Soil Geochemistry and Exploration Implications of the Terziali Gold Prospect (Central Anatolia, Türkiye): A Case Study of Shear-Related Orogenic Gold Mineralization

The Terziali is a shear-hosted orogenic gold prospect located in the Central Anatolian Crystalline Complex, Türkiye. This study focuses on soil geochemistry, element correlations, background and threshold values, and evaluates exploration implications over a survey area of 35.5 km². A total of 1826 soil samples were collected from the B horizon using a grid of 100 × 50 m and were analyzed using ICP-AES, ICP-MS, and fire assay techniques. Statistical techniques of median + 2MAD threshold calculations, descriptive statistics, Kolmogorov–Smirnov tests, correlation analysis, hierarchical clustering, and Q–Q plots were carried out to identify geochemical anomalies. The data demonstrate Au threshold (28 ppb) and peak concentration (460 ppb), non-normal distributions characterized by strong positive skewness, revealing the outliers linked to mineralization. Soil geochemistry indicates a moderate association between Au and As in the four-acid dataset (r = 0.465), although the correlations between Au and Sb and Ag and W are relatively weak. The spatial analysis indicates that Au anomalies are predominantly linked to the NW–SE-oriented Demirli Thrust Fault. As displays extensive dispersion halos surrounding the gold anomalies; it establishes itself as an efficient pathfinder element. Conversely, Sb and W exhibit unique anomaly patterns, whereas Ag patterns are weak and dispersed. The Terziali prospect provides a substantial geochemical framework for identifying structurally controlled orogenic gold systems in Central Anatolia and the western Tethyan metallogenic belt.