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The Dudica Epithermal Cu–Au Deposit (Republic of North Macedonia)

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Abstract—

The Dudica deposit is located in the southern part of the Republic of North Macedonia (RNM), not far from the border with Greece in the Kozuf–Aridean volcanic region. The deposit is genetically associated with the Neogene igneous event (≥6 Ma, K/Ar), which is manifested at the intersection of northeast trending faults with the northwest trending Vardar fault zone. The REE spectrum of volcanic rocks here is characterized by a weak negative Eu anomaly and enrichment in light REE (LREE) relative to heavy REE (HREE). Mineralization is found in veins, veinlets, and dissemination; Cu concentration is around 0.5%; Au, up to 1 g/t. The principal ore minerals are chalcopyrite, bornite, enargite, covellite, chalcocite, and digenite; pyrite, galena, sphalerite, marcasite, and native gold are less frequent. The δ34S isotope composition falls within a narrow interval of +1.00 to +2.50‰, indicative of the igneous origin. The data obtained suggest that the Dudica deposit belongs to the class of the high-sulfidation epithermal deposits.

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Funding

This study was supported by the State Task for the Institute of Geology of Ore Deposits, Petrography, Mineralogy, and Geochemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences (project no. AAAA-A18-118021590164-0).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Goce Delčev University, Štip, Republic of North Macedonia

    G. Tasev, D. Serafimovski, B. Boev, T. Djordjevic & T. Serafimovski

  2. Institute of Geology of Ore Deposits, Petrography, Mineralogy, and Geochemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119017, Moscow, Russia

    A. V. Volkov

  3. Institute of Mineralogy and Crystallography, University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria

    U. Kolitsch

  4. Department of Mineralogy and Petrography, Natural History Museum, 1010, Vienna, Austria

    U. Kolitsch

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  1. G. Tasev
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Correspondence to A. V. Volkov.

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Translated by E. Murashova

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Tasev, G., Serafimovski, D., Volkov, A.V. et al. The Dudica Epithermal Cu–Au Deposit (Republic of North Macedonia). Geol. Ore Deposits 62, 419–431 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1075701520040054

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