Schwaz silver mine

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The Schwaz silver mine has been in operation since the Middle Ages . It was one of the largest and most productive pits of the late Middle Ages and is open to visitors today.

geology

In the area lie Innsbruck quartz phyllite from the Lower Eastern Alps , Kellerjochgneise from the Central Eastern Alps and the Grauwackenzone ( Wildschönau slate , Schwaz dolomite , Permoskythic sediments , Alpine red sandstone and the Schwaz Triassic : Reichenhall layers , Alpine Muschelkalk , Partnach layers ) from the Upper East Alps . The area thus forms the border between the Central Alps and the Grauwackenzone and the Northern Limestone Alps ( Inntal Fault ).

The deposit is pale ore , and in this form unique in the world (type Schwaz; Schwazite).

history

The bull statue in front of the entrance to the Schwaz silver mine is a reminder of the legend

In the late Middle Ages, the Schwaz silver mine was the largest and most profitable silver mine in the world. In 1554 around 7,400 miners were employed there every day. The work turned out to be difficult. The wetness in the mine , the smoke from the lamps (animal fats and pine shavings were used), the hard work with simple tools ( mallets and iron) and the unbalanced diet contributed to the fact that many miners died before the age of 35. At the height of silver mining around 1500, more than 20,000 people lived in the town of Schwaz. This made Schwaz the second largest town in the Habsburg Empire after Vienna.

There is a legend about the origins of the mine. A maid named Kandlerin is said to have been herding cattle when a wild bull tore up a sward with its horns. A dark, shiny stone came to light.

The first ore prospectors soon set out and roamed the area. In the beginning there were only a few, but word of the mountain blessing quickly got around and the Schwaz mining industry soon experienced a unique boom. The miners came mainly from Bohemia and Saxony and other German countries.

In 1491 the Sigmund Erbstollen was opened . It is named after Sigmund the rich in coins and leads about 2100 m into the mountain. From there, the mining of silver and copper was advanced even further. The miners of the early modern times needed 26 years to drive this stretch , which corresponded to the average working time of a miner.

But the further you went into the depths of the mountain, the more difficult the working conditions became. Water that seeped through the mountain and collected in the quarries made further quarrying almost impossible. 600  water collectors had to keep the excavations dry in six shifts.

In addition to silver, copper was another important raw material that was mined in the Schwaz mine. While the extracted silver had to be sold to the sovereign, the copper could be freely offered on the market. The sovereign was a silent partner with 1/9 of the shares in all mines. In addition, every tenth bucket of raw ore had to be delivered to the civil servant. The silver won in Schwaz had to be delivered to the mint in Hall at a fixed price. It was sold there for a value of 5 to 6 guilders per weight mark (281 grams), while the actual market price of 10 to 12 guilders was significantly higher.

As the mining progressed, it became more and more difficult to keep the bottom runs dry and some of the mine workings had to be abandoned for the time being.

Decline

Despite all the achievements, the decline of the Schwaz mining industry could no longer be stopped. The mechanization, the difficult and therefore expensive mining of the deposits in Schwaz as well as the cheap import of silver from the New World had devastating effects on the Schwaz silver mine.

Active mining was completely stopped in 1999. Ore was mined in Schwaz until 1957 , and dolomite was mined for road construction until 1999 . Most recently, only twelve miners were involved in the mining. They supported many times the 7400 miners who worked in the Schwaz silver mine in the Middle Ages.

Schwaz water art

Bulgenkunst after Georgius Agricola
Part of the Schwazer Wasserkunst (replica)

In the year 1515 the excavation of a new inclined shaft (82 ° inclination) began in the Falkenstein district. However, the miners quickly encountered a major problem: groundwater. Therefore, water servants were employed to keep the shaft dry. While 84 water servants were still employed in 1526, their number increased to 600 by 1533. Due to the exhausting work in the wet and cold environment, the water servants worked in 6 shifts of 4 hours each. Because of this and because of the increasing demands of the water servants' salaries, attempts were made to replace human work with machines.

A foreman from Salzburg named Wolfgang Loyscher , later also called Lasser , came to Schwaz in 1554 to construct a water art on behalf of the trades . Master Loyscher built a Bulgenkunst, which was driven by a turning wheel 28 Schuh (9.20 m) in diameter and replaced 600 servants. At the same time this art was used to mine ore. The impact water required for propulsion was directed over four kilometers on wooden channels into the mountain, the raised water flowed together with the used impact water via the Sigmund Erbstollen into the valley. This water art enabled mining below the bottom of the tunnel .

In 1650 the existing art was no longer sufficient and a second water wheel with a diameter of 30 shoes (9.90 m) was installed, which drove a pump art like the Ehrenfriedersdorfer wheel pump .

Around 1755, Johann Baptiste von Erlacher increased the drive power of the art of pumping by connecting a third water wheel with a diameter of 32 shoe (10.60 m) to the second water wheel via a field linkage .

Consequences of the silver mining in Schwaz

Probably no other mine has shaped world history as much as the Schwaz mining industry. In 1477, Prince Sigmund der Münzreich relocated the mint from Merano to Hall , from where the Haller Taler began its triumphal march around the world in 1486 .

The Roman-German king and later Emperor Maximilian I financed his numerous wars with the income from the Schwaz mining industry and helped his grandson, Charles V , to elect a king through advertising and bribes.

Black silver and copper formed the financial basis for the Habsburg empire . During this time Innsbruck was equipped with the most modern gun park in Europe.

The wealth and the lavish lifestyle of the sovereigns and trades is still reflected today in buildings such as Sigmundslust , Sigmundsfreud , the world-famous “ Golden Roof ” and Tratzberg Castle .

Track systems

The Falkenstein mountain area comprises 254  routes with a total length of over 500 kilometers. The mines reach up to about 400 meters in height and in depth. The Sigmund Erbstollen is still the deepest tunnel leading to the day . It serves as access, for drainage of the mine building and for ventilation . In the mountain there is a constant temperature of 12 ° C and a humidity of 99% in summer and winter . Fresh air constantly flows in through the numerous tunnels and shafts.

Todays situation

In the 1990s, the Schwaz silver mine was opened for viewing. Today it is open every day. The first 800 m through the Sigmund Erbstollen are covered today with a mine train . The tour lasts about 90 minutes.

The silver mine is one of the attractions of the city of Schwaz and the Karwendel silver region.

literature

  • Gert Amman (Ed.): The Duke and his Taler. Archduke Sigmund the Coin Rich. Politics, coinage, art . Tyrolean State Museum Ferdinandeum, Innsbruck 1986. (Exhibition catalog. Tyrolean State Exhibition in Hall in Tyrol, Hasegg Castle , June 13th to September 7th 1986).
  • Gert Amman (Ed.): Silver, ore and white gold. Mining in Tyrol . Tyrolean State Museum Ferdinandeum, Innsbruck 1990. (Exhibition catalog. Tyrolean State Exhibition in Schwaz, Franciscan monastery and silver mine, May 20 to October 28, 1990).
  • Erich Egg : Schwaz, mother of all mines . In: Erich Egg, Meinrad Pizzinini (Hrsg.): Contributions to the history of Tyrol . Festival of the state of Tyrol for the 11th Austrian Historians' Day in Innsbruck from October 5th to 8th. Tyrolia, Innsbruck 1971, pp. 259-298.
  • Peter Gstrein: Overview of the historical development of mining on Falkenstein near Schwaz / Tyrol. In: Reports of the Federal Geological Institute. 65, 2005, pp. 65-67 ( PDF on ZOBODAT ).
  • Peter Gstrein: Prehistoric mining at Burgstall near Schwaz (Tyrol). In: Publications of the Tiroler Landesmuseum Ferdinandeum. 61, 1981, pp. 25-46 ( PDF on ZOBODAT ).
  • Franz-Heinz Hye : Town and mining in Tyrol with special consideration of the towns of Hall and Schwaz, 2005 . In: Tillfried Cernajsek (Hrsg.): The cultural heritage in the mining and geosciences. Libraries - Archives - Collections . 8th International Symposium from October 3rd to 7th, 2005 in Schwaz. History of Earth Sciences in Austria. 5th workshop from October 3rd to 7th, 2005 in Schwaz. Geologische Bundesanstalt, Vienna 2005, ( Reports of the Geologische Bundesanstalt 65, ISSN  1017-8880 ), pp. 81–89, Internet source, accessed on February 27, 2010 (PDF, 257 kB)
  • Wolfgang Ingenhaeff, Johann Bair (ed.): Schwazer Silber - wasted wealth? Lavish Habsburgs depending on Upper German capital at the turn of the ages from the Middle Ages to the modern era . Schwaz Silver: 1st International Mining Symposium Schwaz 2002. Proceedings. Berenkamp, ​​Innsbruck 2003, ISBN 3-85093-168-4 .
  • Robert R. v. Srbik: History of the Schwaz - Brixlegg mountain district , 1929 (on haben.at, accessed on October 22, 2014).

media

  • The Silberberg. Documentary with scenic documentation, Austria, 2011, 43:35 min., Script and director: Manfred Corrine , production: mrc film, cinecraft, ORF , series: Universum , first broadcast: 23 September 2010 on ORF 2 , summary by 3sat.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b geology . Schwaz silver mine (silberbergwerk.at).
  2. ↑ v. Hye 2005; P. 86.
  3. ↑ History - Schwaz silver mine. Retrieved July 9, 2020 .
  4. ↑ History - Schwaz silver mine. Retrieved July 9, 2020 .
  5. ↑ Erich Egg, Peter Gstrein, Hans Sternad: Stadtbuch Schwaz - nature, mining, history. Stadtgemeinde Schwaz, Schwaz 1986, p. 36.
  6. ↑ a b History - Schwaz Silver Mine. Retrieved July 9, 2020 .
  7. ↑ History of the Schwaz silver mine.
  8. ^ Georg Agricola : De Re Metallica Libri XII . Twelve books on mining and metallurgy. Unchanged reprint of the first edition by VDI-Verlag, 1928 edition. Marixverlag, Wiesbaden 2006, ISBN 3-86539-097-8 , pp. 154 ff . (Latin).
  9. ↑ Klaus Hanke: Three-dimensional reconstruction and simulation of the technical assembly functionality of the "Schwazer Wasserkunst". (Pdf, 238 kB) Institute for Fundamentals of Civil Engineering, Department of Surveying and Geoinformation, Leopold-Franzens University Innsbruck, accessed on September 2, 2013 (Pump art (recognizable on the work drawing)).
  10. ↑ Water art. A masterpiece of technology. Schwazer Silberbergwerk Visitor Guide GmbH, accessed on September 2, 2013 (at).
  11. ↑ site armory Innsbruck ( Archived copy ( Memento of the original dated 3 September 2009 at the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link is automatically inserted and not yet tested Please review the original and archive link under. Instructions and then remove this notice. ) "Permanent Collection: … Mountain blessing in Tyrol… ”. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.tiroler-landesmuseum.at
  12. ↑ Website “Schwazer Silberbergwerk Visitor Guides GesmbH” ( archived copy ( memento of the original dated July 31, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ). @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.silberbergwerk.at

Coordinates: 47 ° 21 ′ 13.1 ″  N , 11 ° 43 ′ 38.5 ″  E