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Palaeomagnetic evidence for the age of the Cumbrian and Manx hematite ore
deposits: Implications for the origin of hematite mineralization at the
margins of the East Irish Sea Basi...

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DOI: 10.1144/jgs2013-004

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Palaeomagnetic evidence for the age of the Cumbrian and Manx hematite
ore deposits: implications for the origin of hematite mineralization at the
margins of the East Irish Sea Basin, UK
Stephen F. Crowley, John D. A. Piper, Turki Bamarouf and Andrew P. Roberts

Journal of the Geological Society, first published October 23, 2013; doi
10.1144/jgs2013-004

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 research-articleResearch ArticleXXX10.1144/jgs2013-004S. F. Crowley et al.Dating of hematite ore deposits
2013

Journal of the Geological Society, London. http://dx.doi.org/10.1144/jgs2013-004

Published Online First
© 2013 The Geological Society of London

Palaeomagnetic evidence for the age of the Cumbrian and Manx hematite ore
deposits: implications for the origin of hematite mineralization at the margins of the
East Irish Sea Basin, UK

Stephen F. Crowley 1* , John D. A. Piper 1 , Turki Bamarouf 1,2 & Andrew P. Roberts 1
1Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences, University of Liverpool, 4 Brownlow Street, Liverpool L69 3GP, UK

2Present address: Saudi Aramco, Box 1874, Dhahran Street, Dhahran 31311, Saudi Arabia

*Corresponding author (e-mail: sfcrow@liverpool.ac.uk)

Abstract: Examples of epigenetic hematite mineralization located at the margins of the East Irish Sea Basin
have been sampled for palaeomagnetic investigation to establish the timing of ore formation. Samples col-
lected from 10 sites in Cumbria are dominated by hematite of near-pure composition and characterized by
dual polarity and, in part, dual component magnetizations that yield palaeopoles (nine sites) between 50°N,
130°E and 50°N, 150°E. In contrast, samples recovered from seven sites on the Isle of Man have more varied
mineralogical compositions that include ferromagnets with lower unblocking temperatures. Manx hematite
mineralization also exhibits dual polarity, but magnetizations yield steeper inclinations with palaeopoles
lying between 55°N, 130°E and 70°N, 150°E. Steeper directions probably reflect minor tilting of the Manx
block following hematite emplacement. Correlation of poles with the European apparent polar wander path
indicates that these ore deposits formed during the Middle Triassic. Results show that hematite mineraliza-
tion sited at the margins of the East Irish Sea Basin is essentially contemporaneous and establishes, for the
first time, an underlying temporal relationship between these geographically dispersed ore bodies. Dating
places the mineralization within a broader extensional geotectonic regime associated with the early rifting
of Pangaea in the North Atlantic. The context implies a causal link between crustal extension, development
of ore-forming fluids within the evolving East Irish Sea Basin, and subsequent migration of fluids to basin
margins where iron was precipitated as hematite.

Supplementary materials: Locations and details of palaeomagnetic sample sites and a tabulation of selected
reference palaeomagnetic poles defining the Triassic and Early Jurassic segment of the apparent polar wander
path for the European sector of the Eurasian plate are available at www.geolsoc.org.uk/SUP18691.

A common problem associated with the development of ore deposit Rose & Dunham 1977; Evans & El-Nikhely 1982; Dunham
models for many examples of low-temperature (<200 °C), epige- 1984a,b; Shepherd & Goldring 1993; Akhurst et al. 1997; Rowe
netic base metal mineralization is the frequent lack of accurate dat- et al. 1998).
ing evidence for the timing of ore formation (Sangster 1986; Although the scale and economic importance of the Cumbrian
Skinner 1997; Chesley 1999). In the absence of a reliable geochro- ore deposits is well established (Smith 1924; Rose & Dunham 1977;
nology it is not usually possible to place the mineralization within British Geological Survey 1992), the extent and significance of
a precise regional geotectonic framework and important aspects of hematite mineralization at the margins of the East Irish Sea Basin is
any rigorous ore deposit model, such as (1) underlying tectonic less widely recognized. Smaller scale (c. 104 tonnes) economic
controls, (2) development of ore-forming fluids and source of met- (actively mined) hematite ore deposits are documented from the
als, (3) heat and mass transfer processes and (4) the duration of western, northern and southern margins of the basin (Fig. 1) in the
mineralizing events, are often reduced to subjective speculation. vicinity of Kirk Maughold, NE Isle of Man (Lamplugh 1903; Hollis
The major epigenetic hematite ore deposits of Cumbria, NW 1987; Chadwick et al. 2001), Auchenleck, SW Scotland (Lintern &
England (Smith 1924; Rose & Dunham 1977; Shepherd & Goldring Floyd 2000), and at several locations in NE Wales (Cantrill et al.
1993), located (see Fig. 1) on the eastern margin of the Permo- 1919; Warren et al. 1984; Davies et al. 2004). Examples of minor,
Cretaceous East Irish Sea extensional sedimentary basin (Jackson non-economic, hematite mineralization are also observed at sites in
et al. 1987, 1995; Jackson & Mulholland 1993; Chadwick et al. the SE Isle of Man (Lamplugh 1903; this study).
1994, 2001; Holford et al. 2005), provide an excellent example of Several studies have drawn attention to similarities between the
the problems caused by poor geochronological control. Here, Cumbrian, Manx and Welsh hematite deposits (Lamplugh 1903;
repeated attempts have been made to determine the age of miner- Cantrill et al. 1919; Hollis 1987; Chadwick et al. 2001) and have
alization using geological field relationships and palaeomagnetic suggested that the mineralization in these areas may be temporally
dating techniques. This has resulted in a diverse range of age esti- and, possibly, genetically related. To date no evidence has been
mates (Carboniferous to Tertiary) for the timing of ore formation reported from either the Isle of Man or NE Wales to substantiate this
(Kendall 1873–1875; Trotter 1945; Dunham 1952, 1984a; DuBois hypothesis. However, the fact that apparently similar styles of miner-
1962; Rose & Dunham 1977; Evans & El-Nikhely 1982; Shepherd alization are observed to occur at several locations sited on the mar-
& Goldring 1993; Rowe et al. 1998), and has led to a correspond- gins of the East Irish Sea Basin provides evidence for a potential link
ingly broad range of inferred ore deposit models that are, in part, between the geotectonic evolution of the basin, basin-scale mass
constrained by the preferred dating evidence (e.g. see Trotter 1945; transfer, and ore deposit formation at basin margins. Crucial to any

1
2 S. F. Crowley et al.

Fig. 1. Geological setting of hematite

mineralization at the margins of the East
Irish Sea Basin (modified from Akhurst
et al. 1998) showing the location of
palaeomagnetic sample sites (stars) in
Southern 4o W 3o W
55o N
Ma Sys IOM C/EISB
relation to major stratigraphic units and
Uplands tectonic elements. A, SE Isle of Man (Sites
Au Carlisle Alston 80

Cretaceous
IOM6 and IOM7); B, Kirk Maughold
Basin
Block (Sites IOM1–IOM5); C, Yeat House (Site
120 C5); D, Kelton Felltop (Sites C6–C8); E,
Egremont (Site C9); F, Eskdale Granite
Solway C D (Sites C1–C3); G, Hodbarrow Point (Site
Lake 160

Jurassic
Basin E District
C10); H, Plumpton Hall (Site C4). Location
of potentially related hematite ore deposits
B F Block 200 (stars) in SW Scotland (Au, Auchenleck)

Permian Triassic
Manx G Askrigg MMG MMG
and NE Wales (Ab, Abergele; VC, Vale of
H Block 240 Clywd) are also shown. The location of the
Block SSG SSG
Sellafield borehole programme is indicated
East ACG
by the white star. Lithostratigraphy for
A 280
Irish 54o N the Isle of Man (IOM) and Cumbria–East
VOE
Irish Sea basin (C/EISB) is shown. MMG,
Sea

Carbonif
320 Mercia Mudstone Grp; SSG, Sherwood
Basin CG CLG Sandstone Grp (inc. St. Bees Sandstone
360 Fm); ACG, Appleby Grp and Cumbrian

Ordovician Silur Devonian

Coast Grp (including ‘Brockram’; St. Bees
Evaporite Fm); CG, Craven Grp (including
400 AOE
Derbyhaven Fm); CLG, Chief Limestone
Holy Grp; BVG, Borrowdale Volcanic Grp
Island Cheshire 440 (including Eycott Volcanic Grp; Eskdale
Shelf Ab BVG
Basin Granite); MG, Manx Grp; SG, Skiddaw
VC MG SG Grp. VOE, Variscan orogenic event; AOE,
480
pre-Carboniferous Carboniferous Permo-Triassic Acadian orogenic event. Time scale after
IUGS (2012).

attempt to address these issues is the acquisition of robust dating
evidence that is capable of correlating geographically separated but
potentially genetically related mineralization, and reconciling appar-
ently conflicting relative age estimates inferred from geological field
relationships and age determinations derived using either absolute
(radiometric) or comparative (palaeomagnetic) dating techniques.
Dating of epigenetic ore deposits using radiometric techniques
has frequently proven to be problematic because common ore min-
erals rarely contain sufficient amounts of radioactive elements to
produce reliable ages (Brannon et al. 1995). Where potentially
dateable phases do occur, such as illite in mineralized wall rocks
(Mitchell & Ineson 1988) or uraniferous hydrocarbons associated
with mineralization (Parnell & Swainbank 1990), the paragenetic
relationships between ore deposits and minerals hosting radioac-
tive elements can often be ambiguous and the integrity of radiomet-
ric ages may be compromised by contamination or a failure to
maintain isotopically closed systems. However, advances in radio-
metric dating methods, such as Rb–Sr dating of quartz and sphaler-
ite (Shepherd et al. 1982; Pettke & Diamond 1996), Sm–Nd dating
of fluorite (Chesley et al. 1994), Th–Pb and U–Pb dating of carbon-
ates (Brannon et al. 1996), and (U + Th)–He and (U + Th)–Ne
dating of fluorite and hematite (McInnes et al. 2005; Farley &
Flowers 2012) have resulted in a significant improvement in the
understanding of ore-forming processes where these techniques
may reasonably be applied (e.g. Chesley 1999; Leach et al. 2001).
For ore deposits that do not contain minerals that are amenable to
radiometric dating techniques palaeomagnetic methods have proven
to be of value (e.g. Hanus & Krs 1963; Beales et al. 1974; Symons
& Sangster 1994; Lewchuk & Symons 1995; Symons et al. 2002).
In many ore deposit settings, particularly base metal sulphide min-
eralization, the palaeomagnetic method is often reliant on the
occurrence of minute amounts of ferromagnetic minerals (com-
monly magnetite or pyrrhotite) that record the direction of the
Earth’s magnetic field at the time of mineral precipitation. The
resultant palaeopole positions derived from measurement of the pre-
served magnetizations may then be correlated with reconstructions
of the local apparent polar wander path (APWP) to produce an esti-
mate of the age of ore formation. Although the primary remanent
magnetization preserved by common ferromagnetic minerals such
as magnetite and pyrrhotite is considered to be relatively stable,
these accessory phases might not provide a true representation of the
timing of mineralization because (1) samples may be characterized
by weak magnetizations that yield poorly defined or inaccurate
magnetic pole positions, or (2) measured magnetic directions may
result from the precipitation of ferromagnetic minerals associated
with a much younger chemical remagnetization event that is unre-
lated to the primary mineralization. Evidently reliable dating of base
metal sulphide mineralization by palaeomagnetic techniques is fea-
sible only where evidence is available to show that the precipitation
(and magnetization) of ferromagnetic minerals was contemporane-
ous with ore deposit formation (Chesley 1999). In contrast, hematite
ore deposits would appear to be well suited to dating by palaeomag-
netic techniques because of (1) the typically high magnetic stability
of the canted antiferromagnetism present in hematite, (2) the rela-
tive geochemical stability of hematite in oxidizing (near-surface)
environments, and (3) the fact that measured magnetizations are
hosted by the primary ore phase.
In this contribution to the continuing debate on the age of hema-
tite mineralization located at the margins of the East Irish Sea Basin
we (1) scrutinize existing palaeomagnetic dating evidence from
Cumbria, (2) report new palaeomagnetic data using incremental
thermal demagnetization techniques that resolve the magnetic com-
 Dating of hematite ore deposits
Table 1. Comparative features of hematite ore deposits from Cumbria and the Isle of Man
Feature Cumbria
Proposed age of mineralization Pre-Permian to Tertiary
Main host rocks Skiddaw Grp (Early Ordovician), Eskdale Granite (Late Ordovician),
Chief Limestone Grp (Mississippian)
Style of mineralization Stratiform, metasomatic replacement. Fault-related, fracture-hosted veins.
Mineralization of karst-like features (‘sops’)
Main ore minerals Hematite
Total ore production >1.8 × 108 tonnes @ 45–55% Fe
 
Total Fe >1 × 1014 g
Sulphides Minor Cu, Fe and Pb sulphides (<1% of total ore)
Gangue minerals Barite, calcite, dolomite, fluorite, quartz
Fluid (inclusion) temperature 84–121 °C
Fluid (inclusion) salinity 10–24 equiv. wt% NaCl
Fluid (inclusion) chemistry Na–Ca–Cl brine
Data sources: Lamplugh (1903), Smith (1924), Rose & Dunham (1977), Hollis (1987), Shepherd & Goldring (1993) and unpublished author observations.
ponent structures of Cumbrian and Manx mineralization, (3) inte-
grate the resultant palaeomagnetic poles with a current assessment
of the local (European) APWP for the relevant time interval to pro-
duce a robust age estimate for ore deposit formation and test our
estimate against field relationships reported by earlier workers, (4)
examine the potential significance of hydrothermal illite K–Ar and
Ar/Ar ages and a single hematite (U + Th)–He age measured from
samples directly associated with Cumbrian mineralization, (5)
briefly discuss the implications of our new dating evidence in terms
of the current preferred ore deposit models proposed by Rose &
Dunham (1977) and Shepherd & Goldring (1993), and (6) assess the
context of the mineralization with respect to regional plate tectonics.
Hematite mineralization
The geological setting of hematite ore deposits and potentially
related sub-economic mineralization located at the margins of the
East Irish Sea Basin encompasses over 480 Ma of Earth history
(Fig. 1, Table 1) and has been described in reports published by the
British Geological Survey (Rose & Dunham 1977; Warren et al.
1984; Jackson et al. 1995; Akhurst et al. 1997; Lintern & Floyd
2000; Millward et al. 2000; Chadwick et al. 2001; Johnson et al.
2001; Cooper et al. 2004; Davies et al. 2004). Figure 1 illustrates
the regional geology and highlights some of the more important
aspects of the stratigraphy and structure of the East Irish Sea Basin
and surrounding areas, which are used as the basis for integrating
palaeomagnetic data with wider geological constraints that have a
direct impact on the age of the mineralization.
Although examples of hematite mineralization are known to
occur in SE Scotland and NE Wales, we confine our investigation to
sites (Fig. 1) located in Cumbria and the Isle of Man. The majority
of mines in the study area were active during the 19th to mid-20th
centuries (direct access to former mines is no longer possible; the
Florence mine, the last accessible mine in Cumbria, was allowed to
flood in 2007) and most published accounts of the mineralization
focus on the larger-scale stratigraphic and structural relationships
between ore deposits and their host rocks. Relatively few studies
containing modern textural, geochemical or fluid inclusion data are
available (Shepherd 1973; Rose & Dunham 1977; Goldring &
Greenwood 1990; Shepherd & Goldring 1993), but the results of
three separate palaeomagnetic investigations, using samples col-
lected from the Beckermet and Florence mines (west Cumbria),
have been published (DuBois 1962; Evans & El-Nikhely 1982;
Rowe et al. 1998).
3
Isle of Man
Post-Early Devonian
Manx Grp (Early Ordovician)
Fault-related, fracture-hosted veins
Hematite, (?)siderite
c. 1.3 × 104 tonnes hematite @ 50–70% Fe
c. 1.8 × 103 tonnes siderite @ 45% Fe
c. 7 × 109 g
None recognized
Dolomite, quartz
No data
No data
No data
Descriptions of ore districts and their associated mineralization
in Cumbria have been provided by Smith (1924), Rose & Dunham
(1977), Young (1985, 2012), Shepherd & Goldring (1993), Akhurst
et al. (1997), Millward et al. (2000) and Johnson et al. (2001).
Fewer studies are available describing hematite mineralization on
the Isle of Man, and the geological observations reported by
Lamplugh (1903) provide the basis for more recent reviews
(Cantrill et al. 1919; Mackay & Schnellmann 1963; Hollis 1987;
Chadwick et al. 2001). Important features of the Cumbrian and
Manx ore deposits are summarized in Table 1, and brief overviews
of the geological setting and characteristics of the hematite miner-
alization sampled for this palaeomagnetic investigation are pre-
sented in the following sections.
Cumbria
Kelton Felltop (Fig. 1, location D). Hematite mineralization
hosted by Early Ordovician fine-grained, turbidite metasediments
(sub-greenschist facies) of the Skiddaw Group is exposed on the
northern margin of the Lake District block (Smith 1924; Shepherd
1973; Shepherd & Goldring 1993; Akhurst et al. 1997). In most
instances the mineralization is weakly developed, but at Kelton
Felltop economic amounts of massive and botryoidal hematite ore
(with minor quartz) were mined from steeply dipping, mainly
NW–SE-oriented, fracture-hosted veins (Site C8). In the vicinity
of the Kelton mines (Sites C6 and C7) the Skiddaw Group exhibits
evidence of partial replacement by finely disseminated hematite
and the occurrence of small, fracture-hosted, ‘veinlets’ containing
botryoidal and specular hematite and quartz (Figs 2a and 3a). This
appears to represent incipient mineralization of wall rocks beyond
the confines of larger fracture systems. The NW–SE orientation of
the main ore veins is contiguous with similar mineralized fractures
hosted by the Mississippian marine carbonate succession (see the
section on west and south Cumbria, below) located immediately to
the north and NW of Kelton, and it is assumed that the mineraliza-
tion observed in both ore districts is temporally and genetically
related (Shepherd & Goldring 1993).
Eskdale Granite (Fig. 1, location F). The Eskdale Granite forms
part of a major sub-volcanic granite–granodiorite intrusive com-
plex (the Lake District batholith) of Late Ordovician age
(c. 450 Ma) that is associated with suprasubduction-zone, arc vol-
canic deposits of the Borrowdale Volcanic Group and Eycott Vol-
canic Group (Millward et al. 2000). Granitic (and volcanic) rocks
4 S. F. Crowley et al.
aa
c limestones of the Chief Limestone Group,
host mainly small-scale, sub-economic (hematite + quartz ± cal-
cite ± dolomite ± siderite) mineralization within NW–SE- and
NNE–SSW-trending faults and fracture zones (Sites C1 and C3),
and as partial metasomatic replacement (Young 1985), but some
economic ore deposits, such as the Nab Gill mine (Site C2), have
yielded significant amounts of fracture-hosted, massive and bot-
ryoidal hematite (Young 1984). Most examples of hematite min-
eralization within the Eskdale Granite are thought to be genetically
linked to the much larger, carbonate-hosted, ore deposits of west
and south Cumbria (Young 1985; Shepherd & Goldring 1993;
Akhurst et al. 1997; see below).
West and south Cumbria (Fig. 1, locations C, E, G and H). The
major hematite ore deposits of west and south Cumbria were of
global economic significance during the 19th and early 20th centu-
ries, and detailed descriptions of the mineralization in this region
have been provided by Smith (1924) and Rose & Dunham (1977;
also see the review by Shepherd & Goldring 1993). Mineralization
consists of massive and botryoidal hematite ± quartz ± barite ± cal-
cite ± dolomite ± fluorite ± sulphides hosted by Mississippian
(Visean) marine carbonates of the Chief Limestone Group (Akhurst
et al. 1997). Although a variety of minerals are recorded, hematite
accounts for >85% of the material extracted from economic depos-
its (Shepherd & Goldring 1993). Small-scale, often sub-economic,
mineralization associated with a range of other wall rock settings is
also known to occur within the west and south Cumbria districts
(Shepherd & Goldring 1993; Akhurst et al. 1997). These include
examples hosted by (1) the Late Ordovician Coniston Limestone
d
Fig. 2. Field examples of hematite
mineralization sampled for palaeomagnetic
measurement. (a) Partial metasomatic
replacement and fracture-hosted
mineralization of pelitic metasediments
of the Early Ordovician Skiddaw Group,
Kelton Felltop, Cumbria (Site C6). Field
of view is 50 cm wide. (b) Incipient
metasomatic replacement of Mississippian
Egremont, Cumbria (Site C9). Hammer
is 75 cm in length. (c) Hematite and Fe-
dolomite mineralized, NE–SW-oriented
fault zone in Mississippian limestones
of the Derbyhaven Formation, Cass-ny-
Hawin, Isle of Man (Site IOM7). Scale
(compass) is 10 cm × 6.5 cm. (d) NNW–
SSE-oriented, easterly dipping fracture
in Mississippian limestones of the Chief
Limestone Group hosting hematite and
calcite mineralization. Hodbarrow Point,
Cumbria (Site C10). Pen is 14 cm in length.
Group, (2) the Pennsylvanian Hensingham Grit Formation and
Whitehaven Sandstone Formation, (3) the Permian Appleby Group
(‘Brockram’) and Cumbria Coast Group (‘Magnesian Limestone’),
and (4) the Early Triassic St. Bees Sandstone Formation.
The style of mineralization hosted by the Chief Limestone
Group varies from minor replacement of the limestone along joint
surfaces to large, metasomatic ore bodies containing in excess of
2 × 107 tonnes of ore with grades approaching 54% Fe (Shepherd &
Goldring 1993). However, three main styles of mineralization are
recognized (Kendall 1921; Smith 1924; Rose & Dunham 1977;
Shepherd & Goldring 1993): (1) selective, stratiform (‘flats’),
metasomatic replacement (e.g. Figs 2b and 3b) of single carbonate
units (Sites C5, C9 and C10); (2) mineralized veins (e.g. Fig. 2d)
developed along fractures and fault systems (Sites C4 and C10); (3)
karst-like, cavernous features (‘sops’) unique to south Cumbria
(but no longer accessible for sampling).
Isle of Man
Kirk Maughold (Fig. 1, location B). Hematite mineralization on the
Isle of Man was mined at various locations in the vicinity of Kirk
Maughold and Port Mooar (Sites IOM1 to IOM5) during the mid-
19th century (Lamplugh 1903; Hollis 1987). Fault-related miner-
alization is hosted by Early Ordovician fine-grained, turbidite
metasediments (sub-greenschist facies) of the Manx Group (Chad-
wick et al. 2001) and consists of fracture-filling hematite + quartz
± dolomite ± (?)siderite (Fig. 3c). Most fracture systems are ori-
ented approximately north–south to NW–SE and appear to have
 Dating of hematite ore deposits
a b
H hosted by brecciated metapelitic wall
Q Kelton Felltop, Cumbria (Site C6). (b)
MWR
500 µm FH 500 µm
c d
ZFD
500 µm Q WR
been only weakly mineralized (Lamplugh 1903). Mines attempting
to exploit these resources are no longer accessible; however, a sec-
tion through the upper part of the main economic vein is exposed at
Stack Mooar (Sites IOM1, IOM2 and IOM3) as a steep, NW–SE-
oriented, NE-dipping, c. 10 m wide brecciated fault system with a
c. 30 m wide (hanging wall), quartz–hematite mineralized damage
zone. Smaller veins (<1 m width), exhibiting similar textural and
mineralogical characteristics, are also exposed c. 2 km further south
at Port Mooar (Sites IOM4 and IOM5). The mineralization
observed at Kirk Maughold is similar in style to that reported from
Kelton Felltop, and Manx Group wall rocks, hosting hematite on
the Isle of Man, correlate precisely with the Skiddaw Group wall
rocks that host hematite in Cumbria (Cooper et al. 2004).
SE Isle of Man (Fig. 1, location A). The Mississippian succession of
the SE Isle of Man (Dickson et al. 1987; Chadwick et al. 2001) is
dominated by a sequence of marine carbonates that exhibit both
fracture-related dolomitization with minor Pb–Zn sulphide miner-
alization (Lamplugh 1903, Shelton et al. 2011) and hematite.
Observable hematite mineralization is exposed (Derbyhaven For-
mation) in the vicinity of Skillicore (Site IOM6) and Cass-ny-Hawin
(Site IOM7), where examples occur in association with small (cen-
timetre-scale), subvertical, north–south-oriented, ferroan dolomite-
filled fractures (Skillicore), and a c. 1 m wide, NE–SW-oriented,
mineralized fault zone (Cass-ny-Hawin). The fault zone at Cass-ny-
Hawin is characterized by multi-phase brecciation, localized altera-
tion of brecciated limestone wall rock, and fracture-fill ferroan
dolomite and hematite mineralization (Figs 2c and 3d).
Sample collection and laboratory methods
In the absence of direct access to former mines the collection of sam-
ples for palaeomagnetic measurement was mostly confined to mineral-
ized wall rocks located close to mine workings or sites exposing
examples of non-economic mineralization in the vicinity of known
economic ore deposits. Samples of the mineralization were recovered
5
Fig. 3. Examples of hematite
mineralization textures. (a) Quartz
(Q)–hematite (H) fracture mineralization
rock (MWR). Hemative occurs as coarse,
specular crystals and micro-botryoids.
Wall rock fragments are partially replaced
by finely disseminated hematite (FH).
Plane-polarized (PP) transmitted light.
Fabric-selective hematite mineralization
of dolomitic bioclastic packstone. PP
transmitted light. Yeat House, Cumbria
(Site C5). (c) Fracture-filling hematite and
quartz mineralization. Hematite exhibits
both botryoidal (with colloform banding
and spherulitic texture) and specular form.
Quartz occurs as passive intergrowths with
specular hematite and with the outer zones
of colloform banding, and as a replacement
texture within the cores of botryoids.
PP reflected light. Stack Mooar, Isle of
Man (Site IOM1). (d) Zoned Fe-dolomite
H (ZFD)–hematite fracture mineralization
hosted by brecciated, micritic limestone
500 µm (WR). PP transmitted light, Cass-ny-
Hawin, Isle of Man (Site IOM7).
either as oriented blocks (Cumbria), from which cores (2.4 cm diame-
ter) were subsequently prepared in the laboratory, or directly in the
field, as oriented cores, using a portable motorized corer (Isle of Man).
Following initial preparation (removal of weathered material
and trimming to the required length) the magnetic susceptibility of
all cores was measured with a Bartington Bridge and magnetic
directions were determined using either a Molspin spinner mag-
netometer or, where the magnetic intensity was of insufficient
strength, a liquid nitrogen cooled SQUID (FIT) magnetometer.
Incremental thermal demagnetization was performed in tempera-
ture steps of 100 °C from ambient temperature (20 °C) to 400 °C
and then in steps of 50 °C (or less) to the Curie point of hematite
(680 °C). A maximum temperature of 700 °C was applied to con-
firm the complete removal of remanent magnetization. Results
obtained from thermal demagnetization measurements were plot-
ted as conventional orthogonal projections and components, consti-
tuting the natural remanent magnetizations, were resolved by visual
inspection of vector diagrams. Equivalent magnetic directions were
subsequently calculated by principal component analysis.
In addition to thermal demagnetization experiments, specific sam-
ples from Cumbria were selected for measurement of rock magnetic
properties using a variable frequency translation balance to produce
thermomagnetic (Curie point) determinations, hysteresis loops and
isothermal remanence magnetization (IRM) acquisition curves. IRM
and thermomagnetic curves were also obtained from a representative
suite of samples from the Isle of Man using a vibrating sample mag-
netometer and a computer-controlled Curie balance respectively.
Results and interpretation
Rock magnetic properties
Cumbria. Results obtained from the investigation of Cumbrian sam-
ples are summarized in Table 2. All samples exhibit discrete loss of
remanence close to the Curie point of pure hematite (Fig. 4a and b).
There is some evidence of minor alteration on heating, with cooling
curves rising slightly above heating curves (Fig. 4a and b). This
6 S. F. Crowley et al.

Table 2. Summary of rock magnetic properties for Cumbrian sample sites

Site number Wall rock Induced remanent magnetization Hysteresis Curie point (CP/oC)

Coercivity (Bc/T) Saturation (105Ms/A m2 kg−1) @ 0.3 T  

C2 Eskdale Granite 0.0913 0.41 WW 683
C3 Eskdale Granite 0.3047 0.49 WW 681
C4 Chief Limestone Grp 0.4376 0.27 WW 684
C5 Chief Limestone Grp 0.0847 0.67 PB 608 and 668
C7 Skiddaw Grp 0.3490 0.40 PB 658
C8 Skiddaw Grp 0.3479 0.40 WW 654

PB, pot-bellied hysteresis loop; WW, wasp-waisted hysteresis loop.

1.5
a b In contrast to Cumbrian material, IRM acquisition measurement
10 5 Ms / A m2 kg-1
10 5 Ms / A m2 kg-1

6
1.0
of Manx samples reveals patterns of magnetic saturation attained in
4 low fields that are more typical of the response expected for mag-
0.5 netite or pyrrhotite. Only for samples collected from Sites IOM1 to
2
Site C3
IOM3 were magnetic field intensities above 1 Tesla required to
Site C7
0
100 300 500 700 0 100 300 500 700
achieve saturation. Because these ferromagnets are characterized
T/ C
o
T/ C
o by a saturation remanence that is two orders of magnitude higher
Site C3 Site C7 than that of hematite (visibly present in the samples), the occur-
10 5 Ms / A m2 kg-1

10 5 Ms / A m2 kg-1

1.0
2
0.5
1
c d
0 0
100 300 500 700
Applied Field / mT
Fig. 4. Results obtained from rock magnetic measurement of samples of
Cumbrian hematite mineralization. Thermomagnetic curves (a, b) show
saturation magnetization (Ms) as a function of temperature. Heating and
cooling trajectories are indicated by directional arrows. The isothermal
remanent magnetization curves (c, d) show acquired (saturation)
magnetization as a function of applied magnetic field.
effect is attributed to the partial conversion of hematite to magnetite
with a higher saturation remanence. IRM acquisition curves all
show the characteristics of high-coercivity antiferromagnetism fail-
ing to achieve saturation in magnetic fields attainable in the labora-
tory (Fig. 4c and d). Only a minority of samples define a smooth
(‘pot-bellied’), progressive increase in magnetization with applied
fields (Fig. 5a); the majority suggest the occurrence of a low-coer-
civity phase that is highlighted by the ‘wasp-waisted’ character of
hysteresis loops (Fig. 5b). The number of samples measured was too
small to identify any correlation with multi-component magnetiza-
tions, but the data imply that the hematite is not of uniform domain
character.
Isle of Man. Collection sites on the Isle of Man are characterized by
brecciated, fracture-fill mineralization that includes fragments of
unaltered or partially altered wall rock. Consequently, samples
exhibit more complex magnetic behaviour than Cumbrian material.
Although discrete hematite Curie points are recognized at most
sample sites (with the exception of Site IOM7), the thermomag-
netic curves also display an asymptotic component derived from
the occurrence of paramagnetic phases (Fig. 6) that could include
contributions from Fe-carbonates, pyrite and/or chlorite. Some
samples, for example, show a distinct increase in saturation mag-
netization above 400 °C (Fig. 6, Site IOM1), before decreasing
towards the Curie point of hematite. Similar behaviour has been
reported from hydrothermally altered, hematite-bearing lavas (e.g.
Thomas 1992), although the cause is not fully understood.
rence of minor amounts of magnetite and/or pyrrhotite could domi-
nate the IRM signature. However, it is also possible that this effect
is related to grain size because magnetic hysteresis in hematite is
strongly dependent on this property (Dunlop & Özdemir 1997).
Studies based on the measurement of synthetic hematite (Chevallier
100 300 500 700 & Mathieu 1943) suggest that the coercivities observed in Manx
Applied Field / mT
samples might result from relatively large domain sizes (c. 300 μm)
that are above the single-domain–multi-domain transition. Multi-
domain characteristics are not, however, indicated by the occur-
rence of unstable magnetic behaviour, as is common in
magnetite-bearing rocks, and potentially larger, single magnetic
domains may be fixed by crystal structure or grain geometry.
Palaeomagnetic characterization
Cumbria. Examples of the results obtained from thermal demagneti-
zation experiments are illustrated as orthogonal projections (Fig.
7a), with the progressive loss of remanence in response to increas-
ing temperature shown in companion plots of magnetic intensity
against temperature. Although observed changes in magnetic direc-
tion are typically rather small, the importance of progressive ther-
mal demagnetization techniques in resolving the component
structure of the magnetizations is emphasized by recognition of both
single- and dual-component behaviour in samples collected from
most sites. In a few samples a reversal of the remanence direction is
observed during treatment (e.g. C2-1C in Fig. 7a), but more com-
monly evidence for hematite precipitation during more than one
reversal is indicated by an initial small increase in remanence inten-
sity before convergent components are recovered closer to the Curie
point of hematite (e.g. C4-5A in Fig. 7a). Sample C6-1B (Fig. 7a)
provides a typical example of single-component behaviour where
no coherent lower unblocking temperature component is resolvable
from the pattern of thermal demagnetization. Evidence for precipi-
tation of hematite extending through more than one polarity sub-
chron is present at all but one site; only Site C4 is characterized by
samples that exhibit a single (reversed) polarity field. The dual
polarity magnetic record is clearly illustrated in Figure 7b and
shows the predominance of reversed component directions.
Definable components recognized before the convergent higher
unblocking temperature components could be isolated were
resolved in c. 25% of samples. These lower unblocking tempera-
ture components show no discernible influence of a Tertiary or
 Dating of hematite ore deposits 7

10 5 Ms / A m2 kg-1 10 5 Ms / A m2 kg-1
a 4
b
4

2 2
Site C3 Site C7
800 600 400 400 600 800 600 400 200 400 600 800 Fig. 5. Examples of (a) ‘pot-bellied’ and
2
Applied Field / mT 2 Applied Field / mT (b) ‘wasp-waisted’ hysteresis recorded in
samples of hematite mineralization from
4
4 Cumbria.

Recent overprint and 38 components (excluding six aberrant direc-

10 5 Ms / A m2 kg-1
8

10 5 Ms / A m2 kg-1
3 Site IOM1 Site IOM4
tions) resolved below 500 °C yield a mean direction (D/I) of 6
197.2°/−34.2° (α95 = 7°) that, although somewhat more dispersed, 2
4
is close to the mean direction observed for the high unblocking 1 2
temperature components (Table 3). This indicates that the low- and
high-temperature unblocking components record magnetizations of 0
200 400 600 800
0
200 400 600 800
similar age, but in hematite of differing domain character (as o
T/ C
o
T/ C
inferred from the analysis of rock magnetic properties).
Overall, the high unblocking temperature components define a

10 5 Ms / A m2 kg-1
2
Site IOM6
NNE–SSW axis characterized by intermediate magnetic inclina-
tions. Importantly, the component populations show no significant
signature of smearing towards a near-zero inclination typical of the 1

local Permo-Carboniferous palaeofield and we interpret the indi-

vidual site mean directions (Table 3) collectively as a single, dis-
crete population. The reversed polarity group site mean direction
(D/I = 200.7°/−35.5°, α95 = 4.6°), based on the 10 accepted sites, is
used here for interpreting the age of mineralization. All 170 com-
ponents, converted to a common reversed polarity (Fig. 7c), yield a
comparable mean direction (Table 3). For a reversal test we com-
pute sample group normal and reversed means noting that the
reversed polarity magnetizations describe a near-circular distribu-
tion of components with inclination and declination values concen-
trated between I = −10° and −50°, and D = 180° and 220°E.
Similarly, the components of normal polarity also exhibit a near-
circular distribution with inclination and declination values con-
centrated between I = 10° and 60°, and D = 0° and 50°E.
The selected component directions then yield mean normal and
reversed directions of D/I = 29.7°/36.6° (n = 54, α95 = 3.4°) and D/I
= 199.6°/−32.1° (n = 116, α95 = 2.3°) respectively (Table 3). These
populations are expected to average any secular variation because
of the large number of components included in the statistical
assessment, and the evidence of dual polarity within single cores
indicates that any short-term variations in geomagnetic behaviour
are averaged by prolonged hematite precipitation. The resultant
angular difference between the sample group mean normal and
reversed directions is 9.5°. This value exceeds the critical angular
difference of 4.0° and the sample population fails a reversal test
(McFadden & McElhinny 1990). Because the magnetic inclina-
tions of the normal and reversed groups are not significantly differ-
ent it is unlikely that the data record incomplete removal of a
secondary component in any one polarity, and the primary differ-
ence in declination of the two polarities may, therefore, be sensitive
to a small difference in any potential age assignment.
Comparisons between our new dataset and published results
obtained from samples of hematite mineralization collected from
formerly accessible mines (Beckermet and Florence mines) in
Cumbria (DuBois 1962; Evans & El-Nikhely 1982; Rowe et al.
1998) are informative. The total natural remanent magnetizations
measured by DuBois (1962) from the Florence mine yielded SSW
(negative) and NNE (positive) directions, and a recalculated value
for this study (excluding eight aberrant directions) produces a D/I of
200°/−40° (n = 22, R = 19.87, α95 = 10.4, k = 9.9) and a pole position
of 54°N, 140°E (dp/dm = 7°/13°). DuBois (1962) inferred a late
0
200 400 600 800
o
T/ C
Fig. 6. Examples of thermomagnetic determinations obtained from
samples of hematite mineralization from the Isle of Man showing
saturation magnetization (Ms) as a function of temperature.
Permian to early Triassic age for this magnetization. The pole posi-
tion is remarkably close to the results of our present work, presum-
ably because of a predominance of single components and an
evident absence of later overprinting. At the time of DuBois’s meas-
urements it was not possible to resolve the component structures of
the magnetizations and the minor, normal polarity group recognized
by DuBois (1962) was significantly steeper (and closer to the pre-
sent-day geomagnetic field) than the reversed polarity group. The
measurements made by Evans & El-Nikhely (1982) from the
Beckermet and Florence mines, using alternating field demagnetiza-
tion (inadequate for the treatment of the high-coercivity remanence
present in hematite), were illustrated only as two poles plotted on a
northern hemisphere projection and used to infer a Permian age for
the mineralization. From this diagram we estimate pole positions of
c. 47°N, 160°E and c. 52°N, 158°E for the Beckermet and Florence
mines respectively. These poles would be equivalent to palaeofield
directions (D/I) of c. 191°/23° and c. 191°/−32° and, accepting that
the estimated declination value is too low (perhaps reflecting prob-
lems associated with subsurface sample orientation), they are close
to directions obtained from our, much larger, dataset (Table 3).
Perhaps the most problematic comparison is associated with the
magnetic directions reported by Rowe et al. (1998) from the
Florence mine because their measurements, obtained by incremen-
tal thermal demagnetization procedures, yielded an inclination esti-
mate that is c. 20° shallower than all other studies and a resultant
pole position of 38.6°N, 153.5°E. As noted by Rowe et al. (1998),
this pole is consistent with a much older, ‘Late Carboniferous to
Early Permian’, palaeofield. There is only a minor indication of
such shallow directions in our current sample suite and we can only
note the limited number of samples (n = 19) collected by Rowe
et al. (1998), the close proximity of their two collection sites and
the single-component magnetizations documented in their investi-
gation, and contrast this apparently anomalous result with our own
8 S. F. Crowley et al.

E, Up
a E, Up
E, Up

Sample C6-1B
N S

Sample C2-1C
N S

Sample C4-5A
N S

W, Down
W, Down W, Down
0.16 0.5
0.24
10 5 Ms / A m2 kg -1

0.4
10 5 Ms / A m2 kg -1

10 5 Ms / A m2 kg -1
0.12
0.18 0.3
0.08
0.12 0.2

0.04 0.06 0.1

Sample C2-1C Sample C4-5A Sample C6-1B
0 0 0
100 300 500 700 100 300 500 700 100 300 500 700
o o o
T/ C T/ C T/ C
b N c N

Fig. 7. Results obtained from palaeomagnetic measurement of samples of hematite mineralization from Cumbria. (a) Examples of incremental thermal
demagnetization trajectories illustrated as orthogonal projections of the magnetization vector (Zijderveld diagrams) and intensity decay plots. Projections
onto the horizontal and vertical planes are shown as open and filled squares respectively. (b) Directions of high unblocking temperature components.
Open circles are negative inclinations; filled circles are positive inclinations. (c) Contoured (10% intervals) density plot of all components converted to a
common reversed polarity.

measurements and those reported by DuBois (1962) and Evans &
El-Nikhely (1982).
Isle of Man. Representative thermal demagnetization results
obtained from samples of Manx hematite mineralization are illus-
trated in Figure 8a. Examples of both normal (IOM4-6 and IOM5-1)
and reversed (IOM3-2) polarities are recorded (Fig. 8a), and some
samples also exhibit varying degrees of dual-component behaviour
during thermal treatment (IOM4-6 and IOM5-1 in Fig. 8a). Many
samples show progressive subtraction of remanence in the lower
portion of the thermal spectrum (IOM7-2 in Fig. 8a) and differ
markedly from the stepped intensity profiles produced by most
samples collected from Cumbria. This appears to reflect the more
complex thermomagnetic behaviour and lower IRM properties
common in Manx material.
The combined component results from the Isle of Man show a
majority of tightly grouped directions of normal polarity and a more
dispersed group of reversed polarity directions (Fig. 8b). To derive a
group mean from Manx sites we have excluded divergent reversed
polarity directions, including a few with shallow inclinations and
examples with steeper negative inclination close to the reversed polar-
ity of the Tertiary field. The latter components are recognized in sam-
ples collected at Site IOM5, located in close proximity to a Palaeocene
dolerite dyke, and probably record a local remagnetization event of this
 Dating of hematite ore deposits 9

Table 3. Palaeomagnetic site mean results for Cumbria

Site number D I n R k α95

C1 206.6 −41.3 9 8.83 46.7 7.6

C2 201.2 −28.6 25 24.17 28.8 5.5
C3 199.1 −35.5 18 17.22 21.8 7.6
C4 200.7 −27.5 42 40.70 31.5 4.0
C5 200.6 −39.3 20 19.11 21.4 7.2
C6 209.3 −35.2 17 16.11 18.0 8.9
C7 209.2 −42.6 8 7.86 51.0 7.8
C8 197.6 −38.2 11 10.91 105.7 4.5
C9 185.7 −29.6 6 5.92 63.8 8.5
C10 199.0 −35.6 37 35.21 20.06 5.4
Group mean results  
Normal components 29.7 36.6 54 52.41 33.41 3.3
  Palaeomagnetic pole 49.1°N,  
131.5°E (dp/dm = 2.4/4.2°)
Reversed 199.6 −32.1 116 112.7 34.65 2.3
components
  Palaeomagnetic pole 50.0°N,  
146.94°E (dp/dm = 1.9/3.4°)
All components 202.7 −33.6 170 164.7 31.44 2.0
(reversed polarity)
  Palaeomagnetic pole 50.6°N,  
143.6°E (dp/dm = 1.5/2.7°)
All sites 200.7 −35.5 10 9.92 110.7 4.6
  Palaeomagnetic pole 51.9°N,  
143.9°E (dp/dm = 8.6/9.1°)

D, mean declination; I, mean inclination; n, number of samples; R, vector magnitude; α95, radius of the cone about the mean direction at 95% confidence interval; k; Fisher precision
parameter, (n − 1)/(n − R); dp and dm, radii of the cone of confidence about the pole position in the co-latitude direction and normal to the co-latitude direction respectively.

age. Only two sites (Sites IOM1 and IOM4) display a significant
record of dual polarity, and Site IOM4 also contains a small population
of shallow southerly directions that could be indicative of an older, (?)
Early Devonian, magnetization event associated with the regional
(Acadian) metamorphism of pelitic wall rocks. Otherwise, 38 compo-
nents (Table 4), selected from the group population of 55 components,
define a tightly clustered (Fig. 8c) mean (reversed) direction (D/I) of
200.5°/−47.8° (α95 = 3.2°). The resultant angular difference between
normal and reversed directions of 4.4° is less than the critical angle of
9.0° and yields a positive class B reversal test (McFadden & McElhinny
1990). Although this test confirms the robustness of the pole position
for Manx hematite mineralization, the population of components used
to compute the mean is appreciably smaller than the sample population
defining the pole position for Cumbrian hematite ore deposits.
Consequently, we are unable to speculate on the possible duration of
the hematite mineralization event on the Isle of Man.
Timing of hematite mineralization
Palaeomagnetic measurements allow us to isolate dominant coher-
ent groupings of dual-polarity magnetizations in suites of samples
collected from examples of hematite mineralization cropping out
on both the eastern (Cumbrian) and western (Manx) margins of the
East Irish Sea Basin. Assuming magnetization by a geocentric axial
dipole source the resultant site directions give group mean palaeo-
poles of 51.9°N, 143.9°E (dp/dm = 8.6°/9.1°) and 61.8°N, 137.5°E
(dp/dm = 2.7°/4.1°) for Cumbria and the Isle of Man respectively
(see Tables 3 and 4).
A general correlation may be made between these pole positions
and the post-Mississippian APWP for the Eurasian plate defined by
a time sequence of mean poles illustrated in Figure 9a (Torsvik
et al. 1996; Besse & Courtillot 2002). The group mean pole derived
from Cumbrian sites clearly corresponds to the Eurasian APWP
during the mid-Triassic. In contrast, the group mean pole obtained
from sites on the Isle of Man plots at higher latitudes owing to the
steeper magnetic inclination recorded at most Manx sites. Although
the pole estimate for the Isle of Man does not fall precisely on the
Triassic segment of the Eurasian APWP, the pole is even further
removed from the post-200 Ma APWP and we also infer a Triassic
age for Manx hematite mineralization.
A more precise age assignment requires a careful selection of
reference APWP pole positions over the appropriate time interval
and a consideration of the possible effects of post-mineralization
tectonic deformation. Although there are numerous palaeomag-
netic results reported from terrestrial red bed successions of Triassic
age, these sediments have proven to be particularly susceptible to
diagenetic alteration and accurate correlation between the geomag-
netic field at the time of deposition and the measured magnetic
remanence directions preserved by these sediments has frequently
been shown to be unreliable. To optimize the correlation between
measured mineralization poles and the temporal evolution of the
Eurasian APWP we use a compilation of key published results
selected by Domeier et al. (2012) with some refinements.
Specifically, we include only poles from the European sector of the
large Eurasian plate to minimize the possible effects of Mesozoic
and/or Tertiary within-plate deformation. This results in the exclu-
sion of apparently discordant poles (with respect to the European
sector) recorded from the Early Triassic (c. 250 Ma) Siberian Traps.
In addition, we augment the pole selection of Domeier et al. (2012)
by including poles reported from high-quality magneto-strati-
graphic studies of parts of the Triassic successions of Germany,
(arctic) Norway, Poland and the UK.
The resultant (24) selected poles, based on mean values resolved
from acceptable groupings of magnetic directions (α95 ≤11°) recovered
10 S. F. Crowley et al.

a E, Up
E, Up E, Up
E, Up
Sample IOM5-1

N S N S
Sample IOM3-2 N S
Sample IOM4-6
N S Sample IOM7-2

W, Down
W, Down W, Down W, Down
1.6
0.20
0.24 0.04

10 5 Ms / A m2 kg-1
Sample IOM7-2

10 5 Ms / A m2 kg-1
10 5 Ms / A m2 kg-1

0.16 1.2
10 5 Ms / A m2 kg-1

0.18 0.03
0.12
0.8
0.12 0.02
0.08
0.4 0.06 0.01
0.04
Sample IOM3-2 Sample IOM4-6 Sample IOM5-1
0 0 0 0
100 300 500 700 100 300 500 700 100 300 500 700 100 300 500 700
o o o o
T/ C T/ C T/ C T/ C
b N c N

Fig. 8. Results obtained from palaeomagnetic measurement of samples of hematite mineralization from the Isle of Man. (a) Examples of incremental
thermal demagnetization trajectories illustrated as orthogonal projections of the magnetization vector (Zijderveld diagrams) and intensity decay plots.
Projections onto the horizontal and vertical planes are shown as open and filled squares respectively. (b) Directions of high unblocking temperature
components. Open circles are negative inclinations; filled circles are positive inclinations. (c) Selected directions (see text for details) converted to a
common normal polarity. The inset figure is a contoured (10% intervals) density plot of these data.

from published studies that exhibit evidence for a quasi-primary ori- In contrast, poles obtained from sites on the Isle of Man plot
gin, cover the time interval (c. 252–195 Ma) from the Early Triassic to mostly above the trend defined by our Triassic reference APWP
Early Jurassic (Fig. 9b). Collectively these poles describe a well- (Fig. 9b) and we attribute this discrepancy to minor, post-miner-
defined, 70°, east to west, longitudinal APWP. This improved, albeit alization deformation (rotation) of the local Manx crust during
imperfect, description of the westerly track of Eurasia (while remain- continued Mesozoic extension of the East Irish Sea Basin, Early
ing at almost constant latitude) during the Triassic provides an inter- Cretaceous (Cimmerian) inversion or Palaeocene uplift (Jackson
pretation that is consistent with broader APWP trends recognized in & Mulholland 1993; Chadwick et al. 1994, 2001). The Isle of
global assessments of plate movement (Torsvik et al. 1996, 2012; Man forms a NE–SW-trending horst structure within the East
Besse & Courtillot 2002; Domeier et al. 2012). Irish Sea Basin (Fig. 1) and an adjustment for a tilt of ≤15° in a
On this basis single site mean poles from Cumbria, with the excep- direction of 40°E (the approximate trend of the Manx block and
tion of Site C9 (based on only six components), plot within the field bounding faults within the East Irish Sea Basin) would cause site
of European poles dated between c. 245 and 235 Ma (Fig. 9b). This magnetic inclinations to migrate towards those recorded in
leads us to conclude that the mineralization in Cumbria occurred Cumbria. The effect of post-Triassic tilting of this magnitude is
within a relatively short time interval (<10 Ma) during the Middle unlikely to be detectable in the field and we are currently unable
Triassic. Any potential correlations with Permian poles (e.g. Evans & to provide independent structural evidence to support this conclu-
El-Nikhely 1982; Rowe et al. 1998) may be rejected because the sion. However, we regard an unaccommodated tilt adjustment as
majority of reliable Eurasian Permian pole positions are characterized the most likely explanation for the marginal removal of Manx
by longitudes east of 150° (Domeier et al. 2012; Torsvik et al. 2012). hematite poles from the Triassic segment of the APWP illustrated
 Dating of hematite ore deposits 11

Table 4. Palaeomagnetic site mean results for the Isle of Man

Site number D I n R k α95

IOM1 16.6 48.4 7 6.93 88.9 6.4

IOM2 24.7 46.8 2 1.98 69.9 –
IOM3 200.7 −47.6 5 4.97 154.8 6.2
IOM4 22.4 48.0 6 5.97 174.1 5.1
IOM5 190.0 −57.0 16 15.34 22.6 7.9
IOM6 11.9 49.3 2 2.00 – –
IOM7 28.5 43.9 7 6.87 46.8 8.9
Group mean results  
Normal components 21.7 48.6 28 27.60 67.9 3.3
  Palaeomagnetic pole 60.8°N,  
134.3°E (dp/dm = 2.9/4.4°)
Reversed 197.1 −45.5 10 9.74 34.6 8.3
components
  Palaeomagnetic pole 60.0°N,  
143.8°E (dp/dm = 6.7/10.6°)
All components 200.5 −47.8 38 37.32 54.5 3.2
(reversed polarity)
  Palaeomagnetic pole 60.6°N,  
136.9°E (dp/dm = 2.7/4.1°)
All sites 199.7 −48.9 7 6.97 184.8 4.5
  Palaeomagnetic pole 61.8°N,  
137.5°E (dp/dm = 2.7/4.1°)

D, mean declination; I, mean inclination; n, number of samples; R, vector magnitude; α95, radius of the cone about the mean direction at 95% confidence interval; k; Fisher
precision parameter, (n − 1)/(n − R); dp and dm, radii of the cone of confidence about the pole position in the co-latitude direction and normal to the co-latitude direction
respectively.

in Figure 9b. Restoring Manx poles to the local APWP then
allows us to assign a similar Middle Triassic age to mineralization
on the Isle of Man.
An important outcome of our approach is that the new palaeo-
magnetic data provide evidence to support previous suggestions
that hematite ore deposits in Cumbria and the Isle of Man form part
of a single ‘mineralized province’, and that hematite mineralization
in the Cumbrian and Manx districts is temporally and, possibly,
genetically related. The age assignments also highlight potential
links between the geotectonic evolution of the Permo-Cretaceous
East Irish Sea Basin and mineralization at basin margins. This is
explored briefly in the following discussion. In addition, the pal-
aeomagnetic data support the long-held assumption (Shepherd &
Goldring 1993) that Cumbrian hematite ore deposits, regardless of
the age of wall rocks or style of mineralization, are the products of
a single mineralizing event common to all settings. Although
implied by limited field relationships and similarities in the chemi-
cal composition of hematite (Smith 1924; Shepherd & Goldring
1993), the commonality of single site palaeomagnetic poles (Table
3) measured from samples of hematite hosted by Skiddaw Group,
Eskdale granite and Chief Limestone Group wall rocks is consist-
ent with this broader interpretation.
Discussion
Reconciling field relationships, radiogenic isotope
evidence and palaeomagnetic age estimates
more recent Permo-Carboniferous palaeomagnetic date reported by
Rowe et al. (1998) appears to assign no significance to the field
relationships presented by Dunham (1984a), and collectively these
pre-Triassic palaeomagnetic age estimates result in an obvious con-
flict between the interpretation of field geology and palaeomag-
netic measurements.
In addition to possible constraints placed on the age of ore
deposit formation by field relationships, radiometric dating evi-
dence provided by (1) a single (U + Th)–He age obtained from a
sample of botryoidal hematite from Egremont, west Cumbria (Bähr
et al. 1994), and (2) a suite of K–Ar and Ar/Ar ages measured from
samples of hydrothermal illite associated with fracture-hosted min-
eralization in west Cumbria (Milodowski et al. 1998; NIREX
1998), potentially offers new insights into the timing of hematite
mineralization. Neither study was intended specifically to address
this issue, but the possible implications of these isotopic data
require further consideration.
Key to a resolution of this conflict is an integration of field rela-
tionships and palaeomagnetic data combined with an assessment of
the radiogenic isotope evidence. We have already argued that the
original palaeomagnetic age estimates proposed by DuBois (1962),
Evans & El-Nikhely (1982) and Rowe et al. (1998) are, for various
reasons, unreliable, and we need simply to demonstrate that the field
relationships summarized by Dunham (1984a), radiogenic isotope
data reported by Bähr et al. (1994), Milodowski et al. (1998) and
NIREX (1998), and our Middle Triassic age estimate for the timing
of Cumbrian hematite mineralization are not incompatible.

Using a range of relative geological relationships recorded from
wider field observations, Dunham (1952, 1984a) argued repeatedly
in support of a post-Triassic age for hematite mineralization in
Cumbria. Dunham (1984a) was particularly critical of the Permian
palaeomagnetic date published by Evans & El-Nikhely (1982),
although these criticisms were strongly refuted (Evans 1984). The
Age of mineralization constrained by field relationships. Dunham
(1984a; also see Shepherd & Goldring 1993) reviewed four main
lines of field evidence for the age of Cumbrian mineralization (see
Table 5 for summary). Although Dunham (1984a) used these
observations to propose a post-Triassic mineralization event, with a
Jurassic to early Tertiary age being the preferred option, the
12 S. F. Crowley et al.

a N b Poles
20 60
80
C1 Cumbria sites with
180 40
100 120 IOM5 site numbers
70N
200 160 IOM1 Isle of Man sites

0E
140
E
90

21
Isle of Man with site numbers
210 220
240 250 60N
230 260 IOM6 Beckermet (B) &
270 300 Florence (F) mines
Cumbria 310 IOM1
280 250 APWP reference
290 IOM4 6
E

60N 30N poles with median

120

IOM3

180E
150E age estimate (Ma)
IOM2 250
F-D C5 C8 6
23 Lower 233 C1 Middle
199 17 IOM7 244 Lower
Jurassic 14 15 C10 Triassic F-E
22
199 Upper 240 11 246 248 Triassic C9
24 204 C7 12 13 C6 251 1
50N 197 20 21 Triassic 246 8 243 C3 7 2
210 19 16 241 3 9 5 251 4
18 233 C6 C4 251
211 217 C2 246 249 249
10 B-E
246

100E 110E 120E 130E 140E 150E 160E 170E

Fig. 9. (a) Post-Mississippian APWP (with Triassic segment highlighted) for the Eurasian plate (after Torsvik et al. 1996; Besse & Courtillot 2002)
identifying the group mean pole positions recovered from hematite mineralization from Cumbria and the Isle of Man (stars) as Triassic in age. (b)
Selected Triassic and Early Jurassic palaeopoles from Europe plotted as open circles with estimated (median) ages in million years. The progressive
westerly migration of the European sector of the Eurasian plate during the Triassic and earliest Jurassic is highlighted in grey tones. Approximate
division of the APWP is based on a visual inspection of the temporal distribution of the selected poles and the IUGS time scale (IUGS 2012). Poles for
Cumbrian and Isle of Man sites constrain the age of hematite mineralization to the Middle Triassic. Adjustment of Manx pole positions for a regional
15°NE tilt of the Manx block would cause most poles to plot on the Triassic APWP at a latitude of 50–55°N. Estimated pole positions for the Beckermet
(B) and Florence (F) mines (D, DuBois 1962; E, Evans & El-Nikhely 1982) are shown for comparison.

available field relationships essentially support only a post-St. Bees
Sandstone Formation (Early Triassic) age for ore deposit formation
in Cumbria. The key inference, that NW–SE-oriented faults, par-
ticularly associated with fracture-hosted hematite mineralization,
were of post-Triassic age, can be rejected. These faults are now
more realistically interpreted as structures associated with the
Permo-Triassic phase of extensional tectonics responsible for the
initial rifting of the East Irish Sea Basin (Jackson et al. 1987; Jack-
son & Mulholland 1993; Knipe et al. 1993; Chadwick et al. 1994;
Akhurst et al. 1998). Although these faults continued to be active
throughout the Mesozoic (e.g. Jackson & Mulholland 1993; Chad-
wick et al. 1994), the amounts of displacement are poorly resolved
in Cumbria because of the absence of a significant post-Early Trias-
sic sedimentary record. Jackson & Mulholland (1993), using seis-
mic sections from the East Irish Sea Basin, estimated that <35% of
the cumulative fault displacement can be attributed to post-Triassic
tectonics. It would, therefore, be unsurprising if the Triassic succes-
sion did not exhibit some evidence of post-Triassic fault activity
(e.g. see Shepherd & Goldring 1993), but most displacement
appears to have been pre-Jurassic.
Perhaps a more critical field observation is the absence of docu-
mented evidence for significant fracture deformation or fault dis-
placement of ore bodies following mineralization. Smith (1924),
Trotter (1945) and Rose & Dunham (1977) used this to argue that
post-mineralization faulting was insignificant and that mineraliza-
tion must be younger than the most recent displacement on these
faults. The fact that faulting associated with the evolution of the East
Irish Sea Basin continued throughout the Jurassic and Cretaceous
(Jackson & Mulholland 1993; Chadwick et al. 1994), combined
with the apparent absence of fault deformation of ore bodies, might
be used to support the post-Triassic and, possibly, post-Cretaceous
age favoured by Dunham (1984a). However, as noted by Shepherd
& Goldring (1993), there are few instances where the precise timing
of fault movement is known with any certainty, and it is currently
not possible to use the pattern of faulting as a reliable basis for con-
straining the precise timing of mineralization.
Overall our palaeomagnetic dating estimate for the Cumbrian
mineralization is younger than the minimum age of the St. Bees
Sandstone Formation (by c. 5–10 Ma) and is, therefore, compatible
with field relationships. The new, much broader, palaeomagnetic
dataset mitigates the conflicting arguments presented by Dunham
(1984a) and Evans (1984), as it is now evident that the alternating
field demagnetization techniques used by Evans & El-Nikhely
(1982) were unsuitable for reliable measurement of the hematite
palaeopoles, and the contemporary Eurasian APWP for the Permo-
Triassic interval was inadequate for accurate age assignment.
The new dataset also allows us to resolve the apparent incon-
sistency between the maximum (Early Triassic) age estimate
based on observable field relationships and the much older ‘Late
Carboniferous to Early Permian’ palaeomagnetic mineralization
age derived by Rowe et al. (1998). Although inherent uncertain-
ties associated with the palaeomagnetic measurements undertaken
by DuBois (1962) and Evans & El-Nikhely (1982) precluded
accurate age determination at the time of publication, the magnetic
directions reported by those researchers are essentially consistent
(with caveats) with those documented by our own study (see Fig.
9b). These three datasets (including two sets of samples collected
from the Florence mine) provide independent verification, albeit
with some discrepancies, of the position of the palaeopole at the
time of hematite mineralization in Cumbria. This allows us to
reject the aberrant age estimate of Rowe et al. (1998) from both a
palaeomagnetic and field evidence perspective. Ultimately, we
 Dating of hematite ore deposits
Table 5. Field relationships constraining the age of hematite mineralization in Cumbria (after Dunham 1984a)
Observation
Dominant direction of fracture-hosted mineralization is NW–SE. Faults of
this orientation cut sediments of Permian and Early Triassic age
Exploratory boreholes in west Cumbria record examples of mineralization
hosted by carbonate units of the St. Bees Evaporite Fm, and the St. Bees
Sandstone Fm
Mineralized karst-like features (‘sops’) contain large, collapsed sandstone
blocks of the St. Bees Sandstone Fm. Collapse breccias exhibit evidence for
the dissolution of quartz and early diagenetic iron oxide coatings
Large ore bodies are absent where Mississippian carbonate host rocks are
separated from the St. Bees Sandstone Fm by mudstone-dominated Late
Carboniferous and/or Permian aquicludes
cannot discount the possibility that the reported range of palaeo-
magnetic ages might actually record prolonged or multiple phases
of hematite mineralization. However, the consistent direction and
near-circular distribution of magnetizations (Figs 7 and 8) from
sites across Cumbria and the Isle of Man strongly support a single,
basin-wide mineralizing event during the Middle Triassic.
Radiogenic isotope evidence. As discussed above, the post-Triassic
hematite mineralization age proposed by Dunham (1952, 1984a) is
dependent on the inferred timing of displacement on NW–SE-ori-
ented faults. Although this relative age estimate must be viewed as
speculative, K–Ar and Ar/Ar radiometric dating of fault-related
hydrothermal illite recovered by the Sellafield (west Cumbria; Fig.
1) borehole programme (Michie & Bowden 1994; Milodowski
et al. 1998; NIREX 1998) provides direct evidence for continued
post-Triassic fault displacement and fluid flow. The Middle Juras-
sic to Early Cretaceous ages (170–115 Ma) reported for samples of
illite are consistent with the preferred post-Triassic age of minerali-
zation proposed by Dunham (1984a) and provide some independ-
ent support for Dunham’s age estimate. However, the complex
textural relationships between differing mineralizing events docu-
mented from the Sellafield boreholes (Milodowski et al. 1998), and
the potential for multi-phase overprinting and resetting of clay min-
eral isotope systems during repeated fault reactivation (Hamilton
et al. 1989; Zwingmann et al. 2004; Siebel et al. 2010), suggest that
possible links between illite K–Ar and Ar/Ar ages and economic
hematite mineralization are circumstantial. Akhurst et al. (1997)
argued that radiometric dates recovered from these fault gouges
actually record later Mesozoic reactivation of Permo-Triassic
faults, probably associated with renewed Jurassic extension and/or
Early Cretaceous (Cimmerian) inversion. In this respect the iso-
topic data appear to confirm the interpretation of seismic data
(Jackson & Mulholland 1993) by implying some reactivation of
basin bounding faults during the mid-Mesozoic. However, there is
no strong evidence to indicate that the illitized fault gouges are
directly associated with the much larger-scale mass transfer pro-
cesses required to account for observed hematite ore deposits, and
any link between these radiometric dates and the timing of hematite
mineralization remains unproven.
The single (U + Th)–He age obtained from a sample of botryoi-
dal hematite from west Cumbria (Bähr et al. 1994) also offers some
support for post-Triassic mineralization. The reported 4He age of
154(±18) Ma is consistent with both the range of K–Ar and Ar/Ar
radiometric dates recorded from hydrothermal illite and, collec-
tively, the post-Triassic mineralization event preferred by Dunham
(1984a). However, the significance of this date as a reliable esti-
mate of the timing of mineralization is problematic because the
effective closure temperature of acicular hematite grains contained
13
Age implications
Mineralization is younger than Early Triassic
Mineralization post-dates the deposition of the (Permian) St. Bees Evaporite
Fm and the (Early Triassic) St. Bees Sandstone Fm
Mineralization post-dates early diagenesis of the (Early Triassic) St. Bees
Sandstone Fm
Proximity of carbonate host rocks and the porous St. Bees Sandstone Fm
aquifer is a prerequisite for ore deposit formation. Mineralization post-dates
deposition of the (Early Triassic) St. Bees Sandstone Fm
within botryoidal textures is estimated to be relatively low (c. 100–
120 °C), and may vary depending on crystallite domain size and the
chemical composition of hematite (Bähr et al. 1994; Wernicke &
Lippolt 1994; Farley 2002; Farley & Flowers 2012). The combined
effects of these variables result in significant uncertainty in the
behaviour of He retention by botryoidal hematite. At best, the 4He
date presents a possible estimate for the most recent cooling (clo-
sure) of the hematite sample below c. 100 °C and, given the uncer-
tain thermal evolution of Cumbria and the East Irish Sea Basin
during the Mesozoic and early Tertiary (Akhurst et al. 1997; Green
et al. 1997; Holford et al. 2005), suggests that the isotopic data
provide no indication of the true timing of hematite precipitation.
Conceptual ore deposit model
A distinctive feature of earlier attempts to determine the age of
hematite ore deposit formation in Cumbria is the discussion of
the timing of mineralization and its implications for the origin of
the ores (Evans & El-Nikhely 1982; Dunham 1984a; Rowe et al.
1998). Although Evans & El-Nikhely (1982) and Rowe et al.
(1998) speculated on possible alternatives based on their appar-
ently erroneous palaeomagnetic dating evidence, the utility of
the model proposed by Rose & Dunham (1977), Dunham (1984b)
and Shepherd & Goldring (1993) is attractive because it accounts
for some specific characteristics, such as fluid inclusion derived
estimates of fluid salinity and precipitation temperature
(Shepherd & Goldring, 1993), and the broader geological con-
text of the mineralization. At its simplest this model argues that
hematite mineralization was a by-product of the migration of
warm (80–120 °C), saline (10–24 equiv. wt% NaCl), Na–Ca–Cl
brines expelled from the East Irish Sea Basin towards basin mar-
gins sometime during the Mesozoic (or possibly early Tertiary).
The model might reasonably predict the occurrence of hematite
ore bodies of similar age sited at other basin margin locations,
and the recognition of essentially time-equivalent mineralization
in Cumbria and the Isle of Man appears to represent a successful
preliminary test.
However, the specific models proposed by Rose & Dunham
(1977), Dunham (1984b) and Shepherd & Goldring (1993) differ
on the source of iron and provide no plausible geochemical mecha-
nism for iron transport in ore-forming fluids or the apparently
selective precipitation of hematite at the sites of mineralization. In
addition, the models also fail to offer a credible explanation of the
potential volumes of mineralizing fluids required to transport
observed amounts of iron contained within single ore deposits, or
account for the removal of substantial amounts of Ca2+ and HCO3−
implied by the formation of massive, metasomatic replacement ore
bodies hosted by Mississippian marine carbonates in Cumbria.
14 S. F. Crowley et al.
Clearly, current models leave many unresolved questions. Any
attempt to develop a new, integrated, ore deposit model is beyond
the scope of this palaeomagnetic study; however, a key outcome
arising from the apparently robust dating of the Cumbrian and
Manx hematite ore deposits is that we are now able to place the
mineralization within a precise and definable geotectonic setting
that would allow many important model variables to be constrained.
Because we now have dating evidence to support contemporaneous
hematite ore formation on both the eastern and western margins of
the East Irish Sea Basin, the scope of any model must be extended
to account for mineralization on a basin-wide scale. The implied
link between the timing of hematite mineralization and the evolu-
tion of the East Irish Sea Basin also provides a basis for developing
and testing an ore deposit model that should be consistent with geo-
logical and geochemical data at all available scales.
Wider implications
In a brief review of hydrothermal mineralization located around the
continental margins of the North Atlantic Ocean, Mitchell & Halliday
(1976) drew attention to the concentration of Mesozoic ages (specifi-
cally Late Triassic to Early Jurassic) reported for these ore deposits.
They proposed an underlying genetic relationship between incipient
continental-scale rifting and the development of geotectonic and geo-
thermal conditions conducive to the formation of economic ore bod-
ies. Since the review of Mitchell & Halliday (1976) new isotopic
dating evidence from the west of Ireland (O’Connor et al. 1993), and
the North Pennine and South Pennine, North Wales (Clywd) and
Mendip ore fields (Shepherd et al. 1982; Mitchell & Ineson 1988;
Fletcher et al. 1993) appears to reinforce the link between extensional
tectonics associated with the break-up of Pangaea and Mesozoic ore
deposit formation in the western and central British Isles.
Palaeomagnetic dating of the Cumbrian and Manx hematite minerali-
zation adds to the inventory of ore deposits apparently related to pro-
cesses driven by crustal extension during this interval.
Although the inferred timing of hematite mineralization coin-
cides with the early stages of continental extension in the North
Atlantic, and is substantially older than the onset of sea-floor spread-
ing during the mid-Cretaceous (Chadwick et al. 1990), it only mar-
ginally predates the spectrum of ore deposit ages (220–180 Ma)
compiled by Mitchell & Halliday (1976). The disparate styles of
mineralization included in the analysis of Mitchell & Halliday
(1976) potentially indicate the importance of the local geological
environment and proximity of rift centres to the development of sin-
gle ore deposits. In this respect the timing of ore deposit formation
at specific locations may be viewed as reflecting the local response
to underlying crustal extension rather than any precise temporal
relationship. Importantly, Mitchell & Halliday (1976) did not record
any pre-Triassic or post-Early Jurassic ages in their selection of ore
deposits. This may indicate that optimal conditions for mineraliza-
tion linked to rifting were centred on a 40–60 Ma interval during the
Middle Triassic to Early Jurassic.
Conclusions
New palaeomagnetic data collected from examples of hematite
mineralization located in Cumbria and the Isle of Man allow us to
assign a Middle Triassic age to the timing of ore deposit formation.
The similarity between hematite palaeomagnetic poles measured
from sites representing both fracture-hosted and metasomatic
replacement mineralization, and covering a range of wall rock set-
tings, suggests that the ore deposits record a single mineralizing
event of limited (<10 Ma) duration. The timing and geographical
distribution of ore bodies and related sub-economic mineralization
supports an underlying temporal and genetic link between ore
deposit formation and the evolution of the East Irish Sea sedimen-
tary basin. Dating evidence places the Cumbrian and Manx ore
deposits within an extensional tectonic regime associated with the
far-field effects of the initial rifting of Pangaea in the northern hem-
isphere. In this respect the Cumbrian and Manx hematite minerali-
zation forms part of a suite of ore deposits, developed within a
broadly extensional geotectonic setting, that are now located along
opposing margins of the North Atlantic Ocean.
Some of the palaeomagnetic data included in this study represent the prod-
uct of several undergraduate student project assignments. We wish to thank
M. Khan, J. Evans and K. Rowe for their contribution to this work. B.
Young kindly commented on an earlier version of the paper and offered
invaluable insights into the geology of Cumbrian hematite mineralization.
C. Mac Niocaill and two anonymous journal reviewers provided editorial
and scientific support. S.F.C. and J.D.A.P. acknowledge the Department of
Earth and Ocean Sciences, University of Liverpool for subsidizing field-
work and publication costs.
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Received 29 January 2013; revised typescript accepted 1 August 2013.

Scientific editing by Conall Mac Niocaill.

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