Old romantic. Famous Spots of Gold Mines Reminding the Gold-Rush Times

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An irresistible desire to enrich themselves and a literally mystical craving for gold are the main signs of the Gold Rush, which hundreds of thousands of people have 'got sick' over the past hundred years. For some, the 'disease' was fatal, others earned an incredible fortune and became the richest people on the planet. Nowadays, some gold mine sites are known all over the world. Some of them began their development quite recently, while others have the status of true historical sights. The territory of most gold mines is for authorized personnel. Only a part of the operating gold mines is accessible to ordinary tourists. At the same time, there are still places on the earth where almost everyone can find gold under their feet.

Grasberg Gold Mine, Indonesia

In Indonesia, on the territory of the Papua Province is the legendary Grasberg mine, in which more than 2000000 ounces of the gold are produced annually. In addition to gold reserves, the mine is rich in copper and silver deposits. At present, Grasberg is the largest gold mine on earth, and the third largest copper mine in the world. The quarry has an interesting peculiarity - it lies high in the mountains and is the highest-lying break in the world. Not far from the mine is an important natural sight - Puncak Jaya mountain, which is the highest mountain on the territory of Papua New Guinea.

Grasberg Gold Mine, Indonesia More than 20000 people are constantly working in mine development The American company Freeport-McMoRan owns the mine. The open mine development began in 1990 and will continue until 2016 according to the owners' plans. In the future, it is planned to begin processing of the underground part of the mine. Grasberg has one of the world's largest mining and transportation parks, the mine daily serves more than 160 dump trucks, each with a payload capacity of up to 330 tons.

In addition, the industrial zone is serviced by 18 excavators with a bucket capacity of 30 to 42 cubic meters. Thanks to the use of the most advanced equipment, more than 700000 tons of rock are removed and moved daily in the mine. Grasberg has been remaining the largest gold mine of the planet for many years. Plans for exploration and development of which are painted for many decades ahead. Next - Carlin Gold Mine

Carlin Gold Mine, United States

Carlin Gold Mine, United States In the United States, Nevada also has one of the most famous gold mines - Carlin. Each year this valuable deposit allows to produce 1735 000 ounces of gold. The owner of the mine is Newmont Mining company. One of the main features of the deposit is that there are mines on its territory with both a closed and an open way of extracting gold. The development of the Carlin mine began in 1965. Until 1989, about 250 tons of gold had been mined. According to rough estimates, at present the mine contains gold reserves of more than 120 tons. Researchers do not exclude that quite near to the huge deposit there may be other, no less valuable. One of such deposits called Gold Quarry has already been discovered. With the Carlin mine they are often treated as a single whole. Complete article

Goldstrike Gold Mine, United States

Goldstrike Gold Mine, United States The state of Nevada is rich in unique gold deposits. Not far from the town of Elko is the Goldstrake mine. This large-scale field belongs to the Barrick Gold company. It produces about 1 240 000 ounces of gold annually. The development of the mine began in 1986, at present the structure of the mine includes a large quarry and two underground mines. In addition to gold, silver is extracted in the mine. In 2008, industrial production reached the leading positions in North America. Complete article

Veladero Gold Mine, Argentina

Veladero Gold Mine, Argentina The famous mine named Veladero is located in Argentina and belongs to the well-known American company Barrick Gold. Each year about 1 120 000 ounces of gold are produced on the mine, making Veladero the country's top leader. The unique deposit is located on the territory of the province of San Juan. Its development began relatively recently, in 2005. Complete article

Lihir Gold Mine, Papua New Guinea

Lihir Gold Mine, Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea is also famous for its legendary gold mines. One of the most famous in the country is the Lihir mine. It is owned by Newcrest Mining, Australia's largest gold mining company. In recent years, the level of extraction of a precious metal at the mine approached an impressive mark of 800000 ounces a year. Complete article

Muruntau Mine, Uzbekistan

Muruntau Mine, Uzbekistan One of the most famous goldmines in the world is the Muruntau mine, which is located in Uzbekistan. The owner of this most valuable deposit is the Navoy Mining and Metallurgical Combine. About 1800000 ounces of gold is extracted annually. There is an invaluable deposit Muruntau on the territory of the same mountainous region, in the northern part of the Kyzylkum desert. Complete article

Yanacocha Mine, Peru

Yanacocha Mine, Peru Peru is also famous for its variety of gold mines, the most famous of which is the Yanacocha mine. It is located in the northern part of the state and is the largest gold deposit in Latin America, with annual production of about 1460000 ounces. The owner of the mine is the Newmont Mining company. There is a valuable deposit in the highlands of the Andes, its development began in 1993. Complete article

Cortez Gold Mine, United States

Cortez Gold Mine, United States Among the priceless gold deposits located in the state of Nevada, the Cortez mine is also worth mentioning. It is located near the Goldstrake mine, in the vicinity of the city of Elko. The production capacity of the deposit is 1140 000 ounces of gold per year. The history of the gold mine is very interesting and begins in 1862. In the second half of the 19th century, active silver mining was conducted in this area, and gold deposits were discovered in one of the mines in the 1930s. Complete article

Lagunas Norte, Peru

Lagunas Norte, Peru The Lagunas Norte Mine, located in Peru, is also a significant asset to the Barrick Gold company, which brings the company more than 800000 ounces of gold each year. The deposit is located in a mountainous area, at an altitude of 4000 to 4260 meters above sea level. It is noteworthy, that for the Barrick Gold company the development of one of the world's richest gold deposits turned out to be one of the cheapest in the history of the company's work. Complete article

Super Pit Mine, Australia

Super Pit Mine, Australia Located in the western part of Australia, the Super Pete mine is also one of the largest and most famous. Its owners are the companies Newmont Mining and Barrick Gold. It annually brings more than 780 000 ounces of gold. The Super Pete is Australia's largest open pit mine, its length is about 3500 meters, and its width is about 1500 meters. The depth of the quarry is also impressive, it is about 570 meters. Complete article

Dolaucothi Gold Mines, United Kingdom

Dolaucothi Gold Mines, United Kingdom Unique from a historical and geological point of view, are the gold mines of Dolaucothi, located in the UK, in the Cothi River valley. According to scientists, their development started during the reign of the Roman Empire. Now, the mines are a landmark of national importance. Archaeologists after a series of studies have suggested that gold mining in these places began much earlier, even in the Bronze Age. Complete article

Berezovsky Gold Mine, Russia

Berezovsky Gold Mine, Russia In Russia, there are also gold mines, which, since ancient times, have attracted the attention of researchers and curious travellers from all over the world. These include the famous Berezovsky mine, located in the vicinity of Yekaterinburg. This gold deposit has been known since the 18th century. The extraction of precious metals has been continuously conducted for more than 200 years. Complete article

Nom Beach, United States

Nom Beach, United States Many goldfury stories are associated with the deposits located in Alaska. It is here, that one of the unique gold mines of the planet is located. For more than 100 years people have been mining gold on the banks of the Nome River. The very first golden nugget on the beach of Nome was discovered in 1898 by local residents. Two men walked along the river bank, when one of them noticed an unusual shining stone under his feet. This stone was the first gold nugget found on the bank of the river. Complete article

Las Medulas Mine, Spain

Las Medulas Mine, Spain The Las Medulas Mine, located in Spain, is one of the ancient Roman mines. This deposit is located in the north-western part of the country. Scientists managed to establish that the development of the mine began in the first century BC. And lasted more than 300 years. The method of mining of precious metal, which the ancient Romans practiced, is considered unique. It was that the destructive power of water had been used. Complete article

Mount Morgan Mine, Australia

Mount Morgan Mine, Australia Old gold pits, opened for tourists, can also be found in Australia. An excellent example of this is Mount Morgan. The goldmine began to be developed in 1882. Gold mining in it has been continuously conducted for almost a hundred years - until 1981. In addition to gold, the deposit served as a valuable source of silver and copper. Over the 99-year history of the field, it produced about 262 tons of gold, about 37 tons of silver, and about 378000 tons of copper. The history of the discovery of the deposit is very interesting. The first mine with gold ore was discovered by one of the local cattlemen. He had no idea about the gold mining, so he asked his family to keep the incredible discovery in secret. Minnie, the daughter of the cattleman, did not keep her promise and told her fiance Sandy about the deposit. Angry father kicked her out of the house. Minnie and Sandy got married soon after this. For many years the husband has been working in one of the local gold mines. When he was fired from work because of drunkenness, the spouses decided to tell the owner of the mine their main secret, in exchange for which Sandy was restored to work, and the story of one of Australia's greatest gold mines began. Complete article
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