Buffa, R. and Coyner, A., eds., Geology and Ore Deposits of the Great Basin - Field Trip Guidebook Compendium, The Geological Society of Nevada, Reno, p. 841-843.NBMG, 1994, MI-1993.