Abstract. Gold occurs in metamorphosed iron-formation within a migmatized paragneiss terrane in the Eastern Superior Province of the Canadian Shield. The main gold prospect, which is located 100 m from a tonalite pluton, has undergone skarn-like metamorphism that occurred late during the granulite grade metamorphism. Despite its occurrence in a high-grade metamorphic host-rock, the mineralization shares many of the characteristics of lowergrade Archean greenstone belt gold mineralization, such as: (1) enrichment in Au, As, S, Sb, W, U and FeO; (2) a low base-metal/gold ratio; (3) the inclusion of gold in arsenopyrite; (4) the proximity to a felsic pluton; (5) an iron-rich, fractured host-rock; and (6) a similar mineralization time (around 2650 Ma). This gold occurrence occurs near the metamorphic peak and represents a deep level expression of the widespread crustal-scale mineralizing system documented for the late Archean. The main conclusion of this work is that the principal characteristics of Archean gold mineralization are present in the deep crust, and do not come from the leaching of upper-level rock piles, such as greenstone belts.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.