Rock with Placer Gold? Info/ID Help

[dgriffin218]

Greetings Everybody! This is my first post here. I found a very interesting rock in the dry creek of my property up in northern Arizona and was wondering if you all could help me learn more about it. I will be going back up in a couple weeks to bring the rock down for some tests and to scout the area for more. Based on what I can see and from some research online it appears to be gray shale type rock with what I have seen called fossil placer gold?

Could you all please let me know if you see anything else, or if finding a rock like this is indicative of something more as far as finding more gold or minerals are concerned? I have had a lot of trouble finding information online as it pertains to finding what looks like placer gold encased in sedimentary rock.
Thank you all very much!!!

 

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[IMAUDIGGER]

I have found placer gold inside what appear to be rocks. The "rock" ended up being mudstone and decomposed after being exposed to the weather.

I'm not seeing anything that looks like placer gold in your picture, just some gold colored flecks inside the rock.
However - having the real deal to look at is something different. Crush some up and pan it out.

Looks like mica or pyrite to me.

 

[bobw53]

Remember.. Gold ALWAYS LOOKS THE SAME from all angles and all lighting conditions.

If you move your head over to the right and it changes color, its not gold. If you put it in shade and it changes color, or you can't see it
anymore, its not gold.

Crush it and pan it, its the only way to really know... A lot of times there is a ton of pyrite in rocks that have a tiny little bit of gold.

 

[Eu_citzen]

Well, it's a volcanic rock you got there. Intermediate to Mafic in composition. Won't be able to get a proper ID on the rock without seeing it in person.

The bright spots in the pics are likely very shiny reflections of the feldspars.

 

[Terry Soloman]

Use a sewing needle, and see if you can get one of those little pieces to break, or flake off. If it does it's pyrite. If it doesn't, crush that and pan it!

 

[mpgken]

First, NO rock has placer gold. A rock can contain gold but it is NOT placer gold. Placer gold is gold that has already come out of the rocks. So if gold is in the rocks and you can see pieces of it it is native gold or free milling gold.

What the others said about identifying gold in rocks is right on. If you think it is gold crush the rock and pan the powder.

 

[Assembler]

First, NO rock has placer gold. A rock can contain gold but it is NOT placer gold. Placer gold is gold that has already come out of the rocks. So if gold is in the rocks and you can see pieces of it it is native gold or free milling gold.

What the others said about identifying gold in rocks is right on. If you think it is gold crush the rock and pan the powder.

Good information and on the point.
Maybe one can try to use a falcon type pin pointer metal detector depending on the background minerals not over loading the detector. If one crushes to say 1/16" size and spread out in a thin layer one should have better ability to use the small probe easier with better results. This can be faster then using ones eye's as well.

 

[Eu_citzen]

First, NO rock has placer gold. A rock can contain gold but it is NOT placer gold. Placer gold is gold that has already come out of the rocks. So if gold is in the rocks and you can see pieces of it it is native gold or free milling gold.

What the others said about identifying gold in rocks is right on. If you think it is gold crush the rock and pan the powder.

You know, I was having a philosophical moment and... Maybe you could call gold found in conglomerate placer gold.
But then, who cares what you call it? In the end, it's still gold.

 

[SaltwaterServr]

You know, I was having a philosophical moment and... Maybe you could call gold found in conglomerate placer gold.
But then, who cares what you call it? In the end, it's still gold.

It's referred to as paleoplacer.

 

[Eu_citzen]

It's referred to as paleoplacer.