Mines of Rammelsberg
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The Mines of Rammelsberg are part of the UNESCO World heritage.
Location
The Rammelsberg is a mountain, peaking 635 meters above sea level, located south of the German town of Goslar. Historical documents show that silver mining was already performed there by about 1000 AD.
History
The mining history of the Rammelsberg occurred as a continuous process in different phases. Initially the main product was silver ore, then later copper, and finally lead. The mines were exhausted only in the 1980s, and were shut down in 1988.
That's why the Mines of Rammelsberg are referred to as the only mines with a continuous mining history of 1000 years and were integrated into the UNESCO World heritage programme.
Recent archeological findings at the location of Düna suggest, that in fact mining at the Rammelsberg had already begun 6-700 years earlier. 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 preindustrial melting equipment but also remains of ore, which could clearly be identified as remains of Rammelsberg ore.
In its history about 27 million tons of ore were extracted from the mountain.
Museum
After the mines were closed down a museum was established to preserve the heritage and to display the history of the mines and its industrial equipment.