Exploration and study of Carlin and Carlin-like type gold deposits：review and prospect

Abstract：The superlarge Carlin gold depost and a metollogenic belt extending over one thousand kilometers were discovered in the western region of the Unitid States in the 1960s. This aroused the attention of various countries in the world. The theory on Carlin type gold prospecting was introduced into China in the 1970s, and after the prospecting practice and preliminary study, the clues leading to finding Carlin type gold deposits were found in Shaanxi and Guizhou, China. A major breakthrough in gold exploration was made in China in the middle and late 1980s, and more than 40 large and intermediate Carlin-and Carlin-like type gold deposits have been delineated in the “nothwest gold triangle” and “southwest gold triangle” at the nothwest and southwest margins of the Yangtze block. Major advances have been made in the study of typical deposits. Mineral exploration reached a higher level in China in the 1990s. In addition to the discovery of a number of deposits, some superlarge gold deposits of this type were successfully found and an integrated study of the ore deposit genesis, metallogenic mechanism, deposit types and metallogenic dynamics was conducted. In the new century, gold deposits have still been found unceasingly. This shows the great potential and good prospects in looking for Carlin- and Carlin-like type gold deposits in northwestern and southwestern regions of China.