Mineralization

Gold has a least four significant modes of occurrence. These are: in nugget form, associated with tellurides, sulphosalts and interlocked in magnetite and along its fractures. Sliver, platinum, palladium, and zircon are the chief elements in the auriferous sands. These metallic particles range in size 0.0750 to almost 0.215 millimeters. The gangue minerals consist of quartz which is the most abundant while the feldspar suite minerals are subordinate. Hafnium and other rare earths including yttrium and lanthanum have widespread distribution in the mineral sands.