Geology, metallogeny and ore prospecting of the Xiajiawan gold deposit of Ankang,Shaanxi Province

The Xiajiawan gold deposit in Zigou area of Ankang, Shaanxi Province, is located in the eastern part of the South Qinling structural belt at the central part of the Qinling orogenic belt. Three gold-bearing alteration zones have been discovered in the area, the length of which is more than 5,000 m, the width ranging between 5m and 50 m, and seven gold orebodies have been preliminary delineated with a length ranging between 140m and 800m,thickness between 1.22m and 3.87m and average Au grade 1.21-3.56 g/T. Under the control of multiple factors such as regional fault structure and rock stemness, the biotite quartz schist as the host rock is distributed along the strike and dip, a brittle-ductile structural zone with a tendency of expansion（strong alteration, favorable ore-forming position）-contraction（non-ore segment） and the gold ore bodies are generally found in the swelling parts of brittle-ductile structural zones. In order to find new blind gold ore bodies and enlarge the deposit scale, it is necessary to look for the swelling part of strongly altered biotite quartz schist at the strike and dip direction.