Mining And Locations

   It’s important to note that silver was the predominate metal found in the New World at that time. There was still a lot of gold, but they didn’t know how to mine it yet. However, there was a vast amount of accessible silver. Two mines supplied the most. The first main one was Potosi (in modern Bolivia). It was claimed by a conquistador known as Juan de Villarroe. Juan discovered that the city surrounded a large hill, containing gargantuan amounts of silver. The hill was known as Cerro Rico, or “rich hill.” (Over all of the years that Potosi existed, it produced over $800 million dollars worth of silver). The other important mine for the Spanish colony was Zacatecas in present day Mexico. It was claimed by a conquistador named Juan de Tolosa in 1546. It was a city that was surrounded by many silver-filled hills. Zacatecas produced 1/5 of the colony’s silver, Potosi produced 2/5, and the other 3/5 came from many other smaller mines in the New World.

     Because of the Ecomienda, the Spanish enslaved many natives in all of the mines. It was extremely hard work because they had to carry 200 pounds of silver up to the top of the mountain while walking (and sometimes crawling) on the narrow paths. The atmosphere was dirty, toxic, and downright unhealthy. The toxic fumes were the primary cause of the majority of the deaths.

     Mining and refining technology for the Conquistadors (link to conquistador's page) were not very developed compared to today's standards. Not only are modern mines much safer, but the refining techniques are safer, and more efficient. Once the silver-bearing ore was spotted on the surface, a mine shaft would be dug parallel to the silver vein. (glossary) This would be the only mine shaft, and would follow the vein no matter where it went. It could go directly down, then straight back up, and the mine shaft would have to follow along in order to get the ore. This would create many problems. First, ventilation to the end of the shaft would be deadly. Second, transportation of the ore back up to the surface would be a difficult and dangerous task. Third, in case of a collapse, there would be no way to escape. The conditions were so bad that the average slave would only last 6 months working in the mines. But since the conquistadors were using slaves, it didn't really matter to them how horrible the conditions were.

     It doesn't stop there. Now the unrefined ore needs to be melted down and refined. The ore was ground up, then added to a mixture of salt, copper ore, and mercury. It was all then mixed up by having a mule walk through it. All of those substances are harmless except for mercury. Even though it would seem that the mercury was contained within a pool of some sort, the mercury vapors would be floating everywhere. Mercury can cause irreversible liver, kidney, nervous system, and most importantly brain damage. It is known to have severe effects on the brain, which could make a person seem "crazy" or not themselves. No protection or containment equipment was used when they used the mercury. While working in the mines, all of the workers were slowly, but surely, exposed to it. The mercury and the horrid mining conditions shorten the life expectancy of all of the slaves.

     In contrast, modern mines are much better in all aspects. Instead of having one mining shaft follow the vein, there are many different shafts. First, there is the ventilation shaft, which goes straight up and down. At different levels, shafts come off of that, perpendicular to the ventilation shaft. Rail cars and elevators are used to transport the ore to the surface, which is much easier than having one shaft.

     Once again, this unrefined ore is brought to the surface. But this time, no toxic mercury is used. With the advancement of new technology, different refining techniques are now used depending on the concentration of certain metals. To learn more about modern mining, you can visit this website.