Tonstich

This article deals with open pit mining for the extraction of clay. For the technique of clay engraving in wood engraving, see here .

Clay pit near Mengerskirchen in the Westerwald. The white clays from the tertiary era are mined here with normal hydraulic excavators and bucket chain excavators .

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Panoramic view (video) of the clay pit of Skourta , Greece, which has been in use for more than 2500 years .

As Tonstich or clay pit are opencast mines where designated, clay , is generally for the extraction of raw materials for the ceramics and building materials, broken down.

The term clay sting comes from the time when the clay was cut by hand with a spade. It was not until the end of the 19th century that clay mining was increasingly mechanized using various types of excavators .

Due to the water-retaining properties of the clay, the excavations must be kept dry with pumps, since rainwater or groundwater from near-surface aquifers that are inserted in the clay layers does not seep away at the bottom of a clay pit, but remains. Artificial ponds and lakes are therefore quickly created in disused (abandoned) clay pits, for example in the clay landscape around Zehdenick in the Oberhavel district in the German state of Brandenburg .

See also

• Mildenberg brickworks park
• Siershahn Clay Mining Museum

Web links

Commons : Tongruben  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Extraction of ceramic raw materials - website of the Federal Association of Ceramic Raw Materials and Industrial Minerals eV (BKRI)