Bladed Texture and Exploration Implications. A Case Study from the Kuklitsa Deposit, Krumovgrad Goldfield, SE Bulgaria

Abstract

This study demonstrates that the bladed texture, which is common in epithermal, low-sulfidation (adularia-sericite) precious metal deposits, can serves as exploration vector towards precious metal mineralization. The paper presents two styles of bladed texture in the Kuklitsa gold deposit (Krumovgrad goldfield, SE Bulgaria) observed at both different altitude and lateral position in respect to regional low-angle detachment fault. The first style has formed as a crackle breccia just above the detachment fault where bladed texture consists of 10–20 vol % pseudorhombic adularia, 90-80 vol % quartz, scarce pyrite, and electrum, which is often observed under optical microscope. The second style is present in steep veins which fill listric faults of sharp tectonic contacts. It is developed at a higher level relative to the detachment fault. Bladed texture there consists of 1–2 vol % pseudorhombic adularia, 99-98 vol % quartz, and scarce both electrum and pyrite. Electrum of the two styles of bladed texture comprises only gold and silver but in different proportions with a higher gold content for the first style: fineness of 765, on average, for the first style vs. fineness of 692 for the second one. In this way, it is found that the adularia abundance correlates positively with the electrum one and negatively with the quartz abundance. The author uses the proportions of adularia, quartz and electrum, the fineness of electrum, and the relative distance to the detachment fault to conclude that the first style of bladed texture has been formed at higher temperature relative to the second style. The author infers that the first style is promising for mineralization of higher grade. Methods used comprise field observations and sampling, optical and electron microscopy, powder X-ray diffraction and electron microprobe analysis.