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Afgan Deposit

Prospect in Eureka county in Nevada, United States with commodity Gold
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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. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10310541
Record type Site
Current site name Afgan Deposit
Alternate or previous names Afghan deposit

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -116.32413, 39.72605 (WGS84)
Relative position The deposit is located approximately 40 km northwest of Eureka, NV.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Eureka(county)

Nevada(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Bartine Ranch NE(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Simpson Park Mountains(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Millett(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Diamond-Monitor Valleys(hydrologic unit)

Central Nevada Desert Basins(hydrologic accounting unit)

Central Nevada Desert Basins(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 Eureka

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Mount Diablo 021N 050E 01, 02, 03, 04 Nevada
Mount Diablo 022N 050E 25, 26, 33, 34, 35, 36 Nevada

Comments on the location information

  • The deposit is located on the south flank of the Roberts Mountains.

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary

Comments on the commodity information

  • Ore Materials: NATIVE GOLD

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Gold Ore

Alteration

  • (Local) Mineralization is closely associated with major decalcification and to a lesser extent with silicification of host rocks and jasperoid development along high-angle structures. Also evident is remobilization of carbon and oxidation and redistribution. Minor bleaching, calcite veining, argillization. All alteration types occur mainly up dip from the feeder structure. The oxidation of pyrite and subsequent remobilization of iron oxides have produced spectacular brick-red to dark yellow brown banding in the oxidized, decalcified limestone. In many areas the ore exhibits intense liesegang banding. Most of the calcite veining is characterized by 0.1-30 cm veins located up dip from the orebody. Argillization is rare. Illitic clays have been locally altered to montmorillonite and allophane.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 173
USGS model code 26a.1
Deposit model name Sediment-hosted Au
Mark3 model number 17

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type
    Rock unit name Webb Formation
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Early Mississippian

Nearby scientific data

(1) -116.32413, 39.72605
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Local
Structure description Paleozoic thrusting and folding and Tertiary age high angle faulting have affected rocks in the mine area. Limestone beds are gently folded along ENE-trending fold axes, forming anticlines and synclines that plunge 10-40 degrees to the east. The dominant Tertiary fault sets strike northwest and north-south; other sets strike east-northeast and northeast.
Type of structure Regional
Structure description The deposit is located in a window of lower plate rocks below the Roberts Mountain Thrust and lying along the NW-trending Battle Mountain-Eureka Trend of mineral deposits.

Ore body information

  • General form disseminated

Controls for ore emplacement

  • A northwesterly-trending fault is the main feeder structure for mineralizing fluids. Wider, thicker, and higher grade portions of the orebody occur at intersections of this main feeder zone with northwest-striking high-angle normal faults. Thin-bedded silty limestones are a lithologic control of gold deposition.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Surface
Development status Prospect
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant Yes
Discoverer .

Mining district

District name Antelope District

Land status

Ownership category BLM Administrative Area
Area name Battle Mountain BLM District

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner White Knight Resources, Ltd.
    Year 2001

Comments on the workings information

  • The deposit is developed by drill roads and pads.

Comments on other economic factors

  • Reserves were reported in 1997 as 1600 Kilotonnes grading 2.9 g/t gold.
    Reserves in 1999 were reported as 2.8 million tons of oxide ore grading 0.037 opt Au.
    In 2005, the Afgan Project was estimated to contain a resource of 1.85 million tons at a grade of 0.027 opt Au (Indicated), and 1.29 million tons at a grade of 0.026 opt Au (Inferred).

Comments on development

  • Still in exploration phase, 1999.

    In 2005 Castleworth as announced significant resources at two of its projects, Pan and Afgan, both located in the Battle Mountain-Cortez Trend.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    Geology and Mineralization of the Gold Bar District, Southern Roberts Mountains, Eureka County, Nevada, 1998, French, G.M., Fenne, F.K., Maus, D.A., Rennebaum, T.D., and Jennings, T.A., in Sediment-hosted Gold Deposits of the Eureka (Ruby Hill Mine) and Gold Bar Districts, East-Central Nevada, Geological Society of Nevada Special Publication No., 27, 1998 Spring Field Trip Guidebook.

  • Deposit

    Long, K.R., DeYoung, J.H., Jr., and Ludington, S.D., 1998, Significant deposits of gold, silver, copper, lead, and zinc in the United States: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 90-206A, 33 p.; 98-206B. one 3.5 inch diskette.

  • Deposit

    NBMG MI-96 thru MI-99

  • Deposit

    Simpson Park Mtns. Land Status, 1979

  • Deposit

    Amer. Mines (2000), 1999

  • Deposit

    Amer. Mines (2001) 2000

  • Deposit

    Maher, 1997

  • Deposit

    Castleworth (Pan Nevada) website, Feb. 2006.

  • Deposit

    BLM Claim Microfiche, 1997

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-MAY-2003 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.

Maps centered on this site

Authoritative Nevada resources

These are landing pages for further research — the state agencies don't currently expose per-mine deep links.