Magmatic and hydrothermal history of the porphyry-style deposits of the Ardlethan tin field, New South Wales, Australia

The cassiterite-sulfide deposits of the Ardlethan tin field are classified as porphyry-style Sn deposits on the basis of the intimate spatial and temporal relationships of the breccia pipes and Sn deposits with the Ardlethan Granite, and in particular, the Mine porphyry; the continuum of salinity and temperature conditions from high-temperature and high-salinity fluids in the Ardlethan Granite to lower temperature and less saline fluids in the breccia pipes in the Mine granite; and the isotopic character of the ore fluids which is consistent with a magmatic fluid source characterized by primitive isotopic signatures for carbon and sulfure. The deposits occur in breccia pipes in the Siluro-Devonian Mine granite close to its contacts with the Ardlethan Granite and Ordovician metasediments. Brecciation and mineralization are linked to the release of magmatic volatiles and saline brines from the Ardlethan Granite. -from Authors