Mafic-dominated volcanogenic sulphide

deposits in the Troodos ophiolite, Cyprus

Part 1The deposits of the Solea graben
N. G. Adamides*
The Solea graben in the Troodos ophiolite of Cyprus is host to some of the largest and richest
cupriferous sulphide deposits on the island. The graben is oriented in a northwesterly direction
and defined by similarly oriented dykes and faults. The deposits within the graben display a
variety of characteristics which reflect their mode of genesis. They include deposits displaying
classic exhalative genesis, as well as others which formed at some depth below the seafloor, or
by fluids which travelled away from their source to deposit sulphide on the surface of the ocean
floor. A special case is the Phoenix deposit which is the result of supergene enrichment from the
weathering of massive sulphide. A strong control of ore deposition is evident for some of the
deposits by a major structure interpreted as an oceanic detachment fault. Other deposits are
localised at the intersection between axial structures and transfer faults. However, in all cases, an
underlying heat source appears to have played a major role in ore deposition. The location of the
deposits at the top of the volcanic sequence is consistent with an off-axis setting.
Keywords: Troodos ophiolite, Solea graben, Cyprus, VMS deposits, Mineralisation, Copper

Introduction
The Troodos ophiolite (Moores and Vine, 1971) is a
fragment of Mesozoic ocean floor formed approximately
91 million years ago (Mukasa and Ludden, 1987) and
brought to its present position as a result of the collision
between Eurasia and Africa during the Alpine orogeny
(Gass and Masson-Smith, 1963). The ophiolite comprises a complete sequence from ultramafic rocks at the
base, comprising mainly harzburgite and dunite, overlain by gabbroic rocks, a sheeted dyke complex, and the
Pillow Lava Series (Fig. 1). This association is interpreted as the result of partial melting of mantle material,
now represented by the harzburgite, resulting in the
formation of the overlying cumulates and sheeted dykes,
and the extrusion of the lavas on the sea floor.
The sulphide deposits occur at all levels in the
extrusive sequence, but are particularly associated with
the Pillow Lavas Series, with the largest and more
copper-rich deposits being associated with the Upper
Pillow Lavas. Geochemical studies, particularly subsequent to the Cyprus Crustal Study Project, resulted in
the refinement of the volcanic stratigraphy into a lower
arc tholeiite suite (suite A), a depleted arc tholeiite suite
(suite B), and a highly depleted boninitic suite (suite C)
(Cameron,1985; Robinson and Malpas, 1990; Robinson
et al., 1983). Suite A roughly corresponds with the
N G Adamides Geological Services Ltd, Astromerites, Nicosia 2722,
Cyprus
*Corresponding author, email adamide@logos.cy.net

Lower Pillow Lavas, and suites B and C are correlated

with the Upper Pillow Lavas; however, the geochemical
boundaries rarely coincide with the mapped contacts
between units, which were based on field criteria.
Furthermore, local interbedding between units has been
documented, suggesting a close spatial and temporal
relationship and a subduction initiation slab edge setting
has been recently proposed for the genesis of the
Troodos ophiolite (Pearce and Robinson, 2010).
Formation of the deposits, which are of the CuZn
mafic type (Barrie and Hannington, 1999) has been
linked to hydrothermal activity at a spreading axis,
similar to that identified and extensively studied at
present-day equivalent settings such as the East Pacific
Rise (Spiess et al., 1980; Haymon, 1982) and the MidAtlantic Ridge (Rona, 2005). Seawater circulation has
been invoked for the genesis of the deposits (Spooner,
1977; Spooner and Fyfe, 1973) and this hypothesis
appears substantiated by isotopic data (Heaton and
Sheppard, 1997) as well as extensive experimental work
of basalt-seawater interaction (Seyfried and Bischoff,
1977, 1979, 1981; Mottl, 1978; Mottl and Holland,
1979). However, substantial contribution from magmatic degassing has also been proposed by some
workers (Yang and Scott, 2002). Epidosite zones present
within the sheeted dyke complex which underlies the
Pillow Lavas Series have been proposed as the result of
extreme leaching of elements which formed the sulphide
deposits and overlying polymetallic sediments (Lydon
and Jamieson, 1984; Richardson et al., 1987; BettisonVarga et al., 1995; Jowitt, 2008).

2010 Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining and The AusIMM

Published by Maney on behalf of the Institute and The AusIMM
Received 30 May 2010; accepted 10 February 2011
DOI 10.1179/1743275811Y.0000000001
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Mafic-dominated sulphide deposits in the Troodos ophiolite, Cyprus: Part 1

1 Geological map of the Troodos ophiolite, showing location of major sulphide deposits. Adapted from 1 : 250 000 scale
mapping by the Geological Survey of Cyprus

Broughton Edge visited the island in 1922 for the preparation of their classic report on the cupriferous deposits of
the island (Cullis and Edge, 1927) the site of the future
Mavrovouni deposit was described as an area of extensive
iron staining; however, the intensity of alteration was
thought unpromising. Subsequent exploration by Cyprus
Mines Corporation (CMC) outlined the richest deposit
yet to be found on Cyprus, comprising 15 million tonnes
of massive pyrite assaying 4?5% copper and 48% sulphur,
0?4% zinc 0?78 g t21 gold and 7?8 g t21 silver (Bear,
1963), excluding the disseminated material surrounding
the deposit.
Strong oxidation at the site of the Apliki deposit, 3 km
south of Mavrovouni, attracted the attention of ancient
prospectors. Exploration in the early twentieth century
started during the gold rush of 1935 and as a result, the
underlying sulphide mineralisation was intersected in 1937
(Bruce, 1947). Partial mining of this material took place
at that time; however, the deposit was finally outlined and
mined by opencut methods in the 1960s and early 1970s.
Part of the oxidised ore, untreatable by flotation, was
stockpiled separately and now represents a valuable
resource for hydrometallurgical exploitation. By the cessation of mining in 1973, approximately 1 650 000 t averaging 1?8%Cu and 36%S were mined (Adamides, 1982). A

The Solea graben (Varga and Moores, 1985) is an

interpreted north-northwest-trending tectonic feature
which hosts some of the largest sulphide deposits on the
island. These include the Mavrovouni and Apliki deposits
in the western end of the graben (Bear, 1963; Bruce, 1947)
(Table 1) and the Skouriotissa group of deposits further
east (Adamides, 1984, 1987; Constantinou, 1972; Constantinou and Govett, 1973; Hutchinson and Searle, 1971).
Although the details of the deposits have been recorded to
varying degrees in the past, there is no compilation of
information within the context of their structural setting
and mutual relationships. This is the primary purpose of
this work. In view of the inaccessibility of some of the
deposits, due to the ongoing partial occupation of the
island, information from historical records will be utilised
and compiled and placed in the context of the geological
and structural setting of the mineralisation.

Historical outline
The deposits of the Skouriotissa and Mavrovouni region
(Fig. 2 and Table 1) have been known and exploited since
ancient times. Archaeological evidence exists for almost
continuous exploitation for the last 4000 years. Major
slag heaps present at both Skouriotissa and Mavrovouni
testify to the extent of ancient mining activity. It was these
slag heaps that attracted the attention of a young
prospector, Charles Godfrey Gunther, who was sent to
the island in 1914 by two American engineers, Colonel
Seely Wintersmith Mudd and Philip Wiseman (Lavender,
1962). Gunther initially discovered the nearby Skouriotissa massive sulphide deposit, as a flat-lying lens of
massive cupriferous pyrite, located directly beneath sedimentary rocks. Mavrovouni lay undiscovered for several
years after initial drilling in 1919 had only returned
disseminated mineralisation giving the erroneous impression that most of the orebody was of the disseminated
type (Bear, 1963). When Professors Gilbert Cullis and

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Table 1 Resources in the deposits of the Solea graben

Deposit

000 tons Cu/% S/% Source

Mavrovouni
15 000
Mavrovouni 4th grade 11 000
East Lefka
1200
Apliki
1650
West Apliki
3600
Phoukasa
6000
Phoenix
40 000
Three Hills
6174

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4.5
0.30
1.60
1.80
0.34
2.25
0.40
0.37

48.0
31.4
14.9
36.0
na
46.0
na
na

Bruce, 1947
CMC records
CMC records
HMC records
HCM estimation
Bruce, 1947
HCM estimation
HCM estimation

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Mafic-dominated sulphide deposits in the Troodos ophiolite, Cyprus: Part 1

2 General geology of the Skouriotissa-Mavrovouni region. Compiled from CMC data (Mavrovouni region) and the authors
eld work (Apliki and Skouriotissa areas)

small quantity of low-grade material remains in the north

side of the ore zone.
Immediately west of Phoukasa, a large mass of disseminated sulphide mineralisation defines the Phoenix deposit.
The orebody was partly developed by CMC as a pressureleaching operation; however, mining was interrupted
following the Turkish invasion in 1974, and is currently
being exploited by hydrometallurgical methods.
The smaller deposits of Three Hills and West Apliki
(Fig. 2) were discovered by CMC; however, with the
exception of some development work, they were not
exploited. Three Hills has now been partly mined by
Hellenic Copper Mines Ltd (HCM) as part of their
hydrometallurgical exploitation of the Phoenix deposit;
however, a significant resource still remains.

The general structure of the Solea graben, inferred

from the above studies, is substantiated by extensive field
work and evaluation of geophysical data carried out by
the author. A northnorthwesterly orientation of the
dykes in the area of the Apliki deposits (Fig. 2), coupled with a steep northeasterly dip, suggests a similar

Structure of the Solea graben

Structural studies of the Troodos ophiolite by Varga and
Moores (1985) identified three asymmetrical NNWtrending graben, defined by opposing, inward-dipping
Sheeted Dyke Complex domains and correlation with
major sulphide mineralisation. These were termed from
west to east, the Solea, Mitsero (or Ayios Epiphanios),
and Larnaca graben. The axis of the Solea graben is
inferred to coincide with the location of the Skouriotissa
deposit, with the Mavrovouni deposit considered to
have formed in an off-axis setting. The extents of the
Solea graben are considered to be bounded to the north
by the sedimentary rocks, with the southern border
reaching as far as the Arakapas Fault Belt (Hurst et al,
1994; Simonian and Gass, 1978).
Palaeomagnetic studies (Allerton and Vine, 1987 and
1991) support the model proposed by Varga and Moores
(1985) and suggest formation of the Solea graben by
listric faulting adjacent to a spreading ridge. The study
in the shallow intrusive and extrusive section of the
Solea graben suggests rotations of up to 78u around axes
which are parallel to the orientation of the dykes,
consistent with the above interpretation. The graben is
apparently terminated along an eastwest set of faults to
the south, probably indicating the presence of a minor
transform fault.

3 Stereographic projections (Fisher, equal area, lower

hemisphere) of poles to dykes in the Apliki region (A)
and south of Skouriotissa (B)

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Mafic-dominated sulphide deposits in the Troodos ophiolite, Cyprus: Part 1

4 Magnetic signature of the western part of the Solea graben. Positive and negative symbols denote magnetic highs and
lows respectively. Interpreted aeromagnetic lineaments are also shown. The map is a compilation of CMC aeromagnetic survey (Mavrovouni to Skouriotissa area) and a helicopter-borne survey (Dighem, 1999) for the Apliki area

orientation of the Solea graben, with the direction of dip

of the dykes suggesting location of the axis in the present
northeasterly direction (Fig. 3A). A slight change in
orientation to a more northerly strike and steeper dips of
the dikes in the area south of the Skouriotissa deposits
(Adamides, 2001b) (Fig. 3B) is consistent with block
rotation probably as a result of underlying listric faulting.
Such faulting is also inferred from the identification
within the Sheeted Complex of narrow shear zones
associated with minor mineralisation, oriented parallel to
the northwesterly orientation of the graben and marking
rotation of the diabase dykes to shallow dips.
The conclusions derived from surface geology are
supported by the magnetic signature of the region
(Fig. 4). A system of axis-parallel northwesterly structures
is complemented by lineaments of transverse orientation.
Such chequerboard pattern of magnetic lineaments is
characteristic of the northern part of the Troodos ophiolite
(Cooper, 1993), and is correlated with similar pattern on
present-day spreading axes, such as the Mid-Atlantic
Ridge (McAllister and Cann, 1996) where the transverse
structures are interpreted as transfer faults and generally
make angles of 6070 with the axis-parallel faults.
The magnetic image also highlights in the area of the
Mavrovouni and Apliki deposits an extensive region of
low magnetic intensity, which is spatially associated with
a major north-trending structure forming the boundary
between the Sheeted Complex in the west and the pillow
lavas in the east. The zone coincides with the northerly
extension of the Troodos Forest Fault (Hurst et al.,
1994), which is associated with a steep hydrothermal
gradient (Schiffman et al., 1987) and may be directly
related to the genesis of the Mavrovouni and Apliki
deposits.

2004). Geological mapping (Fig. 2) suggests that the site

of the deposit was characterised by extensive chloritisation of the lavas. The deposit was located within the
Upper Pillow Lavas, close to the contact with a northerly
structure which brings the Lower Pillow Lavas into
structural juxtaposition. This fault continues southwards,
forming the boundary between the Basal Group and
Lower Pillow Lavas in the area of Apliki (Adamides,
1982). The structure was not considered by early workers
to be the feeder channel for the Mavrovouni deposit
because disseminated mineralisation continues across it
without evidence of displacement or focussing of the
hydrothermal fluids (Wilson, 1959).
Modelling of mined levels from historical records (Fig. 5)
suggests that the deposit was elongate in a northsouth
direction, and was locally cross-cut by similarly trending
zones of limonitic oxidation. This suggests that northtrending structures played a role in the channelling of
hydrothermal fluids and later acted as conduits for oxidising
fluids to descend to lower levels in the massive sulphide. The
deposit was almost totally enclosed within the lavas, with

Geology of the sulphide deposits

MavrovouniApliki group

5 Block model of worked levels of the Mavrovouni

deposit. Constructed from historical CMC data by the
digitisation of mined-out massive sulphide and limonite
ore from the original underground plans. Cell size:
x52 m, y52 m and z51 m

Mavrovouni

The deposit is presently inaccessible to detailed study, and

most of the information is extracted from the examination of the meticulous records kept by CMC (Adamides,

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Mafic-dominated sulphide deposits in the Troodos ophiolite, Cyprus: Part 1

7 Geological section through the East Lefka deposit

6 Northsouth section through the Mavrovouni deposit

only limited portions exposed at the contact with the

overlying sedimentary rocks.
Figure 6 is a northsouth section derived from drillhole
records, and depicts the orebody as a series of disconnected
lenses of cupriferous massive pyritic ore enclosed within a
mass of disseminated low-grade mineralisation. The lavas
overlying the mineralisation are thickening northwards,
and vary from fresh to variably altered and oxidised;
however, a zone of propylitised and altered lavas intervenes between the massive ore and the unmineralised
cover. The distribution of copper within the ore zone
suggests an association with high sulphur content, with the
envelope of disseminated mineralisation being generally
low in copper.
No clearly defined stockwork zone is present in the
Mavrovouni deposit, which is apparently underlain by an
extensive layer of weaker mineralisation, with no indication of a specific hydrothermal or structural conduit. This
is in contrast to other similar deposits, e.g. Skouriotissa,
Mathiatis and Limni (Adamides, 1975, 1984; Lydon and
Galley, 1986) where the site of egress of the hydrothermal
fluids onto the seafloor is generally defined by brecciation
and silicification with abundant deposition of quartz and
sulphides gradually decreasing in intensity with depth.
The Mavrovouni ore was similar in many respects to
massive ore from elsewhere in Cyprus, e.g. Skouriotissa
(Constantinou, 1972), being described as having a fragmental (conglomeratic) appearance with hard sulphide
blocks enclosed in a sandy friable matrix (Bruce, 1947;
Wilson, 1959). The texture was attributed to the replacement of pillows, initially around pillow margins and later
through a system of cracks into the entire pillow resulting
in the fragmental appearance. In view of the possible subsea floor replacement genesis of this deposit, this interpretation may be more appropriate for most part of the
Mavrovouni deposit, with the exception of the limited
exhalative part where the hydrothermal fluids reached the
sea floor.

accompanied by bornite and chalcopyrite in the glassy

matrix of a volcanic breccia. The mineralised zone was
veined by grey and red pyritic jasper. The glassy lava
beneath the ore zone was commonly zeolitised, and
contained nodular sulphide in a mostly unaltered matrix.
Evidence for a possible transported nature of the East
Lefka deposit is the large length/thickness ratio of the
ore zone, the absence of evidence for a channelway for
the hydrothermal fluids, and the intercalation of
sedimentary units both above and below the mineralised
horizon. Intercalation between volcano-sedimentary and
volcanic rocks is a common feature of the immediate
environment of the deposit.
Apliki

Recent mapping of the environs of the Apliki mine

(Adamides, 2003a), coupled with the examination of old
CMC records, has brought to light the main features of
the disposition of this structurally controlled deposit. On
the eastern wall of the opencut, unmineralised Lower
Pillow Lavas are associated with hyaloclastic material
and thick columnar-jointed flows. Their contact with the
mineralised lavas is faulted. The lavas east of the fault are
increasingly chloritised as the contact is approached, and
analcite is joined by quartz as the vesicle-filling mineral in
the hanging wall lavas, suggesting the addition of silica as
well as alkalis in the lavas by the hydrothermal fluids. On
the western side, fresh, hyaloclastite-rich Lower Pillow
Lavas are exposed, whereas on the north wall, the contact
with the ore zone is defined by satin spar gypsum veining
associated with leached lava and chloritic breccia, and
intense shearing.
The exposed mineralisation is of typical stockwork
type, with veins and cavity fillings of pyrite and subordinate chalcopyrite in fractured lavas. Jasper is widespread in veins in the altered lavas. Examination of the

East Lefka

The deposit is inaccessible to direct study as it is still

unexploited, and all information is derived from archived
CMC data (Adamides, 2004). The orebody is located at
the upper parts of the volcanic pile, beneath recent
alluvium, and occurs in the form of disconnected lenses of
ore in volcanic breccias which are interbedded with and
underlain by unaltered lavas (Fig. 7), without evidence of
a stockwork zone. The lithology of the ore, as described
in drillhole logs, was mostly in the form of nodular
grains of sulphide coated with sooty chalcocite and

8 Eastwest section through the Apliki deposit. Redrawn

from archived CMC data

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Mafic-dominated sulphide deposits in the Troodos ophiolite, Cyprus: Part 1

9 Geological map of the Skouriotissa area

concentrated in the hanging wall side of the structure,

although chloritic alteration, silicification and low-grade
mineralisation locally persist into the footwall side.
Furthermore, strong oxidation, which is mainly confined
to the hanging wall side, persists southwards along the
fault, suggesting that the fault has acted as a pathway to
the mineralising fluids which replaced suitable lithologies,
where more intense fracturing due to fault movements
prepared the ground for deposition of ore fluids. A
northerly trend of the structure is in agreement with a
similar trend and easterly dip of the dykes in the Sheeted
Complex in this area.
The mineralisation sharply terminates in the northerly
direction against another fault marked by shearing and
haematitic gouge, with unaltered Lower Pillow Lavas in the
footwall side. In the hanging wall side, the mineralisation
decreases in intensity southwards, and the altered chloritised
ground beyond the ore zone is characterised by brecciation,
widespread quartz and jasper veining and epidotisation.
These associations have been interpreted as the result of the
interaction of hydrothermal fluids with oxygenated seawater
during ore deposition (Adamides, 1984).
The lithological relationships at West Apliki suggest that
ore localisation was controlled by the two orthogonal
structures which assisted in the focussing of the hydrothermal fluids with deposition of the sulphides predominantly in their hanging wall side, with the footwall side being
either unaltered or chloritised but generally unmineralised.

CMC records revealed that, in contrast to the picture that

emerges from the present geological associations, massive
sulphide originally overlay the stockwork zone and this
was in turn overlain by Upper Pillow Lavas and
tuffaceous sediments (Fig. 8), suggesting that the massive
sulphide mineralisation was structurally controlled within
a mini graben and owed its preservation to the cover of
tuffaceous units and lavas. Historical geological maps of
the environs of the Apliki deposit prior to mining
indicated the presence of limestone overlying the shales
in the area of the opencut, reinforcing the interpretation
that a much younger sequence, now removed by mining,
occupied the space between the two bounding faults. The
ore zone extends northwards in the form of low-grade
disseminated mineralisation while the southern extensions merge into altered ground and are mainly covered
under waste dumps.
West Apliki

This concentration of predominantly disseminated-style

mineralisation is defined on the surface by an extensive
area of haematitic and limonitic oxidation. The deposit is
located within Lower Pillow Lavas, close to the faulted
contact with the Sheeted Complex (Adamides, 2001c;
2003a), (Fig. 2). The mineralisation predominantly comprises pyrite and chalcopyrite, with the sulphides oxidised
at higher levels into limonite, haematite and goethite. At
lower levels, pyrite is mostly preserved, but chalcopyrite is
replaced by chalcocite, bornite and covellite, with unaltered chalcopyrite increasing in proportion with depth.
A controlling function in the deposition of the
mineralisation is played by a well-defined northnortheasterly trending fault which is exposed at various places
in the western end of the oxidation zone. The fault is
marked by strong shearing, and dips steeply to the east
southeast. The highest grades of the mineralisation are

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The Skouriotissa deposits

Phoukasa

The Phoukasa deposit (Fig. 9) conforms with the classic

style of Cyprus-type massive sulphide deposits as initially
stylised by Hutchinson and Searle (1971) from observations at Skouriotissa and North Mathiatis. A laterally
extensive lens of massive sulphide was locally overlain by

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10 Block model of the Phoukasa deposit, constructed

from data of Cullis and Edge (1927) by the digitisation
of original outline of massive sulphide. Cell size: x55,
y55 and z51

ochre and laterally resting on unaltered pillow lavas. A

stockwork zone was implied to underlie the massive
sulphide; however, initial exploration did not identify its
presence due to its limited extent compared to the
overlying massive pyritic lens.
Modelling of the Phoukasa deposit by the use of data
from the work of Cullis and Edge (1927) highlights the
lensoidal form of the massive sulphide and the truncating
role of a north-trending post-mineralisation fault which
downthrows the western part of the pyritic lens towards
the west by a distance of 30 m (Fig. 10). The massive
sulphide deposit is directly overlain by ochre, followed by
umber of the Perapedhi Formation without any intervening lavas. The ochre has been extensively studied by
Constantinou (1972) and interpreted as the product of the
submarine oxidation of massive sulphide.
Directly underlying the massive sulphide lens was a
stockwork zone which comprised an association of quartz,
pyrite and chalcopyrite which extends with diminishing
intensity to lower levels, merging into the underlying
pervasively altered lavas. A lateral gradation of the stockwork mineralisation into unaltered lavas in the northern
side of the deposit was described by Adamides (1984), and
was marked by a change from chlorite-dominated assemblages in the stockwork zone to the smectite-dominated
unaltered lavas through an intermediate zone of mixed-layer
clays. This transition defines a temperature gradient from
300350uC within the central parts of the stockwork pipe to
low-temperature assemblages in the areas away from centre.
The Phoukasa massive sulphide was overlain in its eastern
extensions by a sequence of thin-bedded pyritic cherts,
which are interpreted as hydrothermal in origin and similar
to the siliceous exhalites in equivalent settings (Juniper and
Fouquet, 1988; Duhig et al., 1992a).
Phoukasa was separated from Phoenix by a major
structure, the Skouriotissa Fault (Adamides, 1987), which
brought the massive sulphide and unaltered olivine
basalts into structural juxtaposition (Fig. 11). Closely
associated with this structure was an extensive layer of
auriferous leached lava which formed a subhorizontal
blanket over the eastern part of Phoenix. This leached
material, which in places consisted entirely of vuggy silica
with veins and disseminations of crystalline jarosite, was
originally overlain by the sedimentary units suggesting
that it is probably the result of the oxidation of massive
sulphide mineralisation which was initiated at an early
stage in the history of the deposit. The present relationships are due to post-mineralisation dextral transcurrent
movements along the Skouriotissa Fault, which resulted

Mafic-dominated sulphide deposits in the Troodos ophiolite, Cyprus: Part 1

11 Geological section through the Phoukasa and Phoenix

deposits

in the uplift and erosion of the western part of the

Phoukasa lens, whose eastern extension was preserved
under the cover of umber and ochre.
Phoenix

The deposit (Adamides, 1987) (Fig. 12) is the only one

presently worked, and comprises an extensive body of
disseminated mineralisation which extends in a westerly
direction almost to the area of Karyotis River (Fig. 9),
where the alteration zone is displaced northwards by a
concealed structure. The mineralisation was limited to the
northeast by the Skouriotissa Fault; however, the contacts
in all other directions are gradational. Typical examples of
such gradations from unaltered olivine basalts to mineralised lavas are observable in the southeastern part of
Phoenix. In a southwards traverse from the olivine basalts
to the mineralised ground, earthy haematite initially
appears in interpillow spaces within the unaltered lavas,
increasing in abundance as the contact is approached,
followed by incipient chloritisation which increases in
intensity until it merges into the pervasively altered and
mineralised ground.
The mineralisation at Phoenix is mostly represented
by veins and disseminations of pyrite in pervasively
chloritised but only weakly silicified pillow lavas. Pillow
structures are discernible in numerous places, but,
elsewhere, tectonic movements probably also associated
with hydraulic fracturing resulted in the obliteration of
pillow structure. Extensive tectonic brecciation is particularly evident in the area close to the Skouriotissa
Fault, where it is associated with widespread satin spar
veining. Non-pillowed flows are locally present within
the pillow pile, and these are invariably more poorly
mineralised than the pillowed units; however, dykes are
entirely absent. However, dykes are entirely absent and
mineralisation is mainly in the form of replacement of
the interpillow spaces as veinlets traversing the body of
the pillows, and as lesser pyritic disseminations inside
the pillows.
Primary chalcopyrite is generally scarce in Phoenix,
and has been observed in some quantity only very locally,
such as the southern parts of the opencut (Fig. 13A). The
main copper minerals at higher levels in the oxidised zone
were oxides of copper passing at deeper levels into
supergene sulphides, predominantly chalcocite which in
the areas close to the Skouriotissa Fault, immediately
beneath the blanket of leached lava, occurred commonly
in massive form closely associated with pyrite. Elsewhere,
chalcocite-coated pyrite is the main form of copper ore.
Atacamite was common in the supergene zone directly
beneath the leached lava and nodular delafossite is

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12 Geological map of the Phoenix deposit

subordinate carbonate replacing plagioclase, which, in

contrast to the lavas, is partly preserved.
Epidote is common in the marginal parts of the ore
zone, and abundantly present in the deeper parts of the
deposit, where it forms euhedral radiating crystals
commonly associated with quartz (Fig. 13D). It varies
in colour from shades of pink to pistachio green,
reflecting compositional variations. The genesis of the
mineral is associated with minimum temperatures of the
order of 200250uC (Arnason and Bird, 1992) and
increased oxygen fugacities, and in the Cyprus hydrothermal systems, it is commonly present in the marginal
parts of the ore zones, as well as in the deeper extensions
of the stockwork zones where hydrothermal epidote may
merge into regional-metamorphic epidote.
Red jasper is widely present in the mineralised lavas,
either in the form of veins or as material partly filling
interpillow space. The jasper is commonly pyritic and locally
may be the product of mineralisation of pre-existing
interpillow sediments (Richards et al., 1989). However, its
common association with fault zones, and the increased
presence of jasper at the marginal parts of the ore zone
suggest a genesis related to interaction of the hydrothermal
fluids with seawater. In addition to the blood-red haematitic
jasper, grey cherty silica veins, probably representing its
reduced equivalent, are also present in the mineralised lavas.
Biogenic forms identified in jaspers from Phoenix (Fig. 14)
suggest a genesis by low-temperature silicairon-rich fluids
close to the area of high-temperature hydrothermal activity,
as commonly observed in present-day (Emerson and
Moyer, 2002; Little et al., 2004) as well as in ancient
analogous environments (Juniper and Fouquet, 1988;
Duhig et al., 1992a, b).
Immediately west of Phoenix beyond the Karyotis
River, an extensive area of chloritic alteration and jasper
veining centred on the Aphisallos Ridge (Fig. 9) is the
lateral extension of the Phoenix ore zone. No economic
mineralisation has been identified at this locality;

commonly described in CMC logs to accompany the

supergene assemblage.
At the current deeper levels of the deposit, the copper
mineralisation is mainly represented by delafossite associated with goethite and native copper (Adamides, 2010)
(Fig. 13B). An apple-green, sugary-textured mineral,
tentatively identified as nontronite is a common associate
of the ore minerals. Petrographic evidence suggests that it
is paragenetically late, replacing both quartz and earlier
chlorite (Fig. 13C). Its genesis may be related to the
downward percolation of iron- and silica-rich fluids under
supergene conditions (Harder, 1978). Its spatial association with the areas close to the Skouriotissa Fault is consistent with this interpretation. However, X-ray diffraction
work on visually similar material returned a natroalunite
pattern (H. Prichard, pers. commun., 2010), and further
work is required to confirm the nature of the supergene
minerals.
Wall rock alteration is mainly represented by an
association of quartz and chlorite, typical of most of the
Cyprus deposits. Chlorite replaces interstitial glass and
ferromagnesian minerals. Plagioclase crystals are commonly replaced by a mosaic of smaller quartz crystals. Two
generations of chlorite are commonly present: matrix
chlorite, which is typically green and faintly pleochroic
with non-anomalous birefringence; and chlorite occurring
in vesicles and veins, which is well-crystallised, green with a
brownish tint, and faintly pleochroic with non-anomalous
birefringence. Previous petrographic work on Phoenix
(Nicolaides, 1999) identified this second-generation wellcrystallised chlorite as rectorite. In the vesicle paragenesis,
chlorite occupies the walls and quartz the inner parts,
probably suggesting that chloritisation preceded silicification. The intensity of alteration varies with lithology and
location within the ore zone, and the more massive nonpillowed units are less altered than the pillowed lavas. In
the latter cases, plagioclase is albitised and the matrix of
the rock is composed of low-birefringence chlorite with

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13 Mineralogical aspects of the Phoenix deposit: (A) fracture-guided replacement of chalcopyrite by covellite and chalcocite;
(B) association of native copper and delafossite in altered lava; (C) possible supergene nontronite replacing earlier hydrothermal quartz and chlorite; (D) hydrothermal deposition of euhedral epidote and quartz in veins at the basal parts of the
Phoenix deposit. Abbreviations: COV5covellite; CPY5chalcopyrite; CU5native copper; DE5delafossite; EP5epidote;
GO5goethite; NO5nontronite; QZ5quartz

however, the pervasive chloritisation and widespread

jasper veining suggest the action of low-temperature
hydrothermal fluids, as observed in modern analogous
settings (Rona, 2005).
Three Hills

The deposit is located southeast of Phoukasa (Fig. 9) and

was discovered by CMC, initially referred to as the KZone. A gallery was driven into the hillside and was
sampled in detail (Fig. 15), the results of the sampling
highlighting the copper-rich nature of the mineralisation.
However, no exploitation of the deposit was performed
until 2003 when HCM exploited part of the deposit by
opencut methods. The operations were temporarily interrupted during the slump in copper price and a significant
resource still awaits exploitation.
The surface expression of the deposit was unimpressive, with the conspicuous multicoloured gossan of other
occurrences, such as West Apliki, being absent, and the
ground characterised by generally weak iron staining and
local stronger haematitic oxidation. Similarly to Phoenix, the mineralised lithology comprises entirely pillow
lavas with local non-pillowed units; dykes are absent
(Adamides, 2002). The rocks are pervasively chloritised in
the area around the deposit, and the mineralisation was
surrounded as well as overlain by an alteration envelope.
The ore mineralogy mainly comprised an association of
pyrite and chalcopyrite with local sphalerite (Adamides,
2002). Pyrite is the most common sulphide mineral and
occurs in the entire mass of altered lavas either as
disseminations within the body of the rock or as veins
commonly in association with quartz. In the oxidised
zone, the pyrite is replaced by hydroxides of the goethite
lepidocrocite group. In the paragenetic sequence, pyrite
appears to be the earliest sulphide to crystallise from the

hydrothermal fluids, generally occupying the walls of

veins, and deposited on quartz which lines the fractures.
Although the pyrite is mainly in the form of thin veins or
disseminations, in areas of intense mineralisation, pockets
of massive pyrite form by total replacement of the host
rock. The mineral occurs in well-developed commonly
striated cubes or pyritohedra.
Chalcopyrite is present in many parts of the opencut,
although in most cases it is partly or entirely replaced by
its secondary minerals. It is intimately intergrown with
the other sulphide minerals in veins, and commonly
shows iridescent blue and red coatings as a result of
incipient oxidation, with widespread interstitial chalcocite and covellite. In the more intensely oxidised parts of
the deposit, chalcopyrite is replaced by an association of
covellite and chalcocite. Paragenetically, the chalcopyrite is later than the pyrite, occupying the central parts of
veins often in association with sphalerite. In contrast to
the chalcopyrite which is variably oxidised, the sphalerite is entirely fresh, black in colour, with excellent
cleavage and a honey-brown resinous lustre.
Quartz is the sole and ubiquitous gangue mineral,
occurring in all parts of the deposit in the form of veins
and vesicle fillings. In the chloritised zone, it lines
vesicles or forms thin veinlets of euhedral clear crystals.
In the mineralised zone, it accompanies the sulphide
minerals and generally lines the walls of veins indicating
its early position in the paragenetic sequence. However,
the mineral is also intergrown with the sulphide minerals
indicating that its precipitation persisted throughout the
mineralising episode.
The Three Hills deposit is an ore concentration which is
considered to have been deposited in a lithologically and
structurally amenable site, with ore deposition taking

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Mafic-dominated sulphide deposits in the Troodos ophiolite, Cyprus: Part 1

14 Textures observed in jaspers of the Phoenix deposit: (A) association of colloform haematite bodies, in places with
central siliceous core, enclosed in microcrystalline, locally recrystallised silica, suggesting a colloidal precursor; (B)
rod-like haematite bodies enclosed in microcrystalline silica (cf. Little et al., 2004; Fig. 3B); (C) tubular haematite
forms of possible organic origin, enclosed in microcrystalline silica

breakdown of the massive sulphide (Seward, 1999) leaving

a residue of leached auriferous lava composed mainly of
porous silica and jarosite. The gold previously contained in
the massive sulphide remained spatially associated with
this leached material; however, the copper descended in
solution to lower levels where it was deposited in the form
of chalcocite, using the abundant disseminated and vein
pyrite in the Phoenix deposit as the catalyst for its
precipitation. Iron- and silica-rich supergene fluids similarly moved downwards to deposit abundant natroalunite and nontronite, particularly in the areas close to the
Skouriotissa Fault, replacing the pre-existing alteration
assemblage. The deposition of nontronite is favoured by
the presence of abundant iron and silica in solution, as a
result of the oxidation of the massive sulphide, and the
change of physicochemical conditions from oxidising close
to surface to reducing at depth (Harder, 1978).
In the absence of the pyrite, the copper-rich fluids
would have been dissipated and lost from the immediate
environment. Without this secondary enrichment, the
Phoenix deposit would in most part be a vein-type
mostly pyritic deposit with only minor local chalcopyrite
veining. If the assumption is made that the grade of
Phoenix prior to the supergene enrichment was 0?2%Cu,
the present resource which amounts to 40 million tonnes
of ore of average grade 0?4%Cu would be produced by
the weathering of approximately 3?5 million tonnes of
massive sulphide of the average grade of Phoukasa
(2?25%Cu). This in turn suggests that the original
Phoukasa massive sulphide deposit was close to 10
million tonnes in size.

place predominantly beneath the sea floor. Structurally, it

is located on the southern extension of the Skouriotissa
fault, and the controlling structure may have been an
offshoot of this fault. The symmetrical distribution of
faults and veins around this structural direction provides
support for this conclusion.

Discussion and conclusions

A description has been provided of the setting of the
deposits in the western part of the Solea graben. The
deposits vary from the unequivocally exhalative, classic
Cyprus-type, typified by Phoukasa, to deposits forming
in most part within the lavas, e.g. the Three Hills deposit
which probably never had an exhalative component.
Subsurface deposition of the latter mineralisation by
mixing of the hydrothermal fluids with seawater resulted
in extensive chloritisation which characterises the local
area. A structural control for ground preparation and
the deposition of sulphides may have been provided by
the intersection between the southeasterly extension of
the Skouriotissa fault and northerly structures.
The Mavrovouni deposit probably formed in most
part within the lavas, as it is surrounded on all sides by
altered and chloritised lavas with a zone of disseminated
mineralisation overlying the more massive pyritic core
(Bruce, 1947; Wilson, 1959; Bear, 1963). Locally the
hydrothermal fluids may have reached the sea floor,
depositing exhalative mineralisation and resulting in the
formation of the East Lefka deposit in the form of
disconnected lenses devoid of associated stockwork
zones in the surrounding lavas, probably by movement
of the sulphide-laden hydrothermal fluid down the local
paleoslope. A corollary of this inference is that the
density of the hydrothermal fluids was higher than the
ambient seawater, resulting in ore deposition in local
depressions on the sea floor and not their dissipation
into the surrounding water, conforming thus to the type
1 hydrothermal fluid of Sato (1972).
The genesis of the Phoenix deposit is interpreted to be
the result of supergene processes which were probably
initiated at an early stage in the history of the deposit. As
suggested from the geological section (Fig. 11), if an
originally geometrically balanced sulphide lens is assumed,
a considerable part of the western extension of this lens
was dextrally translated and uplifted, with relation to the
eastern part, along the Skouriotissa Fault. Weathering,
initiated under submarine conditions but probably intensified after exposure to the subaerial environment, resulted
in the generation of copious amounts of sulphuric acid by

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Controls of ore deposition

One of the more intriguing aspects of the mineralisation
in the Solea graben is the absence of unequivocal
evidence of a structural control in the deposition of
some of the ore concentrations. This observation has led
Bear (1963) to suggest that an underlying heat source
may, in some cases, have been the primary factor for ore
deposition. In the case of the Skouriotissa group, the
Skouriotissa Fault may have played a role in ground
preparation, as it bisects the massive sulphide lens and
its northwesterly orientation suggests that it may have
been one of the axis-parallel structures, later rejuvenated
as a transcurrent fault. However, the role of this
structure is local and its trace feathers out into a series
of minor structures in its southeastern extensions,
although northwestwards it may be extending as far as
the environs of Aphisallos ridge (Fig. 9). A more deepseated cause for the deposition of the Skouriotissa group

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15 Geological map of the Three Hills deposit

may be envisaged by the localisation of the Phoukasa

massive sulphide lens at the intersection between a
northwesterly axial structure and a northeasterly transfer fault, evident from the magnetic map (Fig. 4);
however, an underlying cause, such as a gabbro stock,
may be the cause of ore deposition at this location, since
similar structural intersections elsewhere are barren of
mineralisation. Hydrothermal circulation induced by a
large shallow intrusive feeder to the Upper Pillow Lavas
is suggested for the genesis of the deposits (BettisonVarga and Varga, 1989) and is generally considered a
pre-requisite for the generation of sulphide deposits
(Large, 1977; Galley and Koski, 1999; Alt, 1999). The
association between high-level off-axis magma chambers
feeders to the Upper Pillow Lavas and mineralisation
had also been previously suggested by Adamides (1984)
on the basis of observations at the Limni and Kalavasos
mining districts.
Evidence for the presence of gabbroic intrusives underlying the Skouriotissa deposits is suggested from description of deep holes in historical CMC logs; however, their
role in ore genesis cannot be confirmed without further
evidence. Extensive epidotisation recorded in the rocks
directly below the Skouriotissa deposits has been cited by
Jowitt (2008) as possible evidence of intense leaching due
to the passage of large amounts of hydrothermal fluids;
however, the mode of occurrence of the quartzepidote
assemblage mainly as vesicle fillings in the lavas suggests a
hydrothermal origin of the epidote as part of the halo
around the areas of more intense sulphide mineralisation,
and not as a residual product of hydrothermal leaching.
The role of high-level intrusives in the genesis of the
Mavrovouni group of deposits may be more substantiated than for the Skouriotissa group. As indicated
from surface geology (Fig. 2), there are widespread
intrusives in the region between the Mavrovouni and
Apliki deposits, mainly in the form of medium-grained
dolerites concordant with the enclosing lavas, and these
may be the surface manifestation of an underlying
magma chamber which has driven circulation.
The northerly trend of the controlling structures for
both the Apliki and the Mavrovouni deposits is oblique to
the northwesterly trend of the Solea graben, and displays a
close association with the structure that forms the contact
between the Sheeted Complex in the west, and the pillow
lavas to the east in the area of Apliki. This structure, the
Troodos Forest Fault (Hurst et al., 1994), may be traced

Mafic-dominated sulphide deposits in the Troodos ophiolite, Cyprus: Part 1

southwards into the Plutonic Complex. A close association

between this fault and hydrothermal activity has been
noted by previous workers (Schiffman et al., 1987), and is
supported by findings in this work: extensive chloritisation
and iron staining characterises the Sheeted Complex in the
proximity of this structure, and thin (metre-scale) northtrending epidosite alteration is present in the diabase dykes
on the Apliki-Lefka road south of the Apliki deposit. The
intense chloritisation mapped by CMC geologists at the
northern continuation of the fault, the north-trending long
axis of the Mavrovouni deposit and the control of the
Apliki deposit by a possible splay of this structure (Hurst
et al., 1994) suggest that this was probably the controlling
structure for the deposits of the AplikiMavrovouni
group. It is suggested here that this structure is a possible
oceanic detachment fault and its role in the focusing of
hydrothermal fluids is similar to that invoked for similar
structures in the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, e.g. at the TAG
hydrothermal field (McCaig et al., 2007).
In conclusion, the deposits of the Solea graben in the
area examined exhibit a variety of modes of genesis, from
the purely exhalative (Phoukasa, Apliki), to subsurface
replacement (Mavrovouni, Three Hills) and supergene
enrichment (Phoenix), to deposits devoid of a stockwork
zone such as East Lefka which probably formed as a result
of deposition on irregularities of a paleoslope from fluids
which contemporaneously were forming the Mavrovouni
deposit. The lack of strict axis-related structural control
and their stratigraphic location at the top of the Pillow
Lava Series is consistent with formation in an off-axis
setting. Hydrothermal fluids were probably triggered by
high-level intrusions, and, in the case of Mavrovouni, the
role of the major Troodos Forest Fault may have been
critical in controlling ore deposition.

Acknowledgements
Grateful thanks are due to the Management of HCM
Ltd, and in particular to its Chief Executive Officer Mr
C. Xydas, for permission to publish this work. Thanks
are also extended to two anonymous reviewers for
constructive comments on the manuscript.

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A number of errors in the print version of this paper were corrected before publication of the online version,
which should be viewed as definitive. An erratum detailing the changes will appear in the next printed issue of the
journal (Vol. 119, No. 3).

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