The Vazante Northern Extension is a continuation of the structurally controlled, hypogene nonsulfide zinc deposit from the Vazante Mine, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The deposit is hosted in Neoproterozoic carbonates of the Serra do Poço Verde Formation located in the Brasília Fold Belt along the western margin of the São Francisco Craton. The Northern Extension deposit is hosted within a shear zone that strikes 200 to 225 and dips 30º-70º NW and is associated with substantial folding that occurred in the same deformation (D 2 ) event and later transcurrent faulting. The shear zone is composed of a tectonic-hydrothermal breccia that can be subdivided into four types:Type 1 Breccia-distally located from the willemite (Zn 2 SiO 4 ) ore, weakly brecciated dolostone with some Fe-carbonate alteration; Type 2 Breccia-Strong Fe-carbonate alteration, intense brecciation; Type 3 Breccia-hematite replacement breccia, usually proximal to the Type 4 Breccia; Type 4 Breccia-willemite ore breccia, containing three generations of hypogene willemite (Zn 2 SiO 4 ) as well as hematite (Fe 2 O 3 ), and franklinite (ZnFe 2 O 4 ). In the southern part of the deposit, late sulfide-rich veinlets are observed cutting the hypogene zinc silicate mineralization, and contain galena, sphalerite, native silver, covellite, and stromeyerite (Cu 1-x Ag 1x S). Geochemical studies conducted on the tectonic-hydrothermal breccia showed a strong regional signature enriched in Ag, Cd, Pb, and Zn. The presence of willemite as opposed to sphalerite and the ubiquity of hematite suggest that the zinc silicate mineralization has formed from the mixing between a low sulfur, acid, oxidizing metalliferous basinal brine similar to the fluids found in MVT deposits with a cooler, more oxidizing, meteoric fluid.iii

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Nos arredores da cidade de Lagamar, MG, foram mapeadas as formações Santo Antônio do Bonito, Rocinha, Lagamar, e Serra do Garrote no Grupo Vazante, e no Grupo Bambuí, as formações Serra da Saudade e Lagoa Formosa. Estas formações depositaram-se em ambientes de sedimentação costeira e marinho raso a profundo. Duas importantes falhas inversas estão inseridas dentro do polígono mapeado, aqui designadas como falha de Lagamar I e II. A falha de Lagamar I inverteu a estratigrafia, colocando as formações Serra do Garrote e Lagamar mais antigas sobre as formações Rocinha e Santo Antônio do Bonito, e a falha de Lagamar II colocou o Grupo Vazante sobre o Grupo Bambuí. A Formação Lagamar, a partir de amostras da Lavra Geraldo Américo, mostra valores de δ13C entre -0,14 e 0,91‰ e de δ18O de -6,89 a -3,18‰. Em um testemunho de sondagem da antiga lavra da CALA os valores de δ13C mostram-se bem constantes, variando entre -0,86 e 2,2‰, e os valores de δ18O entre -9,82 e -3,54‰. Na Formação Rocinha, no furo CD05, valores de δ13C entre -6,58 e - 2,85‰ e δ18O entre -6,20 e -5,14‰ foram encontrados. No furo F230A tem-se valores de δ13C entre -6,62 e 3,33‰ e de δ18O entre -10,25 e-7,54‰. Estes perfis podem evidenciar alterações diagenéticas, sobretudo no perfil da Antiga Lavra CALA, em que as curvas de δ13C e δ18O apresentam alguma co-variância. Os valores de 87Sr/86Sr para amostras da Formação Lagamar são entre 0,70679 e 0,70788 e a paraFormação Rocinha 0,70766.Palavras chave: Meso-Neoproterozoico; Formação Lagamar; Formação Rocinha; Falha de Lagamar. ABSTRACT: GEOLOGY AND ISOTOPE CHEMOSTRATIGRAPHY OF THE VAZANTE GROUP IN LAGAMAR (MG). In the geological mapping of theLagamar (MG) region, the Santo Antônio do Bonito, Rocinha, Lagamar and Serra do Garrote Formations of the Vazante Group were identified, and the Serra da Saudade and Lagoa Formosa formations of the Bambuí Group were identified. These  formations  were deposited in coastal and shallow to deep marine environments. Two important inverse faults are included within the mapped polygon, designated here as Lagamar fault I and II. Lagamar fault I thrusts the older Serra do Garrote and Lagamar Formations upon the Rocinha and Santo Antonio do Bonito Formations, and Lagamar fault II thrusts the Vazante Group on top of the Bambuí Group. In the Lagamar Formation, in Lavra Geraldo Américo, δ13C show values between -0,14 and 0,91‰ and δ18O between -6,89 and -3,18‰. In Antiga Lavra CALA, δ13C are constant, between -0,86 and 2,2‰, and values of δ18O are from -9,82 to -3,54‰. In the Rocinha Formation, CD05 borehole samples δ13C values between -6,58 and -2,85‰ and, δ18O values between -6,20 and -5,14‰. In F230A, borehole samples δ13C values are - 6,62 to 3,33‰, and δ18O values -10,25 to -7,54‰. These profiles may indicate diagenetic alteration, especially in Antiga Lavra CALA, because δ13C and δ18O show some co-variance in the chemostratigraphic profile. The values of 87Sr/86Sr of the Lagamar Formation are fromne sample is 0,70766.Keywords: Meso-Neoproterozoic; Lagamar Formation; Rocinha Formation; Lagamar fault.

Important diamond deposits southeast of Coromandel and the local geology have been studied in an attempt to understand what surface source provided the stones. River gravels of Pleistocene to Recent age from this region have supplied most of Brazil's large diamonds over 100 ct. The upper cretaceous Capacete Formation of the Mata da Corda Group, composed of mafic volcanoclastic, pyroclastic and epiclastic material, has been worked locally for diamonds, nevertheless considered non-economic. The authors present results of their study of a deactivated small mine, representing the first report with description and analyses of two gem diamonds washed from this material. Hundreds of kimberlites, discovered in the last half century in the region, are sterile or non-economic. We propose that the surface source of the diamonds is the Capacete "conglomerado". The volume of this material is enormous representing a potential resource for large-scale mining. The authors suggest detailed studies of the volcanic facies of this unit focusing on the genesis, distribution and diamond content. As to the question concerning the origin of these diamondiferous pyroclastic rocks, the authors exclude the kimberlites and point towards the large Serra Negra and Salitre alkaline complexes which are considered the primary source for the pyroclastic units of the Mata da Corda Group. They propose that early eruptive phases of this alkaline complex brought diamonds from a mantle source to the surface, much as happens with traditional kimberlites, to explain the association of such huge carbonatite complexes and diamonds.

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