Cumberland Resources - Meliadine West Project: Deep Drilling Continues to Intersect High Grade Gold Zone.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 20, 1996-- CUMBERLAND RESOURCES (TSE:CBD) Cumberland Resources Ltd. is pleased to announce further results as reported by WMC International Ltd.("WMC") of a significant new zone of gold mineralization on the Meliadine West Project.

The Meliadine Project, favourably located 15 kilometres north of Rankin Inlet, N.W.T. is held 50-50 percent by Cumberland and Comaplex Minerals Corp. The western half of the property is currently under option to WMC who has the right to acquire up to a 60 percent interest in the Meliadine West Property by spending $12.5 million in exploration expenditures.

Thereafter, WMC will provide non-recourse loans to Cumberland and Comaplex for all future exploration and development expenditures with repayment only from production cash flow. After repayment of the non-recourse loans, Cumberland and Comaplex will each retain 20 percent interest in the production cash flow.

In 1995, systematic drilling by WMC on the Tiriruniak Zone outlined an extensive gold bearing shear zone over a 2.5 kilometer length.

Drilling on the shear zone in 1996 outlined a 500 metre long portion called the Tiriruniak Central Zone (TC Zone), that hosts high grade gold mineralization over significant width. To date, thirteen widely spaced holes (100 m apart) outline the new gold bearing zone. The zone remains open along strike and to depth.

Recent gold intersections from the TC Zone are outstanding. Multiple mineralized gold zone per hole are common and combined to form outstanding widths. For example, DDH-96-43 intersected 6.27 gms Au per tonne (gpt) over 57.93 m from 361.1 m to 405.89 m including a high grade intersection of 20.53 gpt over 9.17 m. Also, DDH-96-64, drilled 100 m east of 96-43, and approximately 75 m below intersected 9.26 gpt over 44.79 m at a vertical depth of 350 m.

Complete drill results are given in the accompanying table and longitudinal section. Drilling in other targets on Meliadine West has returned highly encouraging results. For example, at the Wolf Zone located 5 km west of the TC Zone, considered a possible continuation of the Tiriruniak Shear Zone, drilling intersected up to 10.3 gpt over 3.14 m. See accompanying table for complete results. Drilling continues to evaluate this zone.

Cumberland is extremely pleased with these results reported by WMC. The 1996 drilling has been widely spaced, however, initial indications are that the mineralized structure at TC Zone is persistent from hole to hole and remains completely open at depth along strike. Cumberland believes the TC Zone is an extremely significant discovery and has the potential to host a million ounce plus gold deposit.

Additional assays are pending from the TC Zone and other targets on the property. WMC plans a total of 18,000 m of drilling during 1996, of which 15,300 m have been completed to date. Cumberland Resources is a Canadian mineral exploration company with two emerging gold projects, Meadowbank (60 percent) and Meliadine (50 percent) located in the Northwest Territories. Cumberland is also actively exploring for base-metals in the N.W.T., Northwestern Ontario and Portugal. Exploration drilling programs are currently underway on several of these projects.

CUMBERLAND RESOURCES LTD. per: Glen Dickson, P.Geol. President

TIRIRUNIAK CENTRAL ZONE

Hole             Width         Grade        Opt/Feet
                  (m)          (g/t)

(x) 95-01        7.23          8.65        0.25/ 23.7
  and            3.18         11.16        0.33/ 10.4

(x) 95-27        5.48          6.53        0.19/ 18.0
  and            2.78         12.23        0.36/  9.1

(x) 95-17        3.14          8.96        0.26/ 10.3

(x) 95-28        1.04          8.39        0.24/  3.4
  and            1.26         56.73        1.65/  4.1

(x) 95-16        5.05          9.05        0.26/ 16.6

(x) 96-37        4.35         19.87        0.58/ 14.3
  and            7.00         10.57        0.31/ 23.0

(x) 96-39        5.59         21.91        0.64/ 18.3
  and            8.20          8.50        0.25/ 26.9

(x) 96-41        5.39          9.61        0.28/ 17.7

96-40            1.3          22.00        0.64/  4.3

96-42           35.65          2.41        0.07/116.9
  incl.          5.01          5.55        0.16/ 16.4
  incl.          4.43         11.63        0.34/ 14.5

96-43           57.93          6.27        0.18/190.0
  incl.          4.48         13.8         0.40/ 14.7
  incl.          4.25         11.51        0.34/ 13.9
  incl.          9.17         20.53        0.60/ 30.1

96-45            1.6          13.14        0.39/  5.2
  incl.          1.9          11.18        0.33/  6.2

96-64           44.79          9.26        0.27/146.9
  incl.          6.3          35.01        1.02/ 20
  incl.          3.25          6.74        0.20/ 10.6
  incl.          5.0          14.06        0.41/ 16.4
  incl.          1.64         50.55        1.47/  5.4
  and            3.20          4.48        0.13/ 10.5

WOLF ZONE - PRELIMINARY RESULTS

96-16            3.85          5.9         0.11/ 12.63

96-61            2.4           8.9         0.26/  7.87
  incl.          3.4           7.73        0.23/ 11.5

96-62            3.14         10.3         0.30/ 10.3

(x) previously released
Note:  All values uncut.

CONTACT: Cumberland Resources Ltd.

Glen Dickson, 604/608-2557

or

Cumberland Resources Ltd.

Kerry Curtis, 604/608-2557