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Joaquin Montoro
Joined: 25 Nov 2010
Posts: 225
Location: Murcia (Spain)
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 Posted: Oct 12, 2011 13:23 Post subject: A trip to Almaden |
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Last summer I had the chance to visit the world famous locality of Almaden and its mercury mines.
This was not my first time there, I had been in Almaden at least four times before, but it was the first since mines were closed in 2003.
Now, all the works have been transformed in an interesting mining park, with a turistic purpose.
So, everybody can visit a legendary mine, the oldest in the world, learning its great History and knowing about the mercury mining, smelting and transport to the silver mines of New Spain in America during most of 300 years.
I don't want to expose here the complete History of these famous mines, quite large, but only a little report of my self experience, with the hope you all like it and perhaps, some of our friends from the other side of the ocean, will try the unforgetable visit at one of our most important mining sites, who contributed to built the modern world History.
We started our trip in a hot August day from Murcia, and after a long travel crossing the Ciudad Real province, we finally arrived to Almaden, 500 Km. later...
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| First stop at the Ruidera Lakes. We are in Ciudad Real province,300 Km. far from Murcia. As you can see, people enjoy the bath in a pretty environment in a hot, hot day of Spanish summer. |
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| Evening in Almaden. In front of the bulls square (plaza de toros). This was built by the miners in 1755 and is the only hexagonal bulls square in the world. Also is the second oldest. |
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| The Almaden Bulls Square. Today it has been transformed in a nice hotel, but still they celebrate bull fightings there. |
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| Me alongside the shield of Almaden, symbol of the town. |
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| Monument dedicated to all the miners who worked in Almaden. |
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| A nice mining car loaded with cinnabar. It poses like a remember of the past in other side of the town. |
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| The night has arrived to Almaden. Between shadows you can appreciate the silhouette of the San Teodoro headframe. |
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| Early in the morning, the large headframe of San Teodoro shaft, before entry to the mining park. |
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Joaquin Montoro
Joined: 25 Nov 2010
Posts: 225
Location: Murcia (Spain)
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| Posted: Oct 12, 2011 14:20 Post subject: Re: A trip to Almaden |
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Now it starts the visit to the mines, where the main shaft and inside the mine are shown to the visitors.
Hope you enjoy with us...
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An approximation to the mining park. Here you can see the old installations near the San Teodoro shaft and the San Aquilino headframe.
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Joaquin Montoro
Joined: 25 Nov 2010
Posts: 225
Location: Murcia (Spain)
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| Posted: Oct 12, 2011 14:37 Post subject: Re: A trip to Almaden |
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Previous to get down to the mine, we were visiting the visitors reception center, the outside of the park entrance and the old compressors building, now a mining models museum.
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| The San Aquilino headframe. It gave service to a 550 m. deep shaft. |
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| Mining model (wood made) of the San Carlos winch, who was built in the close town of Almadenejos. |
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| Ready to get down to the mine, close the elevator of the San Teodoro shaft. The moment is exciting. |
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| Inside the mine in its first floor. Old works in a XVIII century gallery. |
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| Wood shoring to prevent detachments. First floor of the Almaden mine. |
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| An old wood made mining car filled with cinnabar. This ancient car had a weight of 140 Kg. when empty, so think about its weight loaded and pushing by a miner. |
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Montanpark
Joined: 06 Nov 2008
Posts: 241
Location: Mainz
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| Posted: Oct 12, 2011 14:50 Post subject: Re: A trip to Almaden |
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Hi Joaquin,
thanks a lot for sharing this! My last visit at Almaden was in 1989 and i wondered how it would look now as a touristic destination - just had a quick look at their website as i added some location pictures to mindat recently.
I suppose THIS is not there anymore ;-):
https://www.mindat.org/photo-414839.html
cheers
Roger
P.S. please more pictures!
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GneissWare
Joined: 07 Mar 2008
Posts: 1287
Location: California
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| Posted: Oct 12, 2011 15:01 Post subject: Re: A trip to Almaden |
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Roger: What a GREAT photo!
Joaquin: Thanks for sharing the photos and I look forward to seeing more.
Bob
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Joaquin Montoro
Joined: 25 Nov 2010
Posts: 225
Location: Murcia (Spain)
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| Posted: Oct 12, 2011 15:16 Post subject: Re: A trip to Almaden |
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Hi Roger, I had the chance to float over mercury during my first visit to the Almaden mines in 1982, but no photos unfortunately.
And you are right...an exciting experience!
I continue posting more pics of this last trip...
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| The San Andrés winch, a unique wood made model like the original at 1:1 scale. This is the only one inside a mine (50m. deep) in the world. |
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| The San Andrés shaft (200m deep). We were told that some photo cameras rest at the background because some neglected visitors left them after falling along the shaft while they tried to take a photo. |
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| Protection around San Andrés shaft. |
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Joaquin Montoro
Joined: 25 Nov 2010
Posts: 225
Location: Murcia (Spain)
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| Posted: Oct 13, 2011 08:48 Post subject: Re: A trip to Almaden |
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We continue the visit...
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| A gallery close the San Andrés winch, with masonry shoring. |
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| The cinnabar "in situ", top of a gallery in the first floor of the Almaden mine. |
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| The Virgin of the Mine, an image reproduced like the original, lost during the Spanish Civil War. Miners feel protected during their work, having this image near them. |
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| Posing with a mining car in one gallery. In this site, we could note the high humidity and good ventilation, a thing we appreciated in a day where the external temperature rounded 40ºC. |
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| Close the San Aquilino shaft. This was closed after a terrible accident in 1955 where some miners died. |
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| The little mining train where visitors get out of the mine. We took this nice vehicle at 16m. deep close the San Teodoro shaft. |
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| The little train outside. |
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| Posing with the train driver. It is moved by electric batteries and now used to take off the visitors from the mine after a 700m. underground travel. |
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| The large headframe of the San Joaquin shaft, near the smelting plant. This was the last and deepest in service at Almaden mines. Closed in 2001, it was 700m. deep with 19 floors. |
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| Perspective of the San Joaquin headframe and the metallurgic instalations. |
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John S. White
Site Admin
Joined: 04 Sep 2006
Posts: 1298
Location: Stewartstown, Pennsylvania, USA
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| Posted: Oct 13, 2011 13:18 Post subject: Re: A trip to Almaden |
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So why is the young lady who appears in so many photos not identified?
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John S. White
aka Rondinaire |
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Joaquin Montoro
Joined: 25 Nov 2010
Posts: 225
Location: Murcia (Spain)
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| Posted: Oct 13, 2011 13:51 Post subject: Re: A trip to Almaden |
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John,
That young lady is my wife Rosa.
I'm sure you will see her in next pics ;)
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| Now we are in the old mercury store, today transformed in an interesting mining museum. Here Rosa poses alongside a model of the metallurgic instalations. |
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| Masonry mining craft of the old Xabecas oven, where they got the mercury before XVII century. |
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| A scale model of the Bustamante oven, also called aludeles oven, introduced in Almaden by Juan Alonso de Bustamante in 1646. |
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| The Bustamante oven showing its inside parts. These ovens were invented in Huancavelica (Peru) some years before, and adopted in Almaden due its superior effectiveness. |
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In this pic, Rosa holds a "frasco" of mercury. This is the international measure for mercury trade worldwide. The equivalent of one frasco is 34'5 Kg.
You can also see others containers for mercury from several producer countries. |
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| Pack of "frascos" filled with mercury ready to ship, in the mercury store. |
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| Reproduction of the bottom inside a Spanish galleon what carried the mercury from Spain to the Americas. The mercury was packed in those little wood barrels and they were introduced three in a box. |
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Nice reproduction of a galleon from the Indian Fleet. In these ships, the mercury was shipped to the mines of New Spain (Mexico) twice in a year.
Perhaps tons of mercury rest in the bottom of the Caribbean sea from those ships that were sunken by hurricanes in front of Florida coast. |
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Joaquin Montoro
Joined: 25 Nov 2010
Posts: 225
Location: Murcia (Spain)
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| Posted: Oct 14, 2011 09:10 Post subject: Re: A trip to Almaden |
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Now, at outside, more pics of the mining park...
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| The "cerco de San Teodoro" and its typical headframe. |
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| The metallic headframe of the San Aquilino shaft. |
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| San Aquilino headframe and its machines house. At the back, the San Sebastian church. |
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| Engineers house, where the offices of the mine were time ago. |
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| Gate of Carlos IV. This door built in XVIII century was the main entrance to the smelting zone, called "Cerco de Buitrones". |
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| And finally the protagonist of all this story...the mercury. |
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| And the father of the mercury...the cinnabar. In this case a sample obtained in 1982 with some crystals to 9 mm. |
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| Cinnabar, Almaden, Ciudad Real (Spain) a gift from the chief engineer of the mines in 1982. |
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| Pure cinnabar in a high density piece, probably mined in early XX century. Measures 8x6x4 cm. and weighs 934 grams. |
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| The funny T-shirt I bought in a little shop as a souvenir. |
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The legend of the T-shirt. Don Quijote and Sancho Panza pushing a mining car. Don't forget Almaden is located in La Mancha.
Hope you have enjoyed this report. |
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26612 Time(s) |
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