Old Moss Lead Vein

Old Moss Lead Vein
Site of Special Scientific Interest
Country England
Region North East
District Wear Valley
Location NY820433
 - coordinates 54°47′5″N 2°16′50″W / 54.78472°N 2.28056°W / 54.78472; -2.28056Coordinates: 54°47′5″N 2°16′50″W / 54.78472°N 2.28056°W / 54.78472; -2.28056
Area 0.6 ha (1.5 acres)
Notification 1961
Management Natural England
Area of Search County Durham
Interest Geological
Map of England and Wales with a red dot representing the location of the Old Moss Lead Vein SSSI, Co Durham
Location of Old Moss Lead Vein SSSI, Co Durham
Website: Map of site

Old Moss Lead Vein, also known as Killhope Head, is a Site of Special Scientific Interest in the Wear Valley district of County Durham, England. It consists of an exposure of a mineral vein in the valley of the Killhope Burn, just upstream from the North of England Lead Mining Museum.

The vein is visible as a 5-metre thick intrusion trending northeast-southwest through the Great Limestone. Mineralisation in the vein typifies the inner fluorite zone of the North Pennines Orefield,[1] with galena and sphalerite in the centre of the vein giving way to fluorite and siderite toward the periphery. The site, under the name Killhope Head, has been designated of national importance in the Geological Conservation Review.[2]

References

  1. Dunham, Kingsley C (1990). Geology of the North Pennine Orefield, vol 1, Tyne to Stainmore. HMSO. ISBN 0-11-884471-7.
  2. "Old Moss Lead Vein" (PDF). English Nature. 1989. Retrieved 27 July 2010.


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