Sulfidic shale (Kupferschiefer Formation, Upper Permian; Rudna Copper Mine, Lubin, Poland) 2

Sulfidic shale from the Permian of Poland. (cut surface; cross-section view)

This is a sample from the famous Kupferschiefer of Poland. The name means "copper shale". It is a thin (less than 1 meter thick), black shale horizon in the Permian of many parts of northern Europe - for example, Germany, Poland, and parts of Britain. The horizon is estimated to be present at the surface or in the subsurface over an area of at least 20,000 square kilometers.

The dark color of the rock is due to a high organic carbon content. The material bubbles slightly in acid - it is calcareous. Kupferschiefer samples are heavy for their size - they contain a relative abundance of finely disseminated sulfide minerals. Sometimes, sulfide veins, veinlets, and sulfide-rich laminations are present (the latter are evident here as the thin, light-colored streaks). Reported minerals include chalcocite (Cu2S - copper sulfide), chalcopyrite (CuFeS2 - copper iron sulfide), bornite (Cu5FeS4 - copper iron sulfide), pyrite (FeS2 - iron sulfide), galena (PbS - lead sulfide), sphalerite (ZnS - zinc sulfide), tetrahedrite (Cu12Sb4S13 - copper antimony sulfide), and others. Minor amounts of precious metals, such as gold and platinum-group elements, are also known.

The copper content has made the Kupferschiefer a mining target in northern Europe since Medieval times. Surficial smelting of Kupferschiefer outcrops was done as far back as the Bronze Age.

The origin of the Kupferschiefer's mineralization has been explained by several hypotheses in the literature. Traditionally, this stratabound copper sulfide deposit was interpreted as having formed by metal sulfide precipitation on an ancient Permian seafloor in stagnant water with reducing conditions.

Subsequent investigations have demonstrated that metal-rich fluids have gone through the Kupferschiefer, plus some overlying and underlying rocks, and precipitated various sulfide minerals. Two pulses of sulfide mineralization have been identified: at around 149 Ma (Late Jurassic) and 53 Ma (Eocene). Suggested causative events for the mineralization are the breakup of Pangaea during the Mesozoic and the closure of the Tethys Sea during the early Tertiary (see Borg et al., 2012).

Stratigraphy: Kupferschiefer Formation, lower Zechstein Series, Upper Permian

Locality: Rudna Copper Mine, north of the town of Lubin, southwestern Poland
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Mostly synthesized from:
Guilbert & Park (1986) - The Geology of Ore Deposits. 985 pp.

Borg et al. (2012) - An overview of the European Kupferschiefer Deposits. Society of Economic Geologists Special Publication 16: 455-486.
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Taken on: February 7, 2024

Tags:

sulfidic

shale

Formation

Permian

Rudna

Copper

Mine

Lubin

Poland

chalcopyrite

iron

sulfide

sulfides

mineral

minerals

black

mines « less

Sets appears in: • Black Rocks, Minerals, Fossils • Kupferschiefer Formation (Upper Permian; Germany-Poland) more » • Poland Rocks & Fossils • Permian Rocks & Fossils « less

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