Sanatana Resources Inc said anomalous gold was encountered in a shear hosted quartz vein in its just completed first pass scout drill program on the Gold Rush project, located 25 kilometers (km) west of Timmins, Ontario.
The Vancouver-based explorer said a total of 23 holes NQ diameter over 3,113 meters were completed on seven separate prospects. All holes intersected quartz veins, alteration, and sulphides. There are numerous quartz vein hosted gold showings on the property and the scout program was designed as an initial test into the several most accessible prospects to help prioritise future exploration on the project, explained the company.
At the North Shaft Prospect, Sanatana completed seven NQ diameter holes, drilled in a series of three fences 50 meters apart. Previous surface channel sampling had revealed a NW-SE structure hosting gold.
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The drilling targeted this structure with a hole drilled at 45 degrees dip, and a second hole drilled from the same setup at between 60-70 degrees dip designed to intersect the structure at a greater depth.
The middle fence received a third hole that stepped back and tested the structure at an even greater depth, said the company. Additionally, two small AQ diameter man portable drill holes were completed.
“This prospect received the most attention as the drilling revealed a shear zone with quartz veins with albite and ankerite and sulphides, all good visual signs of mineralization,” said the company.
The assay results from all holes returned “elevated gold” from the quartz vein, added the company. The results defined a 1 meter to 5-meter-wide vein that strikes over 150 meters from surface to 100-meter depth. It is open in all directions and demonstrates the mineralized zone dips to the Northeast to about 60 degrees.
Sanatana said it discovered: “Consistent 1 meter to 5 meter of >0.5 g/t gold in all but one of the seven holes drilled to test this structure.” The best assays included 6.35 grams per tonne (g/t) over 0.75 meters at surface, 2.45 g/t over 55-56 meters in NS-21-04 and 2.08 g/t over 54-55 meters in NS-21-05, according to the company.
It pointed out that the multi-element ICP assays showed that the gold is associated with silver, with an average ratio of 5:1 silver to gold. The elements, “bismuth, molybdenum, tellurium and tungsten” are also correlated with the gold, as well “as elevated >0.5% sulphur.” Sanatana said it is the “first persistent mineralization ever discovered on the property” and described it as a "Kirkland Lake type element."
The drilling focused on the eastern structure at the North Shaft prospect exposed by the stripping campaign conducted earlier by Santana. The company plans to return to the prospect with the light portable AQ size rig and to search for strike extension of this vein. In addition, Sanatana plans to drill test the yet to be tested western trend present at the prospect as confirmed by surface channel sampling.
Sanatana's 2,200 hectare Gold Rush project near Timmins consists of two claim blocks. It is just 11 km north-west of Pan American Silver’s Timmins West mine where over 750,000 ounces of the yellow metal have been produced to date.
Contact the author Uttara Choudhury at uttara@proactiveinvestors.com
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