Great Orme Copper Mines
The
Great Orme Bronze Age Copper Mines are one of the most significant archaeological sites in Britain.
Although people have known for years that copper was mined in the area, it had always assumed the workings were Roman. They were the largest copper mines at the time and the copper was mined on an industrial scale and tools and weapons were traded across Britain and western Europe.
Bronze tools revolutionised many different aspects of life. Not only were the axes harder and more durable than stone, they were able to cut down larger trees. Large areas of land were cleared for agriculture. They were able to build larger and better boats for sea travel and trade. Bronze tools from the from the Great Orme Mines has been found across Britain and Europe.
As well as axes, the bronze was used to make spears and weapons.
The area had been mined in the C18th and C19th and was covered with mine waste and mine buildings.
In 1987, there was a scheme to landscape the area and built a large car park. An underground survey was required to ensure the stability of the ground.
The diggers came in to remove the waste and quickly discovered the remains of the C19th Vivian shaft which lead to the depths of the workings. When the archaeologists went down this, they discovered a labyrinth of Bronze Age passages and chambers, as well as the remains of mining tools.
As more waste was removed, the very early open cast mining was exposed.
Radio active dating indicated the mines were active between 1700-1400BC.
Once the surface deposits had been exhausted, the miners tunnelled underground following the veins of ore. The early tunnels were often narrow and twisting. Some were so small they could only have been worked by children. The mine reached depths of 70m when they encountered problems with flooding.
Copper mining seems to have stopped with the arrival of the Iron Age and the Romans didn’t seem to be interested. Mining began again in the late C17th, when there was a rising demand for copper and improved pumps for removing water. These mines were over 200m deep, exploiting ores well below the Bronze Age mines.
Commercial mining ended around 1850 as trade laws made it increasingly uneconomic to mine copper in the UK, and there were increasing problems with the deep mines filling with water. . Small scale mining finished in 1881. The mines fell into disuse and were covered by thousands of tons of rubble. During excavation a pair of miner’s clogs was discovered which may have been left as an offering to the ‘mine spirits’.
When the significance and importance of the site was recognised, plans for a car park were shelved and planning permission gained to open the site to the public. Since excavation work began, over five miles of Bronze Age tunnels have been discovered. This is estimated to be less than half the extent of the original tunnels.
To date there is no evidence of any Bronze Age settlements which are thought to still be buried under the vast area of C19th waste.
The site is owned by the archaeologists who first began excavating and they are still working there. Everything is funded from ticket sales, so they also work as well as excavate. One was working in the shop when I visited and another was disinfecting hard hats! He was very happy to stop and talk and answer questions.
There is shop and very good visitor centre with a short video about the mines and an exhibition with artefacts found during the excavations. The highlight of the visit is the self guided tour along 200m of the original mine workings, which takes you down two levels in the mine.
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