Mineralium Deposita (2003) 38: 474–495
DOI 10.1007/s00126-002-0306-3
A RT I C L E
Timothy Baker Æ James R. Lang
Reconciling fluid inclusion types, fluid processes, and fluid sources
in skarns: an example from the Bismark Deposit, Mexico
Received: 17 October 2001 / Accepted: 18 June 2002 / Published online: 6 September 2002
Ó Springer-Verlag 2002
Abstract The Bismark deposit (8.5 Mt at 8% Zn, 0.5%
Pb, 0.2% Cu, and 50 g/t Ag) located in northern Mexico
is an example of a stock-contact skarn end member of a
continuum of deposit types collectively called high-
temperature, carbonate-replacement deposits. The
deposit is hosted by massive sulfide within altered
limestone adjacent to the Bismark quartz monzonite
stock (42 Ma) and the Bismark fault. Alteration con-
currently developed in both the intrusion and limestone.
The former contains early potassic alteration comprising
K-feldspar and biotite, which was overprinted by kaol-
inite-rich veins and alteration and later quartz, sericite,
and pyrite with minor sphalerite and chalcopyrite. Pro-
grade exoskarn alteration in the limestone consists of
green andradite and diopside, and transitional skarn
comprising red-brown andradite, green hedenbergite
and minor vesuvinite, calcite, fluorite, and quartz. The
main ore stage post-dates calc-silicate minerals and
comprises sphalerite and galena with gangue pyrite,
pyrrhotite, calcite, fluorite, and quartz. The entire hy-
drothermal system developed synchronously with fault-
ing. Fluid inclusion studies reveal several distinct
temporal, compositional, and thermal populations in
pre-, syn- and post-ore quartz, fluorite, and calcite. The
earliest primary fluid inclusions are coexisting vapor-rich
(type 2A) and halite-bearing (type 3A; type 3B contain
sylvite) brine inclusions (32 to >60 total wt% salts) that
occur in pre-ore fluorite. Trapping temperatures are es-
timated to have been in excess of 400 °C under litho-
static pressures of 450 bar (1.5 km depth). Primary
fluid inclusions trapped in syn-ore quartz display critical
Editorial handling: R.J. Goldfarb
T. Baker (&)
Economic Geology Research Unit, School of Earth Sciences,
James Cook University, Townsville, QLD 4810, Australia
E-mail: timothy.baker@jcu.edu.au
J.R. Lang
Lang Geoscience Inc., 10556 Suncrest Drive,
Delta, British Columbia V4C 2N5, Canada
to near critical behavior (type 1C), have moderate sa-
linity (8.4 to 10.9 wt% NaCl equiv.) and homogeniza-
tion temperatures (Th) ranging from 351 to 438 °C.
Liquid-rich type 1A and 1B (calcite-bearing) inclusions
occur as primary to secondary inclusions predominantly
in fluorite and show a range in Th (104–336 °C) and
salinity (2.7–11.8 wt% NaCl equiv.), which at the higher
Th and salinity ranges overlap with type 1C inclusions.
Oxygen isotope analysis was carried out on garnet,
quartz, and calcite (plus carbon isotopes) in pre-, syn-,
post-ore, and peripheral veins. Pre-ore skarn related
garnets have a d18Omineral range between 3.9 and 8.4&.
Quartz from the main ore stage range between 13.6 and
16.0&. Calcite from the main ore stage has d13C values
of –2.9 to –5.1& and d18O values of 12.3 to 14.1&,
which are clearly distinct from post-ore veins and
peripheral prospects that have much higher d18O
(16.6–27.3&) and d13C (1.3–3.1&) values. Despite the
numerous fluid inclusion types, only two fluid sources
can be inferred, namely a magmatic fluid and an external
fluid that equilibrated with limestone. Furthermore,
isotopic data does not indicate any significant mixing
between the two fluids, although fluid inclusion data
may be interpreted otherwise. Thus, the various fluid
types were likely to have formed from varying pressure–
temperature conditions through faulting during exsolu-
tion of magmatic fluids. Late-stage hydrothermal fluid
activity was dominated by the non-magmatic fluids and
was post-ore.
Keywords Base metals Æ Carbonate-replacement
deposits Æ Mexico Æ Skarns Æ Stable isotopes Æ
Fluid inclusions
Introduction
The operating Bismark mine is located in northern
Chihuahua, Mexico (Fig. 1). The deposit contains zinc,
lead, copper, and silver ore in massive sulfide associated
with stock-contact skarn (8.5 Mt at 8% Zn, 0.5% Pb,

Fig. 1 General geology and
location map of deposits and
prospects in the Bismark
district, Chihuahua. Modified
from Alvarez (1996)
0.2% Cu and 50 g/t Ag; Haptonstall 1994), and has
minor, peripheral epithermal style alteration and veins.
Mineralization is spatially and temporally related to a
composite Tertiary stock emplaced into a sedimentary
sequence dominated by Cretaceous carbonate rocks.
Bismark has been classified as a zinc-rich skarn deposit
and is an example of the stock-contact skarn end
member of a continuum of deposit types commonly and
collectively called high-temperature, carbonate-replace-
ment deposits (CRDs; Einaudi et al. 1981; Graybeal
et al. 1986; Megaw et al. 1988, 1996). These deposits
further progress through dike/sill contact skarn and
massive sulfide deposits, to massive sulfide deposits with
manto and chimney geometry and weak or no observ-
able links to intrusions. The CRDs are globally dis-
tributed, but Bismark can be most readily compared
with other CRDs in central and northern Mexico and
immediately adjacent regions. These deposits share
similarities of age, geological setting, and metallogenic
association that allow them to be distinguished from
generally similar deposits elsewhere (Titley 1993), such
as those of the Colorado Mineral Belt (Bookstrom
1990).
Megaw et al. (1996) have reviewed the numerous
studies that have sought to assess ore controls in
Mexican CRD systems. This body of work has, in
general, successfully cataloged, through field mapping
475
and mineralogical studies, the types and range in rela-
tive importance of structural and stratigraphic controls
on ore localization and zoning patterns (Megaw et al.
1988, 1996; Titley 1993, 1996). In contrast, controls
exerted by variations in fluid source and processes re-
main poorly documented because, even though fluid
inclusion data on Mexican CRD systems are abundant
(e.g., Sawkins 1964; Busek 1966; Erwood et al. 1979;
Gilmer et al. 1988; Haynes and Kesler 1988; Rubin and
Kyle 1988; Megaw 1990; Graf 1997), most studies have
evaluated only limited parts or aspects of large ore
systems. Collectively, these investigations have suggest-
ed that sulfide minerals precipitated from solutions with
extremely wide ranges in composition and temperature,
which include purely magmatic, basinal brine or mete-
oric waters and mixtures, and which have been affected
by processes that include mixing, boiling and phase
immiscibility (see summaries in Gilg 1996 ; McLemore
and Lueth 1996). The paucity of comprehensive fluid
inclusion studies in these systems has, therefore, limited
interpretation and testing of key aspects of the genesis
of these deposits.
The Bismark system is an ideal deposit at which to
address critical issues of fluid evolution and source in
CRD systems because its geological setting is well
constrained and contains a relatively simple vein
and alteration paragenesis compared with many
476

magmatic-hydrothermal systems. We first describe field
and petrographic constraints on the hydrothermal
evolution, and identify two alteration paths that si-
multaneously affected igneous and carbonate host
rocks. Petrography and microthermometry of fluid in-
clusions reveal a very complex hydrothermal history
with many compositionally and thermally distinct fluid
types. Despite this, oxygen and carbon isotope data on
hydrothermal minerals suggest restricted fluid sources.
The paper addresses the fluid processes that may have
led to the generation of such a wide range of fluid types
and how they can be reconciled with the limited fluid
sources. The paper concludes with a discussion of
possible relationships between fluid processes and ore
precipitation specific to Bismark, and considers broader
implications for understanding fluid evolution in other
skarn–manto–chimney systems in Mexico and else-
where.
Regional and local geological setting
Chihuahua region (Megaw et al. 1996) and the Bismark stock is
coincident with a northwest-trending anticline (Fig. 1). Crustal
relaxation occurred during the late stages of the Laramide Orogeny
and subsequently developed into northeast–southwest-directed ex-
tension during the Tertiary. Igneous activity occurred in the region
from approximately 45 to 25 Ma (Megaw et al. 1996). The late
Tertiary saw widespread development of high-angle normal faults
related to Basin and Range tectonics. Pre-Basin-and-Range faults
influenced emplacement of the Bismark stock and subsequent
hydrothermal activity. Emplacement of the stock was guided by
west–northwest-oriented extensional faults that acted as transfers
between regional-scale, transtensional, northwest-trending sinistral
faults (ERA-Maptec 1995; T. Starling, personal communication
2000). The Bismark and Diana transfer faults bound the southern
and northern contacts of the Bismark stock (Fig. 1), respectively.
The Bismark fault is the more important structure because known
ores formed in both its hanging wall and footwall where it inter-
sects or comes within tens of meters of the Bismark stock (Fig. 2).
The eastern and western limits of the Bismark stock are bounded
by smaller faults with north-northeast to northeast strikes and all
of these faults are mineralized. Pre-, syn- and post-hydrothermal
movement can be demonstrated on at least the Bismark fault be-
cause (1) pre-hydrothermal brecciation is recorded by broken, pre-
ore, fine-grained felsic dikes, (2) syn-hydrothermal breccias contain
fragments of weakly mineralized to barren exoskarn in a matrix of
massive sulfide, and (3) late- to post-hydrothermal brecciation

The Bismark deposit is located in the Chihuahua tectonostrati-

graphic terrane of Campa and Coney (1983). Basement comprises
Middle Proterozoic igneous and sedimentary rocks that were
metamorphosed in Grenvillian time (1.3–1.1 Ga; Ruiz et al.
1988), overlain by Paleozoic and Mesozoic siliciclastic and car-
bonate strata. Bismark lies on the western margin of the Chihuahua
Trough, a NW-trending marine embayment that contains a thick,
Jurassic sequence of basal red beds, evaporites and shales, overlain
by Early Cretaceous basinal limestones and capped by thick, Late
Cretaceous shales and limestones (Smith 1981; Sedlock et al. 1993;
Megaw et al. 1996). The immediate host rocks to the Bismark de-
posit are massive, medium- to thick-bedded, variably fossiliferous
limestones assigned to the Benigno Formation, a component of the
regionally extensive Aurora Group of north-central Mexico (Sed-
lock et al. 1993), which regionally is the principal host to all major
CRDs in northern Mexico (Megaw et al. 1988; Titley 1993). At
Bismark, the Benigno limestones are interbedded with narrow
horizons of quartzite and shale.
The sedimentary rocks were intruded by the Bismark stock, a
nearly circular body 2.5 km in diameter with an unpublished K–
Ar age on biotite of 42 Ma (internal data of Minera Bismark
S.A.; no error reported). The intrusion is composite, but an absence
of detailed mapping has limited evaluation of the relative timing
and distribution of individual phases. The main phase is a quartz
monzonite porphyry with as much as 60% phenocrysts of biotite,
round quartz eyes, and plagioclase laths as long as 10 mm, which
are set in a medium-grained matrix of quartz, K-feldspar, biotite,
magnetite, apatite, zircon, and titanite. The northernmost part of
the intrusion contains less biotite and has a fine-grained to aplitic
matrix, but is otherwise similar to the main phase. Minor phases
occur as narrow dikes and/or sills within the sedimentary rocks
adjacent to the stock and include an equigranular to subporphyritic
phase mineralogically similar to the main quartz monzonite por-
phyry, and narrow, aphanitic, felsic dikes. Similar dikes in other
major Mexican CRDs have close spatial and temporal links with
the main mineralization stage (Megaw et al. 1988). Unfaulted
contacts of the intrusion are near vertical where intersected by
mining or drilling.
The principal deformation in the Bismark area occurred during
northeast-directed fold-thrust tectonism in the Late Cretaceous to
early Tertiary (Laramide Orogeny; Sedlock et al. 1993). This de-
formation predates magmatic–hydrothermal activity in the region Fig. 2 Cross section through the main ore zone in the Bismark
and ended at about 50 Ma (Clark and Ponce 1983; Hennings et al. mine (looking west, mine section 40). The ore coincides with the
1989). The Laramide Orogeny produced northwest-trending contacts between the Bismark stock, limestone and the Bismark
structures that control much of the mineralization in the fault

contains massive sulfide and exoskarn fragments in a poorly min-
eralized to barren matrix.
Orebodies and prospects
Ores and prospects at Bismark can be subdivided geo-
graphically into three styles (Fig. 1): (1) the main ore-
bodies along the southern contact of the Bismark stock;
(2) prospects located along other contacts of the stock;
and (3) peripheral prospects located as far as 2 km from
the stock. Modern exploration in the vicinity of the
deposit occurred in the mid-1950s when bismuth-rich-
mineralization was encountered in outcrop along the
Bismark fault (Magaw, personal communication 2002).
The main ore body was delineated through magnetom-
eter methods followed by induced polarization and
subsequent drilling.
Main orebodies
Sulfide mineralization at Bismark is hosted by massive
limestone and exoskarn in both the hanging wall and
footwall of the Bismark fault, within about 100 m of the
intrusive contact. The ore zone forms a sheet that dips 75
to 80° to the southwest and is about 700 m long and
locally extends more than 500 m downdip. Ores occur as
(1) incipient to massive replacement of exoskarn (ma-
jority of ore); (2) massive replacements of recrystallized
gray limestone or white marble (most common in the
hanging wall); (3) veins that cut all other ore styles (vol-
umetrically minor, but widespread); and (4) replacements
of the Bismark stock (rare and economically insignifi-
cant). Hanging wall ore is in contact with both marble
and exoskarn, whereas footwall ore is mostly within
exoskarn or in sharp to faulted contact with the stock.
The massive sulfide replacements parallel the steeply
dipping stratigraphy on the southern limb of the anticline
into which the Bismark stock was emplaced, and grade
rapidly outward through semi-massive zones, to sulfide
veins of irregular form, to peripheral chlorite–calcite–
quartz–sulfide veins. This zoning pattern extends as far as
150 m into the hanging wall of the Bismark fault.
Preliminary three-dimensional models (unpublished
data, Bismark mine staff) suggest ore forms several
steeply plunging bodies that narrow with depth and that
are exposed at progressively deeper levels to the east. In
the upper part of the deposit, ore is found in both the
hanging wall and footwall of the Bismark fault (Fig. 2).
Hanging wall ores are Zn–Pb–Ag deposits with consis-
tently low copper grades (<0.3%) that grade outward
to Pb–Ag veins. The higher levels of the footwall ores
are also Zn–Pb–Ag deposits with low copper, but with
increasing depth ores in the hanging wall diminish
markedly in importance and footwall ores are zinc-rich,
with low grades of silver, almost no anomalous lead, and
markedly higher copper grades that commonly reach
1.5%.
477
Contact prospects
Minor skarn, with subeconomic zones of Pb–Zn–Ag
mineralization, is erratically distributed surrounding the
stock contact outside of the area of active mining. They
occur in several styles (Fig. 1). First, veins and small
replacements of pyritic or pyrrhotitic massive sulfide
occur with elevated Pb–Ag and variable Zn–Cu con-
centrations. This mineralization is similar in style and
assemblage to that observed in the peripheral parts of
the mine and is most commonly found adjacent to
narrow felsic dikes (e.g., area Norponiente; Fig. 1).
Second, these zones exist as completely oxidized, fault-
hosted iron and manganese oxide mineralization with
elevated Pb–Zn–Ag values similar to that observed in
peripheral prospects (e.g., area PP; Fig. 1). Finally,
disseminated and fracture-controlled mineralization is
observed within the outer margins of the Bismark stock
(e.g., area BHP; Fig. 1). Calc-silicate alteration of
limestone is present in all of these areas and ranges from
broad zones of low intensity disseminated alteration, to
small zones of pervasive replacement.
Peripheral prospects
Peripheral prospects are found within and immediately
adjacent to major structures (Fig. 1) and lack calc-sili-
cate alteration. The prospects comprise (1) open space
infill surrounding breccia fragments that consist of cal-
cite and iron and manganese oxides, variably accom-
panied by quartz and siderite (e.g., El Cartucho; Fig. 1),
(2) crustiform quartz veins (e.g., La Medalla; Fig. 1),
and (3) fracture-controlled zones of jasperoidal silicifi-
cation (e.g., Cerro del Tanque; Fig. 1). Mineralization in
peripheral prospects is restricted to iron and manganese
oxide within faults, with erratically elevated values of
Pb–Zn–Ag; a single assay for gold from the La Medalla
vein returned 0.5 ppm.
Hydrothermal parageneses in the Bismark Mine
Alteration effects at Bismark include pre-hydrothermal
contact metamorphism related to emplacement of the
Bismark stock, pre- to syn-ore metasomatic alteration
that followed two parallel, coeval alteration paths within
(Fig. 3) and outside (Fig. 4) the Bismark stock, and
minor post-ore veins. Evaluation of alteration parage-
neses is based upon field observation and optical and
scanning electron microscopy (SEM) petrography of 101
polished thin sections. Comments on mineral composi-
tions are purely qualitative and based upon the presence
or absence of elemental peaks on SEM spectra. Altera-
tion is described in a series of stages in which the ma-
jority of minerals are interpreted to be in equilibrium.
However, subtle timing relationships between mineral
growth are indicated within an individual stage through
the use of timelines in Figs. 3 and 4.
478
Fig. 3 Paragenetic sequence diagram for alteration assemblages
found within the Bismark stock. Width of lines indicates relative
abundance. Dashed lines are minor or trace phases. Dotted lines
indicate uncertainty in timing of minor phases
Fig. 4 Paragenetic sequence diagram for alteration assemblages in
limestone adjacent to the Bismark stock. Significance of lines as in
Fig. 3
Thermal metamorphism
The earliest alteration reflects an aureole of contact
metamorphism as wide as 120 m in width surrounding
the Bismark stock that converted limestone to gray re-
crystallized limestone or white marble, shale to massive,
fine-grained hornfels, and sandstone to quartzite. Dis-
seminated pyrite and lesser pyrrhotite are common in
recrystallized limestone, and to a lesser extent in white
marble, hornfels and quartzite. This alteration pre-dated
economic sulfide mineralization.
Alteration of intrusions
Alteration within the Bismark stock is mostly concen-
trated within tens of meters of its contact with sedi-
mentary rocks, and progresses over time through
K-silicate, kaolinite, and sericite-sulfide stages (Fig. 3).
All three stages are present in the main stock, but in
peripheral dikes the former presence of K-silicate alter-
ation, if ever developed, has been masked by later
alteration.
Potassium-silicate alteration is the earliest stage and,
although locally intense, usually preserves igneous tex-
ture. It is dominated by dark pink K-feldspar that re-
places the rims of compositionally zoned plagioclase
phenocrysts and igneous K-feldspar in the normally gray
matrix of the intrusion (Fig. 5a); hydrothermal biotite
replaces igneous biotite. The alteration is predominantly
pervasive with only local evidence for fracture control.
Other phases include minor sericite and albite, and
variable, but typically, trace ilmenite, titanite, apatite,
quartz, and pyroxene of mixed hedenbergite–diopside
composition. Chlorite and ferroactinolite amphibole are
commonly present, but are texturally related to later
alteration. Rutile formed during breakdown of igneous
biotite.
Kaolinite-dominated alteration is fracture-controlled,
preserves igneous textures (Fig. 5b), and overprints
K-silicate alteration. It is volumetrically much less
abundant than either K-silicate or sericite alteration.
Veinlets are mostly <2 mm in width and contain kaol-
inite and quartz. Kaolinite typically occurs in alteration
envelopes (<2 cm in width) surrounding the veinlets
and preferentially replaced plagioclase phenocrysts.
However, plagioclase that was previously altered to
K-feldspar remains relatively unaltered. Trace albite and
ferroan dolomite or ankerite occurs locally. In rare
cases, intrusive rock has been affected by pervasive
kaolinite alteration in zones as wide as 2 m and tens of
meters in length along faults.
Sericite-sulfide alteration replaces both K-silicate and
kaolinite alteration. It is both pervasive and fracture-
controlled, and primary textures are locally destroyed.
Intrusive rock is lightened to a light gray to buff color
that reflects pervasive replacement of igneous and earlier
hydrothermal feldspars and biotite by sericite and minor
ferroactinolite amphibole and carbonate (mostly calcite,
with lesser dolomite and ferroan dolomite). Traces of
apatite and rutile also replace biotite. This alteration
typically contains 5 to 20 vol% pyrite, along with lesser
pyrrhotite, minor sphalerite and chalcopyrite, and trace
galena. The alteration zones have a mottled appearance
that reflects pseudomorphic replacement of igneous

quartz eyes by sulfide minerals, fluorite, calcite and
quartz, lesser but variable sericite, ferroan, and manga-
noan dolomite and possibly siderite, and very rarely
narrow rims of K-feldspar (Fig. 5c). Veinlets are locally
present, are typically <3 mm in width and infilled by the
same minerals that replace the quartz eyes, and have
mineralogically similar envelopes.
Alteration in limestone
Alteration in limestone adjacent to the Bismark stock
progresses from an early, barren stage of massive, pro-
grade exoskarn, through a volumetrically minor, weakly
mineralized exoskarn that is transitional to later retro-
grade effects related to the main stage of sulfide mineral
precipitation in the deposit.
Massive prograde exoskarn forms a nearly vertical
sheet, mostly within the footwall and to a lesser extent in
the hanging wall of the Bismark fault, within 100 m of
the main intrusive contact (Fig. 2). Farthest from the
Fig. 5a–c Photographs of alteration within the Bismark stock.
a Pervasive K-silicate (K-feldspar and biotite) alteration of the
Bismark stock. b Kaolinite alteration of plagioclase phenocrysts in
an envelope adjacent to a central kaolinite-filled fracture. c Quartz
eye phenocryst in main quartz monzonite porphyry replaced by
quartz, fluorite and base metal sulfide minerals (part of the sulfide-
sericite stage)
479
stock, a distinct fracture control to exoskarn formation
is evident, with calc-silicate minerals altering limestone
in envelopes and along intersected bedding planes. Local
pockets lined by coarse euhedral garnets and infilled by
later calcite and fluorite attest to the presence of local
voids within the massive exoskarn. Prograde exoskarn is
commonly in sharp contact against its host rocks
(Fig. 6a), although in many locations the contact is
faulted or obscured by later massive sulfide ores.
Prograde exoskarn exhibits a very consistent mineral
paragenesis across the entire deposit. Earliest alteration
comprises an essentially monomineralic assemblage of
massive, commonly euhedral crystals of green garnet
(Fig. 6b). Textures demonstrate that the massive green
garnetite retained considerable intergranular porosity,
which was commonly exploited by later fluids (Fig. 6b).
Garnet grains commonly have unzoned, isotropic cores,
which are mostly andradite, overgrown by well-zoned,
anisotropic margins with mixed andradite–grossularite
compositions (Fig. 6b). Where garnets have been
replaced by later alteration, their margins have irregular
Fig. 6a, b Photographs of skarn and main-stage ore alteration in
the Bismark system. a Early garnet skarn in sharp contact with
marble, both overprinted by the main stage mineralization.
b Pyroxene-altered early garnet rimmed by transitional stage,
strongly zoned garnet with ore stage galena, sphalerite, quartz,
calcite, and fluorite infill
480
extinction patterns. The later stages of massive garnet
formation included precipitation of minor quartz, cal-
cite, fluorite, K-feldspar, pyroxene and vesuvianite, and
trace apatite. Crystals of diopside, and to a much rarer
extent calcite and fluorite, commonly occur as euhedral
inclusions near the outer margins of garnet grains. Most
vesuvianite, pyroxene, calcite, and fluorite occur inter-
stitial to garnet and, although grain boundaries are lo-
cally sharp and planar, generally replace the garnet.
Interstitial pyroxene is typically zoned from diopsidic
cores to margins that contain a significant hedenbergite
and/or johannsonite component. No vertical or lateral
zoning in mineralogy or qualitative mineral composi-
tions has been recognized in the massive exoskarn.
Small, irregular zones or planar veins of endoskarn
are found locally within the Bismark stock, typically
within a few meters of its margin. The alteration is in-
variably pervasive and remnant quartz eyes are com-
monly all that remain of primary igneous texture. Major
minerals are grossularite and diopside. Minor quartz,
calcite, epidote, and K-feldspar are present, locally with
pyrite, pyrrhotite, chalcopyrite, and sphalerite. In most
cases, these minerals replace garnet but, in some places,
K-feldspar and calcite poikilitically enclose garnet
euhedra, suggesting partial temporal overlap.
Transitional exoskarn is a volumetrically minor al-
teration phase that appears to mark the change from
prograde exoskarn to main stage sulfide mineral pre-
cipitation (Fig. 6b). Transitional exoskarn is found as a
coarse-grained infill of voids within, and as a selvage on
fractures that cut, massive prograde exoskarn. It is
dominated by an early stage of reddish-brown andra-
ditic garnet accompanied by minor to trace, temporally
overlapping K-feldspar, biotite, and apatite. These
minerals are replaced by dark green pyroxene that oc-
curs in large, radiating clusters of acicular hedenbergite
with a small johannsonite component. Minor vesuvia-
nite, calcite, and fluorite are intergrown with pyroxene.
The only occurrence of massive wollastonite in the de-
posit was found near well-developed transitional exos-
karn, but exposures were obscured by mine workings
and any possible relationship remains circumstantial.
The latest minerals include ferroactinolite amphibole,
calcite, dolomite, carbonate (with significant iron and
manganese), quartz, fluorite, and apatite. Minor sulfide
minerals occur with these later minerals and comprise
mostly pyrite, with lesser sphalerite and galena and trace
chalcopyrite.
Main-stage sulfide mineralization post-dates calc-sil-
icate alteration (Fig. 6a, b). Gangue is dominated by
calcite, lesser quartz, and, within a few meters of the
Bismark stock, abundant fluorite. Rutile, titanite, fer-
roactinolite amphibole, dolomite, sericite, and apatite
are trace to minor phases. During this stage, chlorite
became increasingly abundant and its precipitation ex-
tended well after the sulfide mineralogy. Major sulfide
minerals include sphalerite, galena, pyrite, pyrrhotite,
and chalcopyrite, with traces of scheelite, native silver,
and bismuth- and tellurium-bearing phases. Post-ore
marcasite replaces both pyrite and pyrrhotite. The sul-
fide paragenetic sequence is (1) pyrite, (2) pyrrhotite–
chalcopyrite, (3) sphalerite–galena ± chalcopyrite ±
pyrrhotite ± pyrite, (4) chalcopyrite ± galena, and (5)
marcasite.
Post-ore alteration
Post-ore alteration consists of various combinations of
calcite, quartz, chlorite, and marcasite, with rare clear to
light green fluorite, which infill late, planar fractures and
faults, and locally form the matrix to fault breccias.
Supergene effects are centered upon post-ore cross
faults, extend to the limits of mine development within
the faults, and include formation of iron and manganese
oxides, chalcocite, covellite, bornite, malachite, cerus-
site, smithsonite, and hemimorphite, with local enrich-
ment in silver (Bismark mine staff, personal
communication 1999; Megaw, personal communication,
2002).
Fluid inclusions
Method
A detailed petrographic study was completed on 38 fluid inclusion
samples from the Bismark mine, from which 16 were selected for
microthermometric analysis (Appendix). Samples were selected to
represent a vertical range of the hanging wall and footwall ore
zones in the mine, from approximately the 600- to the 1,200-m
level. Temporal variations in fluid inclusion characteristics were
estimated by examination of inclusions in different mineral stages
and in different habits (i.e., primary and secondary; Roedder 1984).
Quartz and fluorite contained useable fluid inclusions whereas fluid
inclusions in garnet and pyroxene were poorly preserved and the
high iron content of sphalerite restricted its use as a host.
Microthermometry was undertaken on a US Geological Survey
style, gas-flow heating-freezing stage at the University of British
Columbia. The stage is regularly calibrated over a range of
temperatures using SYN FLINC standards. At temperatures near
or below 0 °C precision is <0.1 °C, whereas at temperatures
between 200 and 500 °C, precision is <1 °C. Laser Raman
spectroscopic data were obtained at the Geoscience Australia with
a Microdil 28 laser Raman microprobe.
Classification
Fluid inclusions were classified using a modified version
of Nash (1976; Table 1). Type 1 inclusions are liquid-
rich and aqueous, and comprise five subgroups. Types
1A have a vapor bubble that occupies 10 to 40 vol% of
the inclusion, and locally contain a small opaque phase
(Figs. 7 and 8a, b). Types 1B have a liquid–vapor ratio
similar to type 1A inclusions, but contain an irregular to
tabular daughter phase with high relief (Fig. 8b) that
laser Raman analysis identified as calcite. Type 1C in-
clusions contain 40 to 60 vol% vapor (Fig. 8d, e), ex-
hibit critical to near-critical homogenization behavior,
and also locally contain a small opaque phase
(Fig. 8e). Type 1D inclusions are petrographically
 481

Table 1 Summary of fluid in-

clusion types and characteristics Type Phases V P/S Host n Salinity Th
(vol%) (°C)

1A L–V ± Op 10–40 P/S? Fl, Qtz, Cal 57 5.1–11.8 104–336

1B L–V–Cal 10–40 P/S? Fl, Qtz 15 2.7–11.7 162–254
1C L–V ± Op 40–60 P Qtz 18 8.4–10.9 351–438
1D L–V ± Cal 10–40 S Cal, Qtz 23 0.4–37.0 126–370
1E L–V ± Cal <5 S Qtz, Cal, Fl 15 6.4–13.2 112–163
2A V–L >80 P, S Fl, Qtz, Cal
2B V 100 P/S? Qtz, Cal, Fl
2E V–L >90 S Qtz, Cal, Fl
3A L–V–Hal ± n <10 P Fl, Qtz 19 31.9–58.1 277–>640
S Qtz, Cal, Fl 27 26.2–44.3 238–500
3B L–V–Hal–Syl ± n <10 P Fl, Qtz 12 32.6–62.4 404–>640
S Qtz, Cal, Fl 5 42.9–53.3 277–371
4 L–LCO2–VCO2 10–20 S Fl 12 4.3–6.3 130–184

indistinguishable from type 1A inclusions, but have very 8a, c). The fluorite occurs as round to euhedral grains
low eutectic temperatures (–52 °C) and display a surrounded by later syn-ore fluorite, quartz, calcite, and
brown coloration during freezing that indicates the sulfide minerals, suggestive of pre-ore timing for the core
presence of calcium chloride in solution (cf. Roedder zones. The zones are easily distinguished, and early
1984). Type 1E inclusions have a vapor bubble that timing is further suggested by the presence of acicular
occupies <5 vol% of the inclusion (Fig. 8f). Laser Ra- pyroxene and amphibole intergrown with fluorite
man analysis of vapor bubbles in all type 1 inclusions (Fig. 8a). Later generations of secondary type 3A, and
locally detected minor carbon dioxide. rare type 3B and 2A inclusions occur in syn-ore quartz
Inclusion types 2A and 3A/B are vapor-rich and ha- and calcite, and less commonly in syn-ore fluorite.
lite-bearing, respectively, and typically occur in spatial
association. Type 2A inclusions contain a dark vapor
bubble that occupies >80 vol% of the inclusion
(Fig. 8c). Type 3A inclusions contain halite as the only
solid salt phase, whereas type 3B contains halite and
sylvite (Fig. 8c, f). Both types may also contain addi-
tional opaque and unidentified mineral phases. Laser
Raman analysis locally detected minor carbon dioxide in
some vapor phases in type 2A, 3A, and 3B inclusions. A
second type of vapor-rich inclusion, type 2B, contains no
visible liquid phase (although very thin films could be
present a long the edges of the inclusions) and occurs in
trails either alone or in company with abundant type 1A
and/or 1B inclusions (Fig. 8b). Type 2B inclusions are
temporally unrelated to type 3A/B inclusions. Laser
Raman analysis did not detect any gaseous phases pre-
sent and microthermometric experiments failed to in-
duce any phase changes. It is, therefore, possible that
they are empty inclusions. Type 2E inclusions contain
>90 vol% vapor, and are distinguished from types 2A
and 2B by the transparent nature of the vapor bubble
and their localized occurrence in secondary trails, which
contain type 1E inclusions (Fig. 8f). Type 4 inclusions
contain carbon dioxide liquid and vapor at room
temperature. These were observed in only one sample
(from the 1,060 level of the footwall ore zone, sample
BFI 199A) as secondary inclusions in a fluorite-
sulfide vein.
Fig. 7 Photomicrograph of mineralogical and fluid inclusion
relationships between pyroxene (Px), pre-ore fluorite (Fl), and
Paragenesis syn-ore fluorite from mineralized sample BFI199F. Early fluorite
occurs as zoned crystals that contain coexisting primary (P) type
3A, 3B, and 2A inclusions (Fig. 8a). Later, syn-ore fluorite
The earliest usable fluid inclusions are primary type 3A, surrounds the early fluorite and contains primary and secondary
3B, and 2A inclusions within early fluorite (Figs. 7 and (S) type 1A and 1B inclusions
482
Fig. 8 a Photomicrograph of mineralogical and fluid inclusion
relationships between pre-ore fluorite and syn-ore fluorite from
mineralized sample BFI199F at higher magnification. b Type 1A,
1B, and 2B inclusions in syn-ore fluorite. c Primary type 3B and 2A
inclusions in pre-ore fluorite. d Primary type 1C inclusions in syn-
ore stage quartz (sample BFI160E). e Type 1C inclusion with
opaque phase. f Secondary type 3A inclusions cut by late stage type
1E and 2E inclusions (sample BFI900-13)
Type 1C inclusions were observed in primary habit
in two syn-ore quartz veins (BFI 160E and BFI 222F;
Fig. 8d, e). Type 1A inclusions are most abundant in
syn-ore fluorite, and to a lesser extent in syn-ore cal-
cite. They commonly occur as secondary trails in
calcite and fluorite, but locally they also occur as
isolated clusters or trails contained within syn-ore
fluorite and may be at least partly primary in origin
(Fig. 7). Type 1B inclusions commonly occur with
type 1A inclusions and have a similar paragenesis
(Fig. 8a, b). As previously noted, type 2B inclusions
occur locally with types 1A and 1B. Type 1D inclu-
sions are found as secondary trails in syn-ore calcite
and to a lesser extent in syn-ore quartz. Locally type
1D inclusions occur in some type 1A trails. Type 1E
inclusions are the youngest inclusion type because they
occur in secondary trails that cut all other inclusion
trails (Fig. 8f); these trails also locally contain type 2E
inclusions.
Fluid inclusions were poorly preserved in post-ore
and peripheral veins, and where present commonly show
evidence of necking. Where observed, these inclusions
generally have petrographic characteristics similar to
type 1E inclusions. No microthermometry was com-
pleted on samples of these mineralization styles.
Microthermometry
Microthermometry was carried out on all inclusion
types. No data were recorded for type 2 inclusions be-
cause of poor visibility, the common lack of phase nu-
cleation during freezing, and the typical difficulty of
observing homogenization phenomena. Salinity esti-
mates were calculated from ice-melting temperatures in
all type 1 inclusions (with the exception of type 1D)
based on the method of Bodnar and Vityk (1994) and
assuming a simple NaCl–H2O system (Table 1).
Hedenquist and Henley (1985) have shown that dis-
solved carbon dioxide can effect salinity estimates in low
salinity NaCl–H2O fluid inclusions. Laser Raman stud-
ies locally detected minor carbon dioxide in type 1
inclusions, but no clathrate was recognized and, there-
fore, the effect of carbon dioxide is assumed to be neg-
ligible on salinity estimates. The method of Vanko et al.
(1988) was used for type 1D inclusions assuming a H2O–
NaCl–CaCl2 system. Salinity estimates for type 3A in-
clusions were estimated using the method of Bodnar and
Vityk (1994) based on halite dissolution, whereas the
presence of sylvite in type 3B inclusions (Table 1) was
accommodated by the method of Shepherd et al. (1985).
Type 3A and 3B inclusions both undoubtedly contain
other solutes such as calcium chloride, but these were
not considered in salinity estimates during this study.
For type 4 inclusions, salinity was estimated using car-
bon dioxide clathrate melting temperatures and by
assuming a simple NaCl–H2O–CO2 system (Brown and
Hagemann 1995).
Primary type 3A inclusions had homogenization
temperatures (Th) ranging from 277 to >640 °C (i.e.,
above the working limits of the fluid inclusion stage;
Table 1 and Fig. 9a). The Th in primary type 3B in-
clusions ranged from 404 to >640 °C. Type 3A and 3B
inclusions form discrete Th populations (Fig. 10a). The
higher temperature group typically has larger vapor
bubbles than the lower temperature inclusions, and was
locally associated with vapor-rich inclusions that con-
tained unidentified daughter phases. These inclusions
may represent mixtures of brine and vapor entrapped
heterogeneously during phase separation and, conse-
quently, Th may be overestimated.
The order of phase disappearance of halite and the
vapor bubble varied between samples and between pri-
mary groups within samples (Appendix and Fig. 9a).
Sylvite dissolved first in all type 3B inclusions (between
102 and 215 °C). The highest Th (>450 °C) was
 483

Fig. 9 a Homogenization temperature versus salinity plot for type

3A and 3B inclusions (salinity recorded in wt% total salts to take
into account NaCl + KCl for type 3B inclusions). P Primary;
S secondary; Th homogenization temperature; Thv vapor-disap-
pearance temperature; Tdh halite-dissolution temperature. Mineral
abbreviations after Kretz (1983). b Homogenization temperature
versus salinity plot for types 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D, and 1E and 4
inclusions

recorded in inclusions in which halite dissolved prior to

the vapor phase (in both 3A and 3B; Fig. 9a). The sec-
ond highest Th (400–470 °C) was exhibited by inclu-
sions in which halite and the vapor bubble disappeared
at about the same temperature (±5 °C). The Th of
primary type 3A and 3B inclusions that homogenized
via halite dissolution ranged from 400 to 430 °C
(Fig. 9a).
Both secondary type 3A and 3B inclusions homoge-
nized via halite dissolution with Th values of 238–500
and 278–371 °C, respectively (nearly all were <400 °C;
Fig. 9a). All type 3A inclusions have estimated salinities
between 33 and 58 wt% NaCl equiv., and type 3B in-
clusions range between 32 and 62 wt% total salts (NaCl
+ KCl). Limited freezing runs on type 3A and 3B in-
clusions indicate the presence of dissolved calcium Fig. 10a–d Homogenization temperature histograms for all inclu-
sion types separated into the various paragenetic stages and host
chloride based on low eutectic temperatures (<–50 °C) minerals
and browning of the frozen inclusions.
Primary type 1C inclusions exhibit critical or near
critical homogenization behavior. Measured Th falls
484
between 351 and 438 °C, and estimated salinity is be-
tween 8.4 and 10.9 wt% NaCl equiv. (Table 1, Figs. 9b
and 10b). The Th for type 1A inclusions (mostly sec-
ondary, but in lesser cases potentially primary) range
from 104 to 336 °C and have salinities of 5.1 to
11.8 wt% NaCl equiv. (Figs. 9b and 10c, d). The Th for
type 1B inclusions is between 162 and 255 °C and sa-
linity ranges from 2.7 to 11.7 wt% NaCl equiv. (Figs. 9b
and 10b, c). Type 1C inclusions have the highest salinity
and Th estimates, whereas type 1A inclusions show a
range of salinity and Th that almost overlaps with 1C at
the high temperature and high salinity end of the range,
and then exhibit a trend of decreasing salinity with Th
(Fig. 9b). A larger range in salinity is observed between
220 and 320 °C in type 1A inclusions, which may
reflect localized boiling (see below).
Type 1D inclusions range widely in salinity, from 6.5
to 27 wt% total salts (NaCl + CaCl2; Fig. 9b), have
molar Ca/Na ratios between 1.5 and 2.9 (excluding one
value of 4.1), and have Th values between 126 and 370 °C
(Fig. 10). Type 1E inclusions typically have a narrow
salinity range of 12.3–13.2 wt% NaCl equiv., excluding
one value of 6.4 wt% NaCl equiv. (Fig. 9b), and Th lies
between 112 and 163 °C (Figs. 9c and 10b). Type 4 in-
clusions have Th of 130–185 °C and estimated salinities
of 4.3–6.3 wt% NaCl equiv. (Table 1, Figs. 9c and 10c).
Pressure estimates
Estimates of trapping pressure can only be obtained if an
independent trapping temperature is known or if the fluid
inclusions were trapped under immiscible or boiling
conditions (Roedder and Bodnar 1980; Shepherd et al.
1985; Brown and Hagemann 1995). Immiscible entrap-
ment of brine and vapor-rich inclusions has been widely
documented in magmatic–hydrothermal systems (e.g.,
Bodnar 1995; Hedenquist et al. 1998). There are several
criteria that must be satisfied to confidently infer
immiscibility, including (1) petrographic evidence for
coexisting brine and vapor-rich inclusions, (2) homoge-
nization of brine inclusions via vapor disappearance, and
(3) equal Th for both inclusions types. Data from Bis-
mark satisfy all but the last criterion, which cannot be
confirmed because of the lack of Th results from type 2A
inclusions. Petrographic evidence for immiscibility is
exhibited where primary type 3A, 3B, and 2A inclusions
coexist in early fluorite (Fig. 8a). Microthermometry
from these zones reveals that type 3A and 3B inclusions,
which homogenize via vapor disappearance, typically
have Th of 500 °C, with salinity estimates of 45 wt%
NaCl equiv. (assuming a simple NaCl–H2O system be-
cause of the lack of appropriate experimental data in the
NaCl–KCl–H2O system; Figs. 9a and 10a; Cline and
Bodnar 1991). Trapping pressures of 450 bar were es-
timated from these inclusions (Fig. 11). Primary type 3A
inclusions that homogenized via halite dissolution were
trapped under different pressure–temperature condi-
tions, outside the two-phase field. Minimum pressures
Fig. 11 Estimated pressure and temperature conditions for differ-
ent fluid inclusion types. Primary type 3B inclusions (P 3B;
inclusions BFI259A 5A and 5B; BFI199F 12G) are plotted from
temperature and salinity estimates against vapor-pressure curves
for H2O–NaCl solutions at 40 to 60 wt% NaCl equiv. (Bodnar et al.
1985; Bodnar and Vityk 1994) projected from the three-phase curve
(L+V+H). Primary type 3A inclusions, which homogenized via
halite dissolution, provide minimum trapping pressures that
illustrate fluctuations in pressure conditions during the pre-ore
stage. Isochores constructed from fluid inclusions (BFI900-9 14E to
14I) that behaved in this manner are projected from the L+V+H
curve at the temperature of vapor disappearance and follow a path
along which halite dissolution occurs (X=Tdh=Th). Minimum
pressure estimates based on these inclusions are 600 bar and
would have been trapped within the black shaded region. Isochores
for secondary type 3A inclusions (inclusions BFI340E 21A and
BFI160E 18E represent compositional and thermal end members)
have been constructed in a similar manner and have a minimum
pressure estimate of 800 bar (dark gray area). Primary type 1C
inclusions provide minimum trapping estimates based on calculat-
ed isochores projected from the liquid–vapor curve (dashed curved
line) for inclusions BFI160E 17I and 17M (type 1C compositional
and thermal end members). Open circles occur at Th for individual
inclusions and filled circles represent their critical points along the
liquid–vapor curve. Light gray shaded region shows the pressure–
temperature range under which these inclusions may have been
trapped. Type 1A and 1B inclusions, which locally occurred with
type 2B inclusions, may have been trapped under boiling
conditions (e.g., BFI900-13 2A to 2I and BFI259A 6A to 6O).
Consequently, Th for such inclusions will represent trapping
conditions along the liquid–vapor curve (calculated for 5–10 wt%
NaCl equiv. – thick curved line). Numbered regions 1 to 5
correspond to conditions represented by Th-salinity paths in
Fig. 15. Thick dashed gray line represents possible pressure–
temperature evolution of the skarn system. P Primary inclusions;
S secondary inclusions
calculated from isochores for these inclusions (BFI900-9
14E to 14I) are 600 bar (Fig. 11).
Type 3A inclusions are also common in secondary
trails and homogenize via halite dissolution, thus pre-
cluding immiscibility. A range of minimum trapping
pressures from 800 to 950 bar was obtained on these
inclusions by constructing isochores from the highest
and lowest Th on secondary type 3A inclusions (Fig. 11;
see Shepherd et al. 1985, pp. 184–185 for details of the
 485

method). Similarly, isochores for primary type 1C in-
clusions (Fig. 11) indicate minimum trapping pressures
at or above 250 bar. Locally type 1A and 1B inclusions
occurred in the same inclusion trails as type 2B inclu-
sions. The presence of both liquid and vapor inclusions
in the same trails may indicate boiling, although para-
genetic constraints are less certain than for earlier
immiscible brine and vapor inclusions. Type 1A and 1B
inclusions that coexist with type 2B inclusions typically
homogenize between 220 and 320 °C (e.g., inclusions
BFI900-13 2A to 2I and BFI259A 6A to 6O; Appendix).
Fluid inclusions within this range show a greater spread
in salinity that may be the result of localized boiling. If
boiling did occur, then resulting pressure estimates of 30
to 120 bar reflect trapping conditions during this fluid
stage (Fig. 11).
Light stable isotopes
Method
Oxygen and carbon isotope compositions were measured at
Monash University on 29 grains of quartz, calcite, and garnet from
massive prograde exoskarn, transitional exoskarn, main stage
sulfide mineralization, post-ore veins and peripheral prospects, and
on three igneous phenocrysts (Table 2). Oxygen isotope analysis of
silicates followed the methods of Clayton and Mayeda (1963),
using chlorine trifluoride (ClF3) as the oxidizing reagent. Isotope
ratios were measured on a Finnigan MAT 252 mass spectrometer,
and d18O is reported relative to V-SMOW. Analytical precision is
±0.2&. Carbon and oxygen isotope analyses of carbonate were
completed by extracting CO2 using orthophosphoric acid at 25 °C
for 4 to 18 h in sealed vessels. Isotope ratios were measured on a
Finnigan MAT 252 mass spectrometer and d18O and d13C are
reported relative to V-SMOW and PDB, respectively.
Results
Green garnets from prograde exoskarn and red-brown
garnets from transitional exoskarn overlap, with values
between 3.9 and 8.4& (Fig. 12). A single value for
quartz from transitional exoskarn is 14.9&. Quartz and
calcite from the main sulfide stage lie between 12.3 and
14.1&, with two values at 15.9 and 16.0&. A single
calcite from a chalcopyrite-bearing calcite–quartz vein
that cuts main-stage sulfide mineralization has d18O of
19.9&. Values of calcite and quartz from post-ore veins
and peripheral prospects overlap and have a compara-
tively large range of 16.6 to 27.3&. Comparison of d18O
and d13C results on calcite reveal consistent composi-
tional groupings among syn- and late- to post-ore
alteration stages (Fig. 13). Calcite from the main sulfide
stage has d13C values of –2.9 to –5.1& and d18O values
of 12.3 to 14.1&, which are clearly distinct from

Table 2 Oxygen and carbon isotope data and calculated compositions of equilibrium waters
Sample Alteration stage Mineral Measured Calculated d18O water composition at T (°C)

d18OSMOW d13CPDB 500 450 400 350 300 250 200 150

B-B141G Igneous phenocryst Quartz 14.0

B-B152-I Igneous phenocryst Quartz 12.7
B98-NEC-2 Igneous phenocryst Quartz 9.3
B-B133C Prograde exoskarn Green garnet 6.6 9.0 9.0 9.0
B-B164-B1 Prograde exoskarn Green garnet 8.4 10.8 10.8 10.8
B-B240F Prograde exoskarn Green garnet 6.7 9.2 9.1 9.1
B98-1000-4 Prograde exoskarn Green garnet 5.1 7.5 7.5 7.5
B98-1048-1 Prograde exoskarn Green garnet 4.3 6.7 6.7 6.7
B98-900-5 Prograde exoskarn Green garnet 3.9 6.3 6.3 6.3
B98-950-3 Prograde exoskarn Green garnet 5.3 7.7 7.7 7.7
B-B322A Transitional exoskarn Brown garnet 6.2 9.0 9.1 9.1
B98-1000-1 Transitional exoskarn Quartz 14.9 12.6 11.8 10.8
B98-1000-1 Transitional exoskarn Brown garnet 8.0 10.9 10.9 11.0
B98-900-4A Transitional exoskarn Brown garnet 5.2 8.0 8.1 8.1
B-B133B Main sulfide stage Calcite 12.3 –5.1 10.4 9.6 8.6 7.3 5.6 3.3
B-B152D Main sulfide stage Quartz 16.0 12.9 11.9 10.7 9.1 7.1 4.4
B-B164-B2 Main sulfide stage Calcite 13.6 –2.9 11.7 10.9 9.9 8.6 6.9 4.6
B-B222F Main sulfide stage Quartz 15.9 12.8 11.8 10.6 9.0 7.0 4.3
B-B226D Main sulfide stage Calcite 13.7 –3.1 11.8 10.9 9.9 8.6 6.9 4.6
B-B240L Main sulfide stage Calcite 14.1 –2.9 12.2 11.3 10.3 9.0 7.3 5.1
B900-13 Main sulfide stage Quartz 13.6 10.6 9.6 8.3 6.8 4.7 2.0
B98-900-4B Main sulfide stage Calcite 13.7 –4.2 11.8 10.9 9.9 8.6 6.9 4.6
B98-950-1 Late-stage sulfide vein Calcite 19.9 1.3 10.9 7.8
B-B132E Post-ore vein Calcite 18.9 2.8 9.9 6.8
B-B220C Post-ore vein Calcite 20.0 3.1 11.0 7.9
B-B340F Post-ore vein Calcite 18.7 2.7 9.7 6.6
B-B49C Post-ore vein Calcite 27.3 2.6 18.2 15.1
B98-CDJ-1 Peripheral prospects Quartz 24.1 12.5 8.8
B98-CTC-1 Peripheral prospects Calcite 19.9 2.5 10.9 7.8
B98-CTC-2 Peripheral prospects Calcite 20.1 2.8 11.1 8.0
B98-LM-1 Peripheral prospects Quartz 16.6 4.9 1.2
B98-NEC-1 Peripheral prospects Quartz 18.5 6.9 3.1
486
Fig. 12 Histogram of measured oxygen isotope data for igneous
quartz, pre-ore garnet, pre-ore quartz, and syn-, post- and
peripheral quartz and calcite
post-ore veins and peripheral prospects that have much
higher d18O and d13C values. The sample of the very
late-ore, chalcopyrite-bearing vein has an isotopic
composition more similar to post-ore samples, but
slightly displaced toward the syn-ore field.
Water compositions and thermometry
A single isotopic temperature of 442 °C was obtained
from intergrown quartz and brown garnet from the
transitional exoskarn, using the equations of Matthews
(1994) and assuming a pure andradite composition for
garnet (based upon the absence of aluminum peaks on
SEM spectra). This result is consistent with primary
Fig. 13 Carbon–oxygen iso-
tope diagram for measured data
from calcite veins in syn-, late-,
and post-ore stages and
peripheral environments. The
combined carbon and oxygen
isotope data further illustrate
the interpretation that syn-ore
calcite has a magmatic signa-
ture, whereas late to post-ore
and peripheral calcite veins
overlap with limestone
fluid inclusion temperatures of >400 °C (Figs. 9a and
10a) from early fluorite interpreted to be pre-ore and of
timing similar to prograde and transitional garnets.
The d18O compositions of water in equilibrium with
the analyzed minerals were calculated using temperature
estimates based primarily upon fluid inclusion data.
Water compositions were calculated from garnet,
quartz, and calcite using the equations of Matthews
(1994), Matsuhisha et al. (1979), and O’Neil et al. (1969),
respectively. Temperatures of 400 and 500 °C were used
for prograde and transitional exoskarn, based upon fluid
inclusion results and the garnet–quartz isotopic tem-
perature noted above. Garnet compositions of 50 mol%
andradite were used for prograde garnets, and
100 mol% andradite for transitional garnets, based up-
on SEM spectra. Given the low sensitivity of garnet to
temperature or compositional changes, errors in these
factors will not substantially affect results. Water com-
positions for the main sulfide stage are plotted at 50 °C
intervals between 200 and 450 °C, reflecting the princi-
pal range of fluid inclusion homogenization tempera-
tures from syn-ore quartz, calcite, and fluorite (Fig. 14).
Late- and post-ore veins and minerals from peripheral
prospects are calculated at lower temperatures of 150
and 200 °C, based upon the presence of marcasite,
chalcedonic quartz, and type 1E inclusions.
Relationship between fluid inclusion types,
fluid processes, and fluid sources
Fluid inclusions in the Bismark contact skarn deposit
can be categorized into several distinct temporal, com-
positional and thermal populations (Figs. 9 and 15).
These fluid types may be the result of one or more of the
 487

Fig. 14 Plot of calculated oxy-

gen isotope compositions of
hydrothermal fluids based on
fluid inclusion and mineral
equilibria temperature
estimates. Calculated oxygen
isotope compositions of the
hydrothermal fluids at Bismark
illustrate that pre- to syn-ore
fluids were derived from a
magmatic fluid, whereas late to
post-ore fluids were derived
from a fluid that had fully
equilibrated with limestone.
There is little evidence for direct
meteoric input (although it
could be argued that this oc-
curred at late, low temperature
stages; however this is more
likely a function of the low
temperatures used in calculat-
ing the fluid compositions)

Fig. 15 Major salinity–Th

paths for fluid inclusions. Path
1 represents pre-ore immiscibil-
ity. Path 2 represents a change
from brine inclusions which
homogenized via vapor
disappearance to those that
homogenized via halite dissolu-
tion. Paths 3 and 4 represent a
shift from a high temperature,
moderate salinity magmatic
fluid through cooling and boil-
ing to a lower temperature
possibly mixed fluid. Path 5
represents entrapment of dom-
inantly type 3A secondary
inclusions along the halite sat-
uration curve during late stage
entrapment of magmatic brine
under different pressure–tem-
perature conditions from earlier
immiscible entrapment

following: (1) different fluid sources; (2) different fluid
processes; and/or (3) different pressure and temperature
conditions.
Fluid sources
Assessment of fluid sources requires consideration of
both fluid inclusion and stable isotope data. Despite the
numerous fluid inclusion types, stable isotope data
suggest a limited number of fluid sources. Pre-ore garnet
and quartz formed at temperatures in excess of 400 °C,
based on trapping temperatures of pre-ore primary fluid
inclusions and a quartz–garnet isotope mineral pair.
Water in equilibrium with garnet and quartz at tem-
peratures of 400–500 °C has d18O values between 6.3
and 12.6& (Fig. 14, Table 2), consistent with a
predominantly magmatic source (Taylor 1986).
488
Temperature constraints on the main sulfide stage are
inferred from fluid inclusions in syn-ore quartz, calcite,
and fluorite. Primary type 1C inclusions in syn-ore
quartz have minimum trapping temperatures of 351–
438 °C. Primary to secondary type 1A and 1B inclusions
in syn-ore fluorite, quartz, and calcite have minimum
trapping temperatures of 104–336 °C. Th of type 1A and
1B inclusions, which locally coexist with type 2B inclu-
sions, ranges from 220 to 320 °C; this would equate to
trapping temperatures if the interpretation of boiling
conditions is correct. A broad temperature estimate of
200–450 °C, therefore, has been used to calculate the
composition of water in equilibrium with syn-ore quartz
and calcite. Most isotopic estimates are again consistent
with a predominantly magmatic source, noting that at
temperatures of <250 °C the results may indicate the
incursion of a non-magmatic fluid (Fig. 14, Table 2).
A predominantly magmatic origin for ore stage fluids
is further supported by carbon and oxygen isotope ratios
for syn-ore calcite (Fig. 13). Measured d18O and d13C
for these minerals are tightly constrained, and clearly
distinct from post-ore veins and veins in peripheral
prospects. Both of the latter calcite types have d18O and
d13C ratios that overlap sedimentary carbonate isotope
compositions, suggesting the veins may have formed
from a fluid that had equilibrated with the limestone.
Consequently, it appears that in the Bismark region
there are two distinct fluid sources, with little evidence
for unequilibrated external meteoric fluids. The two
populations reflect both a spatial and temporal separa-
tion consistent with (1) distal fluids and late stage fluids
in the ore zone being dominated by fluid that had
equilibrated with limestone, (2) pre- and syn-ore fluids of
predominantly magmatic origin, and (3) little interaction
between the two (Fig. 13). This conclusion may appear
to be at odds with interpretations that would be drawn
solely from fluid inclusion results, where fluid mixing
might adequately explain some of the observed Th-
salinity paths (e.g., 3–7, 6–7, and 5; Fig. 15).
Fluid processes and conditions
Path 1 on Fig. 15 represents fluid unmixing, which is
evident in the earliest preserved fluid inclusions from
pre-ore fluorite, where type 3A and 3B inclusions coexist
with type 2A inclusions. Immiscibility between brine and
low salinity vapor has been widely documented in many
magmatic–hydrothermal systems (e.g., Meinert et al.
1997; Hedenquist et al. 1998; Fournier 1999). The pro-
cess reflects unmixing in a primary magmatic fluid of
initially low to moderate salinity (2–10 wt% NaCl
equiv.). Evidence for immiscibility is commonly found
in early potassic alteration in porphyry systems
(Hedenquist et al. 1998), and in the early prograde stages
of skarns (Meinert et al. 1997). Fournier (1999) suggests
that immiscibility occurs while both intrusions and
country rocks in the immediate contact area are under
lithostatic conditions and are behaving plastically due to
temperatures above 400 °C, a scenario clearly consistent
with conditions at Bismark. Pressure estimates of
450 bar from early inclusions would, therefore, trans-
late to depths of 1.5 km under lithostatic conditions.
Path 2 (Fig. 15) represents a change from primary
fluid inclusions that homogenize by vapor disappearance
to primary inclusions that homogenize via either halite
dissolution or simultaneous halite-vapor disappearance.
Such a change can easily be achieved through either a
decrease in temperature or an increase in pressure, such
that the fluids are no longer trapped in the two-phase
field (Shepherd et al. 1985; Bodnar and Vityk 1994;
Bodnar 1995). It seems likely that pressure changes
would have been the major controlling variable at this
stage because the minimum temperature estimates from
fluid inclusions are >400 °C and estimated trapping
temperatures are 500 °C. Pressure increases are likely
as the magma continued to exsolve fluid, perhaps re-
sulting in fluid over pressuring in the still relatively
plastic rocks at >400 °C (Fournier 1999). Minimum
pressures during the pre-ore stage exceeded 600 bar,
and were perhaps as high as 1,100 bar, assuming fluid
temperatures did not exceed 500 °C (path 1 to 2; Fig. 11).
Primary type 1C inclusions paragenetically post-date
primary pre-ore inclusions, and pre-date all other sec-
ondary inclusions. Their exact timing with respect to
type 1A inclusions is uncertain because of the absence of
type 1A inclusions in quartz that also contained type 1C
inclusions (Fig. 10). The fact that they both occur as
primary inclusions in syn-ore gangue minerals suggests a
similar timing. Furthermore, the inclusions are compo-
sitionally very similar, although type 1C inclusions have
higher Th than type 1A inclusions. Consequently, type
1C inclusions are likely to have been trapped just prior
to or during entrapment of type 1A inclusions. Stable
isotope data suggest that the ore stage was formed from
a predominantly magmatic fluid, and the moderate sa-
linities of type 1C and 1A inclusions are consistent with
that of an unmixed primary magmatic fluid (Shinohara
1994; Hedenquist et al. 1998). In order to have trapped
such a fluid, the pressure and temperature conditions
must have changed from the two-phase immiscible field
to a one-phase field. A likely mechanism at Bismark for
inducing the necessary changes in pressure is displace-
ment along the Bismark fault, which displays evidence
for movement throughout the life of the hydrothermal
system. The faulting may have itself been partly induced
by fluid over pressuring, leading to an abrupt shift from
pressures higher than lithostatic to hydrostatic
conditions (path 2 to 3 to 4; Fig. 11).
Hydrothermal processes at Bismark were unlikely to
have followed one simple evolving path. Complex cy-
cling of magmatic fluid exsolution, fluid ponding and
over pressuring, fault-induced fracturing, and hydro-
thermal mineral precipitation both as replacement and
open space infill would have contributed to fluctuations
between a closed (resealed) and open (refractured)
system. These factors would have caused major changes
in pressure and temperature, although the overall

temperature trend would have evolved along a single
cooling path due to the lack of multiple intrusions. This
is reflected in the high minimum pressures obtained from
secondary type 3A inclusions. These inclusions parage-
netically post-date primary type 1C and 1A inclusions,
and were likely to have been trapped at temperatures of
<400 °C because their steep isochores fail to intersect
higher temperatures at reasonable pressures (e.g.,
<1,500 bar; path 4 to 5; Fig. 11). Consequently, sec-
ondary type 3A inclusions reflect entrapment of a late
magmatic brine under overpressured conditions related
to resealing by mineral precipitation.
Fluid mixing is not required to produce salinity de-
creases along path 5 (Fig. 15), which more plausibly
reflects changes in pressure and temperature over the
duration of the hydrothermal system that would have
affected the composition of exsolved magmatic volatiles.
The Th-salinity relationship between type 1C and 1A
inclusions is complex, with an apparent zone of boiling
separating the high temperature, high salinity 1C group
and the lower temperature, low salinity 1A group (path
4; Fig. 15). The overall trend is a major decrease in
temperature (400 to 100 °C) with a small shift in salinity
(10–5 wt% NaCl equiv.). Because the isotope data do
not support a major fluid mixing event, interaction of
the hot magmatic fluid with cooler limestone, perhaps
displaced during faulting and coinciding with collapsing
isotherms, appears to be the only plausible explanation
for the temperature change. As the system cooled and
evolved to the late and post-ore vein stages, there may
have been minor fluid mixing as the magmatic fluids
waned and were overprinted by external fluids in equi-
librium with the limestone. This would be consistent
with many magmatic–hydrothermal models in which
collapse upon cooling has been interpreted to allow an
influx of external fluids (Fournier 1999).
The characteristics of fluid inclusions related to the
non-magmatic fluid are not well constrained because of
their poor preservation in late stage and peripheral vein
calcite. Secondary type 1D inclusions with high CaCl2
concentrations may reflect this fluid and its equilibration
with limestone. Salinity estimates for these inclusions are
mostly between 20 and 27 wt% NaCl + CaCl2, with
molar Ca/Na mostly between 1.7 and 2.9 and Th be-
tween 200 and 350 °C (estimated from melting behavior
of ice and hydrohalite; Vanko et al. 1988). Two inclu-
sions had lower temperatures (<200 °C) and salinities
(<15 wt% NaCl + CaCl2). For the most part, this fluid
type appears to have been a product of a distinct event,
perhaps related to the later overprinting fluid, which at
cooler temperatures may have mixed locally with
cooling magmatic fluids.
Summary
In summary, geological observations can be combined
with fluid inclusion and stable isotope results to propose
the following model for the Bismark deposit:
489
1. Pre-ore skarn formed from high temperature
(>400 °C), immiscible magmatic brine and vapor
under lithostatic conditions (450 bar, 1.5 km
depth).
2. Continued exsolution of magmatic volatiles resulted
in fluid pressures that exceeded lithostatic conditions,
and some brine inclusions were then entrapped at
higher pressures (<1,100 bar).
3. Movement along the Bismark fault perturbed the
pressure–temperature regime, inducing rapid changes
in pressure from above lithostatic to hydrostatic
(<150 bar), and in temperature from >400 to
200 °C.
4. Major shifts in pressure–temperature conditions re-
sulted in entrapment of a moderate to low salinity
magmatic fluid (5–10 wt% NaCl equiv.), but fluctu-
ations between an open and a closed hydrothermal
system resulted in highly variable trapping pressures.
Hydrostatic conditions, brittle fracturing and cooling
of the system led to a late-stage influx of an external
fluid that had isotopically equilibrated with lime-
stone.
5. As the hydrothermal system cooled to <200 °C, lo-
calized mixing may have occurred between the two
main fluid types and the external fluid became the
dominant component.
Ore-bearing fluids and ore precipitation
One of the major questions that arises from this study is
the identity of the fluid(s) that were actually responsible
for ore precipitation. Based on petrographic relation-
ships, the pre-ore timing of the magmatic brine and
vapor suggest that these fluids were not responsible for
ore precipitation, yet the presence of opaque daughter
phases clearly indicates that they were capable of
transporting metals. Similarly, the later type 1C inclu-
sions that are also interpreted to be of magmatic origin
also contain opaque daughter phases. Temperature and
salinity estimates from type 1C, and perhaps the closely
related type 1A, inclusions are more consistent with
conditions under which ore precipitation may take place
(Hemley et al. 1992). These may in fact represent
‘‘spent’’ ore fluids.
A variety of ore deposition processes can be invoked
at Bismark and include (1) chemical precipitation
through ore fluid neutralization during replacement of
limestone by an acidic magmatic fluid, (2) a decrease in
temperature, and (3) salinity decrease (cf. Hemley et al.
1992). Fluid mixing does not appear to have been either
a major or a necessary influence on ore precipitation at
Bismark. Also, despite evidence for fluid immiscibility
and boiling, the timing and localized occurrence of these
processes makes them unlikely to have been dominant
precipitation mechanisms. The efficiency of ore precipi-
tation could, however, have been readily aided by the
operation of all of these processes in concert.
490

sulfide mantos and chimneys (e.g., Meinert 1987). Also

Implications for CRD exploration and research
This study suggests that extremely complex fluid types
and paths of evolution can be present, even within a
geologically simple magmatic–hydrothermal system
such as Bismark. In particular, the data suggest that a
wide variety of fluid types can be derived by variations in
physical conditions during their generation from a
magmatic provenance, without the requirement of
multiple fluid sources. This observation has particularly
important implications for the study and interpretation
of skarn–manto–chimney deposits, where fluids with an
extremely wide range in thermal (100 to 700 °C) and
chemical (salinities from <5 to >60 wt%) properties, as
well as source (basinal brines, meteoric and magmatic
fluids) have been invoked as the principal ore fluid (Gilg
1996; McLemore and Lueth 1996; Lang and Baker
1999). The results of this study highlight two important
aspects of fluid studies needed in the skarn–manto–
chimney environment. First, additional, more detailed,
paragenetically well-constrained fluid inclusion studies
are needed to adequately establish the range in fluid
variation among these deposits, particularly along the
continuum from stock-contact skarns to distal massive
employment of relatively new, but rapidly developing,
microanalytical methods, such as laser ablation ICP-MS
and PIXE techniques that have shed light on the trans-
port of copper and gold in high temperature fluids (e.g.,
Ulrich et al. 1999), are needed to advance our under-
standing of fluid processes and metal transport
beyond that attainable by traditional fluid inclusion
microthermometry.
Appendix 1
Fluid inclusion data. P Primary; S secondary; Th ho-
mogenization temperature; Thv vapor-disappearance
temperature; Tdh halite-dissolution temperature; Tm
ice-melting temperature; Thl liquid-disappearance
temperature; Thcrit critical phase disappearance; Tant
antarcticite-dissolution temperature; Thh hydrohalite-
dissolution temperature; Tfm temperature of first melt;
Tdun dissolution temperature of unknown phase; Tmin
minimum homogenization temperature (Th above range
of stage); Tds sylvite-dissolution temperature;
Tclath clathrate-dissolution temperature; ThCO2 CO2-
homogenization temperature

Type 1A
Sample No. Sample Host Finc. Origin Type Daughter Tm Thv Th Salinity wt%
Location Mineral No. Phases NaCl equiv.

BFI 164B 1000 Oriente Calcite 9A S 1A None –6.2 286.8 286.8 9.5
9B S 1A None 316.2
9C S 1A None 257.0 257.0
9E S 1A None 274.6 274.6
9G S 1A None 224.0 234.0
BFI 259A 850 HW Fluorite 6A P/S? 1A None –4.5 212.3 212.3 7.2
6C P/S? 1A None –8.1 230.0 230.0 11.8
6D P/S? 1A None –8.0 227.1 227.1 11.7
6E P/S? 1A None –7.9 229.5 229.5 11.6
6F P/S? 1A None –4.0 276.3 276.3 6.4
6G P/S? 1A None –4.0 277.4 277.4 6.4
6H P/S? 1A None –4.1 276.0 276.0 6.6
6M P/S? 1A None –8.0 231.2 231.2 11.7
6N P/S? 1A None –4.0 221.8 221.8 6.4
6O P/S? 1A None –5.4 205.4 205.4 8.4
BFI 199F 1050 FW Fluorite 13A P/S? 1A None –4.2 118.6 118.6 6.7
13B P/S? 1A None –4.2 166.2 166.2 6.7
13D P/S? 1A None –3.8 154.5 154.5 6.1
13E P/S? 1A None –3.9 170.1 170.1 6.3
13F P/S? 1A None –3.6 104.1 104.1 5.8
13G P/S? 1A None –4.1 181.6 181.6 6.6
13H P/S? 1A None –3.5 106.6 106.6 5.7
13I P/S? 1A None –4.4 170.5 170.5 7.0
13J P/S? 1A None –4.4 170.1 170.1 7.0
13K P/S? 1A None –4.4 170.8 170.8 7.0
13L P/S? 1A None –4.4 167.8 167.8 7.0
13N P/S? 1A None –4.4 171.1 171.1 7.0
13O P/S? 1A None –4.6 151.5 151.5 7.3
13P P/S? 1A None –4.4 171.1 171.1 7.0
BFI 361G 1000 FW Quartz 16F S 1A None –6.8 336.3 336.3 10.2
BFI 340A 1000 FW Calcite 21C P/S? 1A None 286.5 286.5
21D P/S? 1A None 288.0 288.0
BFI 900-13 900 FW Fluorite 2A P/S? 1A None –4.8 241.4 241.4 7.6
2B P/S? 1A None –4.8 250.2 250.2 7.6
2C P/S? 1A None –3.3 294.1 294.1 5.4
 491

Type 1A (Contd.)
Sample No. Sample Host Finc. Origin Type Daughter Tm Thv Th Salinity wt%
Location Mineral No. Phases NaCl equiv.

2D P/S? 1A None –3.1 296.2 296.2 5.1

2E P/S? 1A None –5.0 311.6 311.6 7.9
2F P/S? 1A None –4.5 297.4 297.4 7.2
2G P/S? 1A None 297.6 297.6
2H P/S? 1A None –3.3 297.7 297.7 5.4
2I P/S? 1A None –4.8 316.8 316.8 7.6
BFI 240B 880 FW Fluorite 15B P/S? 1A None –3.8 190.6 190.6 6.1
15C P/S? 1A None –3.6 244.0 244.0 5.8
15D P/S? 1A None –3.2 244.0 244.0 5.2
15E P/S? 1A None –3.6 253.1 253.1 5.8
15F P/S? 1A None –3.7 186.7 186.7 6.0
15G P/S? 1A None –3.6 186.1 186.1 5.8
15H P/S? 1A None –3.8 153.9 153.9 6.1
15I P/S? 1A None –3.8 181.6 181.6 6.1
15K P/S? 1A None –3.7 257.1 257.1 6.0
15L P/S? 1A None –3.8 162.4 162.4 6.1
15M P/S? 1A None –3.7 257.1 257.1 6.0
15O P/S? 1A None –3.4 244.5 244.5 5.5
15P P/S? 1A None –3.7 151.1 151.1 6.0
15Q P/S? 1A None –3.7 258.0 258.0 6.0

Type 1B
Sample No. Sample Host Finc. Origin Type Daughter Tm Thv Th Salinity wt%
Location Mineral No. Phases NaCl equiv.

BFI 259A 850 HW Fluorite 6B P/S? 1B Calcite –4.6 207.5 207.5 7.3
6I P/S? 1B Calcite –8.0 229.6 229.6 11.7
6J P/S? 1B Calcite –4.6 212.8 212.8 7.3
BFI 199F 1050 FW Quartz 11A S 1B Calcite –1.6 241.1 241.1 2.7
11B S 1B Calcite –1.6 253.1 253.1 2.7
11C S 1B Calcite –1.6 247.3 247.3 2.7
11D S 1B Calcite –1.7 254.7 254.7 2.9
11E S 1B Calcite –1.6 245.2 245.2 2.7
11F S 1B Calcite –1.6 251.0 251.0 2.7
11G S 1B Calcite –1.6 246.3 246.3 2.7
11H S 1B Calcite –1.6 251.7 251.7 2.7
11I S 1B Calcite –1.7 251.7 251.7 2.9
11J S 1B Calcite –1.7 243.0 243.0 2.9
13C S 1B Calcite –3.8 169.1 169.1 6.1
15J S 1B Calcite –3.8 162.4 162.4 6.1

Type 1C
Sample No. Sample Host Finc. Origin Type Daughter Tm Thv Thl Thcrit
Location Mineral No. Phases

BFI 160E 1800 HW Quartz 17A P 1C None –6.3 351.5

17B P 1C None –5.9
17C P 1C None –6.5
17D P 1C None
17E P 1C None –7.3
17F P 1C None –6.3
17G P 1C None –6.6 426.5
17H P 1C None –6.3 428.0
17I P 1C None –6.6 438.1
17K P 1C None –6.6 381.9
17L P 1C None –6.6 397.5
17M P 1C None –5.4 382.5
BFI 222F 930 FW Quartz 8C P 1C None –5.6 419.0
8D P 1C None 405.0
8E P 1C None 422.7
8G P 1C None 431.6
8H P 1C None 435.5
492

Type 1D
Sample No. Sample Host Finc. Origin Type Daughter Tfm Tm Thh Tant
Location Mineral No. Phases

BFI 83B-2 1220 HW Calcite 22A S 1D None –50.2 –4.4 –28.4

23A S 1D None –0.2
23B S 1D None –2.9
23C S 1D None –4.3
23E S 1D None –1.3
BFI 361 G 1000 FW Quartz 16A S 1D Calcite –51.4 –26.4 –31.8 10.3
16B S 1D None
16D S 1D None
16E S 1D None –26.0 –31.1 13.9
16G S 1D None –26.0 5.5
BFI 127D 810 FW Calcite 20B S 1D None –28.4 –31.9
20C S 1D None –28.9 –31.4
20D S 1D None –50.1 –28.4 –32.2
20E S 1D None –52.0 –29.5 –32.9
20F S 1D None –50.9 –25.4 –33.6
BFI 152B Oriente PP Calcite 26A S 1D Calcite –50.1 –25.4 –29.4 14.3
26B S 1D Calcite –50.9 –24.2 –30.6 14.0
26C S 1D None –50.1 –8.4 –35.0
26D S 1D Calcite –51.2 –20.7 –31.7 14.2
26E S 1D None –49.9 –22.4 –35.4
26F S 1D Calcite
26G S 1D None –50.1 –16.6 –30.0 14.1

Type 1E
Sample No. Sample Host Finc. Origin Type Daughter Tm Thv Th Salinity wt%
Location Mineral No. Phases NaCl equiv.

BFI 83B-2 1220 HW Calcite 23D S 1E None –8.8 112.0 112.0 12.6
BFI 160E 1080 HW Quartz 17J S 1E None –4.0 6.4
BFI 222F 930 FW Quartz 8B S 1E None –8.5 121.0 121.0 12.3
8F S 1E None
BFI 900-13 900 FW Quartz 3A S 1E None 9.1 149.1 149.1 13.0
3B S 1E None 8.9 118.2 118.2 12.8
3C S 1E None 8.9 119.3 119.3 12.8
3D S 1E None 8.9 148.3 148.3 12.8
3E S 1E None 9.2 152.8 152.8 13.1
3F S 1E None 9.1 148.1 148.1 13.0
3G S 1E None 9.0 158.0 158.0 12.9
3H S 1E None 8.9 162.6 162.6 12.8
3M S 1E None 9.3 163.0 163.0 13.2
3N S 1E None 9.3 161.2 161.2 13.2
3L S 1E None 9.3 161.5 161.5 13.2

Type 3A S
Sample No. Sample Host Finc. Origin Type Daughter Thv Tdh Th Salinity wt%
Location Mineral No. Phases NaCl equiv.

BFI 160E 1080 HW Quartz 18A S 3A Halite 341.7 380.0 380.0 44.3
18E S 3A Halite 335.0 381.0 381.0 44.3
18F S 3A Halite 351.0 380.5 380.5 44.3
18G S 3A Halite 326.5 352.0 352.0 41.9
18H S 3A Halite 328.7 354.4 354.4 42.1
18I S 3A Halite 320.0 347.1 347.1 41.5
18K S 3A Halite 350.2 360.1 360.1 42.6
18L S 3A Halite 341.5 378.9 378.9 44.2
13M S 3A Halite + 2U 239.6 235.1 239.6 33.8
BFI 900-13 900 FW Quartz 1A S 3A Halite 331.5 281.2 331.5 36.6
1B S 3A Halite 262.1 283.9 283.9 36.8
1C S 3A Halite 283.9 278.0 283.9 36.4
1D S 3A Halite 327.5 220.5 327.5 33.0
1E S 3A Halite 290.8 343.8 343.8 41.2
BFI 322B 650 FW Calcite 10A S 3A Halite 243.2 242.0 243.2 34.2
10B S 3A Halite 221.0 238.4 238.4 34.0
BFI 322B 650 FW Calcite 10A S 3A Halite 243.2 242.0 243.2 34.2
10B S 3A Halite 221.0 238.4 238.4 34.0
BFI 152B Oriente PP Calcite 25A S 3A Halite 241.0 273.0 273.0 36.1
 493

Type 3A S (Contd.)
Sample No. Sample Host Finc. Origin Type Daughter Thv Tdh Th Salinity wt%
Location Mineral No. Phases NaCl equiv.

25C S 3A Halite 245.5 275.0 275.0 36.2

25D S 3A Halite 225 274 274 36.1
25E S 3A Halite 224.5 275.5 275.5 36.2
25F S 3A Halite 245.0 280.5 280.5 36.6
25G S 3A Halite 235.6 276.8 276.8 36.3
25H S 3A Halite 241.9 274.8 274.8 36.2
BFI 340 E 1000 FW Calcite 21A S 3A Halite 222.5 261.5 261.5 35.3
21B S 3A Halite 220.1 265.8 265.8 35.6
21F S 3A Halite 223.6 294.0 294.0 37.5

Type 3B P
Sample No. Sample Host Finc. Origin Type Daughter Thv Tdh Tds Tmin
Location Mineral No. Phases

BFI 900-9 900 HW Fluorite 14A P 3B Halite + Sylvite + 2U 389.5 433.3 168.7
14B P 3B Halite + Sylvite + 3U 400.0 438.0 163.0
14D P 3B Halite + Sylvite + 3U 388.5 404.1 143.7
14H P 3B Halite + Sylvite + 4U 353.5 409.6 215.1
BFI 259A 850 HW Fluorite 5A P 3B Halite + Sylvite + 3U 492.4 383.5 105.6
5B P 3B Halite + Sylvite + 1U 497.2 421.0 124.7
5E P 3B Halite + Sylvite + 1U 417.0 124.4 640.0
6K P? 3B Halite + Sylvite + 2U 213.6 450.0
BFI 199F 1050 FW Fluorite 12A P 3B Halite + Sylvite 354.5 430.0 105.0
12C P 3B Halite + Sylvite +U 468.0 468.0 102.1
12G P 3B Halite + Sylvite 492.0 210.6 116.1
12H P 3B Halite + Sylvite + 2U 438.5 436.4 132.3

Type 3B S
Sample No. Sample Host Finc. Origin Type Daughter Thv Tdh Tds Tmin
Location Mineral No. Phases

BFI 160E 1080 HW Quartz 18B S 3B Halite + Sylvite 355.1 367.9 89.5
18C S 3B HALITE + SYL 334.1 363.8 90.0
18D S 3B Halite + Sylvite 364.9 364.5
18J S 3B Halite + Sylvite 371.5 371.5 91.6
BFI 152B Oriente PP Calcite 25B S 3B Halite + Sylvite + 2U 242.9 277.9 66.3

Type 4
Sample No. Sample Host Finc. Origin Type Daughter Tfm Tclath ThCO2 Tdec Salinity wt%
Location Mineral No. Phases NaCl equiv.

BFI 199A 1060FW Fluorite 19A S 4 None 6.8 30.1 143.8 6.1
19B S 4 None 150.1
19C S 4 None 150.4
19D S 4 None –58 6.8 27.4 181.4 6.1
19E S 4 None 28.1
19F S 4 None 17.5
19G S 4 None 15.2 147.8
19H S 4 None –58.1 6.7 25.7 130.0 6.3
19I S 4 None 7.8 151.0 4.3
19J S 4 None 184.7

Bodnar RJ (1995) Fluid inclusion evidence for a magmatic source

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