1.3 APPLIED SEDIMENTOLOGY
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Fig. 1.2. Illustrations of the three main types of sedimentary ore body. (A) Placer detrital ores (e.g., diamond,
gold, and other heavy minerals) on channel floors. (B) Syngenetic ores, precipitated during sedimentation,
such as those found in the mineralized shale of the Roan Group sediments (Pre-Cambrian) in the Zambian
copper belt. Note the correlation between the type of mineralization and paleogeography. (C) Epigenetic replacement of limestone by lead-zinc sulfides in Mississippi Valley-type ore body.
Many stratiform ore bodies have been attributed to a syndepositional or syngenetic
origin, though an epigenetic (postdepositional replacement) origin has often been argued too. The criteria for differentiating these origins are examined later. Particularly
cogent arguments have been advanced to support a syngenetic origin for ores of copper,
manganese, and iron in bedded sedimentary rocks (Bernard, 1974; Wolf, 1976). Classic
examples of syngenetic copper ores include the Permian Kupferschiefer of G e r m a n y
and the Pre-Cambrian Copper belt of Katanga and Zambia. The Kupferschiefer is a thin
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Fig. 1.2. Illustrations of the three main types of sedimentary ore body. (A) Placer detrital ores (e.g., diamond,
gold, and other heavy minerals) on channel floors. (B) Syngenetic ores, precipitated during sedimentation,
such as those found in the mineralized shale of the Roan Group sediments (Pre-Cambrian) in the Zambian
copper belt. Note the correlation between the type of mineralization and paleogeography. (C) Epigenetic replacement of limestone by lead-zinc sulfides in Mississippi Valley-type ore body.
Many stratiform ore bodies have been attributed to a syndepositional or syngenetic
origin, though an epigenetic (postdepositional replacement) origin has often been argued too. The criteria for differentiating these origins are examined later. Particularly
cogent arguments have been advanced to support a syngenetic origin for ores of copper,
manganese, and iron in bedded sedimentary rocks (Bernard, 1974; Wolf, 1976). Classic
examples of syngenetic copper ores include the Permian Kupferschiefer of G e r m a n y
and the Pre-Cambrian Copper belt of Katanga and Zambia. The Kupferschiefer is a thin