The silver mining and processing complex in the Vrbické Hory area, 9.5 km NNW of Světlá nad Sázavou was one of the most important early modern period mining sites in the Czech-Moravian Highlands. The deposit, mined in two stages from 1547 to the early 1590s, provided several hundred kilograms of the precious metal. The stopes, which extended to a depth of approx. 80 m, ran along three principal vein zones, partly drained through hereditary adits, with further prospecting work in the area. The mined ore was smelted on site; mineral processing and metallurgical plants could take advantage of the energy system of the reservoirs on the nearby watercourses, and two mining settlements appeared by the mines. The mining was funded by numerous investors from Bohemia and Germany (burghers, nobles, officials, mining and coin experts). However, there was also significant involvement on the part of the landed nobility: the frequently alternating owners of the land on which mines were situated included the ruler, imperial princes, higher- and lower-ranking nobles and wealthy burghers. However, mining was complicated by the area’s position on the boundaries of several estates and interference from landowners, disagreements amongst miners and persistent drainage problems. This study, based on the latest field prospecting surveys and revision of the available written sources summarises our existing knowledge and highlights the potential for further research., Jiří Doležel., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
The thirteenth and fourteenth-century silver mining and processing site in the forest of Havírna is located 2.1 kilometres north-east of Štěpánov nad Svratkou in the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands and is among the best-preserved medieval mining sites in the Czech lands. The archaeological part of the current research project focuses on the precision surveying of the site using land-based laser terrain scanning. The outputs – a plan with the basic contour interval of 20 cm and a spatial visualisation – enable further characterisation of the whole complex of stopes. The ore accumulations were mined in three core shaft zones, within which the 13th/14th-century mine workings occupied a total area of 20.5 ha. The mine workings were accompanied by large contemporary mining settlements in several parts of the site and technical and administrative facilities and features were also detected. A parallel detector survey evidenced a rich, specific culture of the mining milieu as well as advanced technologies used for the exploitation and processing of ores. The remains of satellite and exploration mining activities in the wider area are also documented. The current study highlights the major potential of this site for research into medieval precious metal mining in a wider European context.