History & Geology
Mineral Deposit Trends: Real and Imaginary
December 2012 by Chris Ralph
One of the most important things prospectors do is work to figure out where to go prospecting. Along with understanding the basic geology and putting yourself in a favorable area, one of the things a prospector might consider in finding a location to search is the existence of mining belts also known as mineral deposit trends.$50 Million in Gold From 1857 Shipwreck Approved for Sale
The gold is all for sale. Just one tiny coin alone could go for $1 million because of its combination of rarity and the history behind it...
Enrichment of Mineral Deposits by Weathering—Part I
The exact minerals formed in the concentrated supergene deposits depends much on the type of country rock around the deposit and the chemistry of the deposit itself, but if conditions are right, this process will form some rich patches of bonanza ore, in some places valued at thousands of dollars to the ton.Alluvial Paystreaks
The gravels in contact with the bedrock or false bedrock base are often the richest. The same facts apply to the alluvial paystreaks that are formed on gravel bars; the lowest level of the gold-bearing gravel is normally the richest.
The Mineral Range Districts of Utah
Most of the commercial mineral deposits are on the south and southwest part of the range between Minersville and Milford, though small amounts of gold and silver have also been found in iron-rich outcrops in the basalt to the south of Milford.
Understanding and Prospecting Benches
The most obvious benches are usually near the valley floor, but they can be thousands of feet above the valley floor. Since benches were made by streams, they can contain placer deposits.
Greenstone and Gold
Contacts, faults and zones of weak rock are all places that can act as a pipeline to convey gold-bearing fluids, leading to valuable deposits.
The Significance of Nuggets in Placers
Chances are better that both types of gold did not come from the same source. Let's look at the probable conditions to cause two types of gold in a placer.
Subscription Required:
The Bawl Mill
• Ask the Experts
• Legislative and Regulatory Update
• Prospecting for Gold at Green Valley
• Extraction of Precious Metals Using Froth Flotation
• Detecting Old Ground Sluice Locations
• Four Arrested for California Mining Museum Heist
• Scams, Scammers and Schemes
• Lawsuit Update From the New 49'ers
• Constitutional Sheriffs Standing Up for Our Rights
• What's Left Behind
• Melman on Gold & Silver
• Mining Stock Quotes and Mineral & Metal Prices
Free:
Ask the Experts
• Detecting at the Sixteen to One Mine
