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Exploring the History and Techniques of Mining

This quiz explores the history, techniques, and significance of mining throughout various civilizations, focusing on ancient practices and materials.

#Mining #History #Ancient Civilizations #Mineral Resources #Geology

1 Mining in Egypt occurred in the earliest dynasties, and the gold mines of Nubia were among the largest and most extensive of any in ________, and are described by the Greek author Diodorus Siculus.

2 Other hard rocks mined or collected for axes included the greenstone of the Langdale axe industry based in the ________.

3 Use of water power in the form of ________ was extensive; they were employed in crushing ore, raising ore from shafts and ventilating galleries by powering giant bellows.

4 This can be accomplished through chemical means such as smelting or through electrolytic reduction, as in the case of ________.

5 [20] As with the ________ in the mid 1800s, mining for minerals and precious metals, along with ranching, was a driving factor in the Westward Expansion to the Pacific coast.

6 In addition, obsidian, ________, and other minerals were mined, worked, and traded.

7 These were used to manufacture early tools and weapons, for example, high quality flint found in northern France and southern ________ were used to create flint tools.

8 [4] At first, ________ used the bright green malachite stones for ornamentations and pottery.

9 What does the following picture show?  Agricola, author of De Re Metallica   Abandoned mine entrance in Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom   Ancient Roman development of the Dolaucothi Gold Mines, Wales.   Lead mining in the upper Mississippi River region of the U.S., 1865.

10 What does the following picture show?  Abandoned mine in Nevada.   Schematic of a cut and fill mining operation in hard rock.   Another simplified world mining map (click to enlarge)   Danger sign at an old Arizona mine.

💡 Interesting Facts

  • the Ngwenya Mine in Swaziland is one of the oldest mines in the world.
  • the Soviet 383rd Rifle Division was originally comprised completely of miners from the Ukrainian Donets Basin.
  • the Stairs Expedition to Katanga (William Stairs pictured) was the winner in a race between two Victorian-era imperial powers to seize a vast mineral-rich territory in central Africa, which it achieved by assassinating the African king Msiri.
  • the community of Weed Heights, Nevada, was built to support the open pit mining operation at the Anaconda Copper Mine.
  • the largest sheet of mica (example pictured) ever mined in the world came from Denholm, Quebec, Canada.
  • the historic Samson Pit silver mine in the Harz Mountains of Germany was, for a long time, the deepest mine in the world.
  • the amorphous phosphate mineral santabarbaraite was named after the Italian mining district Santa Barbara where it was discovered in 2003, but its name also honors Saint Barbara, the patron saint of miners.
  • an important tool in surface mining is the drag line excavator.
  • South African mining magnate Sir Lionel Phillips survived being shot five times in an assassination attempt.
  • Scottish-born engineer Alexander Arthur spent millions of dollars in unsuccessful logging, mining, and resort enterprises in southern Appalachia in the late 19th century.
  • Hemerdon Mine in Devon, England is one of the world's largest sources of tungsten and tin, but has not been mined since World War II.
  • Hugh de Largie (pictured), who was banned from working as a miner in Newcastle for his union activities, later became an inaugural member of the Australian Senate.
  • Tantiusques, a graphite mine which John Winthrop the Younger purchased from the Nipmuck tribes in 1644, became the basis for today's Dixon Ticonderoga pencil company.
  • California's Gold Country quartz-mining industry was precipitated by a quartz gold discovery on Gold Hill.
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