Mertondale 2 Gold Mine, Mertondale Goldfield, Leonora Shire, Western Australia, Australiai
| Regional Level Types | |
|---|---|
| Mertondale 2 Gold Mine | Mine |
| Mertondale Goldfield | Ore Field |
| Leonora Shire | Shire |
| Western Australia | State |
| Australia | Country |
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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
28° 40' 23'' South , 121° 32' 42'' East
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
Type:
Köppen climate type:
Nearest Settlements:
| Place | Population | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Leonora | 532 (2012) | 31.5km |
The Mertondale 2 Gold Mine is a small abandoned open pit, 35 kilometres north-east of Leonora, and just east of the Leonora-Nambi Road where it turns north-east to north, if travelling from Leonora.
The former Mertondale town site borders the road but there is nothing left to see. The large north-south striking Mertondale 3-4 Gold Mine is 200 metres north. The historic Merton's Reward Gold Mine, is 100 metres south, and the three quarries mined over 100 years ago for this site can still be seen.
Gold was discovered at Merton's Reward by Fred Merton on 04 March 1899, and he developed a rich mine here until 1910. Between 1981 to 1984 several companies explored the area including Telluride Mining NL, Nickel Ore NL, International Nickel (Australia) Ltd, and Petroleum Securities Mining Co Pty Ltd. Hunter Resources explored the area in 1984.
They took out a joint venture with Harbour Lights NL, and the Mertondale 3-4 pit was mined across 1986 to 1988. In 1989, Harbour Lights acquired the tenements from Hunter. In 1991, the Mertondale 5 mine closed down. Then Sons of Gwalia Ltd acquired the tenements. Navigator came to own the tenements in 2004, from the administrators of Sons of Gwalia.
The Murrin Greenstone Belt between the Yilgangi Fault and Celia Lineament hosts the Mertondale mines, consisting of sandstone, basalt, felsic volcanic rocks, peridotite, and volcaniclastic rocks.
The Mertondale prospects strike north-south for 12 kilometres in length from Mertons Reward in the south to Mertondale 5 in the north. Merton's Reward, Mertondale 2 and 3-4 are in the east branch of the Mertondale Shear Zone over a 3 kilometre strike length. Quicksilver, Tonto, Eclipse, and Mertondale 5 are in the west branch of the shear zone at a 9 kilometre strike length.
The area contains a central felsic volcanic sequence bounded on either side by tholeiitic basalt-dolerite-carbonaceous shale and felsic porphyry. Oxidation is variable from less than 5 metres at Merton's Reward to 80 metres at Eclipse.
Select Mineral List Type
Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical ElementsCommodity List
This is a list of exploitable or exploited mineral commodities recorded at this locality.Mineral List
1 valid mineral.
Rock Types Recorded
Note: data is currently VERY limited. Please bear with us while we work towards adding this information!
Select Rock List Type
Alphabetical List Tree DiagramDetailed Mineral List:
| ⓘ Native Gold Formula: Au |
Gallery:
List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification
| Group 1 - Elements | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ⓘ | Native Gold | 1.AA.05 | Au |
List of minerals for each chemical element
| Au | Gold | |
|---|---|---|
| Au | ⓘ Native Gold | Au |
Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality
Australia
- Western Australia
- West Australian ElementCraton
- Yilgarn CratonCraton
Australian PlateTectonic Plate
- West Australian Craton
- Eastern Yilgarn CratonCraton
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Mertondale 2 Gold Mine, Mertondale Goldfield, Leonora Shire, Western Australia, Australia