1. Mineral Resources
  2. Online Spatial Data
  3. Mineral Resource Data System (MRDS)

Mesa De Plata Mine

Producer in Potosi, Bolivia with commodities Silver, Tin, Lead, Zinc, Gold, Bismuth, Antimony
Map
XML
JSON
KML
B
Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Commodities
  6. Materials information
  7. Alteration
  8. Mineral occurrence model information
  9. Host and associated rocks
  10. Nearby scientific data
  11. Ore body information
  12. Controls for ore emplacement
  13. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  14. Mining district
  15. Land status
  16. Ownership information
  17. Workings at the site
  18. Links to other databases
  19. Bibliographic references
  20. General comments
  21. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10089904
MRDS ID W044245
Record type Site
Current site name Mesa De Plata Mine
Alternate or previous names San Antonio, San Antonio Del Nuevo Mundo, San Antonio De Lipez, Blanca. Adits: Quiroz

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -66.86418, -21.85811 (WGS84)
Elevation 4550
Relative position AT SAN ANTONIO DE LIPEZ

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Potosi(province)

Bolivia(country)

South America(continent)

Land(continent)

Federal lands

Federal(land status)

Geographic areas

Country State
Bolivia Potosi

Comments on the location information

  • LAT LONG IS FOR MESA DE PLATA SECTION, 1.5 KM NE OF SAN ANTONIA DE LIPEZ

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Silver Primary
Tin Critical Secondary
Lead Secondary
Zinc Critical Secondary
Gold Tertiary
Bismuth Critical Tertiary
Antimony Critical Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Argentite Ore
Cassiterite Ore
Greenockite Ore
Polybasite Ore
Pyrargyrite Ore
Silver Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Stephanite Ore
Tetrahedrite Ore
Ankerite Gangue
Barite Gangue
Chlorite Gangue
Hematite Gangue
Kaolinite Gangue
Limonite Gangue
Magnetite Gangue
Marcasite Gangue
Pyrite Gangue
Quartz Gangue
Saponite Gangue
Sericite Gangue
Siderite Gangue
Chalcopyrite Unknown

Alteration

  • (Local) Silicification, Calcite-Chlorite-Clay Alteration Of Dacite; Advanced Argillic Alteration Around Veins, Zoning Outward Into Feldspathic Alteration (Jarosite-Illitic Mica-Kaolinite) With Distal Replacement Of Plagioclase By Calcite, Smectite, And Kaolinite. Sericitic Alteration At Depth. Oxidation Extends To A Depth Of 30m.

Analytical data

Result ORE ANALYSES BY GEOBOL (1971): .001 TO .197% AG, TRACE TO 2.45% PB, TRACE TO 2.48% ZN, TRACE BI, TRACE TO 0.1% SN. ONE SAMPLE 4 GPT AU, 1.4% SB, 0.926% AG. ORE GRADES (SUGAKI ET AL, 1986) 200 TO 240 G/MT AG, 1.2 TO 2.6% PB, 0.5 TO 3.4% ZN
Result ANALYSES BY FLORES (1988): AROUND 290 G/MT AG, 1.2 TO 5.0% PB, 0.5 TO 5.45% ZN, 0.1% SN OVER 10 M WIDTH
Result USGS (1990): UP TO 900 G/MT AG, 0.34% PB, 160 PPM ZN, 240 PPM AS.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 77
USGS model code 20b
Deposit model name Sn-polymetallic vein

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic)
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Miocene
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Pliocene
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Dacite
    Rock unit name Quehua Superior;Rondal;Julaca
    Rock description Quehua Superior;Rondal;Julaca
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Siltstone
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Sandstone
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic)
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Dacite

Nearby scientific data

(1) -66.86418, -21.85811
ListMap

Economic information

Ore body information

  • General form TABULAR
    Strike E-W
    Dip N
    Thickness 500M
    Length 120M
    Width 0.3M
    Depth to bottom 150M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • E-W Fracture Zones

Comments on the geologic information

  • FLUID INCLUSIONS YIELD (UNCORRECTED) HOMOGENIZATION TEMPERATURES OF 157 TO 317 DEGREES CENTIGRADE AND SALINITIES OF 0 TO 18.9 WT% NACL (SUGAKI ET AL, 1986)

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Medium
Significant No
Discovery year 1560
Discoverer Spanish Colonists
Year of first production 1560
Year of last production 1874

Mining district

District name San Antonio De Lipez

Land status

Ownership category Federal

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Corporacion Minera De Bolivia (Comibol)

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • DISSEMINATED ORE HAS AN ESTIMATED VOLUME OF 14 TO 30 MILLION METRIC TONS

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Length 4260M
    Overall depth 60M

Comments on the workings information

  • 5 ADITS; QUIROZ CROSS CUT, DRIVEN IN THE EARLY 1870'S, IS 1000 M LONG WITH 150 M OF DROP.

Comments on development

  • WORKED FOR A FEW YEARS FROM 1560; FROM 1866-1874; UNDER EXPLORATION LAST FEW YEARS BY JICA AND COMIBOL ; ECON.COM: SAN ANTONIO DE LIPEZ WAS THE FIRST MAJOR SITE OF SPANISH SILVER PRODUCTION IN BOLIVIA BUT WAS ABANDONED AFTER THE DISCOVERY OF CERRO RICO DE POTOSI. MINE WAS REOPENED BY A BRITISH CONCERN 1866-1874

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    AHLFELD, F., SCHNEIDER-SCHERBINA, A., 1964, LOS YACEMENTOS MINERALES Y DE HIDROCARBUROS DE BOLIVIA: BOLIVIA DEPARTMENTO NACIONAL DE GEOLOGIA BOL. 5.

  • Deposit

    SERVICIO GEOLOGICO DE BOLIVIA, 1971, MINA SAN ANTONIO: PROYECTO LIPEZ-COMIBOL-1970 INFORME GE-10, 86P., MAPS 1:2,000.

  • Deposit

    APPLETON, J.D., RIDGEWAY, J., CLAROS, J., GOMEZ CABALLERO, A., RODRIGUEZ, W., AND VILLASE%OR, M.G., 1988, LITHOGEOCHEMICAL EXPLORATION FOR SILVER MINERALIZATION IN BOLIVIA, MEXICO AND PERU: INSTITUTE OF MINING AND METALLURGY TRANSACTIONS, V. B98, P. 153-222.

  • Deposit

    SUGAKI, A., ET AL, 1986, GEOLOGICAL STUDY ON THE ORE DEPOSITS OF THE SUR LIPEZ DISTRICT, BOLIVIA: SCIENCE REPORTS OF THE TOHOKU UNIVERSITY, SRS. 3, V. 16, N. 3, P. 327-352.

  • Deposit

    FLORES A., MARIO, 1988, IDENTIFICATION Y EVALUACION PRELIMINAR DE YACIMIENTOS EPITERMALES DE METALES PRECIOSOS DE SAN ANTONIO DE LIPEZ, POTOSI-BOLIVIA: PROGRAMA DE LAS NACIONES UNIDAS PARA EL DESAROLLO, PROYECTO BOL/87/012, INFORME, 23P. MAPS 1:100,000; 1:10,000.

  • Deposit

    JAPAN INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION AGENCY, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, INFORME DE LA EXPLORACION COOPERATIVA DE MINERAL EN EL AREA DE SAN ANTONIO, FASES I, II, III, SUMARIO

  • Deposit

    PROSPECTION, LTD., 1964, GEOLOGICAL REPORT ON MINA MESA DE PLATA, OF CORPORACION MINERA DE BOLIVIA: UNPUBLISHED REPORT TO COMIBOL

  • Deposit

    RIVAS, S., 1970, INFORME DE ACTIVIDADES DEL PROYECTO LIPEZ: COMIBOL REPORT

  • Deposit

    GEOCHEMICAL SURVEY BY APPLETON ET AL (1988)

  • Deposit

    VISITED BY USGS/GEOBOL MAY AND NOV. 1990

  • Deposit

    GEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS BY COMIBOL (ZUBRZYCKI, 1956), EXPLORATION 1975-1980

  • Deposit

    GEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS BY JICA/MMAJ 1981-1990 (SUGAKI ET AL, 1986)

  • Deposit

    GEOLOGICAL STUDY BY UNDP PROGRAM 1988

  • Deposit

    GEOLOGICAL, GEOCHEMICAL AND GEOPHYSICAL EXPLORATION BY GEOBOL (1971)

  • Other Database

    CIMRI

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit IN ZONE SE OF SAN ANTONIO DE LIPEZ ARE 4 MAJOR VEINS OXIDIZED TO 50 M DEPTH, 50 TO 60 M LONG, 2 CM TO 1 M WIDE, WITHIN A 3 KM ALTERED ZONE. SYSTEM 1 VEIN STRIKES N80 TO 90E, DIPS 60-70S, IS 200 M LONG AND 0.5 TO 3 M WIDE. SYSTEM 2 VEIN STRIKES N70 TO 90E, DIPS 60-65S AND IS 0.3 TO 1 M WIDE. MESA DE PLATA SECTION ARE FOUR MAJOR BONANZA VEIN SYSTEMS (VEINS I, II, III, AND IV) AND RELATED DISSEMINATED ORE. VEIN I IS 650 M LONG, UP TO 10 M WIDE AND 170 M IN VERTICAL EXTENT. VEIN II IS MORE THAN 600 M LONG, UP TO 10 M WIDE, AND HAS A VERTICAL EXTENT OF 200 M. VEIN III IS A LINEAR SYSTEM OF STOCKWORK VEINLETS.
Deposit GEOCHEMICAL SOIL SAMPLING: 383 SAMPLES IN 638,000 SQ M AREA FOR PB AND ZN. GEOPHYSICAL EXPLORATION: TURAM EM 44 LINES IN 1,297,000 SQ METER AREA. GEOCHEMICAL SURVEY BY APPLETON ET AL (1988) WAS A STREAM ROCK SAMPLE SURVEY ANALYZED FOR AG, PB, AS, S, SB, ZN, MAJOR ELEMENTS, AND NH4+. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 2 UNPUB REPT; 3 FIELD OBSERV

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-JUN-1978 Urquidi-Barrau, Fernando Department of State
Updater 01-MAY-1990 Long, Keith R. U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-JUN-1990 Rene Enriquez U.S. Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

Supplemental information added by qvyshift.com. Not part of the original USGS MRDS record.

Maps centered on this site