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Bunce Prospect

Producer in Pershing county in Nevada, United States with commodities Gold, Silver
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Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Public Land Survey System information
  6. Commodities
  7. Materials information
  8. Alteration
  9. Mineral occurrence model information
  10. Host and associated rocks
  11. Nearby scientific data
  12. Geologic structures
  13. Ore body information
  14. Controls for ore emplacement
  15. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  16. Mining district
  17. Land status
  18. Ownership information
  19. Bibliographic references
  20. General comments
  21. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10310464
MRDS ID M242881
MAS/MILS ID 0320270873
Record type Site
Current site name Bunce Prospect
Alternate or previous names D B Claim, D B Nos. 1-17 Claims, Bunce Lease, Discovery Zone, North Zone, Santa Fe East Zone, Santa Fe West Zone
Related records 10047521

Comments on the site identification

  • This record includes material from MRDS record M242881, an earlier record for the deposit.

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -118.80377, 40.26572 (WGS84)
Elevation 1410
Relative position The Bunce prospect is located near Lovelock, on the west slope of the Trinity Range, about two miles northwest of the Velvet Mine.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Pershing(county)

Nevada(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Seven Troughs SE(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Lovelock(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Lovelock(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Granite Springs Valley(hydrologic unit)

Truckee(hydrologic accounting unit)

Central Lahontan(hydrologic subregion)

Great Basin(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

Bureau of Land Management(Bureau of Land Management NV)

Bureau of Land Management NV BLM(Type of land area)

BLM(Federal land areas administered by BLM)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Nevada Pershing

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Mount Diablo 028N 028E 26 SE Nevada

Comments on the location information

  • The Bunce project consists of 96 unpatented lode mining claims owned by AuEx Company, 640 acres of fee land optioned by the Company, 80 acres of fee land leased by the Company, 54 leased unpatented lode claims and 4,100 acres of sub-leases of fee land all located in Pershing County, Nevada. UTM is to a point within the DB claims in the SE 1/4 of sec. 26 T28N, R28E.

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Silver Secondary

Comments on the commodity information

  • Ore Materials: free gold

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Gold Ore

Alteration

  • (Local) High-level alteration consisting of chalcedonic and opaline silica, argillization and anomalous pathfinder geochemistry appears widespread and suggests that the mineral system is large. Silicification is prevalent.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 150
USGS model code 25c
Deposit model name Epithermal vein, Comstock
Mark3 model number 16

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Rhyolite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Tertiary
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Pyroclastic Rock > Tuff
    Rock type qualifier rhyolite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Tertiary
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Pyroclastic Rock
    Rock type qualifier explosion breccias
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Tertiary
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Mixed Clastic/Volcanic Rock
    Rock type qualifier fossil hot spring sinter
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Tertiary

Nearby scientific data

(1) -118.80377, 40.26572
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Local
Structure description faulting and fracturing

Ore body information

  • General form blanket, irregular

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Mineralization occurs in silicified zones controlled by north-trending faults and thought to be related to hot spring activity.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Surface
Development status Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant Yes
Discovery year 1930

Mining district

District name Velvet District

Land status

Ownership category BLM Administrative Area
Area name WInnnemucca BLM Administrative District
Ownership category BLM Administrative Area

Ownership information

  • Type Owner
    Owner Newmont, the Gold Company
    Year 2004
  • Type Operator
    Owner AuEx, Inc.
    Home office 940 Matley Lane, Suite 17 Reno, NV 89502
    Year 2004

Comments on the workings information

  • trenches, drilling, surface exploration

Comments on other economic factors

  • In 1989, the Bunce Deposit in the Velvet district was reported to contain a geologic reserve of 600,000 tons of material grading 0.04 ounces of gold per ton and 500,000 tons of material grading 0.04 ounces of gold per ton in 1990.
    The Discovery Zone was reported in 1990 to contain a geologic reserve of 238,279 tons of material containing 0.052 ounces of gold per ton; and 444,887 tons of material containing 0.034 ounces of gold per ton.

Comments on development

  • The Bunce property was discovered in the 1930s, but remained undeveloped until the advent of heap leach technology. In 1984, Hillside Energy leased 80 acres of private land from the Bunce estate and joint ventured it with Noramex Minerals. Additional land was acquired by staking. Also in 1984, trenching exposed gold mineralization over widths of 30 and 25 m, open on both ends, in 2 trenches 120 m apart. In April 1987, Calvada Resources optioned the property and drilled 4970 feet before dropping the option. In late 1988, Noramex increased its interest from 56% to 100% by buying out the Hillside interest. In 1989, Noramex finalized an agreement with Santa Fe Pacific Minerals Inc. to consolidate the respective mineral lands in the area. In May 1990, Noramex granted Annabel Gold Mines Inc. The right to earn 44% relative to Noramex by incurring $800,000 in exploration expenditures. Prior to the Santa Fe agreement, 6420 feet of drilling had been done on the Bunce lease plus 1600 feet by Santa Fe on its adjoining ground. The best drill intercept was 70 feet grading 0.107 opt gold. A 6090-foot drilling program was completed on the Santa F and Bunce lease ground in 1990. A 15,000-foot reverse circulation drilling program was scheduled for completion by mid-1991, followed by metallurgical and feasibility studies.
    Newmont acquired the Bunce property when it took over Santa Fe Pacific's properties, and it was leased from Newmont by AuEx, the current operator (2004).
    Under the lease agreement with Newmont, AuEx is obligated to spend $75,000 during the first year of the agreement and additional amounts thereafter to maintain the agreement. Newmont retains the right to back in to a 51/49 joint venture but with specific expenditure requirements on its part.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    MineSearch Annual, 1984-85, vol vii, p. 69-70.

  • Deposit

    Hillside Energy Corp News Release, 2/15/85, 3/21/85.

  • Deposit

    BLM Mining Claim Data.

  • Deposit

    NBMG Bulletin 89, Pl. 1.

  • Deposit

    "Noramex Focusing on Gold Deposits in Nevada", The Mining Record, April 24, 1991, p. 9.

  • Deposit

    NBMG MI-89 thru MI-03

  • Deposit

    Amer. Mines (1989), 1989

  • Deposit

    Amer. Mines (1990), 1990

  • Deposit

    Amer. Mines (1991-1992), 1991

  • Deposit

    Noramex News Releases, 1989-1990

  • Deposit

    MASMILS 0320270873

  • Deposit

    Lovelock Land Status, 1978

  • Deposit

    AuEx website: http://www.auex.com/projects/bunce/bunce.mgi

  • Deposit

    Masterston, Wilmer D. IV, 1981, Kyle, J. R., 1981, Epithermal Gold Mineralization in the Velvet District, Pershing County, Nevada, MA Thesis, Univ. of Texas at Austin.

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Bunce contains a low sulfidation, epithermal gold-silver target hosted within Tertiary volcanics. Significant drilling by previous explorers has defined a moderate to small sized zone of gold mineralization in one area but only limited drilling has been performed elsewhere on the property. High-level alteration consisting of chalcedonic and opaline silica, argillization and anomalous pathfinder geochemistry appears widespread and suggests that the mineral system is large. Numerous faults with post-mineral movement have complicated the geology but may also mark the location of the mineralizing structures that can guide future exploration.Gold occurs as fine particles disseminated in rhyolite. Emplacement appears to be related to silicification and hydrothermal alteration in a near-surface environment characterized by hydrothermal explosion breccias and extensive fossil hot spring sinters. Mineralization occurs in silicified zones controlled by north-trending faults and thought to be related to hot spring activity. Model name could also be: hot-spring gold-silver.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-DEC-2004 LaPointe, D.D. Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology
Editor 01-SEP-2007 Schruben, Paul G. U.S. Geological Survey Converted from S&A FileMaker format to Oracle. Edit checks on rocks, units, and ages with Geolex search, and other fields.

Beyond USGS

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

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Authoritative Nevada resources

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