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| Mineral techniques at Sainte-Marie-Aux-Mines during the Rennaissance Period |
by Frédéric LATASSE
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The Timberwork :
Although there is a lot of timberwork in the mines of Sainte-Marie, it is mostly only to be found in vertical shafts.
In fact, with the exception of wooden corridors at the entrances, there are no examples of Renaissance period wooden galleries in the mines.
The ogival shape of the galleries naturally supports the rock, therefore dispensing with the need to use timber supports.
In recent years, archaeological excavations have been carried out on several corridors and porches. The role of these wooden entrance corridors was to underpin the unstable surrounding ground and, more importantly, to protect the transport route used by the miners and the "chiens de mines". The corridors have a uniform look- they all have vertical wooden posts which lean slightly towards the centre of the corridor and are linked at the top by a 'hat', giving an overall trapezoid look. Slid horizontally behind these posts are a series of wooden supports forming an airtight chamber, which is probably filled up after its installation.
The copious data for this period, gathered by means of iconography, has been verified by various archaeological studies.
At Sainte-Marie, the subhorizontal seams, several decimetres deep and covering an area of around 10 hectares in height and width, were systematically dug starting usually at the top of the gallery gradually working down. The worksites or "dépilages" were formerly lined with scaffolding and raised flooring, linking the different dig sites.
Almost all that remains of these various forms of timberwork are the slots in the work faces which once held the wooden beams.
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Click on the picture for a larger image
Bloc diagramme du puits boisé
de la mine "ULMER ZECH I"
Reconstitution partielle
F.LATASSE (Nov.91) |
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The mine shafts ( which were generally vertical) were dug to transport miners and materials deep into the mines. The Renaissance period saw the widespread adoption of successive shaft networks which allowed miners to dig much deeper and to cut the entire seam.
The shafts would always be cut on a downward gradient, the average width being about 2m x 1m ( although this varies considerably), and the depth very rarely exceeding 26 metres.
At the top of each shaft would be a room specifically for goods handling and winch operation( called a Hornstatt), distinguishing them from other shafts which were bored and assembled in a more standard way.
In hard rock, these Hornstatts are particularly well shaped and are often characterised by one or two niches cut on the lateral work faces, rendering a much easier handling of the winch crank.
Unfortunately, there are no longer any remnants of the timberwork that once covered the shafts and, to date, no example of one of these winches has been found intact.
However, the discovery (during pumping operations) has enabled us to form a fairly precise idea of how they were divided into sections ; the first one consisted of a series of ladders hooked to transversal beams and the second, much larger compartment, consisted of wooden grooves which facilitated the winching up and down of the large vats (see illustration).
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| Last update : 06.19.2007 |
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