Mountains and Orefields

The extraction of natural resources has had a profound effect on the Welsh landscape, and the exploitation of metal ores has been a feature of rural upland landscapes since the Bronze Age. This report breaks new ground by providing a synthesis of information on a range of non-ferrous metal mining sites, and a broad chronological framework from Roman to Victorian times - focusing in most detail on the period of rapid expansion in workings during the 18th and 19th centuries. The emphasis of the report throughout is upon the landscape perspective of the mining sites, including topography and setting, as well as the interpretation from the physical remains of the mining techniques used above ground, the sources of power, methods of transport, and on-site processing. This report will be of interest to readers with a broad interest in landscape history and archaeology, as well as those with a specialist interest in industrial and mining.