DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.44973#0084
£8 A Journey from Komara to the Mine-Towns in Hungary,
go to a remarkable part of the Mine, we found that the Earth had fal-
len in and flopped up the passage, but one of our Guides unwilling to
go about, and the Earth being yet loose, he made a Burrough into it
and digged his way through, although the Earth continually fell upon
him and covered him ; and got at length through and tumbled down
amongst the Work-men below, with a great quantity of Earth after
him ; with which they so speedily laded their Barrows and Hundts, of
which I spake before, and the Boys ran away with them with such swift-
ness, that in a short time he made the passage clear again up to the place
where he had left us.
The Veins os this Mine are very large, many of them, such as are
termed cumulate, and the Ore is very rich, in an hundred pounds of
Ore they ordinarily find twenty pounds of Copper, sometimes thirty,
forty, half Copper, and even to sixty in the hundred. Much of the
Ore is joyned so fast to the Rock, that ’tis separated with great diffi-
culty, and in many places the Ore and the Rock are one continued
Body or Stone, onely with this difference that one part of the Rock
will yield Copper, the other none ; which is known and diflinguilhed
by the colour, and easily st firfl sight, the Copper-Ore being for the
most part, especially the belt of it, either yellow or black : The yellow
is pure Copper-Ore, the black contains also a proportion os Silver.
There are divers sorts of Vitriol found in this Mine, white, green,
blue, and a red cl ar transparent. There is also a green Earth or Sedi-
ment of a green Water, called Berg-Grun, used by the Painters ; there
are likewise Stones found of a beautiful green and blue colour, and one
sort upon which Turcoifes have been found, and therefore called the
Mother of the Turcois.
There are also two Springs of a Vitriolat Water which turn Iron in-
to Copper, called the old and the new Ziment; these Springs lie very
deep in the Mine, and the Iron is ordinarily left in the water fourteen
days. These Waters are very profitable, seeing that the worfl sort of
Iron, and uselessold Iron is hereby turned into the purefl sort of Cop-
per, which hath this commendation above other Copper to be more
ductile, malleable, and easih melted ; and I have melted it without the
addition of any other subflance, without dissiculty. Whilfl the Ore of
Copper mufl run through many Fires and Furnaces to be brought to
any thing. Of this sort of Copper I took a good quantity out of the
old Ziment, and I took also a piece of Copper of the Figure of a Heart
which had been layed in it eleven or twelve days before ; having the
same Figure, but as perfectly Iron then, as it is at this day Copper.
Some will not have this to be a Transmutation of one Metal into ano-
ther, but that this Water of the Ziment being saturated with a Vitrio-
lum Veneris, and meeting with such a body so ready to receive it as
Mars, it deposes Venus, who immediately insinuates her self so far
into Mars, that ihe doth druidcre & imperare, and at lafl she subfli-
tutes her own body, and precipitates that of Mars.
In the changing of Iron into Copper in these Springs, many parts
are indeed often separated, and lie at the bottom in powder, but these
parts are not Iron but Copper ; and I have taken of this powder out
of the Spring, and melted it into excellent Copper ; so that if the Iron
be not changed, I know not what becomes of it. This Operation
which
go to a remarkable part of the Mine, we found that the Earth had fal-
len in and flopped up the passage, but one of our Guides unwilling to
go about, and the Earth being yet loose, he made a Burrough into it
and digged his way through, although the Earth continually fell upon
him and covered him ; and got at length through and tumbled down
amongst the Work-men below, with a great quantity of Earth after
him ; with which they so speedily laded their Barrows and Hundts, of
which I spake before, and the Boys ran away with them with such swift-
ness, that in a short time he made the passage clear again up to the place
where he had left us.
The Veins os this Mine are very large, many of them, such as are
termed cumulate, and the Ore is very rich, in an hundred pounds of
Ore they ordinarily find twenty pounds of Copper, sometimes thirty,
forty, half Copper, and even to sixty in the hundred. Much of the
Ore is joyned so fast to the Rock, that ’tis separated with great diffi-
culty, and in many places the Ore and the Rock are one continued
Body or Stone, onely with this difference that one part of the Rock
will yield Copper, the other none ; which is known and diflinguilhed
by the colour, and easily st firfl sight, the Copper-Ore being for the
most part, especially the belt of it, either yellow or black : The yellow
is pure Copper-Ore, the black contains also a proportion os Silver.
There are divers sorts of Vitriol found in this Mine, white, green,
blue, and a red cl ar transparent. There is also a green Earth or Sedi-
ment of a green Water, called Berg-Grun, used by the Painters ; there
are likewise Stones found of a beautiful green and blue colour, and one
sort upon which Turcoifes have been found, and therefore called the
Mother of the Turcois.
There are also two Springs of a Vitriolat Water which turn Iron in-
to Copper, called the old and the new Ziment; these Springs lie very
deep in the Mine, and the Iron is ordinarily left in the water fourteen
days. These Waters are very profitable, seeing that the worfl sort of
Iron, and uselessold Iron is hereby turned into the purefl sort of Cop-
per, which hath this commendation above other Copper to be more
ductile, malleable, and easih melted ; and I have melted it without the
addition of any other subflance, without dissiculty. Whilfl the Ore of
Copper mufl run through many Fires and Furnaces to be brought to
any thing. Of this sort of Copper I took a good quantity out of the
old Ziment, and I took also a piece of Copper of the Figure of a Heart
which had been layed in it eleven or twelve days before ; having the
same Figure, but as perfectly Iron then, as it is at this day Copper.
Some will not have this to be a Transmutation of one Metal into ano-
ther, but that this Water of the Ziment being saturated with a Vitrio-
lum Veneris, and meeting with such a body so ready to receive it as
Mars, it deposes Venus, who immediately insinuates her self so far
into Mars, that ihe doth druidcre & imperare, and at lafl she subfli-
tutes her own body, and precipitates that of Mars.
In the changing of Iron into Copper in these Springs, many parts
are indeed often separated, and lie at the bottom in powder, but these
parts are not Iron but Copper ; and I have taken of this powder out
of the Spring, and melted it into excellent Copper ; so that if the Iron
be not changed, I know not what becomes of it. This Operation
which