Mines of Rammelsberg
Encyclopedia
The Rammelsberg is a mountain, high, on the northern edge of the Harz
, south of the town of Goslar
in the north German state of Lower Saxony
. The mountain is the location of an important mine
, the only mine which had been working continuously for over 1,000 years when it finally closed in 1988. Since 1992, the visitors' mine of Rammelsberg has become a UNESCO World heritage site
.
, tied his horse to a tree, in order to pursue some deer through almost impassable terrain. His charger impatiently pawed the ground with its hooves whilst waiting for his master to return and so exposed a vein of silver ore.
, the ore deposits at the Rammelsberg were caused by the escape of hot, metal-bearing, thermal springs
on the sea floor in the Devonian
period. This formation is referred to as a sedimentary exhalative deposit. At the bottom of the Devonian sea, two large lenses of ore were formed that were later caught up in the folding of rocks during the Carboniferous
period and so lie overturned at an angle in the mountain. Ore mining started in the "Old Bed" or "Old Orebody" (Alter Lager), exposed on the surface by erosion
, during the Bronze Age
. The "New Bed" (Neuer Lager) was only discovered in the 19th century as a result of specific exploration
.
ore, then later copper
, and finally lead
. The mines were exhausted only in the 1980s, and were shut down in 1988. The ore contained an average of 14% of zinc
, 6% lead
, 2% copper
, 1 g/t gold
and 140 g/t silver
.
) in the South Harz indicates mining activity at the Rammelsberg in the 3rd century AD. Layers of an early settlement dated to about the 3rd or 4th century AD located about 25 miles south of the Rammelsberg contained not only pre-industrial melting equipment but also remains of ore, which could clearly be identified as Rammelsberg ore.
chronicler, Widukind of Corvey
, in his Res gestae saxonicae
.
In 1005, attracted by the presence of silver ore Emperor Henry II
had an imperial palace or Kaiserpfalz
built on the southern slope of the Rammelsberg. The mines remained an imperial estate and were later held in pledge by the Imperial town of Goslar in the period 1360-1460. In 1552 - after armed conflict - Duke Henry V of Brunswick-Lüneburg
seized ownership of the mines (under the Riechenberg Treaty). The main ores mined at Rammelsberg were lead-zinc ore, copper ore, sulphur ore, mixed ore (Melierterz), brown spar (Braunerz), barite ore (Grauerz), banding ore (Banderz) and kniest along with the important minerals of galena
, chalcopyrite
, sphalerite
, baryte and vitriols. The chief metals extracted from these ores included silver, lead, copper and zinc, on which the wealth of Goslar was based in the Middle Ages. From the 18th century, gold was also won.
), the mine was greatly expanded as part of the Nazi's Four Year Plan
. This led to the construction of the present-day surface installations in 1936/37 under the Rammelsberg project with their hillside processing plant and Rammelsberg shaft. The architects were Fritz Schupp and Martin Kremmer, by whom other important industrial buildings were designed (including the Zollverein
in the Ruhr
area, now also a UNESCO World Heritage Site).
After more than 1000 years during which almost 30 million tonnes of ore were extracted, the mine was closed by the Preussag
company on 30 June 1988 as the mineral deposits had been largely exhausted. A citizens' association argued forcefully against plans to demolish the surface installations and fill in the historic underground mine workings. Consequently the disused mine was developed into a unique museum to preserve its heritage and display the history of the mine and its industrial equipment. In 1992 the museum became a UNESCO
world heritage project together with Goslar's Old Town. In 2010 this world heritage site was expanded to include the Upper Harz Water Regale
, Walkenried Abbey
and the historic Samson Pit
. The Rammelsberg Museum and Visitor Mine is an anchor point on the European Route of Industrial Heritage
(ERIH).
The historic mine has a number of special attractions including:
by its subsidiary, Harz Minerals GmbH, according to which hitherto unknown mineral deposits of the size of those at the Rammelsberg may be present, two kilometres west of the Rammelsberg ore deposits. In autumn 2009 several exploratory bores
were sunk in the area of the Hessenkopf and Gosetal to a depth of 500–600 metres depth. At the end of January 2010, after a news blackout of several months, the company announced that they would soon be drilling to a depth
of 800 metres, where they suspected there would be rich mineral deposits.
Since the mid-18th century the master malter (Maltermeister) lived in the tower hence the name. He managed the wood needed for the mine, which was measured in in malters
. Hence the name of the tower.
("economic miracle") after the Second World War and sharply rising lead
and zinc
prices in 1950, investigations were undertaken into the deposits of banding ore (Banderz). After successful trials into the processing of this low-grade ore (recoverable metal content of about 25%), the dressing of banding ore was begun in 1953 on the Bollrich above the village of Oker
. Once again the mine architect, Fritz Schupp, was responsible for planning the facilities.
The site was linked to the Rammelsberg mine via the pit railway
through the Gelenbeek Gallery. The removal of concentrates to the lead smelter at Oker and the Harlingerode zinc works was facilitated by a standard gauge railway line.
hiking network.
Harz
The Harz is the highest mountain range in northern Germany and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. The name Harz derives from the Middle High German word Hardt or Hart , latinized as Hercynia. The legendary Brocken is the highest summit in the Harz...
, south of the town of Goslar
Goslar
Goslar is a historic town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the administrative centre of the district of Goslar and located on the northwestern slopes of the Harz mountain range. The Old Town of Goslar and the Mines of Rammelsberg are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.-Geography:Goslar is situated at the...
in the north German state of Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
. The mountain is the location of an important mine
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
, the only mine which had been working continuously for over 1,000 years when it finally closed in 1988. Since 1992, the visitors' mine of Rammelsberg has become a UNESCO World heritage site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
.
Name
According to legend, the mountain was named after a knight called "Ramm". Whilst out hunting the knight, who was a henchman of Emperor Otto the GreatOtto I, Holy Roman Emperor
Otto I the Great , son of Henry I the Fowler and Matilda of Ringelheim, was Duke of Saxony, King of Germany, King of Italy, and "the first of the Germans to be called the emperor of Italy" according to Arnulf of Milan...
, tied his horse to a tree, in order to pursue some deer through almost impassable terrain. His charger impatiently pawed the ground with its hooves whilst waiting for his master to return and so exposed a vein of silver ore.
Ore formation
Unlike the mineral deposits of the Upper HarzUpper Harz
The Upper Harz refers to the western and higher part of the Harz mountain range in central Germany. Much of the Upper Harz is over , but at its eastern edge in the High Harz it climbs to over on the Brocken massif.- Geography :...
, the ore deposits at the Rammelsberg were caused by the escape of hot, metal-bearing, thermal springs
Hot spring
A hot spring is a spring that is produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater from the Earth's crust. There are geothermal hot springs in many locations all over the crust of the earth.-Definitions:...
on the sea floor in the Devonian
Devonian
The Devonian is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic Era spanning from the end of the Silurian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya , to the beginning of the Carboniferous Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya...
period. This formation is referred to as a sedimentary exhalative deposit. At the bottom of the Devonian sea, two large lenses of ore were formed that were later caught up in the folding of rocks during the Carboniferous
Carboniferous
The Carboniferous is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Devonian Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Permian Period, about 299.0 ± 0.8 Mya . The name is derived from the Latin word for coal, carbo. Carboniferous means "coal-bearing"...
period and so lie overturned at an angle in the mountain. Ore mining started in the "Old Bed" or "Old Orebody" (Alter Lager), exposed on the surface by erosion
Erosion
Erosion is when materials are removed from the surface and changed into something else. It only works by hydraulic actions and transport of solids in the natural environment, and leads to the deposition of these materials elsewhere...
, during the Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
. The "New Bed" (Neuer Lager) was only discovered in the 19th century as a result of specific exploration
Mineral exploration
Mineral exploration is the process of finding ore to mine. Mineral exploration is a much more intensive, organized and professional form of mineral prospecting and, though it frequently uses the services of prospecting, the process of mineral exploration on the whole is much more involved.-Stages...
.
Mining history
The mining history of the Rammelsberg occurred as a continuous process in different phases. Initially the main product was silverSilver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
ore, then later copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
, and finally lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
. The mines were exhausted only in the 1980s, and were shut down in 1988. The ore contained an average of 14% of zinc
Zinc
Zinc , or spelter , is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2...
, 6% lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
, 2% copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
, 1 g/t gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
and 140 g/t silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
.
Antiquity
The analysis of unsmelted pieces of ore and slag found during archaeological excavations between 1981 and 1985 at Düna (near OsterodeOsterode
The placename Osterode can refer to:* Osterode in Germany* Osterode am Harz in Germany* Ostróda in Poland * a district of the climatic spa Neustadt/Harz, Germany...
) in the South Harz indicates mining activity at the Rammelsberg in the 3rd century AD. Layers of an early settlement dated to about the 3rd or 4th century AD located about 25 miles south of the Rammelsberg contained not only pre-industrial melting equipment but also remains of ore, which could clearly be identified as Rammelsberg ore.
Middle Ages
Mining on the Rammelsberg was first mentioned in the records around 968 by the SaxonDuchy of Saxony
The medieval Duchy of Saxony was a late Early Middle Ages "Carolingian stem duchy" covering the greater part of Northern Germany. It covered the area of the modern German states of Bremen, Hamburg, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Saxony-Anhalt and most of Schleswig-Holstein...
chronicler, Widukind of Corvey
Widukind of Corvey
Widukind of Corvey was a Saxon historical chronicler, named after the Saxon duke and national hero Widukind who had battled Charlemagne. Widukind the chronicler was born in 925 and died after 973 at the Benedictine abbey of Corvey in East Westphalia...
, in his Res gestae saxonicae
Res gestae saxonicae sive annalium libri tres
The three-volume Res gestae saxonicae sive annalium libri tres is a chronicle of 10th century Germany written by Widukind of Corvey...
.
In 1005, attracted by the presence of silver ore Emperor Henry II
Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry II , also referred to as Saint Henry, Obl.S.B., was the fifth and last Holy Roman Emperor of the Ottonian dynasty, from his coronation in Rome in 1014 until his death a decade later. He was crowned King of the Germans in 1002 and King of Italy in 1004...
had an imperial palace or Kaiserpfalz
Kaiserpfalz
The term Kaiserpfalz or Königspfalz refers to a number of castles across the Holy Roman Empire which served as temporary, secondary seats of power for the Holy Roman Emperor in the Early and High Middle Ages...
built on the southern slope of the Rammelsberg. The mines remained an imperial estate and were later held in pledge by the Imperial town of Goslar in the period 1360-1460. In 1552 - after armed conflict - Duke Henry V of Brunswick-Lüneburg
Henry V, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
Henry , Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, called the Younger, was Prince of Wolfenbüttel from 1514 until his death...
seized ownership of the mines (under the Riechenberg Treaty). The main ores mined at Rammelsberg were lead-zinc ore, copper ore, sulphur ore, mixed ore (Melierterz), brown spar (Braunerz), barite ore (Grauerz), banding ore (Banderz) and kniest along with the important minerals of galena
Galena
Galena is the natural mineral form of lead sulfide. It is the most important lead ore mineral.Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals. It crystallizes in the cubic crystal system often showing octahedral forms...
, chalcopyrite
Chalcopyrite
Chalcopyrite is a copper iron sulfide mineral that crystallizes in the tetragonal system. It has the chemical composition CuFeS2. It has a brassy to golden yellow color and a hardness of 3.5 to 4 on the Mohs scale. Its streak is diagnostic as green tinged black.On exposure to air, chalcopyrite...
, sphalerite
Sphalerite
Sphalerite is a mineral that is the chief ore of zinc. It consists largely of zinc sulfide in crystalline form but almost always contains variable iron. When iron content is high it is an opaque black variety, marmatite. It is usually found in association with galena, pyrite, and other sulfides...
, baryte and vitriols. The chief metals extracted from these ores included silver, lead, copper and zinc, on which the wealth of Goslar was based in the Middle Ages. From the 18th century, gold was also won.
Nazi period
Because the Nazis saw the Rammelsberg with its metal ores as vital to the war effort and the difficulty of mineral dressing the ore had been technically solved (using froth flotationFroth flotation
Froth flotation is a process for selectively separating hydrophobic materials from hydrophilic. This is used in several processing industries...
), the mine was greatly expanded as part of the Nazi's Four Year Plan
Four year plan
The Four Year Plan was a series of economic reforms created by the Nazi Party. The main aim of the four year plan was to prepare Germany for war in four years...
. This led to the construction of the present-day surface installations in 1936/37 under the Rammelsberg project with their hillside processing plant and Rammelsberg shaft. The architects were Fritz Schupp and Martin Kremmer, by whom other important industrial buildings were designed (including the Zollverein
Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex
The Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex is a large former industrial site in the city of Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany...
in the Ruhr
Ruhr
The Ruhr is a medium-size river in western Germany , a right tributary of the Rhine.-Description:The source of the Ruhr is near the town of Winterberg in the mountainous Sauerland region, at an elevation of approximately 2,200 feet...
area, now also a UNESCO World Heritage Site).
Closure and world heritage site
Preussag
Preussag AG was a German mining company which later operated in a variety of industries. It was incorporated on October 9, 1923 as Preußische Bergwerks- und Hütten-Aktiengesellschaft ....
company on 30 June 1988 as the mineral deposits had been largely exhausted. A citizens' association argued forcefully against plans to demolish the surface installations and fill in the historic underground mine workings. Consequently the disused mine was developed into a unique museum to preserve its heritage and display the history of the mine and its industrial equipment. In 1992 the museum became a UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
world heritage project together with Goslar's Old Town. In 2010 this world heritage site was expanded to include the Upper Harz Water Regale
Upper Harz Water Regale
The Upper Harz Water Regale is a system of dams, reservoirs, ditches and other structures, much of which was built from the 16th to 19th centuries to divert and store the water that drove the water wheels of the mines in the Upper Harz region of Germany...
, Walkenried Abbey
Walkenried Abbey
Walkenried Abbey was one of the most celebrated Cistercian abbeys of Germany, located in the village of Walkenried in the district of Osterode in Lower Saxony, Germany.-History:...
and the historic Samson Pit
Samson Pit
The Samson Pit or Samson Mine is an historic silver mine in Sankt Andreasberg in the Upper Harz region of central Germany.The pit has one of the oldest man engines in the world still working and it can be seen in operation during guided tours. The man engine, installed in the Samson Pit in 1837,...
. The Rammelsberg Museum and Visitor Mine is an anchor point on the European Route of Industrial Heritage
European Route of Industrial Heritage
The European Route of Industrial Heritage is a network of the most important industrial heritage sites in Europe. The aim of the project is to create interest for the common European Heritage of the Industrialisation and its remains...
(ERIH).
The historic mine has a number of special attractions including:
- the Roeder Gallery (with several water wheels that support the drainage of the pit and the hoisting of ore; there is a replica in the Deutsches MuseumDeutsches MuseumThe Deutsches Museum in Munich, Germany, is the world's largest museum of technology and science, with approximately 1.5 million visitors per year and about 28,000 exhibited objects from 50 fields of science and technology. The museum was founded on June 28, 1903, at a meeting of the Association...
in Munich) - the Feuergezäher Vault (the oldest "nogged" (ausgemauert) underground mining space in Central Europe)
- the Rathstiefste Gallery (medieval drainage adit; decorated with coloured vitriol encrustations)
- the headframeHeadframeA headframe is the structural frame above an underground mine shaft. Modern headframes are built out of steel, concrete or a combination of both...
(18th century) - the Master Malter's Tower (Maltermeisterturm) (oldest above-ground mining building in Germany)
- old pithead dumps (the oldest being from the 11th and 12th centuries).
Prospecting in 2009
In February 2009, the company, Scandinavian Highlands Holding A/S, published the results of geophysical investigationsProspecting
Prospecting is the physical search for minerals, fossils, precious metals or mineral specimens, and is also known as fossicking.Prospecting is a small-scale form of mineral exploration which is an organised, large scale effort undertaken by mineral resource companies to find commercially viable ore...
by its subsidiary, Harz Minerals GmbH, according to which hitherto unknown mineral deposits of the size of those at the Rammelsberg may be present, two kilometres west of the Rammelsberg ore deposits. In autumn 2009 several exploratory bores
Mineral exploration
Mineral exploration is the process of finding ore to mine. Mineral exploration is a much more intensive, organized and professional form of mineral prospecting and, though it frequently uses the services of prospecting, the process of mineral exploration on the whole is much more involved.-Stages...
were sunk in the area of the Hessenkopf and Gosetal to a depth of 500–600 metres depth. At the end of January 2010, after a news blackout of several months, the company announced that they would soon be drilling to a depth
Depth
Depth may refer to:* Depth , an important invariant of rings and modules in commutative and homological algebra* Depth in a well, the measurement between two points in an oil well...
of 800 metres, where they suspected there would be rich mineral deposits.
Master Malter's Tower
The Master Malter's Tower (Maltermeisterturm) is the oldest surviving above-ground mine building on the Rammelsberg and, probably, in Germany as well. It was built around 1500 on a slagheap on the side of the Rammelsberg. To begin with the tower was used to oversee the pits; from 1578 it was used as a bell tower (Anläuteturm).Since the mid-18th century the master malter (Maltermeister) lived in the tower hence the name. He managed the wood needed for the mine, which was measured in in malters
German units of measurement
Germany had an indigenous system of German units of measurement prior to its adoption of the international metric system. These units are now mainly of historical interest.-German system:...
. Hence the name of the tower.
Herzberg Pond
In order to have enough water to drive water wheels during times of drought the Herzberg Pond was created in 1561. Since 1926, this has been used as a woodland swimming pool. Until the closure of the mine, water was used for cooling and the warm water was pumped back into the pond where it heated the swimming basin of the woodland pool.Low-grade ore dressing on the Bollrich
Due to the German WirtschaftswunderWirtschaftswunder
The term describes the rapid reconstruction and development of the economies of West Germany and Austria after World War II . The expression was used by The Times in 1950...
("economic miracle") after the Second World War and sharply rising lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
and zinc
Zinc
Zinc , or spelter , is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2...
prices in 1950, investigations were undertaken into the deposits of banding ore (Banderz). After successful trials into the processing of this low-grade ore (recoverable metal content of about 25%), the dressing of banding ore was begun in 1953 on the Bollrich above the village of Oker
Oker (Goslar)
Oker has been part of the borough of Goslar in central Germany since 1972. It lies on the edge of the Harz mountains and has a population of 7,282 . Previously Oker had been a parish within Wolfenbüttel district since 1952.- Location :...
. Once again the mine architect, Fritz Schupp, was responsible for planning the facilities.
The site was linked to the Rammelsberg mine via the pit railway
Mine railway
A mine railway is a railway constructed to carry materials and workers in and out of a mine. Materials transported typically include ore, coal and spoil. Today most mine railways are electrically powered; in former times pit ponies, such as Shetland ponies, were used to haul the trains...
through the Gelenbeek Gallery. The removal of concentrates to the lead smelter at Oker and the Harlingerode zinc works was facilitated by a standard gauge railway line.
Commemorative coin
In 2008 Goslar's "Old Town" and the Rammelsberg Mine formed the motif for the annually issued 100 Euro gold coins from the series of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.Harzer Wandernadel
The Rammelsberg Museum is No. 91 in the system of checkpoints forming the Harzer WandernadelHarzer Wandernadel
The Harzer Wandernadel is a network of checkpoints for walkers in the Harz mountains in North Germany. It includes a system whereby the hiker can earn badges at different levels by walking to the various checkpoints in the network and recording them...
hiking network.