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Hishikari Mine

Producer in Japan with commodities Gold, Silver
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Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10021691
MRDS ID DE00945
Record type Site
Current site name Hishikari Mine

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: 130.68785, 32.00576 (WGS84)
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Geographic areas

Country
Japan

Comments on the location information

  • LOCATED ON THE ISLAND OF KYUSHU, APPROXIMATELY 20 KM NW OF KIRISHIMA VOLCANO

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Silver Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Acanthite Ore
Chalcopyrite Ore
Electrum Ore
Galena Ore
Hematite Ore
Hessite Ore
Marcasite Ore
Miargyrite Ore
Pyrargyrite Ore
Pyrite Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Stibnite Ore
Tetrahedrite Ore

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Dacite
    Rock unit name Hishikari Andesites;Shishimans Dacites;Kurozonsan Dacites
    Rock description Hishikari Andesites;Shishimans Dacites;Kurozonsan Dacites
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Cretaceous
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Sandstone
    Rock unit name Shimanto Supergroup
    Rock description Shimanto Supergroup

Nearby scientific data

(1) 130.68785, 32.00576
ListMap

Comments on the geologic information

  • DISCOVERED USING GRAVITY, RESISTIVITY, AND IP SURVEYS. ORE IS IN UPLIFTED BASEMENT BLOCK. HIGHEST GRADE ORE IS NEAR CONTACT OF BASEMENT (SHIMANTO) AND OVERLYING VOLCANIC ROCKS IN VERTICAL VEINS ASSOCIATED WITH CHLORITE AND SMECTITE ALTERATION. FLUID INCLUSION TEMPERATURES 210 DEGREE C TO LESS THAN 200 DEGREE C. ORE DEPOSITED BECAUSE OF BOILING, MIXING, AND OXIDATION OF FLUIDS AT UNCONFORMITY. BASE METAL CONTENT IS LOW. VEIN MINERALS ARE MOSTLY QUARTZ-ADULARIA-CLAY (MORE THAN 90% SMECTITE).

Economic information

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Large
Significant No
Discovery year 1981

Reserves and resources

  • Type In-situ
    Name HONKO
    Estimate year 1989
    Total resources 1,400,000,000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Gold Au 70.5 g/mt Gold Major 1989
    Silver Ag 49 g/mt Silver Major 1989
  • Type In-situ
    Name YAMADA
    Estimate year 1989
    Total resources 2,000,000,000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Gold Au 20 g/mt Gold Major 1989
    Silver Ag 2 g/mt Silver Major 1989

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • HONKO AND YAMADA ARE NAMES OF THE ORE ZONES. THE YAMADA ORE ZONE IS NEWLY DISCOVERED (1987-1988) AND IS LOCATED ABOUT 1 KM SOUTH OF THE MAIN (HONKO) AREA.

Comments on development

  • UNDERGROUND EXPLORATION BEGAN 1983, PRODUCES 350 TO 400 TONNES PER DAY, TRACKLESS OPERATION, 26 KM OF TUNNELING (MARCH 1989), ORE IS CRUSHED AND DELIVERED TO THE SMM COPPER SMELTER AT NIIHAMA BY TRUCK AND SHIP FOR USE AS SILICA FLUX.

Reference information

Links to other databases

Agency Database name Acronym Record ID Notes
USGS Mineral Resources Data System MRDS DE00945

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    IZAWA, EIJI; URASHIMA, YUKITOSHI; IBARAKI, KENZO; SUZUKI, RYOICHI; YOKOYAMA, TAKEO; KAWASAKI, KIYOSHI; KOGA, AKITO; AND TAGUCHI, SACHIHIRO, (IN PRESS, 1989), THE HISHIKARI GOLD DEPOSIT: HIGH GRADE EPITHERMAL VEINS IN QUATERNARY VOLCANICS OF SOUTHERN KYUSHU, JAPAN: JOURNAL OF GEOCHEMICAL EXPLORATION.

  • Deposit

    URASHIMA, YUKITOCHI; IBARAKI, KENZO; AND SUZUKI, RYOICHI, 1987, THE HISHIKARI GOLD DEPOSITS; IN GOLD DEPOSITS AND GEOTHERMAL FIELDS IN KYUSHU, THE SOCIETY OF MINING GEOLOGISTS OF JAPAN, GUIDEBOOK 2, P. 27-38.

  • Deposit

    URASHIMA, YUKITOSHI AND IZAWA, EIJI, 1983, ORES FROM DRILLCORES OF THE HISHIKARI GOLD DEPOSIT (ABSTRACT), MINING GEOLOGY, V. 33, NO. 50 (IN JAPANESE).

  • Production

    IZAWA AND OTHERS (IN PRESS 1989)

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit VOLCANIC-ROCK-HOSTED EPITHERMAL PRECIOUS METAL DEPOSIT
Deposit THE HISHIKARI DEPOSIT IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE IT IS THE RICHEST GOLD DEPOSIT CURRENTLY IN PRODUCTION. IT IS LARGE, RICH, GEOLOGICALLY YOUNG, AND WAS RECENTLY DISCOVERED USING GEOPHYSICS. IT IS THE ONLY QUARTZ-ADAULARIA-SERICITE EQITHERMAL VEIN DEPOSIT CURRENTLY IN PRODUCTION IN JAPAN. HOT WATER MUST BE PUMPED OUT OF THE MINE IN ORDER TO MINE THE ORE. ; INFO.SRC : 3 FIELD OBSERV

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-OCT-1989 Cunningham, Charles G. U.S. Geological Survey