U-Pb VEIN CALCITE DATING REVEALS THE AGE OF CARLIN-TYPE GOLD DEPOSITS OF CENTRAL YUKON AND A CONTEMPORANEITY WITH A REGIONAL INTRUSION-RELATED METALLOGENIC EVENT

Abstract

Abstract Laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) U-Pb dating of hydrothermal calcite associated with the waning stage of mineralization is used to constrain the age of Neoproterozoic-hosted Carlin-type gold deposits in central Yukon, Canada. Samples exhibiting minor textural complexity show low dispersion of individual spot analyses and define Tera-Wasserburg lower intercept ages between 75.1 ± 2.5 and 71.2 ± 4.3 Ma. Samples with U-rich microfractures and/or a second generation of calcite associated with vein reopening record the primary stage of calcite growth related to hydrothermal activity at ca. 74 Ma and a younger ca. 48 Ma event related to fluid-assisted U mobility. The minimum age for mineralization at ca. 74 Ma overlaps with a maximum age based on a zircon U-Pb date of 74.1 ± 1.0 Ma for a gabbro dike that is locally altered and mineralized. These time constraints indicate that mineralization is ca. 74 Ma and penecontemporaneous with dike emplacement. Furthermore, mineralization is contemporaneous with a regional gold-bearing, intrusion-related, metallogenic event in eastern Alaska and central Yukon. This temporal link between Carlin-type mineralization and other mineralization types bears similarities with world-class sedimentary rock-hosted gold deposits of Nevada. This study demonstrates the potential of using LA-ICP-MS U-Pb dating on calcite to constrain the age of mineral deposits lacking synmineralization minerals amenable to classic dating techniques.