gossan

gossan, rust-coloured oxide and hydroxide minerals of iron and manganese that cap an ore deposit. Gossans form by the oxidation of the sulfide minerals in an ore deposit and they thus may be used as clues to the existence of subsurface ore deposits, especially if distinctive boxworks are present.

In addition to hydrous oxides of iron and manganese, gold and silver in the native (natural, nearly pure) state and various sulfate, carbonate, and silicate minerals can occur in gossans. The hydrous oxide minerals occur as the residuum when sulfide minerals are dissolved from the outcrops; they are either indigenous (i.e., fixed at the site of the original sulfide mineral) or transported. Indigenous hydrous oxides indicate the presence of copper, whereas transported hydrous oxides indicate its absence or its presence in very low proportion to iron and manganese. See also boxwork.