Attraction Platzertal mine

The Platzertal mine in the Tyrolean mountains takes visitors on a journey through the exciting history of mining. Surrounded by untouched nature, you can explore the remains of the historic tunnels and learn more about the hard work of the miners.

Description

The Platzertal mine was the most important ore deposit in the Landeck district. Mining took place at an altitude of 2500 to 3000 meters. Mining was granted to a trade union as early as 1539, and lead, zinc and copper ores were mainly mined, with ore reserves estimated at 1.5 million tons. The silver-rich lead ore was carefully sorted out at separate separating stations, while the zinc ore was ignored. The miners only took on the arduous life in the high mountains because of the silver mining. The silver was mainly processed in the mint in Hall near Innsbruck.

From 1610 to 1858, almost 250 years, mining was dormant and the deposits, buried by ice and snow, were almost forgotten. Unfavorable circumstances such as the death of the main entrepreneur and the war of 1859 brought about the renewed cessation of operations.

In 1881, the Innsbruck lawyer Dr. Ludwig Duregger acquired the mining rights and began digging in 1884. In the following years, the mine was operated annually from April to December and further expanded. In 1896 there was a change of ownership. The facilities were expanded again.

Despite the high silver content, the high mining and transportation costs prevented the mine from being run economically. In 1910, operations had to be discontinued and the expensive facilities were left to decay.

In 1950, the tunnels were provisionally repaired by the Bleiberger Bergwerksunion. The planned revival of ore extraction was thwarted by the fall in lead prices on the world market.

The Platzertal Mining Association was founded in 2007. The aim of the association was to save the mine buildings from decay and continue to preserve them. In 2020, the renovation of the Sailbahn station and the mountain houses was completed with an inauguration ceremony. The mine buildings can be visited on your own as part of a longer hike.

The walk from Pfundser Tschey to the mine takes around 6 hours. This moderately difficult hike is worth every effort! To the hike