Explor. Mining Geol., Vol. 10, No. 3, pp.

191–213, 2001
© 2003 Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum.
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0964-1823/00 $17.00 + .00

Australian Proterozoic Iron Oxide-Cu-Au Deposits:

An Overview with New Metallogenic and Exploration Data
from the Cloncurry District, Northwest Queensland
PATRICK J. WILLIAMS and PETER J. POLLARD
Economic Geology Research Unit, School of Earth Sciences, James Cook University
Townsville, Queensland, Australia

Received December 10, 2001; accepted June 17, 2002.

Abstract — Enigmatic hydrothermal vein/breccia/replacement Cu-Au deposits with magnetite

and/or hematite are well-represented in Australian 1850 Ma to 1500 Ma terrains and associated with
different-aged synorogenic intrusions in the Tennant Creek Block (ca. 1850 Ma); the Gawler-Cur-
namona region (1640 Ma to 1590 Ma); and the Cloncurry district (Mount Isa Eastern Fold Belt, 1540
Ma to 1500 Ma with a possible earlier event at ca. 1600 Ma). No deposits are known to be coeval
with various 1780 Ma to 1610 Ma anorogenic intrusions. Deposits are hosted by many different
rock-types with varying metamorphic grade including granites and various supracrustal rocks. Depth
of mineralization varied from many kilometers in semiductile crust (e.g., Cloncurry deposits) to very
shallow (e.g., Olympic Dam). Ore deposition near Cloncurry occurred in brittle-ductile shear zones
from geochemically variable and complex, CO2-rich, 300°C to 500°C, high salinity fluids with mag-
matic stable isotopic signatures. Recently published studies of a giant granitoid-hosted magnetite
vein complex at the Lightning Creek prospect (>1000 Mt magnetite) suggest it is a product of inter-
nal differentiation and endogenous Fe and Cu-rich hydrous-carbonic fluid phase generation within a
quartz monzodiorite-monzogranite intrusion. Coupled with other field relationships, this points to a
possible genetic relationship with intermediate (55 to 65 wt% SiO2) members of an alkaline and
partly shoshonitic granitoid supersuite which appears to have both mantle and crustal source com-
ponents from εNd evidence. In constrast, main-phase mineralization at Olympic Dam in the Gawler
Craton is distinguished by hematite-phyllosilicate alteration and chalcopyrite-bornite-chalcocite
zoning, reflecting fluid mixing in a high level (<250°C) system with a probable large component of
meteoric water. Early high-temperature parageneses and fluid inclusions imply that the extensive
hematitic breccias overprinted an older magnetite system which may have had similarities with those
at Lightning Creek and Ernest Henry in the Cloncurry district.
Deposits of this family are inherently difficult to find and evaluate as even within a single district,
there is no reliable relationship between the location of ore and any specific combination of geo-
physical characteristics. Diverse alteration assemblages, geochemistry and physical characteristics
suggest the deposits reflect the interaction of multi-sourced fluids with different host rocks in a wide
range of geological environments. Recent discoveries and research in the Cloncurry district have
extended the range of deposit models available and aid the development of a rudimentary classifica-
tion in which economic and exploration characteristics can be linked to variations in the mechanisms
and environments of ore formation. © 2003 Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petro-
leum. All rights reserved.

Introduction
The existence of of a distinct family of hydrothermal
vein/breccia/replacement Fe-Cu-Au deposits characterized
by an iron oxide (magnetite and/or hematite) association has
only really been recognized relatively recently (e.g., Hitz-
man et al., 1992). Examples such as those of the Tennant
Creek gold field in Australia’s Northern Territory have been
known for a long time. However, it has taken a series of
recent discoveries including Olympic Dam, South Australia
(1975), La Candelaria, Chile (1987), and several deposits in
the Cloncurry district of northwestern Queensland (1980-
1991) to establish a growing body of opinion that this is
indeed a distinct deposit class which includes some large to
very large ore systems. In the last three districts mentioned
at least, these new discoveries have radically changed atti-
tudes toward prospectivity.
These deposits formed in a range of different tectonic set-
tings settings (Hitzman, 2000) and display associations vari-
ously with subduction-related magmatism, anorogenic mag-
matism, or magmatism related to the apparently ensialic style
of orogeny that characterizes the Proterozoic evolution of sev-
eral Australian cratons (e.g., Etheridge et al., 1987). Both Pre-
cambrian and Phanerozoic examples may be linked in some
way to “Kiruna-type” apatite-rich iron deposits and some dis-
tricts contain examples of both types of iron oxide-rich ore
systems. Some authors (e.g., Hitzman et al., 1992; Barton and
Johnson, 1996) have proposed a close genetic relationship

191
192 Explor. Mining Geol., Vol. 10, No. 3, 2001

Kiruna
Aitik Wernecke
Bergslagen
Great Bear

Bafq Iron Springs SE Missouri

Durango

Salobo

Tennant Ck Cloncurry Mantos Blancos

Manto Verde
Vergenoeg Manxman Candelaria
Olympic Dam El Romeral

Precambrian Phanerozoic
Magnetite ± Apatite
Magnetite - Cu - Au
Hematite - Sericite - Cu

Fig. 2. Summary of the late Paleoproterozoic and early Mesopro-

terozoic tectonic, magmatic and metallogenic history of Australia.
Early
Early Proterozoic
(s.(s.l.)
Proterozoic l.) Explanation (relating to metallogenic provinces): PCI – Pine Creek
Inlier; GTI — Granites-Tanami Inlier; TCI — Tennant Creek
Basin Mount Isa Block Inlier; GC — Gawler Craton; CC — Curnamona Province; MIB —
Block Warrego Gecko
Ernest Henry
Mount Isa Block. Data from Wyborn (1988) and many other
Peko/Juno
Tennant Creek Inlier Starra
Eloise sources cited in the text.
- Mt ElliottOsborne

Curnamona Province
regarded as essential for future exploration. This contribu-
Manxman/ tion reviews the Proterozoic Fe-Cu-Au deposits of Australia
Prominent Hill North Portia
Olympic Dam Cu Blow to illustrate the variation in geological settings and physical
Gawler Craton Moonta character of the deposits of that continent. These occur in
Archean Major Deposit three (arguably four) quite distinct geological systems and
Other Deposit
Basin include almost all of the Proterozoic examples of such
Gneiss complex deposits worldwide with Cu-Au resources that have proven
Block
to be economic by contemporary standards. The results of
recent research on a diverse group of deposits in the Clon-
Fig. 1. (a) Location of examples of Fe oxide (-Cu-Au) districts and
curry district, including much material synthesized from
deposits around the world; (b) Precambrian blocks with significant unpublished research reports and theses, are used to provide
Fe-oxide-Cu-Au deposits in Australia (adapted from Wyborn, an insight into metallogenic processes and their relationship
1988). to exploration characteristics.

and common hydrothermal origin, whereas, others (e.g., Nys-

tröm and Henriquez, 1994) concluded that the apatite-iron
ores crystallized directly from melts. Among Precambrian
iron oxide Cu-Au deposits, there is a strong concentration in
late Paleoproterozoic to early Mesoproterozoic rocks (1.9 Ga
to 1.4 Ga; cf. Hitzman et al., 1992), particularly in Australia
(Figs. 1 and 2). Phanerozoic examples formed in destructive
plate margin settings and range in age from early Cambrian to
late Tertiary (e.g., Kesler, 1997). Deposits of this class world-
wide display rather diverse geological characteristics and
major contributions of fluid components from both magmatic
(e.g., Gow et al., 1994; Rotherham et al., 1998; Pollard, 2000,
2001) and amagmatic (e.g., Barton and Johnson, 1996, 2000)
sources have been proposed.
Most of the recent discoveries were made beneath sed-
imentary cover using geophysical techniques. However,
many exploration histories are typified variously by extraor-
dinary difficulties and major roles for good fortune (e.g.,
Reeve et al., 1990; Anderson and Logan, 1992; Webb and
Rowston, 1995). The development of a good understanding
of the geological controls of the distribution of ore can be
Geological Settings
The Proterozoic history of Australia between the Barra-
mundi (1870 Ma to 1840 Ma) and Isan (1550 Ma to 1500
Ma) orogenies was punctuated by the development of an
extraordinary inventory of metalliferous mineral resources
(Fig. 2). In addition to the Fe oxide-Cu-Au deposits dis-
cussed here, there are globally significant resources of Zn,
Ag, Pb, and U as well as an unusual abundance of Au-only
deposits for rocks of this age. The main known Proterozoic
Fe oxide-Cu-Au deposits occur in three geological domains.
These all have complex thermal histories but each appears to
be distinguished by its own dominant Cu-Au metallogenic
phase (Figs. 2 and 3).
Tennant Creek Block
The Tennant Creek Block in the Northern Territory is
largely composed of deformed but barely metamorphosed
 Australian Proterozoic Iron Oxide-Cu-Au Deposits: An Overview • P.J. WILLIAMS AND P.J. POLLARD
Fig. 3. Cartoon illustration of geological environments of Australian Proterozoic Fe oxide-Cu-Au deposits. Mag — magnetite; Hem —
hematite.
Paleoproterozoic (≈1860 Ma) graywackes and felsic vol-
canic rocks, e.g., Ferenczi and Ahmad (1998). Deformation,
mineralization and granitoid emplacement occurred shortly
after sedimentation during the Barramundi orogeny, and
may form part of the same tectonic system as the Wopmay
orogen and Great Bear Magmatic zone in northwestern
Canada that are also characterized by Fe-oxide-Cu-Au
deposits (Johnson and Hattori, 1994; Compston, 1995). The
deformed sequence is unconformably overlain by slightly
younger supracrustal rocks which were not significantly
affected by the tectonic events that were contemporaneous
with mineralization in the other two major Australian Fe
oxide-Cu-Au districts. A second major set of granitoids
intruded the block at 1700 Ma to 1650 Ma.
Gawler Craton and Curnamona Province
The Gawler Craton and Curnamona Province occupy a
large part of southern Australia (Figs. 1 and 4). They are sep-
arated by an extensive area of Neoproterozoic continental
supracrustal rocks that were deformed in the early Palaeo-
zoic Adelaide Fold Belt. Large areas of the cratonic base-
ment are concealed by Neoproterozoic and younger cover.
In places, this cover is sufficiently thin to allow geophysical
exploration of the basement as at the Olympic Dam deposit
193
which is some 300 m beneath the current land surface
(Reeve et al., 1990). Archean rocks are quite extensively
exposed in the west and north of the Gawler Craton with the
remainder of these regions being composed of various crys-
talline Paleo- and Mesoproterozoic rocks that were largely
undisturbed by Precambrian tectonic processes after about
1450 Ma (e.g., Parker et al., 1993a). Nutman and Ehlers
(1998a) have recently provided evidence that Archean crust
exists as far east as Broken Hill. Major banded iron forma-
tion containing abundant magnetite occurs locally within the
older parts of the Palaeoproterozoic sequence (Parker et al.,
1993b).
Granitoid emplacement in the Gawler Craton and Cur-
namona Province occurred at a number of times including at
around 1850 Ma (cf. Tennant Creek), 1740 Ma, 1690 Ma,
and 1660 Ma (Parker et al., 1993b; Daly et al., 1998; Nut-
man and Ehlers, 1998b). Three compressional deformation
events occurred in the southern part of the Gawler Craton
from 1845 Ma to ≈1700 Ma in what is referred to as the
Kimban orogeny (e.g., Daly et al., 1998). High-grade meta-
morphism is deduced to have occurred at least locally in
association with the 1690 Ma magmatic event in the Curna-
mona Province (Nutman and Ehlers, 1998b). However, it
appears that the Fe oxide-Cu-Au deposits are discretely
associated with the Hiltaba suite granitoids emplaced at
around 1590 Ma, a timing relationship that is tightly con-
194 Explor. Mining Geol., Vol. 10, No. 3, 2001
Fig. 4. (a) Geology and selected mineral occurrences of the Gawler Craton; (b) Curnamona Province (adapted from Newton, 1996).
strained at the granite-hosted Olympic Dam deposit (John-
son and Cross, 1995). Regional metamorphism ranging up
to granulite facies occurred in the Curnamona Province at
about the same time during an event which has been termed
the Olarian orogeny and perhaps slightly later in the north-
ern part of the Gawler Craton (later part of the Kararan
orogeny of Daly et al., 1998; cf. Fig. 2). The recently rein-
terpreted ca. 1595 Ma age for the Wernecke breccias in the
Yukon Territory suggest that as with the apparent link
between the Barramundi and Wopmay orogenic systems, the
ca. 1600 Ma Fe oxide-Cu-Au systems in Australia may have
analogues in northern North America (Torkelson et al.,
2001).
A major feature that distinguishes the Gawler Craton
from the other Australian Fe oxide-Cu-Au districts is the
extensive development of a sequence of volcanic rocks
(Gawler Range Volcanics, Fig. 4) that is coeval with the
granitoids associated with mineralization. These dominate
the cratonic associations near Olympic Dam and host addi-
tional Fe oxide-Cu-Au deposits such as Acropolis and
Wirrda Well (Blissett et al., 1993; Cross, 1993). This sug-
gests the depth of erosion into the critical rock associations
over large areas of the craton is shallow compared to the
other districts discussed here and means that surface-derived
waters are likely to have played a greater role in alteration
and mineralization.
Mount Isa Eastern Fold Belt (Cloncurry District)
The Cloncurry mining district geologically occupies the
eastern part (Eastern Fold Belt) of the Mount Isa inlier in north-
west Queensland (Figs. 1 and 5). Xenocrystic zircons and Sm-
Nd isotopic evidence imply there are Archean to early Protero-
zoic rocks at depth though dated elements of pre-Barramundi
basement exposed along the eastern margin of the belt were
formed at 1900 Ma to 1850 Ma (Pollard and McNaughton,
1997; Page and Sun, 1998). Younger supracrustal rocks near
Cloncurry belong to two main sequences which are generally
observed in faulted contact with each other. The older 1780 Ma
to 1720 Ma sequence is a diverse package of metamorphosed
basic to felsic volcanic rocks, carbonates, evaporites and silici-
clastic sediments which is dominated by a lithostratigraphic
unit known as the Mary Kathleen Group (Fig. 5). The younger
late Palaeoproterozoic sequence, at present informally termed
the Maronan supergroup (Beardsmore et al., 1988), consists of
metasiliclastic rocks and subordinate metabasic rocks that were
deposited after 1670 Ma to 1660 Ma (Page and Sun, 1998).
This sequence contains thin, laterally extensive magnetite-
quartz “BIF” horizons.
Early granitoid emplacement occurred at a number of
times including at around 1840 Ma west of the belt, (Blake,
1987, i.e., at a similar time to the key magmatic event at
Tennant Creek), 1740 Ma and 1660 Ma (Fig. 6). Significant
 Australian Proterozoic Iron Oxide-Cu-Au Deposits: An Overview • P.J. WILLIAMS AND P.J. POLLARD 195

Fig. 5. Location and geological setting of Fe-Cu-Au deposits in the Cloncurry district, NW Queensland. Adapted from Blake (1987) with
updated information from various sources as described in Williams (1998).

deformation (D1) and at least local metamorphism occurred

at around 1590 Ma (Diamantinan orogeny) though plutonic
rocks of this age are not known in the region (Page and Sun,
1998; MacCready et al., 1998). The distribution of meta-
morphism of this age is presently not well constrained
though what data exist suggest it may have been concen-
trated in high-grade rocks around the southeastern margin of
the district near the Osborne and Cannington mines Fig. 6. Summary of U-Pb SHRIMP dates with uncertainties better
(Adshead, 1995; Page and Sun, 1998; Gauthier et al., 2001). than ±12 Ma from granitoids in the Cloncurry district (Pollard and
Twyerould (1997) has also reported ca. 1610 Ma amphibole McNaughton, 1997; Page and Sun, 1998).
40Ar/39Ar ages from the vicinity of the Ernest Henry mine.

Major deformation and metamorphism throughout the dis-
trict occurred during the Isan orogeny between 1550 Ma and
1500 Ma and a dominant steep N-trending structural grain
was imposed in this period. Rocks hosting the significant
Cu-Au deposits range in metamorphic grade from mid-
greenschist to upper amphibolite facies.
Localized trondhjemite and granodiorite emplacement
occurred more or less synchronously with the Isan meta-
morphism at 1550 Ma to 1530 Ma and was followed by
batholithic granitoids from about 1530 Ma to 1500 Ma
(Williams-Naraku granites, Pollard and McNaughton, 1997;
Page and Sun, 1998; Wyborn, 1998). Intrusion of the
younger granites was associated with the development of
widespread sodic(±calcic) alteration in both intrusions and
country rocks (Williams, 1994; De Jong and Williams,
1995; Mark, 1998; Mark et al., 1999). Detailed studies of
the 1530 Ma to 1500 Ma granitoids have shown they are
metaluminous magnetite series (I-type)1 rocks which were
1 The term “A-type” which might be applied on some geochemical
grounds is not used in order to avoid misleading tectonic setting connota-
tions.
196 Explor. Mining Geol., Vol. 10, No. 3, 2001

mostly emplaced at 15 km to 10 km depth (Pollard et al.,

1998; Perring et al., 2001). They can be differentiated into
two supersuites based on geochemical criteria (Pollard et al.,
1998, Fig. 7), namely, (1) the mildly alkaline “Eureka
Supersuite” which ranges from diorite to syenogranite and is
for a large part potassic (shoshonite series) but also includes
Na-rich rocks (see also Perring et al., 2001); and (2) the
“Cloncurry Supersuite” which is potassic but less alkaline
than the Eureka Supersuite. Compared with modern grani-
toids, these rocks lack depletions of Y and HREE that might
imply derivation from a garnet-bearing (deep) source (Pol-
lard et al., 1998). Most have negative εNd in the range -2.4 to
-3.9 though a dolerite and a single Eureka Supersuite diorite
gave εNd of +2.8 and +3.5, respectively (Pollard and
McNaughton, 1997; Page and Sun, 1998; Mark, 2001).
Depleted mantle Nd model ages for the granitoids with neg-
ative εNd range from 2204 Ma to 2272 Ma. These data are
interpreted to imply the existence of subordinate mantle and
dominant older crustal source components. A direct genetic
connection has been proposed between the sodic granitoids
and fluids responsible for the regional Na-Ca alteration of
both intrusions and country rocks (Mark et al., 1999; Mark
and Foster, 2000; Perring et al., 2000).

Ore Deposit Geology
The economic Fe oxide Cu-Au deposits in Australian
Proterozoic terrains are extremely variable in character
ranging from very large (Olympic Dam) to small, high-
grade deposits such as those near Tennant Creek, and Eloise
in the Cloncurry district (Table 1). The Fe oxide association
Fig. 7. SiO2-total alkalis and SiO2-TiO2 variations in post 1540 Ma
granitoids from the Cloncurry district. Data sources: Pollard et al.
(1998); Perring et al. (2000); Wang and Williams (2001).
varies from magnetite-dominated (e.g., Ernest Henry) to
hematite-dominated (e.g., Olympic Dam). The Fe sulfides
are either pyrite (e.g., Olympic Dam, Ernest Henry, Starra),

Table 1. Examples of Australian Proterozic Fe oxide-(Cu-Au) deposits with economic data drawn from public domain company reports and press releases

Deposit District Discovered 2002 Status Resource Minor Elements

Eloise Cloncurry 1988 Mine 3.1 Mt: 5.5% Cu; 1.4 g/t Au Co, Ni, Ag (18 g/t)
Ernest Henry Cloncurry 1991 Mine 166 Mt: 1.1% Cu; 0.5 g/t Au F, Co (0.05%), As, Mo (0.02%), Ba, REE
Greenmount Cloncurry 1988 Prospect 3.6 Mt: 1.5% Cu; 0.8 g/t Au Co, As
Monakoff Cloncurry Pre-1908 Mine (inactive) 1 Mt: 1.5% Cu; 0.5 g/t Au F, Co, Zn, As, Ag, Ba, LREE, Pb, U
Osborne Cloncurry 1988 Mine 15.2 Mt: 3.00% Cu; 1.05 g/t Au Co, Mo
Mount Elliott Cloncurry ca. 1900 Mine 3.3 Mt: 3.6% Cu; 1.8 g/t Au Co, Ni
Mount Margaret Cloncurry 1999 Prospect 17 Mt: 0.83% Cu; 0.22 g/t Au (no data)
Starra Cloncurry 1980 Closed mine; 6.9 Mt: 1.7% Cu; 4.8 g/t Au (no data)
under feasibility
for large open cut
operation
Olympic Dam Gawler 1975 Mine 605 Mt: 1.8% Cu; 0.5 g/t Au F, Co (0.02%) Ag (6 g/t), Ba, LREE,
(2320 Mt @ 1.3% Cu; 0.5 g/t Au) (≈0.5%), U (0.8 kg/t U308)
Prominent Hill Gawler 2001 Prospect n/a: Best intercept 568 m F, Ag (2.4 g/t), LREE (0.56%), U
@ 1.31% Cu; 0.78 g/t Au
Manxman Gawler 1986 Prospect n/a: Best intercept 289 m Au, F, P, Co, LREE
@ 0.23% Cu (ca. 35% Fe)
Moonta-Wallaroo Gawler 1861 Worked out 375 000 t Cu, 2.5 t Au F, As, Mo, LREE
(Group) (production)
Kalkaroo Curnamona 1992 Prospect 30 Mt: 0.28% Cu; 0.14 g/t Au
North Portia Curnamona 1997 Prospect n/a: Best intercept 76 m Mo (0.02%)
@ 1.1% Cu, 1.2 g/t Au
Gecko Tennant Creek 1967 Worked out 4.7 Mt: 3.8% Cu; 0.7 g/t Au Bi (0.2%); Ag (14 g/t)
Peko Tennant Creek pre-1949 Worked out 3.5 Mt: 4.0% Cu; 3.5 g/t Au
Warrego Tennant Creek 1962 Worked out 5 Mt: 2.6% Cu; 7 g/t Au Bi (0.3%)
 Australian Proterozoic Iron Oxide-Cu-Au Deposits: An Overview • P.J. WILLIAMS AND P.J. POLLARD
pyrrhotite (e.g., Eloise), or both (e.g., Mount Elliott,
Osborne). Most contain chalcopyrite as the only significant
Cu-phase but some, such as White Devil, Olympic Dam and
Starra, have hypogene bornite and chalcocite (Reeve et al.,
1990, Huston et al., 1993; Rotherham, 1997). Cu:Au ratios
vary substantially between deposits and there is no single
consistent minor element association (Table 1). However, as
previously noted by Hitzman et al. (1992), there is a distinc-
tive, if not ubiquitous association with F, Ba, LREE, and U.
Co and Mo are commonly present at near-economic levels
(e.g., Ernest Henry, Ryan, 1998) while Bi shows a specific
and extreme enrichment in the deposits near Tennant Creek
(Wedekind et al., 1989). Some deposits contain amounts of
As that can become a concern in beneficiation and smelting.
Tennant Creek Deposits
The Tennant Creek Inlier is known to contain about 650
structurally controlled metasomatic magnetite-hematite
lenses (locally termed “ironstones”) with chloritic alteration
halos. These are concentrated at specific stratigraphic posi-
tions and commonly localized in parasitic anticlines
(Wedekind et al., 1989; Rattenbury, 1992; Huston et al.,
1993; Skirrow, 2000). They range in size from a few 100 t
up to more than 15 Mt (Wedekind et al., 1989). Approxi-
mately 200 of the known ironstones were selectively
affected by a second hydrothermal phase of Cu-Au-Bi-(S)
mineralization and in many cases the ironstones are much
larger than the orebodies they host. The ores on the whole
have higher Au:Cu ratios than deposits in the other Aus-
tralian districts. Five mines had intial reserves of 2 Mt to 5
Mt and a number of smaller, high-grade deposits have also
been exploited though reserves are now mostly worked-out
(Huston et al., 1993; Davidson and Large, 1994). Compston
and McDougall (1994) established that ironstone formation
and mineralization occurred over a short time interval and
have a minimum age of 1830 Ma to 1825 Ma. Coupled with
structural constraints, this establishes a close temporal link
with the ca. 1850 Ma granitoid magmatism.
Deposits of the Gawler Craton and Curnamona Province
General Features
The mineral resource inventory of the Gawler Craton
and Curnamona Province (Table 1; Fig. 4) is dominated by
the giant deposit at Olympic Dam (e.g., Reeve et al., 1990)
though the region also contains a number of other significant
occurrences and is fairly immature from an exploration per-
spective. A number of large Cu, Au, and U-bearing magnetite
and/or hematite bodies have been discovered in the basement
to the Stuart Shelf south of Olympic Dam including Acropo-
lis, Wirrda Well, Oak Dam East and Emmie Bluff (Cross,
1993; Gow et al., 1994; Newton, 1996). To the northwest, the
197
Mount Woods Inlier near Coober Pedy contains several very
large magnetite bodies with Cu-Au-U-REE mineralization
such as those in the Manxman A and Joes Dam areas (New-
ton, 1996; Hampton, 1997; Davies, 2001). Significant Cu-
Au-(U) intersections have been obtained in hematitic brec-
cias at the the nearby Prominent Hill prospect (Table 1;
Minotaur Resources Ltd. press announcements 2001, 2002).
The magnetite bodies in the Mount Woods area are hosted by
granitoids and high-grade metamorphic rocks and character-
ized by early sodic-calcic alteration assemblages (plagio-
clase-diopside) reminiscent of associations in the Cloncurry
district (see below). The historically significant Cu-Au
deposits of the Moonta-Wallaroo area at the northern end of
the Yorke Peninsula are characterized by various styles of
chalcopyrite ± magnetite ± pyrite ± pyrrhotite ± hematite
deposit (Conor, 1996; Daly et al., 1998).
Further east, the Curnamona Province (Fig. 4) contains
many Cu and Au occurrences, some of which at least, are
members of the Fe oxide-associated family (Williams and
Skirrow, 2000; Teale and Fanning, 2000). Notable examples
are the Copper Blow deposit near Broken Hill (Burton,
1994) and the recently discovered North Portia prospect
(Teale and Fanning, 2000). 40Ar/39Ar geochronology in the
Curnamona Province has revealed a protracted thermal his-
tory and it has been suggested that much of the epigenetic
mineralization in the region occurred during the Early
Palaeozoic Delamarian Orogeny (Harrison and McDougall,
1981; Bierlein et al., 1996). However, nine new Re-Os ages
from the Kalkaroo, White Dam, Waukaloo and North Portia
areas are in the range 1632 Ma to 1612 Ma (Skirrow et al.,
2000) while SHRIMP dating of monazite associated with
Cu-Au parageneses at North Portia gave an age of ca. 1605
Ma (Teale and Fanning, 2000). Consequently, there is now
compelling evidence that the major phase of Cu-Au miner-
alization in the Curnamona Province occurred during late
Palaeoproterozoic times.
Olympic Dam
The Olympic Dam mine (Fig. 8 ) with a global resource
of the order of 2300 Mt containing 1.3% Cu (Reynolds,
2000) is one of the world’s largest Cu deposits and a signif-
icant producer of U and Au. It is apparently fault-controlled
and occurs in a ca. 7 km by 5 km zone of brecciated and and
altered rocks cored by what is interpreted as a diatreme
complex. These features are developed entirely within the
1588 ± 4 Ma Roxby Downs granite (Johnson and Cross,
1995). The breccias contain large blocks of rocks with inter-
preted sedimentary textures and are believed to have formed
within a few 100 m of the palaeosurface (Oreskes and Ein-
audi, 1990). The breccias are intruded by many ultramafic,
mafic and felsic dikes which are temporally related to the
supposed diatreme. A post-ore dike has been dated at 1592
± 8 Ma (Johnson and Cross, 1995) implying that the deposit
formed soon after emplacement of the granite.
198 Explor. Mining Geol., Vol. 10, No. 3, 2001

cate alteration, and is concentrated in deeper parts of the

system. Barite and fluorite are abundant and La and Ce are
present in high concentrations as bastnaesite, florencite and
monazite (Oreskes and Einaudi, 1990). Uranium is closely
associated with Cu and occurs mostly as fine-grained to
amorphous uraninite (“pitchblende,” Reeve et al., 1990).
The Cu-U-Au ore occurs in hematite-rich zones near the
center of the complex. Mineralization was synchronous with
multiple brecciation events and produced a marked hypo-
gene zonation from barren hematite at the top, and in the
core of the deposit, through chalcocite, bornite, chalcopyrite
to pyrite with minor chalcopyrite and magnetite (Reeve et
al., 1990; Haynes et al., 1995). Economic grades occur close
to, and mainly above the bornite-chalcopyrite interface (Fig.
8) and the mine-dedicated smelter at Olympic Dam is con-
sequently designed to process low sulfur concentrates.

Cloncurry District (Mount Isa Eastern Fold Belt)

The deposits in the Cloncurry district are particularly

Fig. 8. (a) Simplified geological plan at about 400 m below surface;
(b) section of the Olympic Dam deposit (adapted from Reeve et al.,
1990).
diverse in style, setting and geochemical associations (Table
2; Fig. 9) and there are many more small deposits than there
is space to discuss here (Raymond, 1992; Williams, 1998).
Despite the differences, all the significant Cu-Au deposits dis-
play strong structural controls being localized by a range of
brittle-ductile and brittle shear zones (e.g., Laing, 1998). An
almost ubiquitous feature is the presence of early sodic-calcic
alteration, similar in style to, but commonly more localized
than that developed throughout large parts of the district.
Ernest Henry is an exception in that the ore-related Fe- and
K-rich alteration system is enveloped by a large area of rocks
with strong sodic-calcic alteration (Mark et al., 2000).

The dominant alteration assemblages at Olympic Dam

consist of sericite-hematite ± chlorite ± quartz ± siderite and Ernest Henry
it appears that several 100 Mt of Fe were added to the altered
granite in the breccia complex. Magnetite is comparatively The Ernest Henry mine, about 40 km northeast of Clon-
minor, paragenetically earlier than the hematite-phyllosili- curry, is the outstanding Cu-Au deposit in the district. It is a

Table 2. Fe oxide-(Cu-Au) deposits of the Cloncurry district with sources for metallogenic and exploration data

Deposit Style References

Eloise Sulfide-replaced biotite-hornblade alteration Brescianini et al. (1992); Baker (1998);
Baker and Laing (1998); Baker et al. (2001)
Ernest Henry Breccia with magnetite-sulfide matrix Fairall (1994); Craske (1995); Webb and Rowston (1995);
Twyerould (1997); Ryan (1998); Mark and Crookes (1999);
Mark et al. (2000, 2001)
Great Australia Carbonate-sulfide vein stockwork in matabasites Cannell and Davidson (1998)
Greenmount Microcline-sulfide stockwork in carbonaceous pelites Krcmarov (1995); Krcmarov and Stewart (1998)
Lighting Creek Very large granitoid-hosted magnetite vein system Perring et al. (2000, 2001)
Monakoff Magnetite-barite-siderite-sulfide replaced shear zone Davidson and Davis (1997); Davidson (1998)
Mount Dore Quartz-sulfide stockwork and breccia in carbonaceous pelites Beardsmore (1992)
Mount Elliott Clinopyroxene-magnetite skarn Fortowski and McCraken (1998); Wang and Williams (2001)
Osborne Quartz-magnetite-sulfide-replacement bodies Anderson and Logan (1992); Adshead (1995);
Adshead et al. (1998); Gauthier et al. (2001);
Rubenach et al. (2001)
Starra Sulfide-hematite replaced magnetite ironstones Collins (1987); Davidson et al. (1989); Rotherham (1997);
Adshead-Bell (1998); Rotherham et al. (1998);
Williams et al. (2001)
 Australian Proterozoic Iron Oxide-Cu-Au Deposits: An Overview • P.J. WILLIAMS AND P.J. POLLARD 199

Greenmount
"BIF"

Mt Elliott
iott

Starra
Osborne
Eloise Ernest
Henry
Lightning
Creek

Cover Calc-silicates Granitoids Shear zones

Pelites Volcanics Na Alteration

(syn-granite)
Sulphides Fig. 10. Interpreted geological plan of the Ernest Henry deposit,
Carbonaceous pelites Basement K Alteration Magnetite Cloncurry district. Simplified from Twyerould (1997) with
geochronological data from Pollard and McNaughton (1997) and
Fig. 9. Cartoon illustration (notional cross-section to illustrate atti- Gunton (1999). Coordinate scheme is Australian Mapping Grid
tudes of features) of geological environments of Cloncurry Fe-Cu- (UTM).
Au deposits drawn to emphasize the different modes of magnetite
occurrence and their relationships to ore.

blind deposit some 12 km from the nearest Proterozoic base-

ment outcrop that was discovered by Western Mining Cor-
poration in 1991 by drilling coincident magnetic and elec-
trical anomalies beneath loosely consolidated Mesozoic to
Recent sedimentary cover (Webb and Rowston, 1995). The
identified resource is 166 Mt at 1.1% Cu and 0.54 g/t Au,
though the deposit is open at depth and displays no reduc-
tion in thickness at the termination of the portion that has
been explored (Ryan, 1998). Given that some of the deposit
was lost by erosion prior to deposition of the Mesozoic
cover, this means its original total size may have been sub-
stantially larger than the delineated resource.
The dominant structural and geophysical grain at Ernest
Henry trends NE and the main fabrics exhibit moderate dip
to the SE (Webb and Rowston, 1995; Twyerould, 1997).
This constitutes an anomalous structural domain in the
regional context. The host rocks to the ore are part of a
sequence of strongly altered basic to felsic metavolcanic
rocks which may correlate with outcrops further west dated
at about 1745 Ma (Page and Sun, 1998). Drilling and geo-
physical data have delineated extensive dioritic intrusions,
examples of which are as close as 500 m south of the ore-
body (Twyerould, 1997; Ryan, 1998; Mark et al., 2000).
SHRIMP dating suggests these were emplaced at around
1660 Ma (Figs. 6 and 10; Pollard and McNaughton, 1997).
The original character of the metavolcanic rocks near
the deposit is obscured by the widespread fine-grained mag-
netite-biotite alteration, though rocks with porphyritic,
amygdaloidal and flow banded textures can be recognized
locally (Twyerould, 1997; Ryan, 1998; Mark and Crookes,
1999; Mark et al., 2000). This fine-grained magnetite alter-
ation predates a coarser type of magnetite that occurs with
sulfides in the ore (Ryan, 1998). The ore zone (Fig. 11) is a
large breccia body localized between two shear zones char-
Fig. 11. Section of the Ernest Henry deposit as interpreted from
drilling data (adapted from Craske, 1995).
acterized by strong fabrics and intense biotite-magnetite-
(garnet) alteration (Craske, 1995; Twyerould, 1997). Ryan
(1998) has suggested that the distribution of strain in the
hangingwall and footwall may be more complex than origi-
nally thought, and questioned the previous identification of
discrete shear zones. A zone of calcite and dolomite-rich
(“marble matrix”) breccias is associated with the deformed
footwall rocks (Twyerould, 1997). Textures and structures in
these carbonate-rich breccias suggest they developed in a
partly ductile deformation regime (Ryan, 1998).
The ore breccias consist of matrix (infill and replace-
ment) mineralization with fragments of pervasively Ba-rich
K-feldspathized metavolcanic rocks (Twyerould, 1997;
Mark and Crookes, 1999; Mark et al., 2000). They display a
range of textures from incipient crackling grading to matrix-
dominated breccias characterized by the highest ore grades.
Some breccias have stretched and flattened fragments
implying they developed in a brittle-ductile deformation
regime. The mineralized matrix in the primary zone consists
of chalcopyrite, pyrite and magnetite which are associated
with calcite, quartz, biotite and chlorite along with minor
200 Explor. Mining Geol., Vol. 10, No. 3, 2001
amounts of epidote, allanite, tourmaline, fluorite, REE fluo-
rcarbonates, monazite, barite, apatite, scheelite, arsenopy-
rite, cobaltite, galena, molybdenite, coffinite, uraninite, and
brannerite (Fairall, 1994; Twyerould, 1997; Ryan, 1998).
40Ar-39Ar dating of biotites suggests the ore was emplaced
by about 1505 Ma (Twyerould, 1997). A SHRIMP U-Pb
date of rutile from Ernest Henry ore of 1538 ± 37 Ma pro-
vides a comparitively robust indication that mineralization
probably occurred during the Isan orogeny and was not
related to the nearby diorites (Gunton, 1999).
The average magnetite-content is 20% to 25% while
sulfides constitute about 9% of the primary ore at Ernest
Henry (Ryan, 1998). Chalcopyrite is on the whole rather
more abundant than pyrite and the pyrite:chalcopyrite ratio
displays a negative correlation with ore grade with a pyritic
halo extending approximately 50 m into the surrounding
rocks (Twyerould, 1997; Ryan, 1998). Cu and Au are
strongly correlated with each other in the hypogene zone
(Twyerould, 1997; Ryan, 1998). The primary mineralization
is anomalous in As (350 ppm), Co (500 ppm), Mo (180
ppm), and U (50 ppm) but has insignificant amounts of Pb
(31 ppm) and Zn (120 ppm) (1995 Environmental Impact
Statement; Ryan, 1998). Much of the As and Co occur in
solid solution in pyrite and these elements show a much
stronger correlation with each other than with Cu (Ryan,
1998).
Monakoff
Monakoff is the nearest significant occurrence to Ernest
Henry in the exposed Proterozoic basement and like its
much larger neighbor, has a complex Cu-Au-(F-Co-As-Ba-
REE-U) geochemical association (Davidson, 1998). It is
hosted by metasediments (quartz-muscovite-plagioclase
schists) and consists of foliation-parallel massive siderite-
fluorite-barite-magneite-quartz-sulfide lenses that formed
by replacement of rocks with intensified deformational fab-
rics in a ductile shear zone (Davidson and Davis, 1997;
Laing, 1998). The deposit is localized at a stratigraphic posi-
tion close to a regionally extensive magnetite-iron formation
unit that displays a more complex deformation history than
the ore (Ryburn et al., 1988; Davidson and Davis, 1997).
40Ar-39Ar dating of a hydrothermal biotite from the deposit
gave an age of 1508 ± 10 Ma similar to those of alteration
biotites at Ernest Henry (Pollard and Perkins, 1997; cf.
Twyerould, 1997).
Osborne
Osborne (previously known as Trough Tank) lies
155 km south of Cloncurry and is a blind deposit concealed
by 30 m to 40 m of indurated Mesozoic sedimentary cover.
It was discovered by drill testing a regionally significant
aeromagnetic anomaly first identified in 1974 (Anderson
and Logan, 1992). Between 1985 and 1987, 74 reverse cir-
culation holes (totalling 7816 m) and 23 diamond drill holes
(2564 m) were drilled on this property without encountering
a potentially economic intersection. This was largely due to
the lack of geophysical expression of ore grade sulfides and
complex magnetization phenomena that obscured the loca-
tion of magnetite “ironstones” (Anderson and Logan, 1992).
The discovery of the deposit can be attributed to the 29th
diamond hole drilled in 1988. Subsequent drilling delin-
eated a net resource of 36 Mt with 2% Cu and 1 g/t includ-
ing an initial exploitable reserve of 11.20 Mt with 3.51% Cu
and 1.49 g/t Au (Adshead et al., 1998). Additional reserves
were discovered after mining commenced and the total has
been updated to at least 15.2 Mt with 3.00% Cu and 1.05 g/t
Au (Rubenach et al., 2001). The increased Cu:Au ratio in
the bulk reserve reflects a growing contribution from more
recently discovered, deeper and relatively Cu-rich
pyrrhotitic portions of the deposit (F. Tullemans, pers.
comm., 2000).
The deposit is hosted by upper amphibolite facies
metamorphic rocks and pegmatites (Fig. 12). Of the Cu-Au
occurrences in the district for which geochronological data
are available, it is the only one that lies in the southeastern
high-grade part where the effects of D1 (Diamantinan)
deformation and metamorphism appear to be strongest.
The host rocks are dominated by Na-rich feldspathic psam-
mites with lesser amphibolites and incorporate a discrete
30 m thick body of metaperidotite which seems to have no
analogue anywhere else in the Mount Isa Block (Adshead,
1995). “Ironstones” predominantly composed of magnetite
and quartz with minor apatite are an additional important
lithology. These commonly have a distinct compositional
layering but are far less differentiated than typical Protero-
zoic “banded iron formations.” The ironstones are signifi-
cantly mineralized at the deposit, but typically at sub-
economic grades. The deposit is also associated with a
number of minor distinctive metamorphic rock types
including quartz-anthophyllite rocks, albite-anthophyllite
rocks, cummingtonite schists, and actinolite schists
(Adshead, 1995).
The deposit area is divided into two discrete geolog-
ical domains. The western domain contains two substan-
tial “ironstone” units that individually exceed 50 m in
thickness. These strike ESE, dip quite steeply to the north
and exhibit complex branching (folded?) geometries. The
eastern domain lacks “ironstones” but has a compara-
tively large proportion of pegmatite intrusions, some of
which are quite thick, and also contains the metaperi-
dotite. Both domains contain ore zones associated with
intense postmetamorphic quartz veining and/or quartz
replacement producing a rock referred to as “silica flood-
ing” by mine geologists (Fig. 13). Ore is selectively
developed in, and close to, the “ironstones” in the west
and interpreted to have formed during dilation associated
with faulting sub-parallel to major contacts (Adshead,
1995). The western domain contains pyrite-chalcopyrite
 Australian Proterozoic Iron Oxide-Cu-Au Deposits: An Overview • P.J. WILLIAMS AND P.J. POLLARD
Fig. 12. Geological plan [aligned to mine grid at 1200 m RL (rela-
tive elevation), that is approximately 70 m below surface] of the
Osborne deposit, Cloncurry district (adapted from Adshead, 1995;
Adshead et al., 1998).
with a second generation of magnetite and locally devel-
oped hematite. In the initial reseource, eastern domain
ore was mostly represented by a discrete body referred to
as the Eastern High-grade Lode which consists of
pyrrhotite-chalcopyrite-magnetite-pyrite-(quartz). The
ores are geochemically complex being enriched in Co-
Mo-Ag-Sn-W-Bi-Hg-Se-Te contained in a variety of
accessory ore minerals including cobaltian pyrite and
pyrrhotite, bravoite, molybdenite, wolframite, argentian
native gold, and a variety of bismuth sulfides, selenides,
and tellurides (Adshead, 1995; Adshead et al., 1998).
Alteration directly related to lode development does not
appear to have extended far into the host rocks. Thin (few
meters) bodies of massive coarse-grained biotite-rich
rock are locally developed adjacent to the lodes in pelitic
host rocks (Adshead et al., 1998). 40Ar/39Ar dating of pre-
to synmineralization actinolitic hornblende and biotite
gave ages close to 1540 Ma which suggested that
Osborne could be significantly older than other deposits
201
Fig. 13. Cross-section (21360 mN) of the Osborne deposit drawn
with simplified geology to emphasize the relationship between
high ore grades and “silica flooding” (adapted from Adshead,
1995; Adshead et al., 1998; cf. Fig. 12). Ore zones: (W) — West-
ern Domain; (EHG) — Eastern High Grade.
in the district (Perkins and Wyborn, 1998). More recent
U-Pb studies of titanite in the alteration envelope and Re-
Os studies of molybdenite from the ore have given ages
of ca. 1595 Ma (Gauthier et al., 2001; Rubenach et al.,
2001) suggesting that the Osborne deposit may in fact be
similar in age to Olympic Dam.
Starra
The Starra orebodies occur in magnetite-hematite iron-
stones and display some parallels with occurrences at Ten-
nant Creek. Starra was initially interpreted to be a deformed
cupriferous sedimentary iron formation (Davidson et al.,
1989) though subsequent microstructural and paragenetic
studies suggested that albitization followed by magnetite
“ironstone” lens formation and magnetite-biotite alteration
occurred by replacement of schist and calc-silicate host
rocks (Rotherham, 1997; Rotherham et al., 1998). This is
interpreted to have occurred late in the deformation history
of the region during fabric intensification in a steeply dip-
ping shear zone (Adshead-Bell, 1998). Au-Cu ore is domi-
nantly confined to the ironstones and occurs in seven dis-
crete zones over 5.5 km of strike. Pyrite, chalcopyrite,
anhydrite, barite, calcite, and gold, locally with hypogene
bornite and chalcocite, were precipitated from late oxidizing
fluids in association with brecciation and hematization of
the magnetite host (Rotherham 1997). A 40Ar-39Ar date at
≈1503 Ma for alteration biotite was obtained by Perkins and
Wyborn (1998).
202 Explor. Mining Geol., Vol. 10, No. 3, 2001

Eloise
The Eloise deposit is also localized by a steep shear
zone and distinguished by a pronounced mineral zoning
with the economic lodes separated from the main concen-
trations of magnetite by several hundred meters (Brescianini
et al., 1992; Baker, 1998; Baker and Laing, 1998). The lodes
are hosted by amphibolite facies meta-arkoses and charac-
terized by early albitization overprinted by distinctive high
temperature hornblende-biotite ± quartz alteration which
was selectively replaced by pyrrhotite and chalcopyrite dur-
ing mineralization (Baker, 1998). Ore emplacement was
accompanied by the development of a lower temperature
alteration paragenesis containing actinolite, chlorite, mus-
covite and carbonate. The ore is characterized by high levels
of Ni and Co plus anomalous Zn (Baker, 1998). Baker et al.
(2001) interpreted 40Ar-39Ar results from Eloise to indicate
that mineralization occurred at around 1530 Ma.
Carbonaceous Metasediment-hosted Deposits
Greenmount, Mount Dore and Mount Elliott are among
the more significant of many loosely “stratabound” deposits
in the district hosted by graphitic pelitic schists. These three
examples are all associated with the regionally extensive
Mount Dore Fault Zone (Laing, 1998; Fig. 5). The Green-
mount deposit occurs at a faulted contact with an oxidized
calc-silicate sequence distinguished by magnetite alteration
(Krcmarov and Stewart, 1998). The Cu-Au-Co resource
itself occurs in brecciated metapelites with extensive K
feldspar alteration but lacking magnetite. Mount Dore is
hosted by a fault-bounded slice of graphitic mica schists
sandwiched between calcareous and calc-silicate rocks of
the Staveley Formation (Mary Kathleen Group) to the west,
and the Mount Dore Granite to the east (Beardsmore, 1992).
Sulfides without magnetite are localized by tabular dila-
tional breccia bodies that were formed during post meta-
morphic (and post granite-emplacement) hydrothermal
activity associated with movement on the fault system
(Beardsmore, 1992).
Mount Elliott is a diopside (-minor andradite garnet)
skarn deposit containing both magnetite-pyrite, and
pyrrhotite-rich chalcopyrite ore types (Fortowski and
McCraken, 1998; Wang and Williams, 2001). The Ca-Mg-
Fe-bearing skarn alteration appears to be superimposed
largely on the non-calcareous pelites. The ore has high lev-
els of Ni and Co and is locally enriched in light rare earth
elements (Wang and Williams, 2001). Mount Elliott is the
only significant deposit in the district where intra-ore intru-
sions have been identified. These are trachyandesite dikes
which cut the skarn altered zones and are affected by subse-

Fig. 14. Schematic (interpreted) cross-section of the Lightning Creek prospect (C.S. Perring, unpubl., 1997) drawn to illustrate observed
space-time relationships observed in drill holes that were too widely spaced to allow direct correlations and construction of true sections.
The surface geology is largely obscured by alluvial deposits (cf. Perring et al., 2001).
 Australian Proterozoic Iron Oxide-Cu-Au Deposits: An Overview • P.J. WILLIAMS AND P.J. POLLARD 203

quent sulfide mineralization (Drabsch, 1998; Wang and

Williams, 2001).

Lightning Creek Magnetite Deposit

The granitoid-hosted Lightning Creek prospect (Figs.

5, 9 and 14) has so far failed to produce significant Cu-Au
assays but is included here because it may have major met-
allogenic significance. The prospect is associated with a
9000 nT magnetic dipole anomaly occupying some 6 km2
that is essentially due to an extensive magnetite-rich vein
system (BHP unpublished report, 1983; Perring et al.,
2000). Modelling suggests that the mass of hydrothermal
magnetite contributing to the anomaly is probably in
excess of 1000 Mt and that this is concentrated in a body
of rock with steeply dipping tabular geometry (M. Cooper,
pers. comm., 1999). The host rocks consist largely of
quartz monzodiorite and monzogranite, both of which con-
tain diorite enclaves. These rocks are cut by a set of sub-
horizontal texturally complex quartz-plagioclase-rich sills
and associated magnetite veins that display a range of
magmatic to hydrothermal textures (Perring et al., 2000).
The igneous rocks are sodic members of the Eureka Super-
suite and petrochemically form a coherent group with the
sills apparently reflecting the most fractionated magmas
(cf. Fig. 7). The host rocks are partly altered to a plagio-
clase-diopside assemblage that retains a typical magmatic
oxygen isotope composition and the whole package is
believed to reflect magmatic differentiation and fluid evo-
lution processes. Coexisting hypersaline brine and CO2
inclusions have been found in high-temperature vein
quartz, and proton microprobe analyses show the former
are characterized by very high concentrations of Fe (ca.
10 wt%) and Cu (ca. 1 wt%) (Williams et al., 1999; Perring
et al., 2000, 2001).
Metallogenesis
Cloncurry Deposits
With the exception of the Osborne deposit, broadly con-
temporaneous, and protracted granitoid emplacement and
mineralization at ca. 1530 Ma to 1500 Ma are indicated near
Cloncurry from a combination of U-Pb and 40Ar/39Ar
geochronology (Figs. 6 and 15). O and H stable isotopic
studies of alteration minerals and Fe oxides from several
deposits suggest most ore fluids had typical magmatic com-
positions with δ18O in the range 6 to 10 per mil and δD -40
to -80 per mil (Figs. 16 and 17). Some higher δ18O values
could reflect isotopic exchange with the metasedimentary
host rocks. The δD-depletion trend seen in the Mount Elliott
data (Fig. 17) could be a signature of a magmatic source
reflecting progressive or incremental degassing of magmas
(e.g., Taylor, 1997). Alternatively, it might reflect mixing
Re-Os U-Pb
Fig. 15. Summary of 40Ar/39Ar, Re-Os, and U-Pb dates of meta-
morphic and hydrothermal minerals from Cloncurry Cu-Au ore
deposits. The “other deposits” include Greenmount, Monakoff, and
Starra. Only 40Ar/39Ar determinations that gave extensive plateau
segments in their age spectra have been included. Hydrothermal
ages from the Osborne deposit suggest a ca. 1600 Ma (syn D1)
mineralization; in this case, though, the 40Ar/39Ar data from this
deposit appear to record a complex history of cooling and reheat-
ing associated with D2 at 1550 Ma to 1540 Ma. 40Ar/39Ar data from
all the other deposits suggest these formed from around 1530 Ma.
Dating of several different hydrothermal minerals from Eloise sug-
gests that the mica data could have been reset during cooling,
though note that a metamorphic biotite from this location gave an
older, ca. D2 age. Sources of data: 1 — Adshead (1995); 2 —
Perkins and Wyborn (1998); 3 — Twyerould (1997); 4 — Baker et
al. (2001); 5 — Pollard and Perkins (1997); 6 — Wang and
Williams (2001); 7 — Gauthier et al. (2001); 8 — Gunton (1999).
involving meteroric waters of fairly extreme high latitude
derivation.
The varying bulk composition of the altered rocks in the
different Cloncurry ore systems suggests that the chemistry
of fluids at the sites of mineralization may have been vari-
able from case to case. This impression is strengthened from
consideration of the minor element associations which are
also extremely variable (Fig. 18). Cobalt is the only element
that has been found to show consistent strong enrichment
along with copper and gold. In contrast, the ratios of the
potentially economic coproduct silver, to copper and gold
seem to vary considerably. Some deposits such as Ernest
Henry and Monakoff display extraordinary geochemical
complexity with marked enrichments of a wide range of
lithophile and chalcophile elements. The Eloise and Mount
204 Explor. Mining Geol., Vol. 10, No. 3, 2001
Elliott deposits both display distinct enrichments of a mafic
suite of elements including Ca and Mg (+Fe) in the silicate
alteration assemblages plus Ni in the sulfides (ore samples
commonly assay in the range 500 to 1000 ppm for the latter
element). This could point to a contribution from fluids
evolved from primitive magmas though the host rock
sequences at both locations contain abundant amphibolites,
which at Mount Elliott can be shown to have been depleted
in all these elements during pre-ore albitization (Wang and
Williams, 2001).
Detailed fluid inclusion studies have been undertaken
at Eloise, Ernest Henry, Greenmount, Lightning Creek,
Osborne, Mount Dore, Starra, Great Australia, and a small
Cu-Au-magnetite occurrence called Brumby which is about
5 km south of Lightning Creek (Adshead, 1995; Foster,
1995; Krcmarov, 1995; Baker, 1998; Cannell and David-
son, 1998; Rotherham et al., 1998; Williams et al., 1999;
2001; Perring et al., 2000; Mark et al., 2001). Hypersaline
fluid inclusions that were entrapped prior to, or contempo-
raneously with, Cu-Au mineralization have been observed
in each case and these typically coexist with CO2±CH4
vapor inclusions. Homogenization temperatures of the
Fig. 16. Calculated δ18O compositions of fluids in Cloncurry Fe
oxide-Cu-Au systems based on analyses of magnetite and
hematite.
Epidote (epithermal vein)
Cloncurry Fault
Metamorphic Waters
C GREENMOUNT muscovite
2
STARRA biotite (pre-ore)
! OSBORNE amphibole
ELOISE amphibole and
biotite (pre- to syn-ore)
! 8 C
8 BRUMBY amphibole
Magmatic Waters Mt ELLIOTT amphibole
2 Mt DORE biotite
Actinolites (7)
Regional Na-Ca alteration
Actinolites (5)
Na-Ca alteration Ernest Henry
δ18O (per mil)
Fig. 17. Calculated fluid O-H isotope compositions of minerals
from Cloncurry ore systems compared with fields for Na-Ca alter-
ation assemblages (Pollard et al., 1997a, 1997b).
hypersaline inclusions range from 100°C to 550°C (mostly
> 300°C in examples paragenetically related to sulfides),
and density estimates of CO2 inclusions from Ernest Henry,
Starra and Osborne suggest entrapment at pressures in
excess of 1.5 kbar. Phase behavior, proton probe analyses
and daughter salt assemblages indicate there was consider-
able compositional variability in the brines which range
between complex very high salinity (up to around 40 wt%
Cl) Na-K-Ca-Fe-Mn±Ba, and lower salinity Na-Ca brines.
Ore deposition occurred from both oxidized (hematite-sta-
ble, H2O-CO2) and reduced (pyrrhotite-stable, H2O-
CH4±CO2) fluids. Br/Cl ratios of the very high salinity
inclusions are below 0.0025, consistent with a large mag-
matic component and considerably less than the Br/Cl of
basinal fluids that formed the giant Cu deposit at Mount Isa
which is similar in age and lies some 100 km to the west
(cf. Heinrich et al., 1993; Williams et al., 1999). The fluid
inclusion data support the idea that these ore systems
involved fluids with differing compositions derived from
multiple sources and/or varying interactions with the coun-
try rocks.
Taken together, the geological settings and metallo-
genic data are consistent with a magmatic-hydrothermal
origin for the Cloncurry deposits but also allow for the
involvement of multiple fluid types, some of which may
not have been magmatic. General support for the role of
magmas in Fe oxide-Cu-Au genesis comes from the asso-
ciation of the metals with a single dominant, but different,
age of granitoids in each of the three main Australian dis-
tricts which suggests that specialized magma-types may be
implicated. It is notable that both the Lightning Creek
granitoids [known from the work of Perring et al. (2000) to
have produced Fe and Cu-rich fluids from extreme differ-
entiates] and the intra-ore dikes at Mount Elliott both
belong to the alkaline Eureka supersuite (Fig. 7). The
Mount Elliott trachyandesites have a similar composition
Fig. 18. Empirical representation of element enrichments in
selected Cloncurry district Cu-Au deposits. Data from Davidson et
al. (1989); Kary and Harley (1990); Milner (1993); Adshead
(1995); Krcmarov (1995); Baker (1996, 1998); Davidson and
Davis (1997); Adshead et al. (1998); Ryan (1998); Mark et al.
(2000); Wang and Williams (2001).
 Australian Proterozoic Iron Oxide-Cu-Au Deposits: An Overview • P.J. WILLIAMS AND P.J. POLLARD 205

to the primitive diorite enclaves at Lightning Creek though

they are more potassic. The common occurrence of car- Host Rock Sulfides
bonate gangue and CO2 inclusions point to what may have
been a critical role for this gas phase. CO2-rich magmas are
susceptible to fluid phase separation at significantly
greater depths than is typical of well understood mag-
matic-hydrothermal ore systems such as Cu-Mo-Au por-
phyries, and this may help explain the relatively deep-
seated character of the Cloncurry deposits (Pollard, 2000, Mineralization Stage Sulfides
2001).
Studies of the sulfur isotopic composition of the Clon-
curry Cu-Au-(Fe) ores indicate that δ34Ssulfide varies in the
range -10 to +16 per mil (Fig. 19). However, sulfides in sev-
eral of the large orebodies, including Ernest Henry,
Osborne, Starra and Eloise, display much more restricted
ranges and mean values close to 0. Low δ34Ssulfide (-10 to -4
per mil) characterizes the Lightning Creek and nearby
Brumby prospects and also the ore at the Mount Elliott
mine, which are notably the cases where there are the clos-
est known relationships with intrusive rocks. These more
negative values compared to typical igneous compositions
close to 0 per mil could reflect a magmatic source coupled
with high oxygen fugacities and temperatures of formation
(Pollard et al., 1997a). High δ34Ssulfide characterizes some
deposits hosted by graphitic metapelites including Green-
mount. At Ernest Henry, sulfides from the main part of the
orebody display a smaller range of δ34S than characterizes
those in the periphery (Twyerould, 1997). Pollard et al. Fig. 19. Means and ranges of sulfur isotope determinations for sul-
(1997a) suggested the S isotope geochemistry reflects a pre- fides in Cloncurry ore systems and host rocks. Sources of data: 1
dominantly magmatic source (i.e., sulfur from a magmatic — Davidson and Dixon (1992); 2 — Krcmarov (1995); 3 —
Beardsmore (1992); 4 — Twyerould (1997); 5 — Pollard et al.
fluid phase or leached from igneous rocks) coupled with (1997a); 6 — Rotherham et al. (1998); 7 — Baker et al. (2001); 8
deposit-to-deposit variations induced by differing tempera- — Garrett (1992); 9 — Perring et al. (2001).
tures, pH, oxygen fugacity, and mixing with metasedimen-
tary sulfur.
Fluid inclusion determinations and calculated stable proposed for Proterozoic Cu-Au-(Fe) systems elsewhere
isotope equilibrium temperatures suggest that the Clon- (Huston et al., 1993; Ettner et al., 1994). CO2-brine phase
curry deposits formed in different temperature regimes, separation and the concommitant increased pH of the aque-
e.g., 350°C to 450°C at Ernest Henry (Twyerould, 1997; ous phase could also have been a powerful sulfide-deposi-
Mark et al., 2001) as opposed to 200°C to 350°C at Starra tional mechanism and has been suggested to have played a
(Rotherham et al., 1998). Various distinct, and combined role in several of the Cloncurry deposits (Beardsmore,
depositional mechanisms have been proposed including 1992; Adshead, 1995; Xu and Pollard, 1999). Most
cooling, a number of types of wall rock reactions, fluid recently, direct studies of fluid inclusion chemistry coupled
mixing, and fluid unmixing. Twyerould (1997) suggested with considerations from the chemical behavior of Ba have
that magnetite-chalcopyrite-pyrite deposition at Ernest been used to suggest that fluid mixing may have been a sig-
Henry was accompanied by a reaction that buffered aHF by nificant process at Ernest Henry and Starra (Mark et al.,
part consumption of pre-existing K feldspar to produce new 2001; Williams et al., 2001).
mica with a fluorphlogopite component. It was suggested The varying Cu:Au ratios of the ores appear to be
that the observed coherent depletions of “immobile” ele- related to conditions of mineralization as manifested in the
ments in the ore reflect their complete dissolution from the nature of the Fe-phases present (Fig. 20). The highest Cu:Au
host rock and not dilution by hydrothermal precipitates ratios are displayed by pyrrhotitic ores and provide a direct
accompanying a volume increase. Good evidence suggests contrast with the Au-rich Starra deposit which is the only
that other wall-rock reaction mechanisms contributed to ore large resource in the district in which hematite is a major
deposition in Cloncurry systems, such as fluid reduction by phase. Mineralization at Ernest Henry can be deduced to
carbonaceous matter (Beardsmore, 1992) or magnetite have occurred at conditions buffered by the assemblage
(Rotherham, 1997), and sulfidation of Fe silicates (Baker, magnetite+pyrite and this large deposit has an intermediate
1998). Such wall-rock reaction mechanisms have also been Cu:Au ratio.
206 Explor. Mining Geol., Vol. 10, No. 3, 2001
Comparison with Other Districts
It is considered likely based on the available data that
the metallogenesis of Cloncurry ore systems involved the
evolution of sulfur-poor, metal-charged, aqueocarbonic
brines from oxidized alkaline-intermediate mesozonal intru-
sions. The regional granitoids crystallized from melts that
were generated in a compressional tectonic setting during
the later stages of orogenesis. Whatever their ultimate
source(s), the aqueocarbonic ore fluids were channeled by
ductile-brittle shear zones, underwent interactions with var-
ious different types of rocks, and formed orebodies where
the presence of sufficient dilation and changes in physico-
chemical conditions, perhaps coupled to mixing of several
fluids of different origin, allowed precipitation of ore miner-
als in economic quantities. The next question that arises is
whether any of these variously inferred and documented
processes may have operated to form the deposits located in
the other terrains?
The giant Olympic Dam deposit is clearly a product
of a very different geological environment to those of the
Cloncurry ore systems. However, Oreskes and Einaudi
(1992) noted that fluid inclusions associated with parage-
netically early magnetite, pyrite and siderite were
entrapped at significantly higher temperatures than those
of main phase mineralization. Magnetite-quartz oxygen
isotope pairs suggest temperatures of 400°C to 500°C and
fluid δ18O of 7 to 10 per mil similar to typical ore fluids
in the Cloncurry district. Conan-Davies (1987) described
other high-temperature inclusions with very high salini-
ties (40 to 70 wt% salts), complex Fe-bearing daughter
salt assemblages, homogenization temperatures up to
580°C, and phase behavior suggesting entrapment at
pressures of 0.5 to 1 kbar. The latter coexist with CO2-
rich inclusions and therefore allow close comparison of
early high-temperature fluids at Olympic Dam with the
Fig. 20. Correspondence of Cu:Au ratios of Cloncurry district
resources with variations in the assemblages of Fe phases that
coexist with chalcopyrite in the ore. The distinct mineral associa-
tions of the Osborne western domain (W) and eastern high-grade
(E) ore zones have been represented separately (cf. Fig. 13).
fluids in various Cloncurry Cu-Au deposits. Main phase
mineralization was from cooler fluids with variable salin-
ity and low δ18O ranging from -2 to +6 per mil (Oreskes
and Einaudi, 1992). These data and other features of the
deposit such as Cu-mineral zoning are consistent with ore
deposition by mixing of a cool surficial fluid with a
warmer, more saline, deep-seated fluid whose origin is a
matter of conjecture (Haynes et al., 1995). Johnson and
McCulloch (1995) showed that Nd isotope data imply a
mantle source of REE, and therefore possibly for other
ore components at Olympic Dam. They suggested there is
a genetic link with the abundant intra-ore alkaline mafic
and ultramafic dikes.
Fluid inclusion studies of the Tennant Creek Cu-Au
deposits suggest that the host ironstones formed from low
temperature (ca. 250°C), moderate salinity fluids. Later
Au-Cu mineralization was from warmer (ca. 350°C) and
higher salinity fluids with both oxidized and reduced car-
bonic components that resemble the Cloncurry ore fluids
(Huston et al., 1993; Khin Zaw et al., 1994). The Tennant
Creek fluids also contained nitrogen and traces of a num-
ber of more complex hydrocarbon species. Khin Zhaw et
al. (1994) felt these characteristics reflect an origin as
heated basinal brines but did not exclude a magmatic con-
tribution in accord with the suggestion of Huston et al.
(1993) that the compositional variation results from vary-
ing proportions of oxidized magmatic and reduced basinal
brines. Skirrow (1999, 2000) described a positive correla-
tion of εNd and Cu-Au grade in ores from the West Peko
deposit with the higher εNd values of around -2 interpreted
to reflect input of REE from mafic rocks. He also sug-
gested that mixing of oxidized and reduced fluids may
have operated in conjuction with fluid-ironstone reactions
to precipitate ore metals.
Barton and Johnson (1996) have previously sug-
gested that the implied high Cl/S ratio of ore fluids in Fe
oxide-Cu-Au deposits may be attributable to fluid inter-
action with evaporite sequences and implied that direct
input from magmas may not be required to form this sort
of ore deposit. This is a different perspective to that
reached during recent studies of Australian Proterozoic
examples and the distinction between these models is
very important in the identification of prospective ter-
rains around the world. The data synthesized here and in
Pollard (2000) suggest that in some settings at least, that
intrusions could be important sources of fluid compo-
nents. This accords with the preferred interpretations
reached in independent studies of the large and economi-
cally significant Cretaceous Fe oxide-Cu-Au resources of
the Candelaria-Punta del Cobre district in Chile. Recent
studies in this latter district have led to the suggestion
that the ore fluids there contained a large component of
magmatic water which mixed with other, potentially
evaporite-sourced fluids during mineralization (Marschik
et al., 2000; Ullrich et al., 2001; Marschik and Fontboté,
2001; Mathur et al., 2002).
 Australian Proterozoic Iron Oxide-Cu-Au Deposits: An Overview • P.J. WILLIAMS AND P.J. POLLARD
Exploration Characteristics
As pointed out by Haynes (2000), these Cu-Au deposits
occur in regions of larger crustal blocks distinguished by
complex aeromagnetic signatures that are largely due to the
development of hydrothermal magnetite. Within these dis-
tricts, geophysics (especially magnetics) has also been the
major tool used to generate targets for Cu-Au exploration.
Near Cloncurry, the significant blind deposits at Eloise,
Ernest Henry, and Osborne were all found in the vicinity of
major magnetic anomalies. However, the regional case his-
tories also serve to emphasize the problematical nature of
geophysical prospecting in these types of systems as each
important deposit is characterized by rather different physi-
cal property relationships in detail (illustrated schematically
in Figs. 9 and 21). Furthermore, the Cloncurry district pro-
vides a good illustration of the absence of a tight relation-
ship between ore metals and Fe oxide distribution. This is
seen in the existence of the Cu-Au-poor Lightning Creek
occurrence as the largest accumulation of hydrothermal
magnetite in the district and also from the presence of many
barren magnetite ironstones and magnetite-enriched zones
within the regional alteration systems (e.g., Williams, 1994).
Significant separation of Cu and Au from magnetite at
deposit scale is particularly well illustrated at Eloise where
the orebodies contain pyrrhotite and only small amounts of
magnetite. They create a subdued magnetic ridge several
hundreds of meters away from the peak of an intense mag-
netic anomaly which is caused by a magnetite-rich compo-
nent of the alteration system to the south (Brescianini et al.,
1992). The situation is further complicated by the fact that a
largely barren pyrrhotite-zone persists for a considerable
distance north of the orebodies.
At Ernest Henry, there is a strong correlation between
sulfide, Cu, Au, and magnetite in the matrix of the ore brec-
cia (cf. Fig. 11). However, the deposit is associated with
extensive development of distinct, essentially barren forms
of magnetite alteration (Fairall, 1994; Ryan, 1998). The
peak anomaly at the deposit is about 9000 nT and other
anomalies of similar magnitude are associated with barren
magnetite zones in the surrounding area (Fairall, 1994).
Remanence and demagnetitization reduce the anomaly asso-
ciated with the mineralized zones but have no significant
effects on the response from fine-grained magnetite alter-
ation to the northeast (Fairall, 1994). It is possible that the
deposit might not have been found at all using routine geo-
physical techniques were it not for the native copper in the
supergene zone which was responsible for the discrete TEM
anomaly that was initially drilled (Webb and Rowston,
1995).
Magnetite is absent from some graphitic schist-hosted
deposits such as Mount Dore, whereas, at Greenmount, it
displays an antipathetic relationship to Cu-Au being con-
centrated in barren alteration zones in the more oxidized
components of the rock association such as calcareous rocks
and microdiorite (Krcmarov and Stewart, 1998). A further
207
complication for geophysical exploration in such cases is
that copper sulfides are confined to extensive naturally con-
ductive (graphitic) rock units. In principle, the pattern of
conductivity may be modified as a consequence of the pres-
ence of sulfides and oxidation of graphite with or without
carbonate formation, though it is not clear whether these
observed petrological effects can be discriminated geophys-
ically. Some of the graphitic metasediment-hosted deposits
contain pyrrhotite (e.g., Greenmount) though others (e.g.,
Mt. Dore) do not.
Mount Elliott, like Eloise, is another deposit in which
the Cu-Au-bearing sulfides are an integral component of a
zoning pattern involving the minerals that create geophysi-
cal responses. However, the relationships at Mount Elliott
are rather different. The host rocks are graphitic but the orig-
inal free carbon was largely destroyed in the ore zones dur-
ing alteration and mineralization. Magnetite is present and
very abundant in direct association with pyrite and chal-
copyrite in some parts of the deposit but entirely absent from
other economic zones which have pyrrhotite.
Osborne (like Ernest Henry) is a system characterized
by more than one generation of magnetite. The intensely
magnetic character of this system made geophysical model-
ling very problematical during early exploration and is dom-
inated by the contribution from the ironstones (Anderson
and Logan, 1992). The economic mineralization occurs in
siliceous rock bodies which, although spatially associated
with the ironstones, are largely physically separated from
Fig. 21. Schematic representation of the spatial relationships of
Cu-Au ore with magnetite, iron sulfides, and graphite in Cloncurry
Cu-Au deposits. The diagram is entirely stylized with features
drawn to roughly represent general relationships such as varying
mineral abundance within a system (e.g., magnetite at Eloise); and
the degree of spatial overlap (e.g., Cu-Au ore at Osborne is associ-
ated with pyrrhotite, pyrite and a second paragenetic generation of
magnetite, whereas, not all ore contains pyrrhotite, and not all
pyrite-rich rocks are ore). The vertical dimension is used to repre-
sent situations where one feature is enveloped by another, e.g.,
magnetite-bearing zones at Mt. Elliott are for the most part sur-
rounded by rocks in which primary graphite has been destroyed;
rocks with the second (ore-related) generation of magnetite at
Ernest Henry are surrounded by rocks containing an earlier (bar-
ren) generation of magnetite. The relationships in each individual
system are discussed in more detail in the text.
208 Explor. Mining Geol., Vol. 10, No. 3, 2001
them and extend hundreds of meters away in the eastern part
of the deposit (Adshead, 1995). A second type of magnetite
forms part of the ore-related assemblage which locally also
contains pyrrhotite, especially in the ore zones that are fur-
thest from the ironstones. Pyrite is more widespread and is
quite abundant in substantial volumes of sub-economic to
barren material as well as occurring within the orebodies.
The exploration case history shows that the geophysical
character of Osborne orebodies (including conductivity) is
masked by the abundant barren to weakly Cu-mineralized
magnetite bodies (Anderson and Logan, 1992).
Cu-Au ore at Starra is restricted to magnetite-rich iron-
stones and their immediate host rocks (within a few meters).
The magnetitic response in the deposit area is dominated by
the widespread dispersed magnetite in schistose host rocks
rather than the small massive ironstones that have economic
grades (Collins, 1987; Kary and Harley, 1990). Much of the
magnetite rock in the mine area is barren or only sub-
economically mineralized with Cu and the oxidative ore-
forming process resulted in extensive but variable hematiza-
tion of magnetite in the orebodies (e.g., Rotherham, 1997).
Ore grades are to a certain extent independent of sulfide-
content and some of the most Au-rich hypogene ore occurs
in rocks with very low S contents and high proportions of
hematite relative to magnetite (Rotherham, 1997).
In summary, the diverse characteristics and exploration
histories of these deposits from the Cloncurry district
demonstrate that there is no simple geophysical model that
can be relied on when exploring Fe oxide-Cu-Au deposits at
regional to prospect scale. Consequently, a key factor, par-
ticularly in prospect evaluation, must be the development of
a good understanding of the geological characteristics of the
particular system under investigation. Alteration mineralogy
and physical properties (e.g., susceptibility, remanence and
conductivity) should be properly documented and mapped,
and particular attention must be paid to the structural envi-
ronment.
Discussion: Toward a Classification of
Cu-Au-(Fe Oxide) Deposits as Exploration Targets
Most Fe oxide-Cu-Au deposits reflect interaction of
the ore depositional environment with a fluid or fluids
sourced some distance away from the orebodies. Near
Cloncurry, mineralization broadly corresponded with com-
pressional deformation, regional metamorphism and gran-
itoid emplacement, and the ores are associated with
regionally metasomatized rocks displaying multiphase
sodic and sodic-calcic alteration. The Fe-oxide-Cu-Au
deposits are in brittle-ductile structural settings and display
close time-space relationships with distinct alteration
styles. Common features in the the ore systems themselves
include one or more phases of early sodic+/-calcic alter-
ation succeeded by 300°C to 500°C Fe±K metasomatism
in the immediate ore envrionments (Williams and Skirrow,
2000). Sulfur-poor Cu-Au-(Co) mineralization from car-
bonic brines either overlapped with this Fe±K stage or
with later carbonate deposition. Some major differences
between deposits include: substantial bulk chemical varia-
tions in the Fe±K stage; the relative timing and tempera-
ture of Cu-Au deposition; presence of more and less com-
plex paragenetic histories; and the variable degrees of
complexity of ore-stage element enrichments (in respect to
F, Ni, Zn, As, Mo, Ag, Sn, Ba, LREE, W, Hg, and U).
Cu:Au ratios also vary and show a distinct relationship to
the nature of the stable Fe-phases during mineralization
(i.e., T-fO2-fS2 conditions). These features are consistent
with the view that the deposits are linked by fundamental
genetic processes but indicate that there are variations
reflecting different fluid inputs, host rock interactions, and
mechanisms of metal precipitation.
The picture is even more complicated when examples
from other parts of Australia are also considered. The
deposits may be roughly divided into sub-classes that reflect
the dominance of different ore-forming processes and explo-
ration characteristics. This may have practical applications
in exploration but takes no account of potentially funda-
mental differences in geotectonic setting and sources of ore
components.
Two-stage Au rich deposits (e.g., Starra, several exam-
ples at Tennant Creek) formed where highly oxidized and
typically cool, second-stage fluids preferentially deposited
Au (cf. Cu). A redox reaction occurred with pre-existing
magnetite bodies which themselves were hematized as a
result (e.g., Huston et al., 1993; Rotherham, 1997). Pyrite
may be present but there is no pyrrhotite. In principle, simi-
lar deposits could also form where an oxidized Au-bearing
fluid reacted with other reduced rocks such as graphitic
schists. Au-rich deposits of this type will generally be small
because they require interaction of second-stage structures
with favorable host rock. An exception to this rule could
apply if appropriate fluids have affected large pre-existing
iron concentrations such as large Precambrian iron forma-
tions or Kiruna-scale apatite iron ores. In ironstone settings,
the Au (+Cu) will be tightly constrained to the
magnetite+hematite bodies but barren magnetite ironstones
(not accessed by second-stage structures) are also likely to
be present.
Two-stage Cu-Au deposits (e.g., Gecko at Tennant
Creek, Eloise orebodies) formed where relatively reduced
fluids deposited Cu and Au by sulfidation of a pre-existing
Fe-rich body (Huston et al., 1993; Baker, 1998). In this sit-
uation, ore-forming process may have produced pyrrhotite.
This type of deposit will also be generally small.
Poorly zoned (with respect to Cu-Fe species) Cu-Au-
magnetite deposits (e.g., Ernest Henry) formed in which
mineralization was probably dominated by processes such
as CO2-phase separation, fluid cooling, wall-rock reactions
that buffered pH, or fluid mixing constrained by the struc-
tural environment at the time of mineralization. Such
deposits can be subject to quantity of fluid and availability
 Australian Proterozoic Iron Oxide-Cu-Au Deposits: An Overview • P.J. WILLIAMS AND P.J. POLLARD
of S and metals, and their homogeneity may in itself reflect
large fluid masses.
Zoned Cu-Au-magnetite-pyrite-pyrrhotite deposits
(e.g., Eloise-system, Mount Elliott, Osborne) resulted from
ore deposition in the presence of chemical gradients leading
to fluid reduction. This type of process has the capacity to
fractionate the ore metals and concentrate them indepen-
dently of magnetite.
Zoned Cu±Au-hematite-pyrite deposits (e.g.,
Olympic Dam) formed by fluid mixing involving a low
temperature fluid. Cu and Au may be separated from the
greatest concentrations of pyrite and barren hematite
zones may be present. Cu may be strongly fractionated
from Au and significant amounts of copper may occur in
low S phases such as bornite and chalcocite. Magnetite
may occur peripherally and/or be preserved from earlier
activity to remain as relicts.
In conclusion, it should be remarked that recent docu-
mentation of Fe oxide-Cu-Au deposits has created a pro-
gressively more complex picture of their diversity [see also
recent reviews by Barton and Johnson (2000) and Hitzman
(2000)]. Discovery trends suggest there are probably more
deposits of this group that still remain to be found, perhaps
in entirely new districts. It is reasonable to assume that cur-
rent classifications and exploration models will have to be
modified as new information is published.
Acknowledgments
This contribution is built largely on a research pro-
gram involving the authors at James Cook University that
commenced in 1990 and grew with time to include a large
number of colleagues and students at several institutions,
all of whom have contributed to the current state of knowl-
edge. The work of Neil Adshead, Tim Baker, Kevin Blake,
Gary Davidson, Dong Guoyi, Geordie Mark, Neal
McNaughton, Caroline Perring, Caroline Perkins and
Jackie Rotherham is particularly important to what is writ-
ten here. This work has only been possible because of
excellent support from the Australian mining industry,
both financial (in part channeled through the Australian
Mineral Industries Research Association — AMIRA) and
in access to properties. Equally important has been finan-
cial support from the Australian Research Council through
its Key Centre and research grant schemes, particularly
through a collaborative grant linked to AMIRA project
438. Charlotte Morgan and Haidi Hancock prepared sev-
eral of the figures in the paper. The impetus to produce the
current synthesis was provided by Jim Franklin and Jay
Hodgson through an invitation to contribute a workshop at
the 1999 convention of the Prospectors and Developers
Association of Canada. The manuscript has been improved
in the light of comments made on previous versions by
John Dilles, Peter Laznicka, Robert Marschik and an
anonymous reviewer.
209
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