In the US state of Arizona, Aztec Minerals (TSXV: AZT, FSE: AZ3, WKN: A2DRF0) and Dragoon Resources have expanded the Tombstone project by 46.7% through staking 31 new claims. The total size of the project, located in southeastern Arizona and operated as a joint venture by the two partners, has increased by 211 hectares from 452 to 663 hectares. Simultaneously, Aztec Minerals announced that it has slightly increased its stake in the Tombstone joint venture to 78.7%.
The 31 newly acquired, unpatented lode mining claims are located near or directly adjacent to the core claims of the Tombstone project. Through this new acquisition, Aztec Minerals is succeeding in further consolidating its land holdings in this highly interesting gold-silver mining area. Advantageously, the new claims were staked on open ground and are not subject to any royalties or work commitments.
The new claims are interesting not only because they significantly expand and round out the concession area, but primarily because they further increase the exploration potential of the Tombstone project. Several historical mine shafts are encountered on the new claims. Some of these abandoned mines still have dumps of considerable size. In addition, oxidized deposits were discovered by previous owners and partly mined.
The Tombstone Belt is Famous for its High Gold and Silver Grades
The Tombstone district became famous at the end of the 19th century when some of the highest gold and silver grades were discovered here. As with many other historical mining sites, there is also the possibility here that ores that were not economically mineable in previous years represent very attractive target zones at today’s gold and silver prices.
Furthermore, Aztec Minerals believes that the historical silver mines in Tombstone could be connected to a much larger mesothermal system with CRD mineralization below the old mines. Since 2017, Aztec has therefore conducted geological mapping, geochemical sampling, and geophysical surveys to identify the most promising areas for gold-silver mineralization around and below the Contention open pit, as well as CRD zinc-lead-copper-silver-gold mineralization below the entire district.
Aztec Minerals’ management rates the area as very promising for the discovery of mesothermal and CRD mineralizations, as their own drilling conducted in 2020-2024 has shown that the Contention Pit target area has significant, shallow-lying, oxidized gold-silver bulk mineralization that is open in all directions.
Several other promising targets have been identified in Cretaceous and Paleozoic rocks associated with significant northwest- and northeast-trending structures that host porphyritic intrusions intersecting a possible caldera ring structure.
Aztec Minerals’ Recent Drilling Confirmed the Expectation of Finding New Mineralized Zones in the Vicinity of Historical Mines
The main objective of the recent drilling was to explore the shallow, bulk, potentially heap-leachable mesothermal gold-silver oxide mineralization adjacent to and below the previously mined Contention pit through step-out drilling.
Future drilling will likely focus on strike and dip extensions of the shallow oxide mineralization and penetrate deeper into the ground. This is done with the aim of exploring larger, deeper “Taylor-type” lead-zinc-silver CRD targets along and adjacent to the Contention structure.
Certainly, an interesting question will also be whether the material placed on the dump represents only waste rock, or still contains gold and silver grades high enough that reprocessing in a modern mill could be an interesting and profitable option.
Aztec Minerals Increases its Stake in the Tombstone Project to 78.7%
The two partners will intensively pursue these questions in the coming months. Aztec Minerals and partner Dragoon Resources have no time to lose. If all goes according to plan, the field teams will arrive at the project and the new claims as early as next week to begin their work.
This will initially consist of geologically mapping the new claims and taking a series of ground samples. Together with an intensive review of historical records, it should then be possible to determine the first proprietary drilling targets on the new claims.
Through the acquisition of the new claims and the application of varying amounts for the purchase, the ownership structure within the Tombstone Joint Venture has shifted slightly. Before the acquisition, Aztec Minerals held a 77.7% share in the project. This has now increased slightly to 78.7%, while the partners, who previously held 22.3%, have slightly reduced their share to 21.3%.
With the acquisition of the new claims, Aztec Minerals has made an interesting move, as it significantly expands its footprint in the region located about 100 kilometers southeast of the city of Tucson. This gives the company the opportunity to continue the success story of this district, which produced around 32 million ounces of silver and about 250,000 ounces of gold between 1878 and 1939, into the 21st century.
