Sphinx recovers pristine gold grains in tills on the Chemin Troilus gold-copper project, Eeyou Istchee James Bay Territory
MONTREAL, QUEBEC--(Marketwired - Jan 10, 2017) - Sphinx Resources Ltd. ("Sphinx" or the "Corporation") (TSX VENTURE:SFX) is pleased to announce the results of the 2016 exploration program carried out on the Chemin Troïlus project (the "Project"). The presence of anomalous counts of morphologically pristine gold grains in till samples collected at the head of a gold-bearing boulder dispersal train suggest a proximal common source in an area of 1.2 by 1.0 km up-ice of the head of a boulders dispersal train (Figure 1 attached).
The discovery of the Troïlus Mine located 25 km north-east of the Project was also the result of follow-up prospecting of mineralized boulders. The mine was previously operated by Inmet Mining Corp. from 1997 to 2010 and produced more than 2 million ounces of gold and 70,000 tonnes of copper. The Troïlus Mine is currently held by Sulliden Mining Capital Inc. ("Sulliden") who have released a recent, indicated mineral resource estimate of 44 million tonnes containing 1.27 g/t Au and 0.12% Cu (Sulliden's press release dated May 25, 2016). The mineralization hosted at the Troïlus Mine is not necessarily indicative of the mineralization hosted on the Corporation's Project.
The Project is located at the southwest end of a gold-copper corridor trending north-east. This corridor is located at the northern limit of the Frotet-Evans greenstone belt, in the Opatica geological subprovince of the Superior Province and includes the Troïlus Mine. The Project consists of 61 claims (33.2 km2). It is located 110 km north-north-west of the town of Chibougamau along existing road access to the Troïlus Mine and therefore exploration can be carried out at a low cost.
Highlights
A total of 47 till samples and 28 rock samples were taken upstream and laterally from the area identified by mineralized boulders discovered in 2015 (see June 13, 2016 press release).
Till samples weighing about 12 kg were collected at a depth of about 1.2 meters. The samples are from the following areas (attached Figure 1):
- 13 samples in the immediate area of the mineralized boulders taken at a maximum distance of 300 m northeast of the boulders and with a sample spacing of less than 100 meters;
- 16 samples on lines 500 m and 1,200 m northeast of the mineralized boulders with a sample spacing at approximately 300 m intervals on lines spaced 500 to 800 m apart and oriented perpendicular to the direction of glacial transport;
- 10 samples along the Troïlus Mine road in the northeast area of the Project, 3 km northeast of the boulder train with a spacing of approximately 300 meters; and
- 8 samples in other lateral areas to the dispersion train of the mineralized boulders.
Gold grains were recovered from 47 till samples and a total of 34 samples contain one or more grains larger than 50 microns, 8 of which are described as "pristine". Pristine grains are generally interpreted as derived from sources proximal to the primary source.
Prospecting has discovered a new sub-angular block of approximately 1 m3 in size that returned an assay of 0.62 g/t Au. It is located approximately 50 m northeast of the head of the dispersal train identified in 2015. The boulder is slightly magnetic and contains 1 to 2% pyrite. Previous prospecting conducted in 2015 by Les RessourcesTectonic Inc. ("Tectonic") identified 13 mineralized blocks in an area of 220 m by 45 m oriented northeast within in the corridor and returned values up to 1.57 g/t Au (June 13, 2016 press release).
The Corporation believes that the results of the 2016 exploration campaign are very encouraging and define a prospective area of 1.2 by 1.0 km upstream of the head of the dispersion train of mineralized boulders and till samples containing pristine gold grains. On the basis of these results, the Corporation plans to carry out field work in 2017, including a magnetic survey and an induced polarization survey. The objective of these surveys is to discover the primary source of the mineralized blocks through definition of targets that can be tested by drilling.
Prospecting was carried out during August and September by Tectonic under the supervision of Jean Laforest, ing., with the collaboration of the Table jamésienne de concertation minière of Chibougamau. Till samples were processed and examined by IOS Services Géoscientiques inc. of Chicoutimi. The gold grains were extracted, and their dimensions measured and classified as "pristine", "modified", or "reshaped" to estimate the distance the gold grains travelled from their potential bedrock source. The ARTGold® method was used for the detection of detrital gold grains (web site www.iosgeo.com). The analysis of the rock samples from surface blocks was carried out by ALS Chemex of Val d'Or using the ICP-21 methods for gold and ME-ICP61 for 33 elements.
Funding for the program includes funds provided by the Société d'investissement dans la diversification de l'exploration (SIDEX) as part of its "Field-Action 2016" program. The technical information presented in this press release has been approved by Normand Champigny, President and Chief Executive Officer of Sphinx, and a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101.
About Sphinx
Sphinx is engaged in the generation and acquisition of precious metals exploration projects in Québec, a Canadian province which is recognized as an attractive mining jurisdiction worldwide.
For further information, please consult Sphinx's website: www.sphinxresources.ca
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This press release may contain forward-looking statements that are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and activities to vary materially from targeted results and planning. Such risks and uncertainties include those described in Sphinx's periodic reports including the annual report or in the filings made by Sphinx from time to time with securities regulatory authorities.
Contact
Normand Champigny
President and Chief Executive Officer
514.979.4746
info@sphinxresources.ca
www.sphinxresources.ca