Specimen, Geological
Keno Mining Museum
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| Object Name: | Specimen, Geological |
| Category: | Communication Artefact |
| Sub-category: | Scientific Artefact |
| Discipline: | Natural History |
| Accession Number: | 1995.2.36 |
| Description: | Mineral sample, Argentiferous Galena (Galena, Freibergite), from Keno Mine Number 18, Vein Number 4, North Slope. |
| History of Use: | Galena is the natural mineral form of lead sulphide, its chemical compound is denoted by PbS. Argentiferous galena is one of the most important ores in silver mining. Aside from being rich in silver and lead, the galena often contains significant amounts of zinc, cadmium, antimony, arsenic, bismuth. The silver and lead bearing ore was first found in the Keno area by placer miner Jacob Davidson in 1903. Davidson staked the claim but let it lapse, his interests at that point were mainly in gold. In 1913, the Silver King mine was stalked and opened up to reveal high concentration of silver in the ore. Silver has been mined in the area ever since, with major operations opening in the 1920 and ongoing exploration today. This area was considered Canada's second largest silver producer, not to mention it helped build the wealth of the Guggenheims, Treadwell Yukon, United Keno Hill Mines and countless individuals. The ore in this area resulted from shifting geological plates millions of years ago. As the rock broke in fissures the hot bubbling heavy ore was pushed up the cracks. As it solidified, deposits were left in veins running throughout the mountains of the Keno area of the Yukon. Large deposits occur at cross faults where most of the galena mined in the area has come from, namely Keno and Galena Hills. This region was Canada's largest silver mine for many years. The ore mined in the Keno-Elsa area is of unusually high grade. Clearly, the most valuable component of the ore is the silver but also contains saleable amounts of lead. The percentage of silver present in the ore was so high that in spite of the distances and difficulties in transportation it was still commercially viable to ship it for smelting in places as far as California. Silver prices fluctuate, and over the years, silver mining has been unprofitable at times, causing the mines to shut down. Currently there is little activity in the Keno area although exploration continues due to the rich deposits in this area. Mining companies are biding their time until silver prices increase and mining becomes profitable again. |
| Credit Line - Image: | Keno City Mining Museum |
| Institution: | Keno Mining Museum |
| Institution City: | Keno City |
| Institution Province: | Yukon Territory |
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