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El Potosi

Producer in Chihuahua, Mexico with commodities Silver, Lead, Zinc, Copper
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Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10049492
MRDS ID MX02214
Record type Site
Current site name El Potosi
Alternate or previous names Santa Eulalia-West Camp, Buena Tierra
Related records 10158232

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -105.87136, 28.60581 (WGS84)
Elevation 1900
Location accuracy 1000(meters)
Relative position 5 KM W OF SAN ANTONIO (EAST CAMP)., 40 Sec., 40 Sec.
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Geographic areas

Country State
Mexico Chihuahua

Comments on the location information

  • ESTIMATED TO WITHIN 1.0 KM. THERE ARE OVER 75 MINES/PROSPECTS IN NORTH CENTRAL PART OF SIERRA SANTO DOMINGO. EL POTOSI IS REACHED BY PAVED ROAD 18 KM E OF CHIHUAHUA.

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Silver Primary
Lead Primary
Zinc Primary
Copper Secondary

Comments on the commodity information

  • LEAD CARBONATE ORE: 10 OZ/TON AG, 15% PB. 1912 PROD. GRADE: 8.65 OZ/TON AG, 15.1% PB. (SKINNER AND PLATE, 1915) . SULFIDE AND SKARN ORE IN MANTO AND PIPES.

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Chalcopyrite Ore
Silver Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Calcite Gangue
Fayalite Gangue
Fluorite Gangue
Gypsum Gangue
Ilvaite Gangue
Limonite Gangue
Magnetite Gangue
Pyrite Gangue
Pyrrhotite Gangue
Quartz Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Alteration Is Very Limited. Narrow Zones Of Silicification, Bleaching, Recrystallization, And Some Minor Zones Of Hydrothermal Dolomite.

Analytical data

Result 1> SULFIDE ORE: 230 G/MT AG, 12% PB, 11% ZN, 30% FE. 2> SILICATE ORE: 50-150 G/MT AG, 0.8-1.6% PB, 1.4-1.6% ZN. 3> OXIDE ORE: 495-5320 G/MT AG, 0.8-3.1% PB, 1.8-3.0% ZN, 7.3-11.9% FE, 31.2% MN
Result HEWITT (1968), P.253-254. T DEGREEE C OF FLUIDS DURING FORMATION FROM FLUID INC
Result USIONS 280-350 DEGREE C FOR SKARN AND 200-375 DEGREE C FOR SULFIDE ORE. WF% NACL FOR SKARN 3-26 AND 1-26 FROM MEGAW, ETAL, 1988 DATA. WEST CAMP WALL ROCK ISOTOPES DELTA 18 OXYGEN 16.0-21.8 DELTA 13 CARBON- 0.9 TO 3.0 MEGAW, ET AL , 1988

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 72
USGS model code 19a
Deposit model name Polymetallic replacement
Mark3 model number 47

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Granitoid > Quartz Monzonite
    Chronological age 26.6
    Type of media Felsite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Tertiary
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Cretaceous
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Mafic Intrusive Rock > Diorite > Diabase
    Chronological age 26.6
    Type of media Felsite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Tertiary
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Carbonate > Limestone

Nearby scientific data

(1) -105.87136, 28.60581
ListMap

Geologic structures

Type Description Terms
Regional Reg.Struct: Mine Area Is Located On The West Limb Of The Southward-Plunging Portion Of A Broad Nnw-Trending, Doubly Plunging Anticline.
Local Six Subparallel N-S Trending Fissure Zones, N50e-Trending Cross Faults. E-W Trend Occupied By Late-Stage Dikes. N20e And N70w Structures Locally Control Ore And Dike Emplacement.

Ore body information

  • General form MANTO, CHIMNEY

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Structural Control Provided By N-S Trending Fissure Zones And N50e-Trending Cross Faults. Mantos Follow Fissures For Up To 4 Km And Chimneys Often Found At The Intersection Of The Two Structural Trends. Stratigraphically Constrained By The Tert. Volcanic Cap.

Comments on the geologic information

  • FELSITE AND DIABASE DIKES ARE SPATIALLY RELATED TO SULFIDE ORE BODIES, BUT UPPER OXIDIZED MANTOS SHOW NO IGNEOUS ASSOCIATION. THE FELSITES CUT THE DIABASE DIKES AND ARE APPROX. 10 M.Y. YOUNGER. ORE MINERALS ARE FOUND DISSEMINATED IN, AND CROSSCUT THE FELSITES AND THE LARGEST AMOUNT OF ORE OCCURS ABOVE THE THICKEST FELSITE SILL. FELSITES ARE CONSIDERED PENECONTEMPORANEOUS WITH ORE AND APPEAR TO HAVE ACTED AS ORE-FLUID GUIDES. SOURCE OF THE ORE FLUIDS REMAINS UNPROVEN BUT THEY MAY BE RELATED TO A MEDIUM-GRAINED QUARTZ MONZONITE KNOWN TO UNDERLIE THE MINE AREA.
  • GEOL.COM: THE REGIONAL STRATIGRAPHIC SECTION CONSISTS OF A SERIES OF CRETACEOUS CARBONATES AND EVAPORITES UNCONFORMABLY OVERLAIN BY TERTIARY VOLCANIC ROCKS AND VOLCANICLASTIC SEDIMENTS. SULFIDE MINERALIZATION DOMINANTLY HOSTED BY MASSIVE, RECRYSTALLIZED, RELATIVELY UNFOSSILIFEROUS BLUE-GRAY LIMESTONE (BLUE LIMESTONE). OVERLYING CARBONATE SECTION (OLDEST TO YOUNGEST) CONSISTS OF 1> RECRYSTALLIZED MASSIVE LIMESTONE WITH CHERT LENSES AND ABUNDANT PELECYPOD FOSSILS (LOWER FOSSILIFEROUS LIMESTONE), 2> SHALEY, MEDIUM-BEDDED LIMESTONE WITH NODULAR CHERT HORIZONS (MIDDLE FOSSILIFEROUS LIMESTONE), AND 3> A SERIES OF RECRYSTALLIZED DARK AND LIGHT GRAY LIMESTONE BEDS WITH INTERLAYERED BEDDED CHERT (UPPER FOSSILIFEROUS LIMESTONE). THE LOWER AND UPPER FOSSILIFEROUS LIMESTONES CONTAIN THE MAJORITY OF THE OXIDIZED, HIGHER-LEVEL ORE BODIES. MINERALIZATION IN THE EL POTOSI AREA "PONDED" BENEATH THE VOLCANIC CAP, WITH CHIMNEYS BULGING OUT JUST BENEATH THE CONTACT AND MANTOS FOLLOWING THE CONTACT.

Economic information

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Large
Significant No
Discovery year 1591
Discoverer Spanish
Discovery method Ore-Mineral In Place
Year of first production 1707
Year of last production >1988

Mining district

District name Santa Eulalia

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Minerales Nacionales De Mexico S. A. (Mina Mex)
    First year 1991

Comments on the production information

  • SEE RECORD FOR SANTA EULALIA DISTRICT.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Length 3000M
    Overall depth 1000M

Comments on the workings information

  • DEVELOPED ORE BODIES MOST COMMON AT 450-FT LEVEL, BUT NEARLY ALL WORKINGS GO TO DEPTHS OF 1300-1400 FT. 2 MAIN SHAFTS THE POTOSI NO 1 SHAFT AND THE VELARDENA SHAFT LOCATED 100 M TO THE N. FLAT LYING OREBODY MAKES GOOD UNDERGROUND MINING. MINING SINCE SPANISH FOUND DEPOSIT

Comments on development

  • BETWEEN 1707-1790 SPANISH COLONIALS MINED OXIDIZED SILVER-RICH ORE BODIES THAT CROPPED OUT ON THE SURFACE. FROM 1790-1880 THE DISTRICT DECLINED AS THE EASILY EXPOSED SURFACE OXIDE ORES WERE EXHAUSTED. IN 1880 NUMEROUS COMPANIES WITH FOREIGN CAPITOL REVIVED THE DISTRICT AND BEGAN TO MINE THE OXIDES TO GREATER DEPTHS. THE POTOSI MINING COMPANY (NOW MINERALES NACIONALES DE MEXICO) AND ASARCO MEXICANA ( NOW INDUSTRIAL MINERA MEXICO) (AS OF 1991) CAME INTO THE DISTRICT AND BEGAN TO TAKE CONTROL . IN 1925 A SELECTIVE FLOTATION SYSTEM WAS PUT INTO PRODUCTION AND SULFIDE ORE BEGAN TO BE MINED THIS PROCESS CONTINUES IN 1991.

Reference information

Links to other databases

Agency Database name Acronym Record ID Notes
USGS Mineral Resources Data System MRDS MX02214

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    MORRIS, H.T., 1986, DESCRIPTIVE MODEL OF POLYMETALLIC REPLACEMENT DEPOSITS IN COX, D.P., AND SINGER, D.A., (EDS.), 1986, MINERAL DEPOSIT MODELS: U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 1693, P. 99.

  • Deposit

    MALDONADO E., D., AND MEGAW, P.K.M., 1983, GEOLOGY OF THE SANTA EULALIA MINING DISTRICT, CHIHUAHUA, MEXICO IN GEOLOGY AND MINERAL RESOURCES OF NORTH-CENTRAL CHIHUAHUA; GUIDEBOOK FOR THE 1983 FIELD CONFERENCE: EL PASO, TEXAS, EL PASO GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY, P. 367-376.

  • Deposit

    HEWITT, W.P., 1968, GEOLOGY AND MINERALIZATION OF THE MAIN MINERAL ZONE OF THE SANTA EULALIA DISTRICT, CHIHUAHUA, MEXICO: A.I.M.E - S.M.E. TRANSACTIONS, V. 241, P. 228-260.

  • Deposit

    SKINNER, E.N., AND PLATE, H.R., 1915, MINING COSTS OF THE WORLD: NEW YORK, N.Y., MCGRAW-HILL BOOK CO., INC., P. 191-192.

  • Deposit

    SOCIEDAD GEOLOGICA MEXICANA A.C., 1985, PLANO GEOLOLGICO MINERO DE CHIHUAHUA, MEXICO: CONSEJO DE RECURSOS MINERALES AND FEDERAL GOVERNEMNT OF MEXICO D.F., 1 SHEET, SCALE 1:500,000

  • Deposit

    SPP, 1982, SIERRA OBSCURA TOPO QUAD

  • Deposit

    MEGAW, ET AL, 1988,

  • Deposit

    SPP, 1978, AQUILES SERDAN (H13C67)

  • Deposit

    MIRANDA G., M.A., MEGAW, P.K.M., 1986,

  • Deposit

    MEGAW, P.K.M., 1986A,

  • Deposit

    MEGAW, P.K.M., ET AL, 1986,

  • Deposit

    1988, TETONIC LOCALIZATION AND CONTROLS ON HIGH-TEMPERATURE, CARBONITE HOSTED AG-PB-ZN DEPOSITS OF MEXICO

  • Deposit

    HEINRICHS M., ERNESTO, 1983, MINA EL POTOSI

  • Deposit

    DE LA FUENTE L., F.E., 1969

  • Deposit

    HEWITT, W.T., 1943,

  • Deposit

    1968, GEOLOGY AND MINERALIZATION OF THE MAIN MINERAL ZONE OF THE SANTA EULALIA DISTRICT

  • Deposit

    MEGAW, PETER K.M., 1990,

  • Deposit

    PADILLA, G.R.A., 1987

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit WEST CAMP (MINA EL POTOSI, BUENA TIERRA, ET AL.) HAS BEEN THE SOURCE OF MORE THAN 85% OF THE DISTRICT PRODUCTION. SEE ALSO: SAN ANTONIO MINE (MRDS-REV RECORD NO. 2213). THESE DEPOSITS TYPES IN MEXICO HAVE PRODUCED OR HAVE RESERVES EXCESS OF 10 MILLION MT OF ORE GRADING FROM 80 TO 350 G/MT SILVER WITH APPROX. 10 % COMBINED PB-ZN (MEGAW, ET AL, 1988, P.1856). SEE SAN ANTINO SANTA EULALIA-EAST CAMP)(MX02213), FOR DETAILED INFO ON OTHER HALF OF DISTRICT AND SANTA EULALIA DISTRICT MX02161 FOR OVERALL DATA ON DISTRICT. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB
Deposit MINERALIZATION IS DOMINANTLY IN THE FORM OF MANTO AND CHIMNEY DEPOSITS LOCALIZED BY A COMPLEX INTERPLAY OF LITHOLOGY, STRUCTURE AND INTRUSIVE BODIES. THREE MAJOR TYPES OF ORE MINERALIZATION ARE PRESENT: 1> "NORMAL" SULFIDE ORES COMPOSED OF PYRITE, PYRRHOTITE, SPHALERITE AND GALENA WITH SPARSE CHALCOPYRITE AND ARSENOPYRITE; MANTOS ARE PB-AG-RICH AND CHIMNEYS ARE ZN-RICH. 2> SMALL IRREGULAR SILICATE BODIES, SCATTERED THROUGHOUT HIGHER LEVELS OF THE MINE AREA, COMPOSED OF FAYALITE, ILVAITE, MAGNETITE, AND KNEBELITE, AND CONTAINING ECONOMIC AMOUNTS OF GALENA AND SPHALERITE. THE SILICATE BODIES BEAR NO ZONAL RELATIONSHIP TO THE SULFIDE ORES. 3> OXIDE ORES CONSISTING OF MASSIVE OXIDES AND CARBONATES OF PB, ZN, AND FE. THESE WERE EXPLOITED MAINLY IN THE EARLY DAYS OF THE DISTRICT. THE ORES ARE MN-RICH AND HAVE A CALCITE GANGUE. A FOURTH, LESS IMPORTANT, TYPE OF ORE CURRENTLY (1983) MINED IN THE NORTHERN PART OF THE EL POTOSI AREA CONSISTS OF HIGHLY MANGANIFEROUS LIMESTONE WITH FINELY
Deposit DISSEMINATED NATIVE SILVER AND PYRARGYRITE. THIS MATERIAL AVERAGES 2.5 OZ/MT AG AND IS USED AS A SMELTER FLUX. SEE MEGAW, ET AL, 1988, AND MALDONADO, E. AND MEGAW, 1983

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-FEB-88 Leonard, Kenneth R. (Page, Norman J.) U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-JUN-88 Leonard, Kenneth R. U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-AUG-91 Kibbe, R.D. U.S. Geological Survey