EXCAVATIONS
ON SOŁTYSIA MOUNTAIN
Hewing a drift and transporting the ore out of the mine. Fragments of church altars dating from the 16th century.
ORE CONCENTRATING
The ore, containing about 10 grams of gold per tonne, was mined, then it was crushed in beater mills, sifted and manually segregated. The lumps of ore that contained hypertrophies of gold bearing minerals with gangue were separated by smashing them with a hammer. The smallest particles were concentrated in special troughs filled with water. The concentrate obtained in that way contained up to 20 grams of gold per tonne.
Drawings of Agricola and photographs showing fragments of the church altar in Annaberg.
MINES AND ENVIRONMENT
Forty years ago here, on the slopes of Krzyżowa Mountain, quarrying started. It only lasted for 20 years but replaced a beautiful forest with bare rocks. Today we can see that young trees and plants are coming up on the rocks again. Also in the shallow water that gathered at the bottom of the rock some water plants that had not previously existed are growing. Some frogs and newts have found their home in the water. In the same way nature is treating other vestiges of old mining and smelting activity that you pass along the route. On large heaps that are now over 400 years old and were created by smelting slag, and waste dug out from deep underground, some beautiful trees and plants are growing. You can even see some rare animals living here. In some hollows of the old pits the next generation of trees is growing and some drifts that are easily accessible from the outside are perfect shelter for bats and owls. Going further along the path you will see many species of fauna that are now in danger of extinction.
 --- zoom --- The plan of the underground excavations just under the surface of the mountain. |
We
are in the Golden Ravine on the bank of the Golden Stream. On both
slopes of the ravine there used to be tens of pits where the gold-bearing
ore was mined. In front of us we can see the slope of Sołtysia Mountain. "Black Drift" was hewn in the 16th century. It was used for the drainage and ventilation of the excavations on Sołtysia Mountain, and for transporting the ore. In the 20th century an electric narrow gauge railway was built. In the 16th century, at the mouth of the drift, there was the installation for ore concentrating and furnaces in which gold was smelted. Later in the 17th century, the first arsenic plant was built. |
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Hewing a drift and transporting the ore out of the mine. Fragments of church altars dating from the 16th century.
ORE CONCENTRATING
The ore, containing about 10 grams of gold per tonne, was mined, then it was crushed in beater mills, sifted and manually segregated. The lumps of ore that contained hypertrophies of gold bearing minerals with gangue were separated by smashing them with a hammer. The smallest particles were concentrated in special troughs filled with water. The concentrate obtained in that way contained up to 20 grams of gold per tonne.
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Drawings of Agricola and photographs showing fragments of the church altar in Annaberg.
MINES AND ENVIRONMENT
Forty years ago here, on the slopes of Krzyżowa Mountain, quarrying started. It only lasted for 20 years but replaced a beautiful forest with bare rocks. Today we can see that young trees and plants are coming up on the rocks again. Also in the shallow water that gathered at the bottom of the rock some water plants that had not previously existed are growing. Some frogs and newts have found their home in the water. In the same way nature is treating other vestiges of old mining and smelting activity that you pass along the route. On large heaps that are now over 400 years old and were created by smelting slag, and waste dug out from deep underground, some beautiful trees and plants are growing. You can even see some rare animals living here. In some hollows of the old pits the next generation of trees is growing and some drifts that are easily accessible from the outside are perfect shelter for bats and owls. Going further along the path you will see many species of fauna that are now in danger of extinction.
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