If you have heard that quartz and gold treasure a special relationship, you are right! However, it is essential to understand how the mineral and the metal relate to each other and behave in nature. Quartz deposits can be an indicator that gold is nearby if they are read wisely!
Gold is not always present around or within quartz deposits, or it is present in small quantities that are not viable or profitable to mine. However, many quartz veins do contain gold. So, if you notice pieces of quartz during your explorations, you should search for a nearby ore lode.
Let’s have a look at the signs that can indicate the presence of gold.
Table of Contents
What Is Quartz?
While gold seekers are generally aware of what gold looks like and behaves in nature, it is also essential to understand what quartz is and how it is formed. Indeed, the two materials correlate to each other, and quartz sediments can give prospectors excellent indications regarding where gold could be. Quartz is much more common than gold in nature, making it a popular sign of gold deposits and lodes.
This mineral boasts a crystalline structure that is hard and composed of oxygen atoms and silicon. Since quartz mainly consists of silica (Silicon Dioxide), it has a natural tendency to trap heavy minerals and metals, such as gold. The word “quartz” refers to a hard substance that can be found in several locations across the Earth and comes in several varieties.
What Does Quartz Look Like?
As we have seen, there are several varieties of quartz in nature that differ slightly from each other. For example, amethyst, jasper, and pink quartz are only some of the types you could encounter in your explorations. Some are transparent or translucent. However, depending on the variety, they can assume different tones and colorations.
Among the most common hues of quarts are violet, pink, orange, or brown. Other rocks and minerals might only contain quartz. These formations take the name of aggregates and can vary in color and shape.
However, the most common variety you might notice during your prospecting trip is transparent quartz, which can assume a milky consistency. These deposits can come in different sizes. Check the video below to know more about quartz formations in nature.
How Are Quartz Veins Formed?
“Veins” is the name given to quartz deposits found within host rocks – also called country rocks[1]. These are formations intruded by magma deriving from denser depths of the Earth through volcanic activity. Quartz, gold, and other minerals and metals are then pushed to the surface through hydrothermal activity. As the host rock formed by magma begins to cool, these substances (including quartz) precipitate or deposit on the country-rock[2].
Since similar temperatures cause the process for both quartz and gold, many prospectors look for the more common quartz to identify rare gold-bearing locations.
The Relationship Between Quartz and Gold
Generally, gold is often associated with quartz deposits. However, the opposite is not always exact – quartz deposits are not always associated with gold[3].
Indeed, the majority of quartz veins will not contain gold – or at least not enough gold to justify mining operations in those locations. Attempting to retrieve such minute quantities of gold will require significant investments to make the operations not profitable.
However, veins in country rocks were formed by the same vapors that would contain silica and – sometimes – gold. Therefore, finding pieces of quartz in a location can indicate that a country-rock containing a vein could be nearby. These assume the name of “lodes”[4], the primary source of gold for prospectors and miners.
Of course, over time, particles of golds under the form of nuggets, flakes, and fine gold become detached from the lode due to erosion and natural forces. Once they travel through the bottom of the elevation where the lode is, these particles then move towards the course of a river or stream. This causes them to travel even further from the lode.
While, generally, quartz behaves in the same way and could be found miles away from the “mother lode,” these deposits can give essential indications regarding where and how far the lode is. Of course, having an in-depth knowledge of that specific location’s geology is critical to pinpoint viable areas in which the lode could be situated.
Natural Indicators of Quartz Deposits
While not all quartz deposits are gold-bearing, they can be excellent indicators for prospectors to identify the location of a nearby lode or gold deposits. However, correctly reading these telltale signs is essential to track them back to the lode.
Quartz Floats
Since the lode is subjected to natural agents and erosion forces, pieces of gold, quartz, and other minerals become detached from it and travel away from the lode. If these particles are far from the lode, but they have not yet reached the course of a waterway or streambed, they assume the name of “eluvial deposit”[5].
In geology and prospecting, “floats” are those pieces of materials such as quartz and gold that have been transported further from the eluvial deposit[6]. However, these floats can be found close enough to the original lode outcrop that can trace them back to their origin.
Quartz floats are small or more significant pieces of quartz that might or might not contain gold. If you find them just off a streambed or on the backdrop of an elevation, it is worth following the traces left behind as these might take you to the original lode.
While this is the best method for identifying a lode in small-scale prospecting operations, gold seekers should keep in mind that such floats can be extremely far from the lode in some cases.
Gold With Attached Quartz
If, while panning or sluicing, you have found flakes or nuggets of gold still containing quartz, you should treat them as floats and try to trace them back to the lode. Just like in the case of retrieving coarse (rough) gold nuggets and floats[7], this is a sign that the lode might be in proximity.
Indeed, rough gold nuggets or gold pieces containing quartz residues indicate that such particles have not been weathered enough to become entirely smooth.
Finding Lodes
Finding lodes from quartz floats and gold particles can be challenging, especially for small-scale prospectors and gold-seekers new to the area. Here are two signs to keep in mind[8].
High-Mineralized Quartz Floats
Mineralization in quartz looks like brown, red, or rusty patches and tones[9]. Mineralized quartz – even if the float does not contain gold – is a sign that there could be a gold-bearing lode outcrop nearby. This is because gold is associated with other materials subjected to mineralization over time and can pass onto the quartz.
Multiple Quartzes Floats
As we have seen, finding quartz floats can be an excellent indication of a nearby lode. However, prospectors should also keep in mind that a single or sporadic float could have traveled extremely far from the lode, especially if you notice one along the course of a river.
Instead, noticing several pieces of quartz[10] and floats in a location can indicate that the lode is nearby, as not all of them would have reached a specific place at the same time.
Conclusion
While quartz deposits are not always gold-bearing, understanding the relationship between this mineral and gold is essential to identify lodes. Indeed, quartz and gold have been deposited through the cooling of the same vapors deriving from deep underground. Therefore, it is not unlikely to find quartz and gold in the same lode. Prospectors should trace floats back to the lode if possible.