ECONOMIC GEOLOGY

AND THE

BULLETIN OF THE SOCIETY OF ECONOMIC CEOLOCISTS

VOL.92 August1997 NO. 5

Geology,
Zonation,
andFluidEvolutionof the BigGossan
Cu-AuSkarnDeposit,
ErtsbergDistrict,IrianJaya
LAWRENCE
D. MEINERT,
t
Department
of Geology,
Washington
StateUniversity,
Pullman,Washington
99164-2812

KRISTOPHER K. HEFTON*, DAVID MAYES**, AND IAN TASIRAN

P. T. Freeport
Indonesia,
Exploration
Division,Sampoer•za
Plaza89,4th Floor,fl. H.R.Rasuna
SaidX-7,No.6, Kuningan,
Jakarta12940,Indonesia

Abstract

TheBigGossan Cu-Auskarndeposit isthehighest gradecopperdeposit

in theworld-class
Ertsbergdistrict,
IrianJaya.Currentreserves are37.4millionmetrictons(Mr), grading2.69percentCu, 1.02g/t Au, and16
g/t Ag. Mineralization
is associated
witha seriesof 3 to 4 Ma granodioritic
dikeswhichhaveintrudedclose
to the near-vertical faulted contact between the Shale Member of the Cretaceous Ekmai Formation and the
stratigraphically
overlyingPaleocene WaripiandEoceneFaumaiFormations. Mostmineralization andalter-
ationoccursin thepurercarbonate rocksof theWaripiFormation, although biotiteandcalc-silicate
hornfels
alteration
alsooccurs in thefootwall rocksadjacent to mineralization.
Prograde skarnalterationconsistsdominantly ofpyroxene andgarnetwithanoverallratioofapproximately
2:1.The average pyroxene andgarnetcompositions are Di73Hds4JoaandAds47Gr•a5Sp•.sPy0..•,
respectively.
The skarnis zonedin threedimensions relativeto the mainfluidconduitalongthe Ekmai-Waripi contact.
Proximalzonesaregarnetrichandthe garnethasa darkred-brown color,whereas thepyroxene is palein
colorandis ironpoor.Intermediate zonescontainsubequal amounts of relativelycoarse-grained,green
pyroxene andbrowngarnet.Distalskarnzones aredominated bydarkgreen,iron-rich (upto Hd75)pyroxene.
Garnetin distalzonestypically is palegreento greenish brown.At the skarn-marble contact,retrograde
alteration
(mostlyamphibole andepidote) andsulfide minerals(mostlypyriteandpyrrhotite) areabundant.
Chalcopyriteandanhydrite arepresentin all skarnzones.Although the skarn-marble contact
is sharp,tiny
darkveinlets(containing chlorite,serpentine, clay,sulfides,
and/orcarbon) whichlocallyresemble stylolites
recordthe passageof hydrothermal fluidsfor tensto hundreds of metersbeyondthe skarn.Skarnzonation
in termsof mineralratios,colors,andcompositions canbe usedfor exploration onbotha localanddistrict
scale.
In addition
to mineralogy, BigGossan iszonedwithrespect to metals. Cu,Au,Ag,Pb,Zn,As,andCo in
theskarnallincreasetowardthetopof thesystem, whereas Mo increases withdepth.Similarly, Cu,Au,Ag,
Pb,Zn, As,andCo increase (fora givenelevation) towardthewesternandin mostcases, towardtheeastern
marginof thesystem. OnlyMo is inverse to thistrend,defining a centralcorezonexvhich is interpretedto
representthemainlocusof fluidflowoverlying thesource pluton.Relative to thehostrocks(Kembelangan
andWaripiFormations), minera]ized skarnisenriched in Si,Fe, S,Cu,Ag,Au,As,Co,Se,andW. Boththe
hostrocksandmineralized skarnaresignificantly depleted inrareearthelements relative
totypical Phanerozoic
sedimentaryrocks.Particularlystrikingisthedeepnegative curopium anomaly, mostly< 1 ppmEu.
Fluidsassociatedwithprograde skarnarehigh-temperature, lowCOs(<0.05 mole%), NaC1-KC1 brines.
Pressure-corrected
temperatures forfluidinclusions in prograde skarnrangefrom360øto 535øCandaverage
460øC. Mostpyroxene fluidinclusions
contain multiple daughter minerals including halite,sylvite,
chalcopyrite,
hematite,andanhydrite. Totalsalinityranges from38 to 65wt percentNaC]+ KC1andmeansalinities are
22 wt percentKC1,35 wt percentNaC1,and57 wt percentNaC1+ KC1.Fluidinclusions in quartzand
anhydriteassociatedwithretrograde alteration homogenize from250ø to 410øCandaverage 369øC.These
fluidinclusions
donotcontain daughter minerals, average 7.1wt percent NaCIequiv,andarevaporrichwith
evidenceforboilingat temperatures of 370øto 380øC.Thiscorresponds to a pressure of 20 MPaanda depth
of 2 kmunderhydrostatic conditions.Pressure-depth reconstructions fromfluidinclusion dataindicate that
1.4km of erosionhasoccurred in the Errsberg districtin thepast4 millionyears.

•Corresponding
author:
email,[email protected]
*Present
address:
Homestake
MiningCompany,
605Boxington
Way,Suite112,Sparks,
Nevada89434.
**Presentaddress:
Homestake
MiningCompany,
P.O.Box11115,1055WestGeorgia,
Suite1100,Vancouver,
British
Columbia, CanadaV6E 3P3.

0361-0128/97/1932/509-2656.00 509
510 MEINERT ET AL.

Boththehigh-andlow-temperature fluidscanbe modeledasoriginating from6 to 8 wt percentsolutions,

mostlikelyexsolved froman underl•ngpluton,whichfblloweddifferentcoolingpathson ascentsuchthat
the earlyfluidreachedits solvus at hightemperature andthe laterfluiddid not.Thisresulted in the early
fluidseparatingintoa hypersaline brine,whereas the laterfluidmaintained its o•iginalsalinity.
Overall,the
BigGossan salinities
aresimilarto,butthehomogenization temperaturesslightlylowerthan,thosedetermined
for otherskarndeposits in theErrsberg district.Thisis consistentwiththe geologic settingof the BigGossan
depositin whichskarnmineralization is associated withdikesandfluidflowzonesratherthanwiththe main
plutonandintrusive contactasat theoriginalErtsberg discovery,theGunungBijihTimur-IOZ(Intermediate
Ore Zone)-DOZ(DeepOre Zone),Dom,andGrasberg deposits.

Introduction ErtsbergDistrictExploration
History
THE Ertsbergdistrict(Fig. 1) containsnaultipleCu-Au Mineralization
intheErtsberg district
wasdiscovered in 1936
skarnandporphyrydeposits, includingthe originalErts- whenDutchgeologist Jaeque DozynotedtheErtsberg (Dutch
bergdiscovery, the GunungBijih Timur-IOZ (Internaedi- for "oremountain") outcrop whileon an expedition to elinab
ateOreZone)-DOZ(DeepOreZone),Grasberg, Dona,Big nearby-5,000-naPuneak Jaya(fornaerly knownasCarstensz
Gossan, and several other mineral occurrences in various Peak,Fig. 2; Dozy,1939).The Ertsberg wasvisitedagainin
stagesof exploration and development (Fig. 2). Individu- 1960byForbes WilsonandDelosFlintoftheFreeport Miner-
ally,Grasberg isthe largestgoldnaineandthe thirdlargest alsß Conapany whoeonapleted a naappingandsanapling prograna
copperminein the worldandcollectively, the deposits of (apopularaccount of thisexpedition isgivenbyWilson,1981).
the Ertsbergdistrictconstitute the largestCu-Auresource Freeportgeologists returned in 1967andeonapleted a helicop-
in the world. Thus, for both economic and scientific rea- ter-supported diamond drillingprograna whichdelineated the
sons,the geology of thesedepositsisof considerable inter- Ertsberg
Cu skarndeposit; production beganin 1972.
est.This paperfocuseson the Big Gossandeposit,a Cu- Explorationdrillingin 1975discovered thenearbyGunung
Au skarnwhichisjustgoingintoproduction andwhichhas BijihTimurCu skarnorebody anddevelopnaent drillingdur-
the highestaveragecoppergradein the Ertsbergdistrict ingsubsequent yearsdelineated theIOZ andDOZ Cu skarn
(Table 1). In contrastto other skarnsin the Ertsbergdis- extensions downdip from GunungBijih Tinaur.Duringthis
trict, Big Gossanconsists dominantly of garnet-pyroxeneexploration phase,copperstainingwas observedon Dona
calcicskarn;typicalnaagnesian skarnnainerals suchasfor- naountain 2 knasoutheast of GunungBijihTinaurandexplora-
sterite,naonticellite,spinel,andserpentineare rareto ab- tiondianaond drillingwasinitiatedin 1976.Delineation drill-
sent.As with naanyskarndeposits,Big Gossanis zoned ing waseonapleted frona1985through1989outliningthe
andthe detailsof naetaldistribution, naineralconaposition,DonaCu skarndeposit. Domwasnanaed foritslocation below
and fluid composition provideinaportant cluesto under- the highnaarblepeakthat Dozy noticedin 1936fronahis
standand explorefor Cu-Au orebodiesin the Ertsberg campsite in theCarstenszweide (analluvium-filled
glacial val-
districtandin otherpartsof the world. ley)andsubsequently nanaed the"Dona"or cathedral naoun-

•d•o•ingapore
Kali•'••
.•f•,. • 2•_.•
,•anJaya
l•aeP•a
Indian X•%x'h%
*
Oce• • j•=

I-- i i ' ..
Lake
Panai ß ß Pacific
Ensberg
D,stnct Dakin
% ] Oce•
••m:,i
• ••a•--•,
•Punc•Jaya'' S4ø •Caims•
t
•/ . Tembagapum

. Australia
Australia
Sea
FiG. 1. Location
mapof the Errsberg
districtwithinIrim•Jayaandthe SouthPacific.
 BIGGOSSAN
SKARN
DEPOSIT,
ERTSBERG,
IRIANJAYA 511

25,000 N
60 ø
Ti Tw Kkel
N Tk

25 ø

Tk Lembah Grasberg
rw

Tw
mkes
Qal Alluvium Tk

Ti Intrusion
,"• 20,000 N
,Ts
Tk Kais Limestone Tk
Puncak
S4ø04
' 36.5" Wanagon-
Jaya ß
Ts SirgaSandstone BigGossan Kkes 4883m
Fault ' ' ' ' ' '
Tw Waripi/FaumaiFormations
Kkel Kembelangan
Limestone Tw
(Kembelangan
Shale
atupper
contact) Kk ,
Kkes Kembelangan
Sandstone

Kk Undifferentiated
Kembelangan

'• Dip-slip
fault,
teeth
onupthrown
side Kkes
• camp 60ø
• Strike-slip
fault(• Waripi samples
in Table 3 OTi Kkel

Fold
-syncline 15,000N Kk I• Ti
• Fold
-anticline
X,• -. Road • Ore
Deposit
15,000
E 0 1 2 20,000
E(E137ø07'25.8
") 25,000 E

F•c.2. District
geology
mapshowingmajordeposits
(modified
fromanunpublished
geologic
mapoftheErtsberg
district
by HeftonandPennington).Kkeh= EkmaiFormationmarkershale,Kkel= EkmaiFormation
limestone.

tain.A generalsummary of thesedifferentskarndeposits is 3A).Thediscovery holeat Grasberg wasdrilledin February

provided by Mertiget al. (1994)andmoredetailedstudies 1988,andbyJanuary 1989,delineationdrillinghadoutlined
of individualdepositsaregivenin Kateban(1982),Gonzalez 92 million metric tons (Mr) of disseminatedand stockwork
et al. (1994),Mertig(1995),andRubin(1996). mineralization in porphyry (MacDonald andArnold,1994).
Ongoingsurfaceexploration by Freeportgeologists out- The first ore went to the mill in December 1989, 22 months
lineda largeareaof copper-gold on a grassy afterthefirstexploration
mineralization holewascollared.ByJanuary 1996,
mountain (Grasberg)2 kmnorthwest oftheErrsberg pit (Fig. theGrasberg reserve hadgrownto 1.87Gt (Table1).A more

TABLE1. Errsberg
DistrictTonnage
andGrade(asof Jannary
1997)

Orebody Metrictons(10 X 6) Cu (%) Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) MetrictonsCu MetrictonsAu MetrictonsAg MozAu MozAg

Eftsberg 32.6 2.3 0.S 9.1 749,800 26.1 296.7 0.8 9.5
GBT 62.3 2.0 0.7 11.4 1,246,000 43.6 710.2 1.4 22.8
IOZ 24.3 1.8 0.6 9.9 437,400 14.6 240.6 0.5 7.7
DOZ 52.1 2.2 1.0 9.8 1,146,200 52.1 510.6 1.7 16.4
Dom 30.9 1.7 0.4 9.6 525,300 12.4 296.6 0.4 9.5
BigGossan 37.4 2.7 1.0 16.4 1,009,800 37.4 613.4 1.2 19.7
Grasberg 1,872 1.1 1.2 3.2 20,592,000 2,246.4 5,990.4 72.2 192.6
Total 2,112 1.2 1.2 4.1 25,706,500 2,433 8,658 78.2 278.4
Skam 240 2.1 0.8 11.1 5,114,500 186 2,668 6.0 85.8

Value USS (billion) $56.6 $31.3 $1.4

Totalvalue(Cu + Au + Ag) USS(billion) $89.2

GBT = GunungBijihTimur,IOZ = intermediate

orezone,DOZ = deeporezone
512 MEINERT ET AL.

M S

'E
FI(;. 3. A. Aerialphotoof districtlookingnorthwest. Eftsbergpit (E) is in centerof photograph
andaccessroadsfor
the Grasberg deposit(G) areat topof mountain in the background. BigGossrot is locatedon andbeneaththe rklgeto
theleft of the Ertsberg pit. B. Viexvto theeastof Tertian'carbomtteunitsfoldedin theYellowValleysyncline(seeFig.
2).PeakontherightisPuneak
Ja.va
(4,883
m).c. BigO,ossan
ridgeshoxx4ng
steep
topography
which'
hampered
early
mapping anddrillingactix4ties.
The BigGossan lamlslide
scarpisvisiblein the upperrightof photograph
andise,larged
in D. D. Discoveryoutcropof sulfidequartzmarblebreccia(M) exposedby a landslide
whid•stripped
vegetation
fromthe
 BIGGOSSAN
SKARN
DEPOSIT,
ERTSBERG,
IRIANJAYA 513

detailedaccount of earlyexploration activitiesin thispartof GeologicSettingof the ErrsbergDistrict

Irian Jayais providedby vanLeeuwen(1994).
TheBigGossan deposit islocated1 km southxvest of Erts- The Ertsbergdistrictlies on the still-active collisional
bergand2 km southof Grasberg (Figs.'2,3A).BigGossan boundary between the north-moving Australian plate andthe
wasnamedfor a 50- by 100-mresistant outcropof sulfide- southwest-migrating Indo-Pacific plate (Hamilton, 1979).
andquartz-bearing marblebreeeiaprotruding froma steep, Subduction of the leading edge of the Australian plate be-
jungle-covered sidevalleyoff the WestAghawagon River neath the Indo-Pacific plate resulted in uplift of Mesozoic
(Fig.3C andD). Theprospect wasmappedandsmnpled in andCenozoic sedimentary rocksto formtheCentralRanges
1975-1976andagainin 1990by Freeportgeologists xvithout of Irian Jaya and Papua New Guinea,a mountainous foldand
thebenefitof topographic or aerialphotographic data.Map- thrust belt with peaks up to 5,000 m in elevation.Numerous
pingconsisted of Bruntoncompass andchaintraverses. Map- intrusive centers, manymineralized, occurin thisregionand
pingtrailswerecutby localIrianlaborusingmachetes. Sur- range in age from Tertiary to Recent. Mineralized intrusions
facerock-chip smnples abovethe knownportionof the Big are dominantly eale-alkaline to alkalie I-type magmas (Table
Gossan deposithad maximum 2) and can be subdivided
valuesof Au 29.85ppm,Ag muni (20-9 Ma) and Plio-Pleistoeene into two broad agegroups: Mari-
(<9 Ma). Someof the
1,'209ppm,Sb 1,520ppm,Hg 4.56ppm,As 5.97percent,
Cu 3.6percent,Pb44.0percent,andZn 12.5percent.These largestdeposits are the youngest, andactivevolcanism and
valuesaresignificantly higherthanore-grade skarnsamples mineralization continue today at several places (e.g., Lado-
andreflectthe distalnatureof surface samples. lam).For recentreviewsof deposits in the southwest Pacific
A helicopter-supported, diamonddrillingprogramcom- region, see Sillitoe (1994, 1995).
mencedin October1991(Fig.3E). Badweatherrestricted Stratigraphtj
flightaccess to 3 to 4 h duringthemorning. In March1992,
the fourthhole(BG1-4) encountered 10+ percentCu min- The oldestrocksin the Ertsbergdistrictarethe Jurassic-
eralization.A total of 7,372.8m (at a costof USSg50/m)was Cretaceous Kembelangan Group and the Tertiary New
drilled from the surfaceat elevationsof 3,245 to 3,430 m. GuineaLimestone Group.Quaternary rocksconsist of allu-
Drill depthsrangedfrom325to 1,062.5m. viumin valleys,eolluvium alongslopes,andglacialtill ce-
The trendof mineralization wasrecognized asrelatedto mentedby calciumcarbonate. The totalKembelangan-New
the BigGossan faultandsurface drillingwassuspended in Guineasedimentary package is approximately 3,000m thick.
favorof lesscostlydrillingfromthe2,930-melevation Gras- Thesedimentary rockunitswithinthedistrict conform gener-
bergdewatering tunnel(Amoledrift)thatcuttheBigGossan allyto the regionalstratigraphy compiled largelyduringoil
trend650 m southeast of the surface drilling.Indicationsof exploration and surfacemappingby Visserand Hermes
potentialmineralization fromthe tunnelxveremassive pyr- (1962),Dowet al. (1988),and Panggabean and Pigram
rhotiteandpyritein theBigGossan faultandhornfelsic rocks (1989).Figure4 is a columnarsectionof the unitsfoundin
southof the fault.Drillingcommenced nearthispyrrhotite- the Ertsbergdistrict;whole-rockcompositions of selected
pyriteoccurrence from underground stationBGU4 in No- stratigraphic unitsarepresented in Table3.
vember1992.The initialholeintercepted 5.75percentCu Kembelangan Group:TheKembelangan Groupconsists of
and2.77g/tAu in skarn25 m belowthe drill stationin the elasticandcarbonate rockscomprising fourformations: Ko-
Amoledrift. Systematic drillingof the depositbeganand pai,Woniwogi, Piniya,andEkmai(PigramandPanggabean,
continued to October1995from drill fansspacedat 50-m 1983;Dowet al., 1988;Panggabean andPigram,1989)or A,
intervals alongtheAmoledriftandtheBigGossan explorationB, C, andD, respectively, in VisserandHermes(1962).A
drift that was driven northwest from Amole toxvard the sur- detailed description of the Kembelangan Groupin the Errs-
face drill sites.Exploration drillingthen continueduntil berg districtis providedby Pennington(1995).The total
March 1996 from drill stations above the western end of the thickness of the Kembelangan Groupis estimated at 1,200
deposit. Two hundredandsixdrill holestotaling68,99,5m to 1,800m. The rangeis thoughtto be dueto a thrustfault
xverecompletedfrom underground at a costof US$43/m. nearRidgecamp, causing repetition in theWoniwogi Forma-
Underground development is requiredto continue delinea- tion.Workto locatethisfaultis ongoing. Eachof the four
tiondrilling. divisions of the Kembelangan Groupcropoutin thedistrict,
A totalof216surface andunderground diamond drillholes but partof the basalKopaiFormation liesoff the southern
(76,300 m) was used to delineate a mineable reserve of 37.4 boundary of the district(Fig.2).
Mr, grading 2.69percentCu, 1.02g/tAu,and16g/tAg.The Theupper100m of theEkmaiFormation islocallydesig-
reserve isin a near-vertical tabularskarn> 1,100m in length natedasthe "limestone member"(Fig.2,Kkel)and"marker
alongstrike,4 to 60 m thick,and >700 m in depth.The shaleunit" of the Ekmai Formation(Kkeh) and is affected
depositremainsopenat depthandto the northwest. Mine by hornfelsie rocksand skarnalterationin the Big Gossan
development commenced in 1994andfurtherreserve expan- area.Theseunitsmaynotbepresentin theregional sections,
sionis expected asminingexposures alloxv moredrilling. althoughDoxyet al. (1988)mentioned a transitional unitoe-

steeprockcliffs.The outcropappearsto be gossan

f¾om a distance,hut the ironoxideis merelya crustof xveathered
sulfides
(S)that,whenchipped witha lmmmer, reveals
underlyingpyrite,sphalerite,
andgalenareplacementin themarble
breeeia.
Thesulfidesareanomalous in Au (-<30ppm),Ag(-<1,700ppm),andCu (-<690ppm).E. Initialdrillingat Big
Gossanwashelicopter supportedonsteepslopes.Laterdrillingwasfromunderground development.
514 MEINERT ET AL.

TABLE2. Composition
of FreshIg•eousRocksin the ErtsbergDistrict

Area BigGossan BigGossan BigGossan Wanagon Wanagon Eftsberg Grasberg Cu skarn

Location BGU 9-4 BGU 9-6 BGU 5-1 N dike Fault dike Pit Main Mean
Sampleno. 220 m 420 m 190m 4001 4002 1001 2001
Age(Ma) 3.81+ 0.06 3.46_+0.06 3.00_+_
0.08 2.83_ 0.07
Reference 1 i 1 2, 4 2, 4 2, 4 2, 4 3

Wt percent
SiO2 59.66 59.28 56.21 62.40 57.80 59.60 59.70 64.9
A1203 15.31 16.4 16.23 16.90 17.30 16.30 16.70 16.0
TiO2 0.47 0.52 0.55 0.43 0.61 0.58 0.55 0.52
Fe203 2.19 3.05 2.67 3.07 3.93 4.08 4.66 2.50
FeO 2.30 2.40 2.70 1.78 2.69 2.25 3.18 2.36
MnO 0.10 0.08 0.15 0.10 0.14 0.09 0.06 0.08
CaO 5.09 5.38 8.34 2.80 6.25 6.06 2.23 3.81
MgO 2.16 1.8 2.19 1.54 2.24 2.09 2.45 1.82
K20 4.78 4.32 4.40 3.76 2.30 3.45 3.29 3.56
NazO 4.25 4.04 4.73 4.86 3.35 3.59 4.05 3.99
PsO5 0.28 0.32 0.34 0.28 0.30 0.33 0.40 0.26
L.O.I. 2.78 0.73 1.49 na na na na na

Total 99.37 98.32 100.00 97.92 96.91 98.42 97.27 99.81

Pa•spermillion
Ni 7 4 6 3.6 3.9 6.4 6.3 16
Cr 17 17 20 9.4 11.7 7.2 5.7 18
Sc 12 12 12 8.9 12.2 12.8 12.6 8
V 123 137 143 88 78 86 100 85
Ba 598 660 727 803 675 603 603 1,466
Rb 156 145 119 75 89 115 98 103
Sr 780 943 1,295 1,197 866 842 842 807
Zr 121 106 119 152 128 154 152 183
Y 17 18 19 15.7 16.9 18.1 18.2 17
Nb na na na 11 8 10 11 11
La 25.5 25.2 24.4 30.6 25 28.2 24.4 45
Ce 47 47 48 50 47 50 46 78
Th 11.3 9.1 7.5 5.9 3.5 8.2 7.9 9
Cu 218 63 496 28.9 7 59.7 839 287
Zn 32 32 38 56 136 44 89 57
Pb 8 6 7 22 13 10 14 24
Au(ppb) 31 <5 29 1.9 0.8 4.2 <5 na

Cs 2 1.7 2.3 na na na na na

Hf 3.7 3.9 3.3 3.2 3 3.8 3.6 na

Nd 18 24 22 21 19 21 20 na

Sm 3.5 3.8 3.8 3.7 3.5 3.7 3.8 na

Eu 1.1 1.3 1.2 1.4 1.2 1.3 1.3 na

Tb 0.6 <0.5 0.6 0.5 0.6 0.5 0.6 na

Yb 1.7 1.8 1.7 1.7 1.9 1.8 2 na

Lu 0.24 0.23 0.26 0.25 0.28 0.28 0.31 na

Fe203/(Fe203 + FeO) 0.49 0.56 0.50 0.63 0.59 0.64 0.59 0.54
Rb/Sr 0.20 0.15 0.09 0.06 0.10 0.14 0.12 0.19

References:
1 = Thisstudy,2 = McDowellet al. (1996),3 = Meinert(1995),4 = McMahon(1994b)
na = notm•alyzed

curringlocallyat thetopof theEkmaiFormation. Thelime- sandgrains,intraclasts, andfossilfragments. The totalthick-

stonememberis a grayto blackquartzose carbonaterock ness of the limestone is about 90 m.
containing sand,silt, and clay,very minorfossils, and in- Theshaleisaveryprominent 3- to5-m-thickmarkerunitat
traclasts
andcanbe classified locallyascalcareoussandstone,thetopoftheEkmaiFormation composed ofblackcalcareous
siltstone,mudstone,calcirudite, or calcarenite.Whole-rock shale.Thismarkeris present throughout the districtand,in
chemical analyses (Table3) oftheupperandlowerlimestone the Big Gossan deposit,liesat the baseof mosteconomic
showsubstantial amounts of SiO2(quartz),AL203(clay),and mineralization. The shalecontains moreclay(A[203> 16wt
CaO(calcite)withrelatively littledolomite(MgO < 2 vet%) %) and lesscarbonate than the underlying limestoneunit
andfeldspar(<1 vet% Na•20).Markerbedsof significancebut is morevisuallythancompositionally distinctfrointhe
are a 10- to 20-m-thick,gray,veryfine grainedcalcareousunderlying unit(Table3).
mudstone containing suspended roundedto angularquartz NewGuineaGroup:The lowerunitsof the New Guinea
grains,and a 3-m-thick,pink calcirudite containingcoarse Groupare the Paleocene Waripi(Tw) andEoceneFaumai
 BIGGOSSAN
SKARN
DEPOSIT,
ERTSBERG,
IRIANJAYA 515

55m Intramicriteandcoarse-grained
biomicrite,massivebedding,large(1-5 cm)forams
4m Intramicriteand biomicritewith corals,echinoderms,andforams
96m
Biomicrite
andintramicrite,
palebrown,bedding
0.5-2.0meters,
upto 50%forams(1-5cm)
44m Biomicrite,palebrownmassivebeds1-3 meters,70-80% forams
18m Intramicrite,
palebrownwith sparse
forams
20 m Biomicrite,
medium
todark.gray,
upto30%foramsand3%echinoderms
e• • SirgaFm. 20 m
23 m
Limy siltstone,
olive-grayw•tht'orams,friableconglomerate,
sandyforaminiferal
biomicrite
Gray,fineto verycoarse-grainedlithicquartzosesandstone
withcalcitecement,fossilfragments

115m Dark grayish-brown,

biosparite
to biomicrite,massive,milioidscommonin upperportion.
Gradesupwardto coarsesandstone

67m Grayish-brown,
silt'y,sandydolomiticsparite,massive
37 m Grayish-brown,fine-grained,
cross-bedded, clayey,silty,calcareous
quartzsandstone
andsandydolomite
8m Brownish-gray,fine-grainedsandydolomite
48 m Grayish-brown,sandy,calcareous mudstone with anhydrite
4m Brownish-gray,ooliticdolomiticmicrite,bioturbated,
clayey
32 m White,fine-grained,
calcareousquartzsandstone, localthin-beddedblackchertandanhydrite
100m Thin bedded,grayandwhitedolomite,dolomiticlimestone,limestone,sandylimestone,
limey sandstone,
localthinwhitechertstringers andanhydritenodules
12m Thin-beddedwhite,fine-grainedquartzsandstone
50 m Graydolomite,locallyfossiliferous,
local sub-rounded quartzsandgrains,boudinage
textures
near
base,thin bedsof black calcareousshale
4m Black calcareous shale
• Kkel 90 m Interbedded
grayto black,silty,sandycalcarenite
andsparite,calcareous,
fine-
grainedsandstone,
sandycalcarenitewith scattered,
well-roundedquartxgrains,
grayish-pink
sandybiorudite,blackcalcareousshale,calcareoussiltstone

600 m Massive,whiteto lightgray,fine-grained

quartzite,locallycalcareous

F•(;. 4. Stratigraphic
columnfor the Errsberg
district.

(Tf) Formations. TheWaripiisthemainskarnhostthrough- part(Table3, analyses BGS1-3) andserves asthe hostfor

outtheErrsberg district.
ThemiddlepartoftheNewGuinea someof thehighest grademineralization in thedistrict.The
GroupistheOligocene SirgaFormation (Ts).Theupperpart Faumai Formation 'also hosts some skarn mineralization in
of thegroupislocallydesignated astheKaisFormation (Tk) thedistrict at Dom.ThelowerFaumaiFormation isgrayish-
limestone of Mioceneage.The totalthickness of the New brown,locallysandy dolosparite about70 m thick.Theupper
GuineaGroupin thedistrictisabout1,700m. It isnotknown FaumaiFormationconsists of 130 m of grayish-brown bi-
if thecomplete groupispresent astheupperpartmayhave osparite to biomierite.The upperfewmetersof the Faumai
beenerodedduringearlyuplift. Formationis identifiedby sphericalmiliolites<3 mm in
TheWaripiFormation consistsof 300m of grayto dark diameter. TheSirgaFormation is25to40mofgraytobrown,
gray,thin-bedded (1 era-5 m) dolomite,dolomiticlimestone, veryfineto verycoarse lithiequartzose sandstone cemented
calcarenite,siltstone, andwhiteto lightgray,fine-grainedby calcite.It is gradational at its upperandlowercontacts
sandstone, usually calcareous.The dolomite, calcarenite,
and andhostsa portionof the Dom skarn.The KaisFormation
siltstonearelocally sandy. Theunitalsocontains significantis 1,000+m of graycarbonate rocks, commonly fossiliferous,
evaporite (anhydrite) nodules andlenses. Suchsedimentaryandlocallysandy,carboniferous, and/orshaley.Its baseis
anhydrite
8 86
in the Ertsberg district
34
has
•
isotopiccompositions identifiedby theoccurrence of densely packedbenthiefora-
( 7Sr/ Sr = 0.7078-0.7084, 6: S = 1l- 19%o)similarto Ter- minifera and echinoderms.
tiaryseawater sulfateandis quitedistinct bothin colorand
isotopiccomposition fromlaterhydrothermal anhydrite(Kyle Igneousrocks
andDworkin,in prep.,citedin Rubin,1996).Dissolution of More than 16 hypabyssal Plioceneintrusions havebeen
thissedimentary anhydrite is thought to increase porositydocumented in the Ertsbergdistrict(McMahon,1994a,b,
andpermeability greatlyandthusprovide channelways for c). Fifteensamples of the mainintrusive phases havebeen
hydrothermal fluids(Rubin,1996). datedby K-Aronbiotiteby McDowellet al. (1996)with a
TheWaripiFormation isthe mainhostfor skarnmineral- meanagefor all samples of 3.22Ma (range= 2.6-4.4 Ma).
izationat BigGossan. The baseof theWaripiFormation is Thereisconsiderable ageoverlap among allthedistrictintru-
lessdolomitic (Table3, analyses BGS11,16)thantheupper sionswhenconsidering both'alteredandpostoresamples.
516 MEINERT ET AL.

TABLE3. Whole-Rock
Composition
of Sedimentary
RockUnitsandMineralizedSkarn

Average
mineralized
Kembelangan
Group WaripiFormation skarn
samples
•
Sample
location
or Detection
limit LowerEkmai UpperEkmai EkmaiFm. BGS BGS BGS BGS BGS EkmaiFm. Mid- Marble
number (% andppm) Fro.limestoneFro.limestonemarkershale 11 16 1 2 3 markershale skam front

No. of samples 6 8 3
Gamet/(gamet + pyroxene) 0.54 0.24 0.23

Wt percent
SiO2 0.01 42.97 59.89 48.16 1.68 1.08 6.38 0.47 0.88 33.14 23.50 11.89
A120• 0.01 13.70 7.83 16.31 0.67 0.35 2.39 0.08 0.24 1.91 2.48 0.53
TiO2 0.01 0.62 0.36 0.75 0.02 0.01 0.08 <0.01 <0.01 0.07 0.14 0.03
Fe203 0.01 0.59 1.29 0.92 0.12 0.25 0.19 <0.0 0.20 26.32 35.58 43.18
FeO 0.1 3.7 3.4 4.0 0.1 <0.1 0.4 <0.3 <0.1 na na na
MnO 0.01 0.04 0.05 0.05 0.25 0.41 0.04 0.19 0.06 0.44 0.40 0.28
CaO 0.01 16.74 11.42 10.02 51.42 46.44 29.49 30.32 29.66 20.24 14.63 18.23
MgO 0.01 1.40 1.86 2.21 4.54 8.19 20.41 21.68 21.50 2.81 3.82 5.66
K,20 0.01 2.34 1.92 4.32 0.08 0.01 0.73 0.06 0.08 0.05 0.11 0.04
Na,20 0.01 0.61 0.04 0.10 <0.01 <0.01 0.04 <0.01 <0.01 0.02 0.04 0.02
P205 0.01 0.11 0.35 0.08 0.01 0.01 0.01 <0.01 <0.01 0.07 0.07 0.02
L.O.I. 0.01 15.85 10.78 12,27 39.30 41.32 38.22 45.65 45.54 2.98 7.51 15.12
Total 99.07 99.58 99,63 98.17 98.08 98.44 98.58 98.17

CO2 (%) 0.01 13.5 9.1 6.6 42.9 47.0 40.1 48.4 47.4 3.9 3.5 15.1
S (%) 0.01 0.59 0.32 0.87 0.11 0.07 0.19 0.07 0.03 5.3 11.5 10.9
F (%) 0.00001 0.08 0.11 0.15 0.06 0.04 0.09 0.02 0.03 0.07 0.06 0.07

Pa2spermillion
Ba 2 152 90 159 4 11 43 3 3 9 10 6
Sr 2 438 254 454 427 458 330 96 97 94 133 107
Y 2 19 17 20 2 2 3 2 2 5 5 2
Zr 2 133 73 131 5 2 14 3 i 26 49 41
Be 1 2 1 2 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1 0.4 1.0 <1
V 5 140 193 155 15 10 28 13 18 63 44 19
Cu 1 10 6 10 4 3 9 15 10 29,693 14,893 5,989
Pb 5 17 9 16 <5 <5 11 129 57 18 6 89
Zn i 78 29 53 19 44 37 1,367 262 218 286 1,299
Ag 0.4 <0.4 <0.4 <0.4 <0.4 <0.4 <0.4 1.0 0.4 13.6 7.5 5.1
Ni 1 23 20 24 2 2 2 2 2 47 18 5
Cd 0.5 <0.5 <0.5 <0.5 <0.5 <0.5 <0.5 5.1 1 4.4 3.0 5.8
Bi 5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 6 5 6
Au(ppb) 5 <5 <5 <5 176 201 11 155 17 960 639 884
As 2 11 42 16 26 20 5 4 13 57 34 119
Br 1 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1
Co 1 10 9 14 3 3 4 2 3 63 136 420
Cr i 63 69 68 19 21 19 20 17 53 36 20
Cs 0.5 6.3 3.6 10.2 0.8 0.7 3.9 1.0 1.2 0.6 1.4 1.3
Hf 0.5 3.1 1.8 3.3 0.6 0.5 0.7 <0.5 <0.5 <0.5 1.1 <0.5
Hg 1 <1 <1 <1 1 1 1 1 1 <1 <1 <1
Ir 0.5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5
Mo 0.5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 8 11 <5
Rb 10 89 64 146 <10 <10 42 <10 <10 <10 19 <10
Sb 0.2 0.4 0.9 0.5 3.9 1.2 1.0 0.8 0.8 1.2 1.4 2.1
Sc 0.1 13 8 15 1.4 1.1 2.6 0.7 1.0 2.0 2.5 0.8
Se 3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 4 <3 26 23 40
Ta 1 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1 <1
Th 0.5 8.4 5.7 0.1 0.7 <0.5 1.8 <0.5 <0.5 1.5 1.6 <0.5
U 0.5 1.5 2.0 1.8 2.9 1.6 2.7 2.3 1.6 4.5 3.7 1.8
W 3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 318 183 80
La 0.5 22.0 14.4 24.3 1.9 1.4 3.2 0.8 1.4 2.4 4.0 1.2
Ce 3 49 32 49 5 3 9 3 4 7 8 2
Nd 5 21 15 23 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 6 6 <5
Sm 0.1 4.2 3.3 4.2 0.4 0.3 0.7 0.1 0.2 1.0 0.7 0.2
Eu 0.2 0.9 0.6 1.0 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.52 0.28 <0.1
Tb 0.5 0.7 <0.5 <0.5 <0.5 <0.5 <0.5 <0.5 <0.5 <0.5 <0.5 <0.5
Yb 0.2 1.6 1.3 1.9 0.1 0.1 0.4 <0.1 0.2 0.4 0.4 <0.1
Lu 0.01 0.3 0.18 0.31 <0.05 <0.05 0.06 <0.05 <0.05 0.05 0.07 <0.05

• Mineralized
skamsamples
weresorted
bydistance
relative
toproximal
EkmaiFormation
marker
shaleanddistalmarblefrontasfollows:
close
to marker
shale:
BGU10-4-112, BGU10-6-226, BGUll-2-170, BGU13-5-174, BGU14-1-187, BGU15-3-163; mid-skam:BGU9-7-212, BGU9-7-259, BGU10-2-62, BGUll-5-155,
BGU13-3-85, BGU13-8-175, BGU15-3-117, BGU16-1-74; dose to marble: BGU-13-5-55, BGU-15-1-109, BGU-16-4-78
 BIGGOSSAN
SKARN
DEPOSIT,
ERTSBERG,
IRIANJAYA 517

However,excluding the alteredand postoresamples, the

mainphases of the Grasberg andErtsbergintrusions dated A)
by McDowellet al. (1996)yieldedagesof 9..83+ 0.07and 12
3.00 + 0.08 Ma, respectively. In the Big Gossan-Wanagon
areatwvo dikes(onein andonenorthof the Wanagon fault 10
zone)andonesmallplug(Kay)havebeendatedbyMcDowell
et al. (1996).Theseyieldedagesof 3.46__0.06,3.81__0.06,
and4.44+_0.10Ma, respectively. Thus,theremaybe a span
ofabout1 m.y.betwveen BigGossan intrusion-skarnformation
andtheyounger Ertsberg plutonandGrasberg Complex. The
youngest intrusion(Grasberg) hasfewerphenoerysts anda Dacite
finergrainedgroundmass thanthe olderintrusions, textures
! !
whichareinterpreted to resultfromslightly shallowerlevels
56 58 60 62 64 66
of eraplacement. This is consistent with the presentdiffer-
eneein elevation (doseto 1 km) aswell asan interpreted SiO2(wt.%)
periodof rapidupliftduringintrusion in thedistrict(Weftand
andCloos,1992;Cloos,1993).In addition, the onlyknown
extrusive rocksin the districtoccurat the marginsof the B) A Grasberg
Sn
Grasberg Complex, asthe Dalamandesitc andflow-banded [] Errsberg
100
lapillituffs. 0 Wanagon
Petrographieally, theintrusions in theErtsberg districtcan ß Big Gossan
be classified as quartzmonzonite to granodiorite. Someof 10
the intrusions are too fine grainedto be classified modally
andon a totalalkalies versussilicadiagram(e.g.,LeMaitre
et al., 1989)theyplotastraehyandesite andtraehydaeite to
daeite(Fig.5A).Phenoeryst mineralogy includes majorpla-
gioelase, K feldspar,and quartz;minoramphibole, biotite, 0.1
andpyroxene; andaccessory titanitc,apatite,andmagnetite
(MeMahon,1994b).The presenceof primarytitanitcand
magnetite, combined withthe absence of ilmenite,indicates 0.01

thatthesearerelatively oxidized magmas, typicalofporphyry

copperenvironments (Burnham andOhmoto,1980).Theoxi- ! ! ! !
dizednatureof the Ertsbergand Grasberg plutonsalsois 0 100 200 300 400
reflectedin Fe203/(FeO + Fe203) whole-rockratiosconsis- Zr
tentlygreaterthan0.5,averaging 0.62(Table2). In contrast,
thethreedikesamples fromBigGossan areslightlylessoxi- FIG.5.A. Classification of igneous rocksin theErrsberg districtafterthe
dized,with an averageFe•20:•/(FeO + Fe.203)ratioof 0.52. methodof LeMaitreet al.(1989).DatafromTable2. B. Rb/Srvs.Zr plotof
Compared to plutonsassociated withotherCu skarns (Mein- igneous rocks
fromtheEftsberg
(largelabeledcircles)
ofplutons
districtandworldwide
associated
average composition
withdifferentskarntypes(Mein-
ert, 1995),intrusionsin theErtsbergdistrictareverysimilar, eft, 1995).
beingslightly lesssilieieandlessdifferentiated(asmeasured
by Rb/Sr,Fig. 5B, and otherindices)but moreoxidized
(higherFe.•O3/(FeO + Fe203)andmoremarie. brecciawith fragments of skarn.Thus,according to both
In theBigGossan area,numerous dikesandsillshavebeen crosscutting relationships andthepreviously citedagedates,
encountered on surface andunderground, particularly
in the the BigGossan deposit appears to be slightly olderthanthe
Big Gossan andWanagonfaultzones,in the hanging-wallErrsbergintrusion.
WaripiFormation, andalongstratigraphic contacts.Igneous Structure
rocksarerarelyfoundin the orehorizonat Big Gossan and
then onlyasverysmalldikes.The feederplutonfor these TheErrsberg districtliesin thecenteroftheYellowValley
variousdikesandsillshasnotbeenfound.It is thoughtthat synclinorium, whoseaxisis orientednorthwest-southeast
the alteredandmineralized dikesin contactwith the Big (Figs.2, 3B).NewGuineaGrouprockscropoutin thecenter
Gossan skarnonthehanging wallaredirectlyrelatedto skarn of the synclinorium andthe Kembelangan Groupis exposed
development andmayconnect toanunderlyingpluton.Major in the northeast and southwest corners of the district. The
andtraceelementanalyses ofthreesamples fromtwvo difibr- majorstructures areimbricate thrustsheets andtightlyfolded
entBigGossan dikesarelistedin Table2. Theyhaveslightly anticlines and synclines strikingapproximately 305ø within
higherK.•O,V, and Au but lower Pb and Zn than other thelargerYellowValleysynclinorium. A series of cross faults
intrusionsin the district,bnt otherwiseareverysimilar. oriented50ø to 70ø and350øpostdate the majorstructures.
The Ertsbergplutonhasbeendrilledat depthbelowthe On surface theimbricate faultsareusually foundat bedding
southeastern portionof the BigGossan depositandin dikes planeswiththe exception of the Wanagon fault.The Wana-
andsillsoutside thedeposit. TheErrsberg intrusiontruncates gonfaultis the mostprominentfaultin thedistrictbecause
the depositin severalplacesin the southeast andformsa it cutsacross beddingandbecause the repeatedunitsare
518 MEINERT ET AL.

19,riO0N ....... ........ .2q9,500N+

D ErtsbergIntrusion
':: ':
[• Hydrothermal
breccia
[• Vertically
projected N
5::::::Intrusion:i:i
skarn zones

D
D Big
Gøssan
dikes
Upper
New &sills
Guinea
Group
carbonate rocks ''. ......

•1 Waripi
Formation 100m "::::.
[] Kkeh
marker
shale BigGossan
Mine
2930 Level Geology
'• •ellimestone
•-• Lower
Kembelangan
Group

F•c. 6. Planviewof the 2,930m elevation geologyandunderground drill stations.

Collarsof surface
drill holesare
projectedto 2930level.Verticalprojection
of skarnzonesis approximate
dueto steepdipof units.Moreaccurate skarn
gemnetry isillustrated
in fourcross
sections
(Figs.7 and8) indicated
bydarklinesonplanmap.Kkeh= EkmaiFormation
marker shale, Kkel = Ekmai Formation limestone.

visuallydistinct.It extendsfor tensof kilometers southeastmetersin diameter.The Ekmaishaleis largelyintactandis

of the district. onlylocallyfractured andbreedate&Fourbreeeia typeshave
Narrowbandsof eataelasite usuallyarepresentalongbed- beenidentified at BigGossan:
ding-plane faultshavinglargedisplacements. Therearesev-
eral bedding-plane faultswith unknowndisplacement that 1. Tectonicbreccia--formed by •novement alongfaults,
are identifiedby zonesof breeeia.An exampleis the Big particularly the bedding-plane faultat the contactbetween
Gossan faultwheresomeof thebreeeiazonesareup to 100 themarkershaleunitat thetopof theEkmaiFormation and
m wideandcontainlargerotatedblocks. theoverlying carbonate rocksof theWaripiFormation. This
Intersections of the 125ø regionaland 50ø to 70ø cross breeeiahoststhebulkof the BigGossan deposit.
structures provided pointsof weakness for eraplacement of 2. Contactbreeeia--eaused by the emplaeelnent of the
intrusions, especially Grasberg andErtsberg,andmineraliz- Ertsberg pluton,consisting of intrusion fragments andwall-
ingsystems. Otherfaults,suchastheWanagon andBigGos- rockfragments (includingangularfragments of skarn).This
sanfaults,provided conduits foremplaeement of smallintru- breeeia islocated atdepthintheWaripiFormation andupper
sions,hydrothermal fluids,and subsequent mineralization.Ekmaihorizons andis thoughtto haveformedsubsequent
Another promising prospect, theLetobah Tembaga porphyry, to the Big Gossan depositwhenthe Ertsbergplutonwas
islocatedat theintersection of the Grasberg (50ø)andIden- eraplaced.
berg2 (125ø)faults(Fig.'2). 3. Intrusivebreeeia--eaused by the forcefulupward
Regional strikeanddipof thestratigraphy acrossBigGos- movement of magma andhydrothermal fluidsalongzonesof
sanis 300øand80ø NE. Locallyat BigGossan, thebedding xveakness (faultsand fractures). Thisbreeeiais polymietie,
isverticaloroverturned dueto deformation caused bymove- containing intrusiveand marblefragments. The fragments
mentalongthe Big Gossan fault(Fig. 6), a beddingplane aregenerally rounded,indicating thattheyhavebeentrans-
structure whichstrikes120øandis boundedto the southby portedandare distalto the mainintrusion. Thisbreeeiais
theEkmaimarkershaleunit.Several minorhigh-angle faults thoughtto be contemporaneous with skarnformation and
striking350ø-010 ø and0500-070 øcutthe BigGossan fault. mineralization.
The BigGossan faultis a breeeiatedzoneup to 100m wide 4. Hydrothermal breeeia--hydraulie fracturing anddisso-
andcontains fragments of WaripiFormation up to several lutionof sedimentary rocksby hydrothermal fluidsalong
 BIG GOSSAN
SKARN
DEPOSIT,
ERTSBERG,
IRIANJAYA 519

3100
BGU Station 26
BGU Station 23 •,•v(m)

[] Hydrothermal
Breccia
[] Intrusive Breccia

ß Massivesulfidecap
[] Pyx> Carskam
[] Car > Pyxskam

.......
[] Big GossanDikes
.......

......

......

.......
[] Marble (Tw)

ß . .
[] Kkeh marker shale
........

BGU 26-4 ß , -
....... .......

........

.........
........
[] KembelanganGroup
..........

...........

...........

........... ........

...........
......

..........

.........

.........

.........

..........

......

.........

........

.......

.........

.......... .... fiG•

..........

..........

...........

.....

FIG. 7. Crosssectionthroughdrill stations

BGU 23 and 26 illustrating
.typical
geolo•, and distalskamgeometDT.
Abbrehations:
Car = garnet,Kkeh= EkmaiFormation markershale,P? = pyroxene, Tw = WaripiFormation.

BGU Station 14 BGU Station 10

Elev (m)

ß ' ' BGU14-3'" '

[] Ertsberg
Intrusion
[] Intrusive Breccia

ß Massivesulfidecap

[] Pyx> Car skam

[] Car > Pyx skam
[] Big GossanDikes
[] Marble (Tw)

[] Kkeh marker shale

[] KembelanganGroup

FIG.8. Crosssectionthroughdrillstations
BGU 10and14illustrating
•typical
geology,
andproximal
skamgeometu,.
See
Figure7 captionfor abbrehations.
520 MEINERT ET AL.

P G

E
ß y

G j

Cpy
Py
B
G
Cpy
G
Ahy
-C

D
Fl(;.9. Skarnzonation.
A. Red-brown
garnet(G)veinwithpyroxene
(P)-anhydrite
envelope
cuttingbiotite(B)hornfels
developed fromEkmai(Kkeh)markershaleunitimmediately underlying
massivemineralized
skan•.B. Proximalred-
brox•q•gan•et(G) • pyroxene.
Vugsarefilledxx4th
anhvdrite
(Ahy),chalcopyrite
(Cpy),andp.x
rite(Py).C. lntermechate
location
bro• garnet
(G)in a matrix
ofwhiteanhyd•ite
(Ahy)andehalcx)p.xrite
(Cpy).D. Green
pyroxene
(P)(with
interstitial
chalcopyrite)
• browaaganlet
(G).E. Distallocation
green
p?oxenelaths(x•4th
interstitial
tarnished
chaleop,x
rite)
• palebroxw• garnet.
In thinsection,
mostof thepyroxene hasbeenreplacedbya fine-grained mixture
of amphibole,
 BIGGOSSAN
SKABN
DEPOSIT,
EBTSBEBG,
IRIANJAYA 521

structures. Hydrothermal breccia occurs inWaripiFormation with mineralogy andis darkgray-brown •vithbiotite,light
in a pipelikestructure 250 in in diameterwith its axispre- gray-brown withbiotite-orthoelase-plagioelase, andnearthe
sumed to be near vertical. The vertical extent is unknown. WaripiFor(nationcon(actand alongfrae(urns, gray-green
The breeeiaconsists of dolomitefragmentsin a carbonate- withepidote andchopside. Nearcontacts withmassive miner-
day-tale-serpentine + magnetite matrixwithlocalgold-chal- alizedskarnin the overlying WaripiFormation, the Ekmai
eopyrite-pyrite mineralization. In places hydrothermal bree- shalebiotitehornfels iscutbyveinsofred-brown garnet(Fig.
eiamayhavebeensuperimposed upontectonicbreeeiaand 9A)withenvelopes ofpyroxene-feldspar + hydrothermal an-
bothmayformconduits for latermineralization. hydrite.Thisdarkred-brown colorof garnetisrestricted to
proximal skarnzonesnearthe Ekmaishale-Waripi con(act.
Big GossanCu-AuSkarnDeposit Theunderlying Ekmailimestone alsoisconverted to a green-
ishto buff-colored eale-silieate hornfelsconsisting of chop-
TheBigGossan Cu-Audeposit isoneof fourskarn-hostedsidlepyroxene and generally aluminous granditc garnet. Al-
deposits in theEftsbergdistrict(Fig.2). Theskarndeveloped
thougheoarser grainedthanthe Ekmaishalehornfelsand
in steeplydipping,basalcarbonates of the Paleocene Waripi
Formation.Locallyintensecalc-silicate alterationandhorn-
locallyreaching oregrade,mostof theeale-silieate hornfels
in theEkmailimestone isveryfinegrainedandsulfidepoor.
felsalsoaffectthe underlying EkmaiFormation(especially
the Ekmailimestone andEkmaishaleunits).Hydrothermal The skarnassemblage in theWaripiFor(nation thathosts
alterationis controlledby faults,beddingplanes,and re- the bulk of the Big Gossan orebody is characterized byrela-
ceptivefaciesxvithinthe Waripi Formationandthe upper tively coarse-grained prograde pyToxene and garnet. Individ-
EkmaiFormation. In theWaripiFormation, calcicprograde ualpyroxene andgarnetcrystals typically are0.1 to 1 emin
pyroxene-garnet-magnetite skarnandretrograde amphibole- length-diameter and range up to 10 em (Fig.9B-E).Pyroxene
ehloriteskarnhostehaleopyrite ore.Nativegoldiscontained ranges in colorfroinahnost whiteto darkgreen(Fig.9F-G).
in eh'aleopyrite and,to a minorextent,pyrite.Particularly Thischange in colorcorresponds directlywithironcontent
strikingis the nearabsence of high-temperature magnesian and is zoned in both space and time. The earliest,palest
skarnassemblages containing forsterite,
montieellite,or peri- pyroxenes are pure chopside and the very darkgreen,distal,
elase,whichareabundant in theotherexplored skarns in the andlatepyroxenes rangeupto7.5percenthedenbergite (min-
district(e.g.,Mertiget al., 1994).Thisis surprising in that eral compositions and electron microprobe analyses are dis-
mostof the hostWaripiFormation is partiallyto completely cussed in a later section).Garnet also exhibits a wide range
dolomitie(seeTable3, analyses BGS1, 2, 3, 11, 16, andthe in colorfrom darkred-brown(Fig. 9B) near-fluidconduits
earlierdiscussion of districtstratigraphy). to intermediate browns(Fig. 9C) andgreens(Fig. 9G) in
In a general way,theBigGossan deposit isparallelto and moredistallocations, but unlikepyroxene, thereis little or
possibly controlled bytheWanagon faultwhichhasrepeated no correlation between color and major element composition.
favorable stratigraphic unitsin the locationof Tertiaryintru- Most garnets are andraditie and many are optic'ally andcorn-
sions(Fig.2). Intrusions alsoareknmvnto occur•vithinthe positionally zonedonthe scaleof anindividual crystal(Fig.
fault.In detail,the distribution of skarnis controlled by the 10A-C).Garnetalsoaltersto hematite leaving pseudomorphs
contact between themarkershaleunitatthetopoftheEkmai of hematite after garnet. The skarn is sulfide rich,averaging
Formationandthe overlying carbonate rocksof the Waripi about 15 percent but locally containing >80 percent sulfide.
Formation(Fig.6). Thisstratigraphic controlonskarnminer- Chaleopyrite isthemainsulfide mineralwithlocallyabundant
alizationis dueto severalfactorsincluding the permeability pyriteandpyrrhotite; othersulfidephases arediscussed in
contrast between thetxvounits,breeeia developed alongbed- the section on mineralization. Magnetite, anhydrite, e'aleite,
ding-plane faultsat the Ekmaimarkershale-Waripi Forma- andquartzeachcomprise about5 volpercentof the skarn,
tion contact,the presenceof layersand lensesof primary typically fillingvugsbetween eale-silieate minerals, butlocally
anhydrite in the lowerWaripiFormation, andthe chemical maybe massive.
reactivity ofthepurerlimestones ofthelowerWaripiForma- The retrograde skarnassemblage is dominated by amphi-
tion.In crosssection(Figs.7 and8), it is apparentthat in bole and ehlorite withlocal concentrations ofphlogopite, tale,
additionto thisstratigraphic controlthe distribution of skarn gypsum, hematite, epidote, andserpentine. Retrograde alter-
reflects emplaeement of a seriesofverticaldikes.In bothplan ationhastwomodesof occurrence. Manybutnotall sulfide
andsection, thesedikesarediscontinuous andarethoughtto grains incontact withgarnet andpyroxene areassociated xvith
emanate froma largerfeederplutonat depth. retrograde alteration. In thisoccurrence, garnetisalteredto
Alteration
or rimmedby epidote,ohiorite, quartz,clay,carbonate, and/
or anhydrite.Similarly,pyroxene is alteredalongcleavage
The Ekmai marker shale footwall is altered to a biotite- planesandgrainboundaries to amphibole, ehlorite,quartz,
feldspar-epidote-quartz hornfels.The hornfelscolorvaries day,earbona(e, and/oranhydrite withlocalpatches ofphlogo-

carbonate,
andquartz(seeFig. 10B).F. Distal-late
clarkgreenpyroxene crystals
rilnmingearlierlightercoloredpyroxene
skarnfragments(nogame().Whitebreeeiamatrixis anhydrite. G. Darkgreenpyroxene skarnnearthe skarn-lnarble
con(actx•qthminorgreengame((G)partiallyreplaced by epidote(E). Hydrothermalfluidconduits in bleached
white
marblearemarkedbv concentrations of remobilized carbonandehlorite-elay(C-C) alteration.H. Hydrothermalfluid
conduits
in bleached
[vhitemarble
samples
•100 m beyond skarn
aremarked byconcentrations
of remobilized
carbon
(C)andminorsulfides
(pyrite,
sphalerite,
andgalena).
S•'ale
barinallrocks
is1 era.
529, MEINERT ET AL.

Cpy

FIG. 10.A. Photomicrograph

of coarse-grainedgarnetin crossed nicolswith strongopticalandcompositional
zoning.
Lighterbandsaremoregrossularitic
anddarkerbands aremoreandraditic.B.Photomicrograph ofcoarse-grained,
euhedral
garnetandpyroxene in crossed
nicols.Garnetexhibits bothsectorandconcentric opticalandcompositional
zoning.C.
Samesampleasin (B) exceptwith uncrossed nicols.Compositionsof individualgarnetbandsarelabeledbasedupon
electronmicroprobeanalyses.
Pyroxene (P) crystals
do notshowopticalor compositional zonation.D. Photomicrograph
of coarse-grained
radiatingdustersof pyroxene (P) in contactwithchalcopyrite(Cpy).Notethe absenceof amphibole
 BIGGOSSAN
SKARN
DEPOSIT.
ERTSBERG,
IRIANJA)'A 523

pite,talc,andserpentine (Fig.10F).A differentstyleofretro- othermetallicminerals

includeelectrum(Au > Ag),pyrite,
gradealterationoccurs neartheskarn-marble contact.In this sphalerite,
galena, andpyrrhotite. Pyriteisthemostabundant
occurrence, garnet(if originally
present)mayremainstable, of theseminerals, locallyreaching 20 vol percent,whereas
but pyroxene is mostlyto completely replacedby a felted sphalerite,
galena, andpyrrhotite combined are< 1 volper-
mixture of amphibole, carbonate,anhydrite,
andclay.At both centexceptat themargins of theskarn.Coldoccurs domi-
thehand-specimen andthin-section (Fig.10G-H)scale,am- nantlywith chalcopyrite andto a lesserextentwithpyrite.
phiboleclustersformnearlyperfectpseudomorphs ofindivid- Scattered grainsof scheelite occurin skarnboth as fine-
ual pyroxene crystals. At the marblefrontit appearsasif grained(< 0.1mm)crystals withgarnet-pyroxene andcoarser
thereis a changefromamphibole afterpyroxene to amphi- grained(1-5 mm) crystals with retrograde alteration
or in
bole formeddirectlyfrom marblewith no pyroxenepre- late quartz-carbonate vugs.However,nowherein the Big
cursor.
Gossan system doesscheelite reacheconomic concentrations.
Anotherreplacement relationship, whichmaynotbe truly Massivepyrrhotite isanimportant component oftheupper
retrograde in thesense of involving lowertemperature condi- andouterportionsof the skarn.Pyrrhotite(up to 80%)in
tions,occursin the easternpart of the Big Gossanskarn amphibole-retrograded pyroxene skarnformsa subeconomic
system nearthe contact withthe Ertsbergintrusion. In sev- caponthe chalcopyrite mineralization. Thissulfidezoneis
eraldifferentdrillholes(e.g.,8-1 to 8-5) prograde garnet analogous to carbonate replacement bodiesin otherskarns,
isreplaced byvesuvianite. In thinsection,thevesuvianite has particularly the mantosandchimneys of somezincskarns
an anomalous BerlinBluebirefringence andoccursasrims (e.g.,Megawet al., 1988).At BigGossan, thiscapoccurs at
on andmassive replacements of coarse-grained garnet(Fig. highelevations (Figs.7 and8) for almostthe entirelength
10E).Thevesuvianite truncates andcrosscuts theopticaland of the deposit. Pyroxene withinthispyrrhotite capis dark
compositional zonation of the garnet.Thus,the vesuvianitegreenin colorandveryironrich,up to HdT.•. Mostof this
dearlyislaterthanthegarnet.Thespatial associationof this iron-richpyroxene is completely alteredto amphibole and
vesuvianite nearthe Ertsbergintrusionandits sparsity or ohiorite,although pyroxene shapes stillarerecognizable.Al-
absence elsewhere in the BigGossan skarnsystem suggeststhough notasextensive along thesidesoftheskarn, pyrrhotite
thatthevesuvianite mayhaveformedfromthelaterErtsberg commonly occurswithinamphibole-retrograded pyroxene
hydrothermal systemratherthanfromtheBigGossan hydro- skarnattheskarn-marble (Paleocene WaripiFormation) con-
thermalsystem. Thisconclusion is supported by the wide- tact.Thisfeatureoccurs locallyfor several hundred meters
spreadoccurrence ofvesuvianite asa majorphasein allthree alongstrikeandvertically. In all occurrences known,pyrrho-
skarnsystems surrounding theErtsbergintrusion (e.g.,Erts- titegrades to ore-grade chalcopyriteovera fewmetersverti-
berg,Kateham1982;GBT, Rubin,1996;andDom, Mertig, callyanda fewcentimeters laterally.
1995). Outside
skarn,
chalcopyrite,
pyrite,sph'alerite,
andgalena
Beyond skarnbutwithinthemarblezonesurrounding the occurin veins.Chalcopyrite andp)•te arepresent regardless
BigGossan deposit therearenumerous planartowavyvein- ofthehostformation, whereas sphalerite andgalena aremore
lets(Fig.9G-H)whichappearto represent fluidconduits. In common in theWaripiFormation. Leadandzincmineral oc-
placestheseresemblestylolites excepttheir orientation is currences ofeconomic importance havenotbeenfound.Arse-
systematic (usuallyperpendicular to the skarnfront).The nopyrite occurs vertically
above skarnin theWaripiFormation.
darkcenterline of theseveinsis markedby a concentration Goldisconcentrated athigherelevations aboveBigGossan
of carbon,sulfides(pyrite,sphalerite, andgalena),chlorite, and distallytowardthe Wanagonprospect(Fig. 2), 3 km
serpentine, and/orclay.Marbleoccurs fortenstohundreds of northwest of BigGossan. AtWanagon, increased goldvalues
meters beyond theBigGossan skarnin theWaripiFormation (> 1 g/t) on the surEace alsogivewayto skarnat depthas
hanging wall.Themarbledecreases in grainsizewithdistance proven bydrilling.However, atWanagon low-grade goldmin-
from skarnand/orintrusivebreeciabut is pervasive to the eralization associated withpyrite,quartz,andclay(smectite?)
southeast dueto theeffectof the Ertsberg intrusion. also occurs without skarn near the surface in Ekmai sedimen-

Mineralization taryrocks. Based onlimiteddata,theBigGossan andWana-

gonskarns appearto be similarhydrothermal systems, butit
Chalcopyrite isthedominant oremineralwithbornitecom- is notknownif the sediment-hosted goldat Wanagon is re-
prisinglessthan1 volpercentof totalCu sulfides. With an latedto the skarnsystem or to a separate systemassociated
average Cu gradeof 2.7 wt percentandnumerous intervals withthe nearbyWanagon fault.
of > 10wt percentCu, chalcopyrite locallyis quitemassive. Mineralization iszonedwithintheBigGossan system (Ta-
In places,the ehalcopyrite is verysilver-yellowin colorand ble 4). Copper,Au,Ag,Pb,Zn, As,Mo, andCo assay data
caneasilybe mistaken for pyrite(e.g.,Fig. 9B). In skarn, areavailable for skarnin 192drillholestotaling13,215assay

alterationof pyroxene evennearsulfide contact,E. Pboto•nierographof coarse-grainedvesmSanitewithanomalous Berlin

Bluebird•ingence. Vesu•4anitehascompletely replaced garnetwhichexistsaspatchydomains withinvesm-ianite
grains
in otherpartsof the sample. F. Photomicrograph of largepyroxene(P) crvstal(outlinedin black)whichhasbeenpartly
replaced by a mixtureof amphibole (A),carbonate, andclay.G, Photomierograph of coarse-grained
radiatingclusters
of
pyroxene whichhavebeencompletely replaced by a mixtureof amphibole (A), carbonate, andclay.Note similarity
of
textureto thephotomicrograph in (C) exceptthatthepyroxene in (C) isunaltered.H. Photomicrographof largepyroxene
crystal
(outlined in black)whichhasbeencompletely replacedby a mixtureof'fine-grainedamphibole(A),carbonate(Ce),
andclay.Scalebarin all photomicrographs is 0.5 min.
524 MEINERT ET AL.

TABLE4. BigGossan
MetalZonation Eight unalteredand unmineralized samples of the host
rocksand 17 mineralized skarnsamples havebeenanalyzed
West Middle East Average for majorand traceelements(Table3). In termsof major
Easting > 19100 19100-19400 > 19400 andtotal
elements, onlyiron andsulfurare concentrated relativeto
Higherthan2,760m all the hostrocks.Relativeto the Waripi Formation(main
Cu (%) 2.95% 2.07% 2.68% 2.52%
carbonate host),the mineralizedskarnsamples are alsoen-
riched in SiO2. In terms of minor elements the mineralized
Au (ppm) 1.26 0.71 0.96 0.95
Ag (ppm) 25.0 11.3 15.9 16.8 skarnis enriched in Cu,Ag,Au,As,Co, Se,andW. Boththe
Pb •ppm) 1,025 34 54 333 hostrocks(EkmaiandWaripiFormations) andmineralized
Zn (ppm) 1,567 426 662 837 skarnaresignificantlydepleted
in rareearthelements relative
As (ppm) 252 74 50 119
Mo (ppm) 7.1 4.1 4.6 5.1
to typicalPhanerozoie sedimentary
rocks.Particularly
striking
Co (ppm) 114 50 79 78 is the deepnegative curopiumanomaly. The hostrocksare
Kilotons 7,602 10,132 7,955 25,689 consistently< 1 ppmEu andthemineralized skarnisslightly
higher(up to 1.8ppm),but bothare significantly lessthan
Between 2,495 and 2,760 m typicalPhanerozoie sedimentaryrockvaluesof up to 15 to
Cu (%) 3.01% 2.22% 1.33% 2.35% 20 ppmEu (S.Walters,writt.eommun.,1996).
Au (ppm) 1.18 0.53 0.37 0.75
Ag (ppm) 21.6 8.0 7.0 13.2
Mineralcompositions andzonation
Pb (ppm) 242 29 71 122 The Big Gossan skarnconsists dominantly of garnetand
Zn (ppm) 1,028 215 131 520 pyroxene. Aswithmanyskarnsystems, proximal zones(close
As (ppm) 81 50 35 59
Mo (ppm) 10.2 11.6 3.5 9.4 to theEkmaimarkershalehorizon)aregarnetrichanddistal
Co (ppm) 134 30 29 71 zonesarepyroxene rich(e.g.,Figs.7 and8).Overall,pyroxene
Kilotons 14,447 14,398 7,596 36,441 is moreabundant thangarnetwithan average ratioof about
2:1. Compositionally, pyroxenerangesfrom pure diopside
Lower than 2,495 m up to 75 percenthedenbergite and from0 to 11 percent
Cu (%) 1.71% 1.09% 0.53% 1.34% johansennite (Fig. 11). Representative electronmicroprobe
Au (ppm) 0.59 0.26 0.22 0.42 analysesarelistedin Table5.
Ag (ppm) 9.3 5.9 3.7 7.4 In addition
to garnet/pyroxene ratios,thecolorandcompo-
Pb (ppm) 26 34 34 30 sitionofpyroxene alsoarezonedwithintheBigGossan skarn
Zn (ppm) 83 94 105 89
As (ppm) 119 50 67 86 system. Proximal pyroxene is generally paleandironpoor.
Mo (ppm) 19.5 14.4 16.3 17.1 Moredistalpyroxene is darkergreen(Figs.9E-G, and10C)
Co (ppm) 43 19 15 31 and moreiron rich (up to Hdvs).The sametrend occurs
Kilotons 4,414 3,485 950 8,849 paragenetically;
earlypyroxene
ispaleandironpoor(breccia
fragmentsin Fig.9F),whereaslaterpyroxeneisdarkergreen
Average
andtotal andmoreironrich(breccia overgrowthsin Fig.9F). Compli-
Cu (%) 2.78% 2.03% 1.93% 2.28% catingthesepyroxene compositional
trendsis the effectof
Au (ppm) 1.11 0.56 0.64 0.78 host-rock
composition; skarnformedfrompuredolomite or
Ag (ppm) 20.5 8.9 11.1 13.8
Pb (ppm) 431 32 61 61
Zn (ppm) 1,025 276 386 196
As (ppm) 136 58 44 26
Jo
Mo (ppm) 10.9 9.2 4.8 2.7
Co (ppm) 113 36 52 23
Kilotons 26,463 28,015 16,501 70,979

intervals. Theseassayintervals werecomposited every3 m

downthe holeandcategorized by rocktype,elevation,and
minelocationalongstrike.Copper,Au, Ag, Pb, Zn, As,and
Co gradesincrease towardthe top of the system,whereas
Mo gradesincrease with depth.Similarly,Cu, Au, Ag, Pb,
Zn,As,andCo grades increase(fora givenelevation)
toward
thewesternand,in mostcases, towardthe easternmarginof
thesystem. OnlyMoisinverse tothistrend,defining
a central
corezonewhichis interpretedto represent the mainlocus
of fluid flowoverlying the sourcepluton.Pb andZn show
the strongest concentrationtowardthe distalmargins of the
system andevenhigherconcentrations oftheseelements (up Gr Garnet Ad
to several percent)occurasveinsanddisseminations in mar-
blebeyondthelimitof skarn.However,nowhere doPb and FIG.ll. Temal7 plotof BigGossan
skarngarnetandpyroxene
composi-
Znreacheconomic proportions withintheBigGossan system. tions.
 BIG GOSSANSKARNDEPOSIT, ERTSBERG,IRIAN JAYA 525

T^BLE5. ElectronMicroprobe
Compositions
of Pvroxene

Sampleno. 9-5-363 9-4-315 16-3-102 14-2-210 1-6-612 18-2-190 27-6-248 10-3-74

G/(G + P) 0.5 0.66 0.33 0.10 0.05 0.10 0.05 0.95
Location Midskarn Ekmai Fro. Midskarn Ekmai Fro. Midskarn Marble Marble Marble
marker shale marker shale front front front
Easting 19250 19250 19425 19275 18800 19175 18775 19675
Elevation(m) 2,616 2,707 2,864 2,930 2,725 2,947 2,780 2,878

SiO2 54.95 54.16 53.40 51.48 51.42 49.71 49.44 48.35

TiO2 0.01 0.00 0.03 0.10 0.01 0.02 0.05 0.02
A1203 0.71 0.03 0.03 1.24 0.22 0.84 0.96 0.77
FeO ø 0.27 2.83 5.83 10.60 14.92 18.17 18.55 22.21
MgO 17.81 16.31 13.86 10.72 8.23 6.76 5.41 3.01
MnO 0.04 0.72 1.25 1.15 1.36 0.75 1.37 1.91
CaO 25.78 25.63 25.45 24.40 23.64 23.10 22.72 22.46
Na20 0.12 0.03 0.05 na 0.23 na na na
K•O 0.00 0.00 0.00 na 0.01 na na na
Total 99.69 99.72 99.90 99.69 100.05 99.34 98.50 98.74

Cations
onthe basisof 6 oxygens
Si 1.990 1.992 1.992 1.964 1.995 1.968 1.982 1.976
Ti 0.000 0.000 0.001 0.003 0.000 0.001 0.002 0.001
A1 0.030 0.002 0.001 0.056 0.010 0.039 0.045 0.037
Fe 0.008 0.087 0.182 0.338 0.484 0.601 0.622 0.759
Mg 0.961 0.894 0.771 0.610 0.476 0.399 0.323 0.184
Mn 0.001 0.023 0.040 0.037 0.045 0.025 0.047 0.066
Ca 1.000 1.010 1.017 0.998 0.982 0.979 0.976 0.983
Na 0.008 0.002 0.004 na 0.017 na na na
K 0.000 0.000 0.000 na 0.000 na na na

Hedenbergite 1% 9% 18% 34% 48% 59% 63% 75%

Diopside 99% 89% 78% 62% 47% 39% 33% 18%
Johannsenite 0.1% 2.3% 4.0% 3.8% 4.5% 2.5% 4.7% 6.6%

Total Fe as FeO

anhydrite hasa morediopsidic coinposition

thanwouldnor- aremoreandraditic (e.g.,sample14-2-210,core= Ad70.a and
reallybethecasefora particular spatial-paragenetic
position. rim = Ad97..•;sample16-5-260core= Ad•3.1 andrim =
Perhaps the strongest influenceon pyroxene coinpositionbut somerimsareup to 40 percentmoregrossularitic than
is elevation withinthe hydrothermal system.As shownin the garnetcore(e.g.,sample9-6-675,core= Ad9s.9 andrim
Table6, pyroxene froinallpartsoftheskarnsystem becomes = Ad.•.•.5). Differentcoinpositional bandswithinanindividual
moreironrich,andto a lesserextentmoremanganese rich, crystalcandisplayaswidea coinpositional rangeasis seen
higherin thesystem. Theaverage pyroxene composition for atthedeposit scale(Figs.10C,11).Theaverage coinposition
thehighest thirdof theskarnsystem isDissHdasJo4,whereas of all analyzed garnets isAds4.,Gr•3.sSpl.sPy0.a.
Garnethigher
theaverage forthelowestthirdis Dis6HdlaJol. in the systemand on the westernand easternmarginsis
In agreement with the chronological, mineralogical,
and veryslightly enriched in ironrelativeto deepermorecentral
crosscuthng relationships
xvhichindicatethattheErtsberg in- locations, but thiszonationis not nearlyaspronounced as
trusionpostdates BigGossan skarnformation,garnet/pyroxene thatpreviously described for pyroxene.
ratiosandpyroxene coinpositions
arenotzonedrelative to the Amphibole in the Big Gossan skarnsystemrangesfroin
Ertsberg intrusion. In general,pyroxene becomesmoreiron actinolite to eummingtonite withthemainsubstitution being
andmanganese richtowardthewestern andeastern marginsFe-Mg-MnforCa.Representative electronmicroprobe anal-
oftheBigGossan system, suggesting
a hydrothermalcenterin ysesarelistedin Table7. Mostamphibole occurs asanalter-
themiddleof thesystem, coincident
withthelargest igneousationproductof pyroxene andusuallyoccurswith quartz,
dikemass shown in Figure6. Average pyroxenecoinpositions carbonate, anhydrite, andsulfides. Themostsubcalcic amphi-
forthewestern, middle, andeasternthirdsoftheskarnsystem bolesoccuronthemargins ofskarnwherepyroxene hasbeen
areDi67Hdz0Jo3.5, DisiHd17Jo•2,
andDiT•nd26 Jo3(Table6). totallyreplaced. In theseoccurrences, amphibole isintimately
Unlikepyroxene, garnetiszonedonthescaleof individual intergrown with quartzandcarbonate (ranging in coinposi-
crystalsaswell ason the scaleof the deposit.Convolute& tionfroincalciteto manganiferous siderite),suggesting that
concentric,planar,andsectorzoningarepresentin different the pyroxene-amphibole transitionhasbeenaffectedby in-
garnetcrystals (Fig.10A-B).In general undercrossed nieols, creasing xCO,•nearthe marblefront.Thus,at a giventem-
moreisotropic zonesaremoreandraditie, xvhereas
morebire- peraturenearthe skarn-marble contact,pyroxeneis being
fringentzonesaremoregrossularitie. Thereisnoconsistentalteredto amphibole pluscarbonate according to a reaction
compositional zonation froincoreto rim. Mostgarnetrims (baseduponmeasured compositions) suchas:
526 MEINERT ET AL.

TABLE
6. Summary
of BigGossan
Pyroxene
Compositions
(mole%) systematicdifference between fluidinclusions
in skarnminer-
alsandthe morecommonhostmineralssuchas quartzis
West Middle East Average thatquartzhasa verywidestability rangewhichencompasses
Easting < 19100 19100-19400 > 19400 andtotal
mosthydrothermal geologic environments. Thus,quartzcom-
Higherthan2,760m monlyfractures, heals,andtrapsa varietyof fluidinclusions
Hedenbergite 37.0% 38.9% 37.2% 37.7%
whid• canbe considered primary,pseudosecondary, or see-
Diopside 58.7% 58.1% 58.7% 58.5% ondary relativeto the host mineral (Roedder,1984). In con-
Johannsenite 4.3% 3.0% 4.1% 3.8% trast,talc-silicate
mineralssuchaspyroxene havea limited
No. of analyses 13 12 15 40 P-T stability
rangeanda definitelowertemperature limit.At
lowertemperatures (outsideofthepyroxene stability
fieldfor
Between 2,495 and 2,760 m
a givencomposition), a fracturecuttinga pyroxene grainwill
Hedenbergite 28.7% 13.3% 18.2% 19.7% not be healedwith pyroxene but insteadwill be enveloped
Diopside 68.0% 84.8% 79.5% 77.8% by a mineral,suchasamphibole, whichis stableat the new
Johannsenite 3.3% 1.9% 2.3% 2.5% P-T conditions.
No. of analyses 14 16 15 45
At BigGossan, fluidinclusions
in pyroxene areremarkably
Lower than 2,495 m abundantand rangein sizefrom 5 to 50 •m (Fig. 12B).
Almostall pyroxene fluidinclusions
containdaughterminer-
Hedenbergite 10.2% 15.9% 13.0% 13.0% alsandmostinclusions containhalite,sylvite,
andanopaque
Diopside 88.6% 82.1% 85.8% 85.5%
Johannsenite 1.2% 2.0% 1.3% 1.5%
mineral(s)(Fig. 12C-E).Wheredearlyvisine,the opaque
No. of analyses 4 4 3 11 mineralusuallyis yellowin color,pyramidalin shape,and
tentativelyidentifiedas ehalcopyrite. Someof the opaque
Average
andtotal mineralsaremoretranslucent, appearto havea reddish
hue,
and are assumed to be hematite. In addition to these tenta-
Hedenbergite 29.8% 16.9% 26.4% 24.3%
Diopside 66.7% 81.0% 70.6% 72.8% tivelyidentifiedmineralssomeinclusions containadditional
Johannsenite 3.5% 2.1% 3.0% 2.8% phases including anunidentified yellowish,globular, highre-
No. of analyses 31 32 33 96 fractiveindexmineralanda rod-or bundle-shaped mineral
whichmaybe anhydrite (Fig.12D-E).Somefluidinclusions
areof suchhighsalinity thatthereis notsufficient roomfor
pyroxene+ COs a spherical vaporbubbleandthebubbleis deformed around
thedaughter minerals (Fig.12F).Veryfewinclusions contain
= subcalcic amphibole + quartz+ carbonate no daughter mineralsandmostof theseareeithertoosmall
to workwithor occuralongfractures.
7Ca(Feo.sMgo.4Mno. i)Si=O6+ H.20 + 7CO= Of the 149fluidinclusion measurements reportedin Fig-
= Ca(Fe=.s Mg=.6Mno.6)SisO2.2(OH)= + 6SIO2 ure 13A,onlyeightinclusions lackdaughter minerals. None
of the fluidinclusions in pyroxene werevaporrich andall
+ 7(Cao.s6Feo. i Mgo.oaMno.0•)COa. homogenized to theliquidphase.No doublebubbles indica-
Alternatively, amphibole couldbe formingdirectlyby reac- tive of high CO= content were observed in anysamples and
tion of the hydrothermal fluidwith carbonate rock,outside noneof the vaporbubblesexpanded whenselected samples
of thepyroxene stability field. werecrushed underoil.Thus,Xco2in the fluidphaseis as-
Vesuvianite onlyoccurson the easternmarginof the Big sumed to be significantly lessthan0.05(Roedder, 1984).
Gossan skarn,closetothecontact withtheErtsberg intrusion. Homogenization temperatures were measured for 149in-
Compositionally, it isalmost identical totheanalyses reported clusions in pyroxene from12differentsamples. Homogeniza-
by Katchan(1982)for the Errsbergskarns, exceptthatthe tiontemperatures rangedfrom320ø to 485øCwith a mean
BigGossan vesuvianite contains almostnomanganese (Table of 410øC(Fig.13A).Forty-one of theseinclusions contained
7). Otherhydrous minerals in the BigGossan system include both halite and sylvite daughter minerals, which in all cases
epidote,chlorite,clay(Fe-Mn nontronite), phlogopite, and homogenized atorbelowthevaporhomogenization tempera-
serpentine. However,nonearevolumetrically significant,and ture in the order:sylvite, halite,andthenvapor.Salinities
in general,retrograde alteration is not veryintenseat Big werecalculated fromthe haliteandsyMtehomogenization
Gossan compared to othercopperskarnsystems (e.g.,Ei- temperatures according to the dataof Sterneret al. (1988).
naudi, 1982). Meansalinities are22 wt percentKC1,35 wt percentNaC1,
Fluid inclusions
and57 wt percentNaC1+ KC1,witha rangeof 38 to 65 wt
percentNaC1+ KC1(Fig.13B).In all cases, KC1homoge-
Fluidinclusions arepresent in several differentskarnmin- nizedat lowertemperatures thanNaC1although twoof the
eralsat Big Gossanbut are mostabundantand (visually) inclusions have higher calculated KC1 than NaC1.
easiest toworkwithin pyroxene. Theintergrown nature,high Ninety-three of thefluidinclusions homogenized byhalite
refractive index,andstrong coloration ofmanyskarnminerals disappearance andno sylvitedaughter mineralswerevisible
requirethinnersamples andslightly differenthandling tech- duringheatingin the fluidinclusion stage(Fig. 13C).Some
niques thanthosetypically usedforclear,lowrefractive index of theseinclusions contained sylvitewhichwasvisibleunder
minerals suchasquartzor fluorite(seeAppendix). Another veryhighmagnification (usingahighnumerical aperture lens)
 BIG GOSSANSKARNDEPOSIT, ERTSBERG,IRIAN JAYA 527

TABLE7. ElectronMicroprobe
Compositions
of Amphibole
andVesuvianite

Amphibole Vesuvianite

Sampleno. 26-4-250 26-2-157 1-6-612 27-6-248 1-6-604 8-2-235 8-2-242 8-5-187

G/(G + P) 0.50 0.10 0.10 0.10 0.05 0.90 0.50 0.90
Location Midskarn Marble front Midskarn Marble front Marble front Ekmai Fm. Marble front Ekmai Fm.
marker shale marker shale
Easting 18875 18875 18800 18775 18800 19700 19700 19700
Elevation (m) 2,725 2,840 2,725 2,702 2,733 2,764 2,759 2,962

SiO,• 54.55 54.11 55.94 52.75 52.67 35.96 36.26 35.76

TiO,2 0.00 0.03 0.04 0.00 0.02 0.42 0.70 0.55
A1,2Oa 0.21 0.50 0.62 0.52 0.54 15.82 12.60 12.37
FeO* 10.44 10.15 13.23 17.04 18.23 3.41 7.11 5.85
MgO 16.69 17.43 16.31 14.64 14.29 4.33 3.18 4.83
MnO 0.58 0.64 1.71 1.33 1.23 0.03 0.00 0.10
CaO 12.51 11.54 9.74 7.51 5.59 35.92 35.88 35.72
Na,20 na na 0.07 na 0.12 na na na

K•O na na 0.05 na 0.05 na na na

Total 94.98 94.39 97.71 93.80 92.74 95.90 9,5.74 95.17

Cationson the basisof 23 ou'gens

Si 7.992 7.952 8.023 7.999 8.072 5.586 5.776 5.706
Ti 0.000 0.003 0.004 0.000 0.004 0.049 0.084 0.066
A1 0.036 0.086 0.106 0.093 0.099 2.897 2.365 2.325
Fe 1.279 1.247 1.586 2.162 2.338 0.399 0.852 0.702
Mg 3.645 3.818 3.486 3.309 3.267 1.002 0.755 1.148
Mn 0.072 0.079 0.209 0.171 0.159 0.005 0.000 0.014
Ca 1.963 1.816 1.495 1.221 0.917 5.979 6.124 6.106
Na na na 0.019 na 0.034 na na na
K na na 0.008 na 0.011 na na na

* Total Fe as FeO

priorto heatingbutwhichwasnotvisibleatthelowerresolu- areevidence fortwostages ofhydrothermal alteration related

tionandmagnification of thefluidinclusion stage(seeRoed- to the BigGossan andErrsbergintrusions.
der, 1984, for a more detailed discussionof fluid inclusion Compared to skarnminerals in otherdeposits in theErtsb-
stageoptics).Otherinclusions mayhavecontained sylvite ergdistrict,
BigGossan fluidinclusionshavea distinctly lower
that was hidden from view behind the halite or in some other temperature buthavea similarto slightly lowersalinity. For
hard to see location. Even if these inclusions did not contain the Dom deposit,Mertig (1995) measured fluid inclusion
sylvite daughter minerals, it isverylikelythatthefluidphase homogenization temperatures in montieelliteupto663øCand
containedsubstantialKC1 in solution.Thus, for all of these salinities up to 60 xvtpercentNaC1equiv.At the Gunung
reasons thesalinitiescalculated forthehalite-only inclusionsBijihTimurdeposit, Rubin(1996)measured fluidinclusion
probably aretoolow.Thisis supported by the factthatthe homogenization temperatures in montieellite rangingfrom
meansalinity of44vetpercentNaC1equivortheseinclusions489ø to 534øC,averaging 514øC,andsalinities rangingfrom
is 13wt percentlowerthanthemean57 wt percentNaC1+ 38.7to54.4wtpercentNaC1equiv,averaging 44.4wtpercent
KC1measured for the halite+ sylviteinclusions in Figure NaC1equiv.Fluidinclusion homogenization temperatures in
13B.Noobvious spatial
trendswerenotedforeitherhomoge- garnetwere37'2 ø to 411øC,averaging 396øC,with salinities
nizationtemperatures or salinities of pyroxene fluidinclu- ranging from39.4to 44.5wt percentNaC1equiv,averaging
sions, in contrastto thespatial trendswhichhavebeendocu- 43.1wtpercentNaC1equiv.Fluidinclusions in elinopyroxene
mentedforotherskarnsystems (Kwak,1978;Meinert,1987). indicatehomogenization temperatures from 440ø to 460øC
In contrast to pyroxene, garnetcontains veryfewfluidin- witha totalsalinity of > 60 wt percentNaCIequiv.
clusions andno primaryinclusions of workablesizewere In sharpcontrast tothecalc-silicate minerals atBigGossan,
located. Theonlyothercalc-silicate mineralwithvisiblefluid quartzand anhydrite in late vugsandveinshavetrapped
inclusions isvesuvianite.Vesuvianite contains twopopulationsfluidsof lowerdensity, temperature, andsalinity.Someof
of fluidinclusions, a high-salinity (mean= 50 wt % NaC1 thislatequartzandanhydrite is associatedwithretrograde
equiv), high-temperature (315ø-530øC,mean = 400øC) alteration of pyroxene to amphibole _+chlorite+_calcite,
groupfairlysimilarto thatdescribed forpyroxene anda low- thus,lowertemperatures relativetopyroxene fluidinclusions
salinity(0.6wt% NaC1equiv), low-temperature group(170ø- aretobeexpected. Theaverage homogenization temperature
289øC, mean = 240øC) which was not observedin the other andsalinity for 49 inclusions hostedin quartzandanhydrite
BigGossan skarnminerals. Thesetwofluidinclusion popula- are369øCand7.1wt percentNaC1equiv(Fig.14).Manyof
tionsareconsistent withthetexturalinterpretation thatvesu- thefluidinclusions in quartz(Fig.12G)andalmost allof the
vianiteis a laterreplacement of main-stage skarnandthus, fluidinclusions in anhydrite (Fig.12 H) arevaporrich;most
528 MEINERT ET At,.

2pm

4 Fm

D Cpy
2pm
. Cpy

Hm

E
10/•m x •mph II F
a drit,

liquid ""
.

:
ß .

.
...

.G
FIG. 12. A. Computerscanof sampleDDH 18-9-549preparedasa doublypolished platefor fluidinclusion analysis.
B. Pyroxene crystalwithmultiplemultiphase fluidinclusionsandgrowthrim of veryfinegrained crystallites
of pyroxene
andamphibole. C. Multiphase fluidinclusioncontainingvaporbubble(V), halite(H), sylvite(S),andchalcopyrite(Cpy).
D. Multiphase fluidinclusioncontaining vaporbubble(V),halite(H), sylvite
(S),chalcopyrite(Cpy),andunknown mineral
(X). E. Multiphase fluidinclusion containing vaporbubble(V), halite(H), sylvite(S), hematite? (Hm), andunknown
mineral(X).F. Multiphase fluidinclusionwithsuchlargedaughter mineralsthatthevaporbubble(V) hasbeensqueezed.
Suchsqueezing behaviorisrepeated whentheinclusion iscooledafterhomogenization. G. Vapor-richfluidinclusion(V)
in quartz.H. Partof a largepyroxene crystalwhichhasbeencompletely alteredto amphibole (amph)andanhydrite. The
anhydritecontains hundreds of vapor-richfluidinclusions(FI).
 BIGGOSSAN
SKARN
DEPOSIT,
ERTSBERG,
IRIANJAYA 5529

elevations andpresent-day permanent snowandicefields, it

30÷ A is likelythatthe watertablewasverydoseto the surfaceat
thattimeandthus,roughly1.4km of rockhavebeeneroded
0 25
in the past3 to 4 m.y.
• 20 ForalloftheErtsberg skarndeposits described above,the
T:•15
n= 149
mean = 410øC
measured fluid inclusion temperatures are homogenization
temperatures andthus,exceptfortheboiling,vapor-rich flu-
U_ 10 idsin quartzandanhydrite, yielda minimumratherthana
5
truetrappingtemperature, The pressure of 520MPa,deter-
minedfor the boilingfluidsabove,givesa depthof 52km
o
baseduponhydrostatic considerations.However,vapor-rich
320 340 360 380 400 420 440 460 480
7o- inclusions andevidence forboilingareabsentin allthe other
60÷
oO8 8o B skarninclusions at Big Gossan. Thus,it is likelythat condi-
% o%0O 0 o o tionsweredoseto lithostatie duringskarnformation,ashas
50÷ 0 0•) 0
0 e beendemonstrated for earlyhigh-temperature alterationat
manyother porphyry-skarn systems(Bodnar,1995). The
. 00_ I • I ß oøß n=4I mean lithostatie pressure of 52kmof rockwithanaverage density of
%ß• ß • ß O NaCI+KC1
wt.% 57% 52.5 isapproximately 50 MPaandthiscorresponds to pressure
•& 5• • NaC1
wt.
% 35qccorrectionson the order of 40øto 50øC (Potter, 1977; Bodnar,
lO÷ A KCIwt% 22% 1995)for thehightotalsalinities
(30-60 wt %) measured
in
0
BigGossan skarnminerals.
Thus,the measured homogeniza-
a60 aio '460 ' 4•0 '410 460 480 tion temperaturescorrespond to actualtrappingtempera-
turesrangingfrom360øto 535øC.
55- C
50. ßß ß ß Summai T, Discussion,and Conclusions
45. ßL eee,
. ß ß The BigGossan Cu-Auskarndeposit is the highest
grade
."•'• . ,.,,,.rr
ee ß J,: copperdepositin theveryrichErtsbergdistrictandis both
.•-
• 35. ß n = 93 largeandhighgradeon a worldscale(e.g.,Einaudiet al.,
09 mean= 44 NaCI eq. wt. % 1981).The skarnoccurs asa vertically
orientedtabularbody
a0:
whichparallelsthe faultedcontactbetxveen the Cretaceous
© NaCI eq. wt. c•
25'

20
340' ' '3•0' ' '3•0' ' '4(•0'' '4•0' ' '4•0I ' '4•0' ' '4•0' '
HomogenizationTemperature 20 I Quartz

FIG,.13.A. Histogram

pyroxeneinclusions
ofpyroxene

whichcontain
fluidinclusion
atures.B. Plotof salini•'asa function
homogenization
of homogenization
temper-
temperature
bothhaliteandsvMtedaughter
for
minerals.
.••5 []n=49
Anhydrite
o
For eachinclusion (•/ = 41) therearethreedatapointscorresponding to
the measured
calculated
a function
xvtpercentKCI, the measured

of homogenization temperature
appearto containonlyhalitedaughterminerals.
wt percentNaC1,and the
wt percentNaCi + KCi.C. Plotof salinity (wt c• NaC1equiv)as
fi)r p,vroxene
inclusionswhich '••: mean
=369
C If
260 280
i i

300
i i

320
i
I I
i

340
i i

360
i i

380
i i

400
i

homogenize to thevaporphase.Someofthesamples contain o• 9

spatially
associatedgroups ofliquid-andvapor-rich inclusions r•

whichhomogenized at approximatelythesametemperature. B
Onegroupof liquid-andvapor-rich inclusions in anhydrite
homogenized atapproximately 380øCxvitha salinity of 6.4wt
percentNaCLequivin theliquid-rich inclusions.Similarly,a
groupof liquid-andvapor-rich inclusions
in quartzhomoge- n=10
nizedatapproximately 370øC witha salinityof 7.8xvtpercent mean= 7.1 NaC1eq. wt. %
NaC1equivin the liquid-richinclusions. Thus,fluidswere I Quartz
trapped alongtheboiling curve(corrected for6-8wt percent r• Anhydrite
NaC1equiv)attemperatures of 370øto 380øCandfromthese
datait is possibleto estimatea pressure of 520MPa which
350 360 370 380 390
corresponds to a depthof 52kmunderhydrostatic conditions
(Fournier,1987).Sincethesesamples occurat an average
HomogenizationTøC
depthof 600 m beneaththe presentsurface, thissuggests
thatthepalcowater tableat thetimeof skarnformation was F•c. 14.Histogramsofquartzandanhvdrite fluidinclusions.
A. Homogeni-
about1.4 km abovethe presentsurface.Due to the high zatioutemperatures.B. Salinity.
530 MEINERT ET AL.

Distal
hydrothermal
veins
- "stylolites"
with
carbon,
chlorite,
clay,
sulfides
Massive
sulfide
"cap"
consisting
ofpyrrhotite,
pyrite,
chalcopyrite,
magnetite
Distal
skam
zone
-dark
green
Fe-rich
pyroxene
>>green-brown
garnet
Intermediate
skamzone
-green
salitic
pyroxene
=browngarnet
Proximal
skamzone
-dark
red-brown
garnet
>>palediopsidic
pyroxene
Pyroxene-feldspar
hornfels
Biotite-feldspar
hornfels
Granodiorite
Waripi
Formation
-limestone
and
dolomite
with
anhydrite
nodules
Kembelangan
marker
shale
unit
-black
calcareous
shale
Kembelangan
upper
calcareous
siltstone
andsilty,
clayey
limestone
FIG. 15.Cartoonillustrating
skamzonation
relativeto porphyritic
dikesandthefaultedcontact
betweentheCretaceous
EkmaiFormationshalemarkerunit(Kkeh)andthePaleocene WaripiFormation.

Ekmaishalememberandthe Paleocene WaripiFormation. associated withskarnmineralization andthelargest dikemass

Thisstratigraphic-fault
contactservedasthe mainfocusof coincides withthe centerof thehydrothermal system asde-
fluidflowandassociated hydrothermal alteration. Skarnand finedby metalratios,garnet/pyroxene ratios,and mineral
hornfelsdeveloped in stratigraphic unitsonbothsidesof this compositions. It isassumed thatthesedikesconnect at depth
contact,but the mostintensealterationandhighestgrade with a parentpluton.Baseduponageandcomposition, the
mineralization occurredin the purercarbonate units,princi- BigGossan igneous-hydrothermal system is about4 m.y.old
pallythe WaripiFormation.Brecciation is commonin car- andgranodioritic. Bothmajorandtraceelements of BigGos-
bonaterocksadjacent to skarn,suggesting a causalrelation- sanigneous rocksareverysimilarto plutonsassociated with
shipbetween skarnformation andbrecciation. other Cu skarns worldwide.
Skarnis zonedrelativeto the Waripi-Ekmaicontactin The fluids associated with skarn formation and mineraliza-
termsof garnet/pyroxene ratio,garnetand pyroxenecolor tionwerehigh-temperature NaC1-KC1 brines.Basedupona
andcomposition, andthedistribution of Cu, Au,Ag,Pb,Zn, pressure of 50 MPaatthetimeof skarnformation, pressure-
As,Co, andMo. Asillustrated in Figures9 and15,proximal corrected pyroxene inclusion trappingtemperatures are360ø
zonesare garnetrich andthe garnethasa darkred-brown to 535øCand average450øC.Mostfluidinclusions contain
color(Fig.9B) whereas distalzonesaredominated by dark multipledaughtermineralsandtotalsalinityrangesfrom38
greenpyroxene(Fig. 9E-G) whichis iron rich and often to 65 vetpercentNaC1+ KC1withmeansalinities of 22 vet
associatedwithinterstitial
to massive chalcopyrite,pyrrhotite, percentKC1,35 wt percentNaC1,and57 wt percentNaC1
and/orpyrite.At the skarn-marble contactretrograde alter- + KC1.The salinities are similarto but the homogenization
ation(mostlyamphibole andepidote)andsulfideminerals temperatures are slightlylowerthanthosedetermined for
(mostlypyriteandpyrrhotite)are abundant (Fig. 9G). Al- otherskarndeposits in the Ertsbergdistrict(e.g.,Kyleand
thoughthe skarn-marble contactis quitesharp,tiny dark Bodnar, 1995;Mertig,1995).Thisisconsistent withthegeo-
veinletsrecordthepassage of hydrothermal fluidsfortensto logicsetting oftheBigGossan depositin whichskarnmineral-
hundreds of metersbeyondskarn(Fig.9H). Thissystematicization is associated with dikes and fluid flow zones rather
skarnzonationthusprovidesan excellentexploration guide thanwiththemainplutonandintrusive contactasat original
aswellasa geneticmodelfor mapping zonesof fluidflowas Ertsberg,GunungBijihTimur-IOZ-DOZ,Dom, andGras-
illustrated
in Figures15 and16. bergdeposits.
The sourceplutonfor the BigGossan skarnhasnotbeen A distinctlydifferentfluidhasbeentrappedin inclusions
identified.The dikesshownin Figures6 to 8 are spatially in quartzandanhydrite whichoccuraslatevugsandveins
 BIGGOSSAN
SKARN
DEPOSIT,
ERTSBERG,
IRIANJAYA 531

TOG magmachamber(Burnhamand Ohmoto,1980;Fournier,

200 400 600 800
1987).Thisbrinewasa supercritical fluidanddid not boil
Na:K = 1:1 /
eventhoughit wasat a relatively
hightemperature (Fig.16).
-----...•/ Vapor Initialfluidascentto higherlevelsprobablywasconcurrent
/
+
withintrusionof porphyry dikesto a depthapproximately2
Liquid to 3 km beneaththe paleosurface.
20 Vapor + Salt
Although therewassomecooling uponascent,thecombi-
Retrograde
;;_-___.,
3 alteration
with nationof highfluidfluxanddikethermalmass
keptthefluid
qtz-anhyddte,=- relatively
hot.At thepressureandtemperature
of initialBig
40 4 amphibole, Gossanskarnformation (50 MPa and 535øC), a fluid of 6 to
and sulfides 8 wt percentNaC1wouldboil,separating intoa 50wtpercent
hypersaline liquidin equilibrium witha vaporcontaining 0.7
wt percentNaC1(Fig. 16). Baseduponthe fluidinclusion
• 60 evidence, mostpyroxene skarnformedfromthishypersaline
liquid.For garnet,the lackof fluidinclusions in generaland
hypersaline fluidinclusions in particular suggests thatit may
- haveformedfrom a differentfluidthandid the pyroxene.
8O
'o % -- • Thisisconsistent withthecrosscutting natureof garnetveins
8 • Liquid • •= • in pyroxene skarn.
9 • •0 Uponphaseseparation, mostoftheSO2andHC1fromthe
parentliquidpartitioned intothevaporphase(Candelaand
lOO 10 • 4 Piccoli,1995),whichbeinglessdenseformeda vaporplume
overl5Sng the hypersaline liquidreservoir. Thislossof sulfur
11 fromthehypersaline brinemayhaveinhibitedsulfideminer-
alizationwith progradeskarn.Condensation of the vapor-
richplumeat shallower depthsresulted in highlyacidic,low-
FIe. 16.Composition ofcoexisting
liquidandvaporasa function ofdepth
salinityfluidswhichcanproduceadvanced argillicalteration
andtemperature (afterFoumier,1987).Isopleths of NaC1in liquid(dark in silicicrocks(Hedenquist, 1995)andactivedissolution in
lines)andvapor(lightlines)areshownfor compositions of interest.Two carbonate rocks.Thiscanbethought of astheground prepa-
differentcooling pathsareshown foraninitialfluidcomposition of 6 to 8 rationstageof a growing skarnsystemin whichthe vapor
wt percentNaCI.Theskarntrajectory hitsthesolw•s above500øCandat a
pressure of50MPa(lithostatic depthofabout2 km).Theretrograde trajec-
plume produces a cavernous porosityin carbonaterocks
toryhitsthesolvus below400øCandat a pressure of 20 MPa(hydrostaticwhichin turnisoverrun bythehighersalinity, skarn-forming
depthof about2 kin). fluidsasthesystem expands. Thus,themanybreccias which
surround skarnat BigGossan andotherskarndeposits in the
whichcrosscut skarn. In manycases, thequartzandanhydrite porphyry environment (Einaudi, 1982) may be part of the
areassociated withretrograde alteration ofpyroxene (toamphi- normal hydrothermal evolution of such systems.
bole_+chlorite _+calcite)andthedeposition ofsulfide minerals. Asthe underlying magmachamber continued to cooland
Thefluidsin quartzandanhydrite arelowertemperature (avg crystalIize, fluid continually exsolved. The fluid exsolved in
= 369øC), lowersalinity (avg= 7.1wt % NaC1equiv),lower this latter period of magma crystallization may have been
density (vaporrichat roomtemperature) andthereisevidence similarin bulk Na-K-C1composition to thatof the earlier
thatboilingoccurred. Theiroccurrence in minerals whichare period, but on ascent followed a different coolingpath,due
paragenetically lateis interpreted asdueto evolution of the to the lack of concurrent dike intrusion and possibly dueto
hydrothermal system withtimesuchthatlaterfluidsfollowa an overalllowerfluidfluxasthe parentmagmaapproached
different cooling pathandintersect thesolvus atlowertempera- the endstages of crystallization (Shinohara andHedenquist,
turesandpressures (Fig.16).Thus,thereisa zonation in both 1997). As this fluid ascended it cooled to less than 400øC
space andtime,notonlyof theskarnmineralogy asshown in withouthittingitssolvus (Fig.16).Also,400øCistheapproxi-
Figure15,butalsothehydrothermal system fromwhichthose matetransition temperature betweenductfieandbrittlebe-
minerals precipitated (Fig.16). haviorandin manysystems thiscorresponds to the change
Theprocess isenvisioned asoccurring in a seriesof steps, from lithostatic to hydrostatic conditions (Fournier, 1992).
whichin realityare probably continuous andepisodie. The Thus,eventhoughthis later fluid reachedthe previously
firststepwasconcurrent withintrusion oftheparentmagma formedskarnat thesamepaleodepth of 2 km,thepressure
to shallow levels(6-8 km)in the earth'scrust.Duringthis was20 MPa, due to hydrostatic conditions, ratherthan50
initialstage,temperature of bothmagmaandimmediatelyMPa,andthe fluidboiled.A 7 wt percentNaC1fluidat 20
adjacent wallrocks washigh(>>400øC) andtherocksbehaved MPa will boil at 370øC(measured temperatures of coeval
in a ductiletnashion, sealingthesystem fromsignificant inter- vapor-and liquid-richinclusions at Big Gossan are 370ø-
action with connateand meteoricwaters (Fournier, 1992). 380øC)andseparate into70 percentliquidwitha salinityof
Astheplutoncooled andcrystallized, a moderate salinity (6- 10 wt percentNaC1and30 percentvaporwitha salinityof
8%)brineexsolved (Burnham, 1979;YangandBodnar, 1994; 0.02wt percentNaC1(Fournier,1987).Therefore,thisboil-
Bodnar,1995)andpondednearthe crystalline shellof the ing episoderesultedin a muchsmallersalinityincrease in
539. MEINERT ET AL.

the liquidphasethanin the earlierone at higherpressure including electronmicroprobe work,statistical

analyses,and
(Fig. 16). specialty
geochemical analyses. Special
thanksaredueto Jim
With an averagetemperature of 369øC(baseduponfluid Reynolds of FluidInc.whofirstspotted thevapor-rich inclu-
inclusions in quartzandanhydrite), thislaterfluidwasnotin sionsin the BigGossan samples andattempted to enlighten
equilibriumwith the previously formedgarnet-pyroxene the seniorauthorasto theirsignificanceduringanintensive
skarnandproduced lowertemperature gener- fluidsampling
assemblages, study.In addition,conversations
withJeffHed-
allytermedretrograde alteration.
Asevidenced bythevapor- enquistprovided significant
insightintothe natureof fluid
richinclusions in quartzandanhydrite at Big Gossan, this behaviorin high-temperature systemswhichhasprovenin-
fluidwasboilingandthe resulting expansion of vaporat low valuable in understanding the evolutionof oredeposits.
pressure produced yet anotherstageof brecciation, in this
casewith skarnfragments rimmedby retrograde alteration May 19,July29, 1997
(pyroxene alteredto amphibole___chlorite_+calcite_+quartz REFERENCES
+ anhydrite,and garnetalteredto epidote+ chlorite_+
calcite___
quartz_+anhydrite).Suchretrograde alteration and Beane,R.E.,andTitley,S.R.,1981,Porphyry copper deposits.II: Hydrother-
brecciationappear tocoincide
withthezones ofhighest grade mal alteration and mineralization: ECONOMIC GEOLOGY 75TH ANNIVER-
mineralization.Specifically,
mostmineralization is associated SARYVOLUME,p. 235--269.
withthe mineralogiealtransition
fromgarnet-pyroxene skarn Bodnar,
als
R.J.,1995,Fluid-inclusion
ß inporphyrycopper deposits:
exddenee
fora magmatie
Mineralogieal
Association
soumeformet-
ofCanada Short
to retrogradealterationwhichmaycorrespond to thehydro- CourseSeries,v. 23, p. 139-152.
therm'altransitionfromh)•ersalinebrineseraplaced at lith- Bowman,J.R.,Pa•Ty,W.T., Kropp,W.P, andKruer,S.A.,1987,Chemical
ostatiepressure boilingfluidsat hydrostatic andisotopic
to lowersalinity, evolutionof hydrothermal solutions
at Bingham, Urals:
ECO-
pressure. Anotherconsequence NOMICGEOLOGY,
of the changefromductile Burnham, v. 82, p. 395-428.
to brittle behavior of rocks is the incursion of meteoric water C.W., 1979,Magmas andhydrothermal fluids,in Barnes, H.L.,
ed.,Geochemistry
of hydrothermal
oredeposits,
2nded.:NewYork,John
intothehotterpartsoftheskarnsystem. Asthesystem contin- WileyandSons,p. 71-136.
uedto cool,furtherretrograde alteration wasdominated by Burnham,C.W.,andOhmoto,H., 1980,Late-stage processes of felsiemag-
meteoricwater,withsalinitymuchlowerthanthatmeasured matism:Societyof MiningGeologists of Japm•SpecialIssue8, p. 1-11.
Candela,P.A.,andPieeoli,
P.M., 1995,Modelofore-metal partitioning from
for mostBigGossan fluidinclusions. meltsintovaporandvapor/brine mixtures:
Mineralogie'alAssociation of
The gener'alscenarioillustratedin Figures15 and16 is a CanadaShortCourseSeries,v. 23, p. 101-128.
snapshotof a dynamic system. In re'ality,
multipleintrusive Carten,R.B.,White,W.H.,andStein,H.J.,1993,High-grade granite-related
phases combined withfluctuations in thewatertabledueto molybdenum systems:
Classification
andorigin:Geological Association of
structural
and/orelimarie changes (e.g.,Simmons, CanadaSpeei'al
1991)will Cloos, Paper40, p. 521-554.
M., 1993,Lithosphericbuoyancy andeollision'al
orogenesis; subdue-
causea muchmore complexoverprinting of variousskarn tionofoceanic plateaus,
continentalmargins,islandares,spreading ridges,
andretrograde alteration stages.
Thesechanges are seenin andseamounts: GeologicalSocietyof AmericaBulletin, v. 105,p. 715-
therockrecordasa seriesof crosscutting eventsandzonation 737.
patterns. Dos,,D.B., Robinson,
G.P., Hartoho,U., andRatman,N., 1988,Geology
Thehigh-temperature, fluidswhichhavebeen of
high-salinity IrianJaya:
IrianJayaGeological
andDevelopment
Mapping
Centre,Indonesia,
Project,
Geological
in Cooperation
Research
withthe Bureauof
documentedin the Ertsbergdistrictaretypie'al
of porphyry MineralResources,Australia,
onBehalfof theDepartmentof Minesand
copperand copperskarnsystems (e.g.,Beaneand Titley, Energy,Indonesia,m•dthe Australian
Development Assistance
Bureau,
1981; Meinert, 1992; Bodnar, 1995). Such fluids have been 298 p.
shownto be dominantly of magmatie origin(Bowman et 'al., Dozy,
J.J.,1939,Geological
Geologische
results
Mededelingen,
oftheCarstensz
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534 MEINERT ET AL.

APPENDIX

Fluid InclusionSamplePreparation Procedures

The intergrown nature,highrefractiveindex,andstrongcolor- locatingand relocating individualfluid inclusionsaswell as re-
ationof manyskarnmineralsrequirethinnersamples andslightly cording homogenization andfreezingdata.
differenthandlingtechniques fromthosetypicallyusedfor clear, Oncethe samples werescanned andmapped, the superglue ce-
low refractiveindexmineralssuchas quartzor fluorite(Kwak, mentwasdissolved by soaking the samples overnight in acetone.
1986).To achievereasonable opticalclarityfor fluid inclusion Thefree-floating chipswerethenmaneuvered underacetone onto
study,doublypolished platesof skarnminerals needto be close 1-in.-diam glassor fusedsilicaplates(depending on the required
to normalthinsection thickness(30•m) andallplatesusedin this homogenization temperatures) whichfit intotheU.S.G.S.-style gas-
studywerelessthan100 •m thick;mostwerelessthan40 •m. flowfluidinclusion stage.The samples, alongwiththe supporting
Suchthin platesareproneto breakupduringhandling. To deal glassor fusedsilicaplates,werethen removedfrom the acetone
with thisproblem,samples werefirstpreparedusingnormalpol- andthe acetoneallowedto evaporate. Thisprocess dry-bonds the
ishingtechniques andsuperglue cement(Goldstein andReynolds, sample to theglass orfusedsilicaplateforstorage and/orplacement
1994). Prior to dissolutionof the cement in acetone,the slides in the fluidinclusion stage.Duringheatingin the fluidinclusion
werescanned intoa computer at highresolution usinga Polaroid stage,the residuewhichbondsthe sampleto theplateevaporates
Sprintscan 35 mmslidescanner. Theresulting computer filescan andthesample isheldin placebythespring pressure ofthethermo-
be flipped,rotated,andresizedto matchanyfragmentation that couplewire.Anyfurtherhandling of the samplewill mostlikely
mayoccurto the sampleduringdissolution (Fig. 12A).Enlarge- cause it to disintegrate.Subsequent heating andfreezing techniques
mentof the computerfilesto the scaleof individualcrystals or arestandard (described in Meinert,1984).Thefluidinclusion stage
fluidinclusions is possible,
but normallythe scanned imagewas in theWashington StateUniversity laboratory iscalibratedperiodi-
printedto fill a single8.5" x 11" sheetof paper,resulting in a callywithsynthetic fluidinclusions
(Sterner andBodnar, 1984)and
10to 100x magnification. Thescanned images wereprintedusing typicalaccuracy is +1.0øCbetween0ø to 374øC,_+0.2øC between
a normalblackandwhitelaserprinterto serveasa basemapfor -30 ø to 0øC, and estimatedto be _+3øCabove 374øC.