Work History

Staked as Key cl (69101) by G. Fairclough and optioned in 1955 by Conwest Exploration Company Ltd, and in 1959 by R.R. Kirwan, H. Regehr & E. Erickson, who transferred the claims to a new company, Ketzakey Silver Mine Ltd, in 1960. The property was optioned from 1964 to 1972 by Silver Key Mine Ltd, which entered a joint venture with Stump Mines Ltd in 1967 and explored with geochemical sampling, bulldozer trenching and 268.2 m of drifting on two levels in 1968-69 and added the Pex cl (89062) to the east in Feb/65. Silver Key was reorganized as Nordev Resources Ltd in Mar/72.
The occurrence was restaked as Camp cl 2 (Y94450) in Jul/72 by A.M. Riba, Regehr and Erickson, who performed bulldozing in 1974-75. Camp cl 2 appears to cover the underground workings. Various other Camp claim groups occur in the immediate area and it appears that the trio, used the claims to cover lapsing Key claims. In Mar/76 the men formed a new company, Iona Silver Mines Ltd, to develop the occurrence and surrounding showings. Iona explored with more bulldozer trenching in 1976 and 1977, 3 holes (160.3 m) in 1978 and a 24.4 m raise between the 800 and 700 levels in 1978-79.
In Aug/79, Agorex Gesellschaft zur Gewinning von Bodenschatzen CmbH & C obtained first right of refusal for production financing through an Iona option to TRV Minerals Corp, which retained a 5% net smelter interest. In 1980, the 800 level adit was advanced 73.2 m and a 20.4 m raise was driven from the 700 level to surface.
Iona optioned its claims to Canamax Resources Inc in 1985 and changed its name to Aigner Holdings Ltd in 1987. The claims were transferred back to Aigner Holdings in Dec/89.
In Mar/95 the occurrence was restaked as E cl 1-2 (YB59268) by R. Berdahl. Between July and Oct/95 Berdahl prospected and sampled various mineralized showings on the E claims. The work was part of a larger program carried out by Berdahl on various surrounding claim blocks.

Capsule Geology

The main vein, called Key 18B, is a complex, branching structure in thin bedded upper Cambrian to lower Ordovician argillaceous limestone, which was discovered with soil sampling in 1968. It strikes north and dips steeply east. Mineralization consists of galena, pyrite with minor tetrahedrite and sphalerite in a carbonate gangue. At least three other weaker showings occur within 609.6 m to the northwest. In Mar/69 Stump Mines and Silver Key Mines reported the vein hosted inferred resources of 9,072 tonnes grading 582.85 g/t Ag.
The 700 level adit, about 22.9 m below the surface exposure, developed 3.7 m of mineralization grading 692.6 g/t Ag and 12.4% Pb over a 1.7 m width, and the 800 level adit (30.5 m lower) developed 25 m of vein grading 493.7 g/t Ag over a width of 1.5 m. The bottom 7.6 m of the raise assayed 538.3 g/t Ag and 12.4% Pb across a 2.4 m width, while the upper 26 m of raise, at surface, averaged 353.13 g/t Ag and 1.4% Pb across 1.8 m.
In 1975 Nordev Resources released a pre-feasibility study which estimated reserves at 10,702 tonnes proven and possible, grading 545.3 g/t Ag and 12.1% Pb (a record search of the Energy Mines and Resources Library, Yukon Government failed to located the pre-feasibility study).
Berdahl collected 7 selective grab samples from tailings and waste piles located around the Ketza Key adit. The samples averaged over 1 g/t Au and Cu rich samples from the waste dump assayed up to 3,430 ppb Au, 1% Cu and 3,153 ppm Sb.