TORONTO, Nov. 20, 2013 /CNW/ - Marathon Gold Corporation ("Marathon" or the "Company") (TSX: MOZ) today announced wide intervals of gold mineralization in high-grade gold-bearing quartz-tourmaline-pyrite (QTP) veining 300 meters NE of the current resource boundary of the Victory Gold Deposit, Valentine Lake Project, Newfoundland (Figure 1). The new channel intervals, based on metallic screening gold assay results, included 2.11 g/t Au over 18.18 meters including 8.17 g/t Au over 2.96 meters. The channels were collected across dominant QTP-Au veining; over outcrop that returned grab samples ranging up to 140.97 g/t Au, 36.36 g/t Au and 24.16 g/t Au (Figure 1). The gold-bearing QTP veining at the Victory Gold Deposit is identical to the veining that characterizes the Leprechaun Gold deposit located 13 kilometers along strike to the southwest.
Highlights include:
- Channel intervals, using metallic screening assay results, included 2.11 g/t Au over 18.18 meters with 8.17 g/t Au over 2.96 meters, 0.68 g/t Au over 9.55 meters with 1.45 g/t Au over 2.01 meters, and 0.75 g/t Au over 7.46 meters with 1.48 g/t Au over 2.96 meters.
- The QTP-Au defined mineralizing corridor at the Victory Gold Deposit area has a current strike length in excess of 750 meters and a width of more than 200 meters (Figure 1). This corridor, which also includes gold intervals from historical drill holes, provides a highly prospective surface drilling target for future exploration programs at the Victory Gold Deposit area.
- The Victory Gold Deposit alteration and gold bearing QTP veining appears identical to that which characterizes the Leprechaun Gold Deposit located 13 km along strike to the southwest.
"These wide intervals of gold mineralization in trenching 300 meters NE of the current Victory Gold Deposit resource boundary are very important as we plan for future shallow drilling and enlargement of the Victory open pit resource. These results as well as the first trenching results at the Sprite Zone underscore the highly prospective nature of the 17 km long corridor of gold occurrences along the Victory Lake thrust fault" said Phillip Walford, President and CEO of Marathon Gold.
In addition to the channel sampling undertaken to the northeast of the Victory Gold Deposit, Marathon carried out a short prospecting program on a mineral claim on the west side of the Valentine Lake Property. Prospecting grab samples collected from two areas 670 meters apart and 1.7 km west of the Long Lake Cu-Au-Ag mineral occurrence returned gold values of up to 7.24 g/t Au, 6.66 g/t Au, 4.57 g/t Au, 2.90 g/t Au, and 2.58 g/t Au in felsic volcanic rocks of the Cambrian-Ordovician Victoria Lake Group, with base metal values ranging up to 0.18 % Cu, 0.04% Zn and 0.04% Pb. This mineralization is hosted by sulfide rich felsic volcanic rocks of the Cambrian-Ordovician Victoria Lake Group and is a different mineralizing system than that which formed the gold mineralization in the rest of the Valentine Lake property. The work was done for assessment purposes. The main focus of Marathon's exploration remains the 17 km long corridor from the Frank Zone to Victory in the Valentine Lake Intrusion.
All of the samples were analyzed at Eastern Analytical Laboratory Ltd., in Springdale, Newfoundland. Due to the course nature of some of the gold in the Victory trench samples, the metallic screening method was used after fire assays indicated intervals of possible economic importance. The Long Lake gold results were obtained by fire assay.
Sherry Dunsworth, M.Sc., P. Geo., VP of Exploration, Marathon's Qualified Person, has reviewed the contents for accuracy and has approved this press release on behalf of Marathon.
About Marathon Gold Corporation
Marathon is a Toronto based gold resource development company focused on the Valentine Lake property in central Newfoundland. Marathon's mission is to rapidly advance the Valentine Lake project towards advanced exploration and pre-development stages. For more information visit: www.marathon-gold.com.
About the Valentine Lake Project
The Valentine Lake property, owned 100% by Marathon Gold Corporation, hosts two well defined gold deposits with NI 43-101 compliant resources: the Leprechaun Gold Deposit and the Victory Gold Deposit. The Leprechaun Gold Deposit is located near the south-western end of the Valentine Lake property, and the Victory Gold Deposit is located 13 kilometers along strike to the north-east. These gold deposits form part of a 23 km long, highly prospective gold-bearing mineralized corridor focused along the Valentine Lake Thrust Fault.
The Leprechaun Gold Deposit has a NI 43-101 compliant Open Pit and Underground Resource (refer to August 1, 2013 news release). The Open Pit Resource is Measured 3.5 million tonnes containing 247,000 oz Au, and Indicated 6.2 million tonnes containing 412,000 oz Au, and Inferred 1.2 million tonnes at 1.82 g/t Au containing 71,000 oz Au. The Underground Resource is Measured 108,000 tonnes containing 17,000 oz Au, and Indicated 764,000 tonnes containing 100,000 oz Au, and Inferred 349,000 tonnes containing 69,000 oz Au.
The Victory Gold Deposit (formerly Valentine East Hill) has an Open Pit Resource (refer to August 1, 2013 news release). The Open Pit Resource is Indicated 761,000 tonnes containing 41,000 oz Au, and Inferred 199,000 tonnes containing 9,000 oz Au. Both deposits are open to expansion.
CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION
Except for statements of historical fact relating to Marathon Gold Corporation, certain information contained herein constitutes "forward-looking statements". Forward-looking statements include statements that are predictive in nature, depend upon or refer to future events or conditions, or include words such as "expects", "anticipates", "plans", "believes", "considers", "intends", "targets", or negative versions thereof and other similar expressions, or future or conditional verbs such as "may", "will", "should", "would" and "could". We provide forward-looking statements for the purpose of conveying information about our current expectations and plans relating to the future and readers are cautioned that such statements may not be appropriate for other purposes. By its nature, this information is subject to inherent risks and uncertainties that may be general or specific and which give rise to the possibility that expectations, forecasts, predictions, projections or conclusions will not prove to be accurate, that assumptions may not be correct and that objectives, strategic goals and priorities will not be achieved. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to those identified and reported in Marathon Gold Corporation's public filings, which may be accessed at www.sedar.com. Other than as specifically required by law, we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which such statement is made, or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, whether as a result of new information, future events, results or otherwise.
SOURCE Marathon Gold Corporation
Image with caption: "Figure 1: Location map of new channel intervals (using metallic sieve assay results), 300 meters NE along strike from the Victory Gold Deposit, Valentine Lake Property, Newfoundland. (CNW Group/Marathon Gold Corporation)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20131120_C9003_PHOTO_EN_33582.jpg
For further information:
Christopher Haldane
Investor Relations Manager
Tel: 1-416-987-0714
E-mail: chaldane@marathon-gold.com
