Location:
Spain
Coordinates:
37.6942, -6.5933
Events at Rio Tinto (16)
900 BC
ID: 5317
Rio Tinto mining begins - Tartessians extract copper and silver from massive sulfide deposits, creating first large-scale mining operation in Iberia
ID: 5317
600 BC
ID: 5318
Phoenicians expand Rio Tinto operations - introduce cupellation for silver extraction, export metals throughout Mediterranean
ID: 5318
195 BC
ID: 5324
Rome reorganizes Spanish mining - establishes state monopoly, mines produce 25,000 drachmas daily according to Polybius
ID: 5324
150 BC
ID: 5325
Rio Tinto under Roman control - massive expansion using hydraulic mining, 10,000+ workers, slag heaps reach 30 meters high
ID: 5325
140 BC
ID: 5347
Diodorus Siculus describes mine horrors - children carry ore through tunnels, prisoners worked to death, bodies left where they fall
ID: 5347
100 BC
ID: 5326
Slave uprising at Spanish mines - thousands of mining slaves revolt, suppressed brutally, Diodorus describes horrific conditions
ID: 5326
50
ID: 5354
Fire-setting mining technique widespread - Romans heat rock with fire then quench with vinegar to fracture ore veins
ID: 5354
77
ID: 5330
Pliny describes Spanish mining - Elder Pliny records 20,000 pounds gold annually from northwest Spain, environmental destruction
ID: 5330
80
ID: 5350
Roman drainage wheels at Rio Tinto - series of waterwheels lift water 30 meters from mine depths, 24-hour slave operation
ID: 5350
100
ID: 5346
Mining technology innovations - Romans perfect water-powered ore crushing, advanced ventilation, and deep shaft mining
ID: 5346
130
ID: 5356
Slave children in Spanish mines - boys as young as 7 carry ore baskets, life expectancy under 25 years, no daylight for months
ID: 5356
200
ID: 5334
Roman mining techniques spread empire-wide - drainage wheels, Archimedes screws, fire-setting, and hydraulic mining used from Britain to Egypt
ID: 5334
200
ID: 5360
Peak Roman mining employment - estimated 100,000+ slaves and workers in Spanish mines alone, millions empire-wide
ID: 5360
300
ID: 5342
Rio Tinto environmental catastrophe - centuries of mining create permanent acid drainage, river runs red with iron oxide, fish extinct
ID: 5342
350
ID: 5343
Decline of Roman mining - barbarian invasions disrupt operations, sophisticated drainage and extraction technology lost
ID: 5343
400
ID: 5344
End of systematic ancient mining - collapse of Western Empire ends large-scale mining until medieval period
ID: 5344