Veliki Krivelj Mine, Bor, Bor District, Central Serbia, Serbiai

Regional Level Types
Veliki Krivelj Mine	Mine
Bor	Municipality
Bor District	Administrative District
Central Serbia	Province
Serbia	Country

Veliki Krivelj Mine, Carpathian Mountains, Europe

An open pit copper mine (active in 1999). Porphyry copper deposit several km north-east of the Bor deposit.

Veliki Krivelj porphyry-skarn Cu deposit is located in the central-southern part of the Timok metallogenic district, approximately 3 km north of Bor City, Serbia. The mining area primarily exposes Middle-Lower Jurassic, Upper Cretaceous, and Quaternary strata. The Middle-Lower Jurassic strata, distributed in the northern part of the mining area, consist of sandstone, sandy limestone, marl, and marble. Upper Cretaceous strata, extensively outcropping across the area, are dominated by andesitic volcanic rocks, volcaniclastic sediments, and pyroclastic deposits, overlain by Quaternary sediments.
The porphyry-type Cu orebodies are primarily hosted in altered andesite, andesite porphyry, and quartz diorite porphyry, with their spatial distribution structurally controlled by NNW-trending faults. The ores predominantly occur as disseminated and stockwork textures, where chalcopyrite serves as the principal Cu-bearing mineral. Wall-rock alteration in the mining area shows vertical zonation: shallow levels are dominated by argillic alteration (montmorillonite + kaolinite), intermediate depths by propylitic alteration (chloritization-dominant) and phyllic alteration (quartz-sericite-pyrite), transitioning downward to potassic alteration dominated by K-feldspar.
Skarn Cu orebodies constitute a significant mineralization style in the Veliki Krivelj deposit. Several skarn horizons with variable dimensions and spatial abundance have been identified within the mining are. These skarns exhibit distinct spatial zonation: at shallow levels (depths < 400 m), they occur as veinlets or thin layers (thickness ≤ 6 m) within tuffaceous hornfels, associated with weak Cu mineralization, whereas at deeper levels (> 400 m), they predominantly form thick stratiform bodies (thickness > 6 m) at the contact between quartz diorite porphyry and marble, showing markedly enhanced Cu grades. Field and microscopic observations indicate that the Veliki Krivelj deposit formed in three stages: pre-ore, syn-ore, and post-ore stages. The pre-ore stage features dominant garnet crystallization accompanied by accessory pyroxene. The syn-ore stage represents the principal mineralization phase for skarn Cu orebodies, characterized by formation of non-metallic minerals (epidote, anhydrite, and quartz) and abundant metallic sulfides. The post-ore stage marks the terminal hydrothermal event. Petrographic observations reveal veinlets composed of these three minerals crosscutting earlier-formed assemblages of garnet, epidote, and pyrite.

Geochronology

Mineralization age: Late/Upper Cretaceous : 87.88 ± 0.5 Ma

Important note: This table is based only on rock and mineral ages recorded on mindat.org for this locality and is not necessarily a complete representation of the geochronology, but does give an indication of possible mineralization events relevant to this locality. As more age information is added this table may expand in the future. A break in the table simply indicates a lack of data entered here, not necessarily a break in the geologic sequence. Grey background entries are from different, related, localities.

Geologic Time				Rocks, Minerals and Events
Phanerozoic
	Mesozoic
		Cretaceous
			Late/Upper Cretaceous	ⓘ Molybdenite 87.88 ± 0.5 Ma

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

References