December 9, 1998
Initial Iolite Gemstone Sampling Yields "Impressive"
Anglo Swiss Resources Inc.'s exploration manager, Mr. James Laird is pleased to report the initial results of a sampling program testing two gem quality iolite-bearing zones on the Blu Starr property, located in the Slocan Valley, B.C. The two zones outcrop approximately 1 kilometre apart on a correlative litho-stratigraphic horizon, and access to the zones is excellent. Float occurrences of similar material have been traced for an additional kilometre along strike. Iolite, the gem variety of the mineral known as cordierite, is a hard and durable gemstone with a violet-blue colour, similar in appearance to the gemstone tanzanite. Iolite from the Blu Starr property displays a remarkable property known as trichroism, meaning that if a given gemstone is viewed from three different directions, it exhibits three different colours, namely blue-violet, honey yellow and pale blue-grey. Cabochon-cut iolite from the property displays a noticeable star effect.
The initial iolite discovery, known as the Rainbow North Zone, outcrops at the base of a small bluff. The mineralized zone has been hand-trenched and is presently exposed for 20 metres along strike, 5 metres in thickness, and 5 metres in profile depth. The zone has a shallow dip to the east and is open along strike and to depth. The surrounding wallrock is composed of well-layered feldspar-quartz-biotite-hornblende gneiss with scattered garnet porphyroblasts. The iolite hostrock is a distinctive, dark-green fibrous metamorphic rock composed of biotite and fuchsite mica, tremolite-actinolite, iolite, quartz, feldspar, megacrystic almandine-pyrope garnets, and amphibole. Iolite content varies, averaging about 5 percent of the observed rock surface, which is highly altered due to weathering. Additional minerals noted include amethyst, clear, rose and star quartz; schorl and dravite tourmaline crystals up to 10 cm in diameter, rutile, beryl, spinel, ilmenite, muscovite, chlorite and others. The amethyst and clear quartz crystals commonly display positive and negative scepters and complex twinning patterns.
The iolite occurs as large crystals in quartz vein stockworks and pegmatites, and as scattered masses throughout the hostrock. The iolite crystals weather to irregular masses of translucent violet gem material on the outcrop surface. Beneath the weathered outcrop, the tabular iolite crystals display a greenish-brown retrograde alteration known as pinite, which is a fine-grained mixture of sericite mica and chlorite. The deepest samples obtained from the outcrop show euhedral dark violet crystals with minimal alteration. The largest single crystals exceed 1000 carats in weight, but much larger crystalline masses have resulted from complex twinning and intergrowths. A representative 2 metre by 2-metre panel sample averaging about 10 centimetres in depth was taken by hammer and moil from the south end of the mineralized zone. The total sample weight was approximately one tonne, from which 25 kilograms of very high-grade iolite crystal ore was extracted.
The second iolite zone, known as Rainbow South Zone, is also found outcropping at the base of a low bluff, and is presently exposed for 10 metres along strike, 2 metres in thickness, and 2 metres in profile depth. This zone also has a shallow dip and is open to strike and to depth. General deposit morphology, mineralogy and alteration are similar to the Rainbow North Zone. Large, euhedral iolite crystals form in quartz veins and as scattered masses and crystals throughout the hostrock. A representative 2 metre by 2 metre panel sample averaging about 10 centimeters in depth was taken by hammer and moil was taken from the center of the zone. The sample weight was approximately one tonne, which yielded about 25 kilograms of high-grade iolite crystal ore.
The two samples taken together contain more than 100,000 rough carats of iolite crystal. The samples are currently being processed at the company's gem lab in Nelson, B.C. to remove any waste rock and to block out gem material for cutting. Final sample results are expected before year-end.
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