Vancouver, BC (FSCwire) - Aztec Minerals Corp. (AZT: TSX-V) announces that the first two trenches at the Jasper prospect on the Cervantes property in Sonora State, Mexico have returned attractive gold and copper grades.
See maps at:
http://www.aztecminerals.com/cervantes-project/maps/#&gid=1&pid=9 http://www.aztecminerals.com/cervantes-project/maps/#&gid=1&pid=10
The Penasco trench returned a weighted average of 0.89% copper and 0.59 grams per tonne (gpt) gold over a 20 meter (m) width and the Cardon trench, 30 m north of the Penasco trench, assayed a weighted average of 0.76% copper and 0.30 gpt gold over a 10.85 m width, both still open in all directions. The Penasco trench copper values range between 0.35% and 1.39% and the gold values range between 0.05 and 2.95 gpt. The Cardon trench samples range between 0.35% and 1.05% copper and 0.09 and 0.778 gpt gold.
Trenching exposed widespread oxide copper mineralization, including neotocite, chrysocolla and minor chalcocite. Oxide gold mineralization is associated with hematite-goethite formed from oxidized pyrite in sub-vertical siliceous structures, quartz-copper oxide veins, and densely spaced fractures.
New trenching is underway to connect the Penasco and Cardon trenches, and extend further north to connect with other rock outcrops mineralized with copper oxides. Hand trenching will continue south of the Penasco trench to outcrops where grab samples have assayed up to 2.47% copper and 0.16 gpt gold. Overall, oxide copper has been traced in outcrop for over 230 m along the north-south Jasper trend, open in all directions and extending under thin overburden cover. Visible gold has been subsequently been observed in new trenches, with assays pending.
The Jasper prospect sits in a gully related to a north-south trending fault zone adjacent to and immediately west of the main California gold zone, within siliceous hornfels, quartzites, argillites and the same altered quartz feldspar porphyry intrusive rocks as California but at a lower elevation.
The main California zone IP chargeability anomaly diminishes as it crosses the fault, then becomes sharply stronger to the west of the Jasper prospect, indicating that porphyry copper-gold mineralization could continue west of the fault.
These trench results mark the first systematic sampling of copper mineralization on the Cervantes property. More trenching is underway at both Jasper and California to help target Aztec’s first drill program on the Cervantes property, to begin after the rain season ends in the next 1-2 months.
Joey Wilkins, B.Sc., P.Geo., is the Qualified Person who supervised the field work and approved the technical disclosure in this news release. All samples, including certified standards and duplicates, have been submitted to Bureau Veritas Laboratories in Hermosillo, Sonora. Samples were measured over 2.0 to 3.15 meter intervals by measuring tape in hand dug trenches or across outcrops. Channeled rock was placed in plastic bags and labeled on both sides. Samples range in weight of 4.0 to 5.0kg. Sample tags were placed in the trenches to denote their location and a handheld GPS unit collected coordinates. The samples were driven in pickup to the laboratory in Hermosillo by the QP.
About Aztec Minerals – Aztec is a mineral exploration company focused on the discovery of large porphyry gold-copper deposits in the Americas. Our first project and core asset is the prospective Cervantes gold-copper property in Sonora, Mexico. Aztec’s shares trade on the TSX-V stock exchange under the symbol AZT.
