Hieronymus Mine - Rovna, Czech Republic - Mines on Waymarking.com

The Hieronymus tin mine southwest of the former town of Cistá was already registered by the mining office in 1548. In 1551, King Ferdinand I. granted Cistá mining rights and the privileges of a royal town, which were acknowledged and expanded by subsequent rulers. The town had its own tin scale, tin smeltery and unlimited logging rights in the royal forests. At the start of the 17th century, the mines were not profitable in spite of the quick development of mining, and were sustained for the sole purpose of retaining the mining town status of Cistá. In 1847, they were regarded as being dilapidated and attempts to revive mining operations in the 19th and 20th centuries ended without any significant success.

During the course of its history, the Hieronymus mine produced approximately 500-700 tons of tin. Although the mine was never as rich and renowned as other workings in the area, it has survived in its original form. Imposing underground chambers from the 16th century are located in the central part of the mine. In many places, the walls and ceilings are blackened by soot, which accumulated from fires that had been set. The walls are grooved by the moyles and picks of miners from the past. Even mines in Saxon tin mining districts could not rival its size. Some of the mine’s chambers, which are up to 30 m long, 10 m wide and 8 m high, contain noticeable traces left by ore extraction methods using fire (firesetting), moyles and malls.

In February 1990, the Hieronymus mine was declared a protected cultural monument by the state and, currently, work is under way to make it accessible to the public. The mine is a significant part of the Czech-Bavarian Geopark. Its primary purpose is to provide comprehensive information about the region’s geological history, mineral wealth, mining history and natural landmarks. The Czech-Bavarian Geopark shows that geological structure is an underlying factor in the historic, economic and cultural development of human society.

Mine Type: Abandoned Mine Mineral Collecting: No Material Mined: Non-Precious Metal Operation: Underground Mine Surface Features: No KNOWN DANGERS: none Any associated website: [Web Link] Any Other information: October 15 to April 30 closed. Open: May 1 - October 15 Mon - Sun tours of 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16 hours.

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Optional photograph welcomed.

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Date Logged Log User Rating   07/05/2017 DrakMrak visited it