Exploration for stratabound mineralisation around Chillaton, Devon

Reconnaissance soil traverses were sampled across the regional strike of a Lower Carboniferous sequence of shales, cherts, basic volcanics and intrusive dolerites (greenstones) in the vicinity of Chillaton, Devon (Figures 1 and 2) to look for evidence of strata-bound mineralisation. The area was considered to have potential for stratabound base-metal mineralisation because of the presence of several old workings for manganese mineralisation in chert and associated rocks and presence along strike to the east at Sourton Tars, Belstone and Teign Valley of base-metal mineralisation with stratal control and because of similarities in geology and structural setting with the Iberian pyrite belt. In addition, several traverses were surveyed geophysically over a wider area both east and, to a lesser extent, west of Chillaton to provide apparent resistivity, chargeability, self potential and VLF data. These data showed the area immediately to the east of Chillaton to be the most interesting geophysically. Subsequently two holes were drilled in this area to investigate the source of the geophysical anomalies.