The role of basement and young magmatism in epithermal gold and polymetallic mineralization in Takab-Mahneshan area, NW Iran

Takab-Mahneshan's metallogenic area is essential in gold mineralization, and it is a part of the northern Urmia-Dokhtar magmatic belt. The northern Urmia-Dokhtar has two distinctive features. It contains the Precambrian basement, and the young Mio-Pliocene magmatism rocks overlie its Precambrian basement. Precambrian basement has two different compositions, oceanic and continental crusts (gneiss, granite, mica-schist, greenschist, amphibolite, serpentinite, marble). The Young rocks are composed of hyaloclastite, acidic tuff, andesitic-basaltic, acidic to intermediate intrusions (diorite, granite), limestone, and marl of Qom formation. We categorized the Young rocks into four phases based on their age and positions. The mutual effect of the basement and young magmatism --in the latest phase --creates hydrothermal solutions in the form of a heat engine. The heat engine has caused rotation and variety, increasing mineralization in the area. As a result, there are mines, deposits, gold indications, and some associated gold elements, including Tuzlar, Bayche Bagh, Baghcheh at Mahneshan area, Zarshuran, Agh-darreh, and Ay-Qalesi in Takab. The Tuzlar and Baghcheh deposits with gold mineralization are in a Silicic-argillic zone, including pyrite, gold-bearing silica, argillic and ferrous hydroxides minerals. The Ay-Qalesi polymetallic deposits often contain zinc and lead. The Zarshuran and Agh-darreh deposits are the gold types that the first one has a variety of mineralization of sulfides and sulfosalts. The second one has simple gold mineralization, and finally, the Bayche Bagh deposit with polymetallic type includes chalcopyrite, pyrite, rutile, arsenopyrite, sphalerite, bornite, smaltite, chloanthite, azurite, and malachite minerals.