Geological characteristics and K-feldspar 40Ar/39Ar dating of the Miaoling gold deposit in Songxian County, Henan Province

The Miaoling gold deposit in Songxian County of Henan Province is located in the Xiong′ershan-Waifangshan area on the south margin of North China craton. The ore deposit is hosted in the Mesoproterozoic volcanic rocks of Xiong′er Group, along a NS-trending fracture zone. Ore bodies occur in layered and lenticular forms, and ores have disseminated and stockwork structure with anhedral fine-grained texture and replacement texture. Hydrothermal alterations of the wall rock include silicification, K-feldspathization, sericitization, pyritization etc. Mineralizations show multi-stage characteristics and the gold deposit is of the fracture zone altered rock type. 40Ar-39Ar plateau age and isochron age of K-feldspar are respectively 121.6Ma±1.2Ma and 117.0Ma±1.6Ma, indicating that the ore deposit was formed in Early Cretaceous, identical in age with Qiyugou, Yaogou and other gold deposits in Xiong'ershan area. They therefore may be products of structure-magma-fluid activity in Early Cretaceous.