Røros Museum. Mining Engineering

In 1953, the copper smelter was closed, and in 1975 the Museum of the history of the mining and metallurgical company Røros Copperworks was located in its premises. The exhibition tells about the process of ore extraction and copper smelting.

The development of any field begins with geological exploration and the work of mining engineers. The basic tools of a surveyor theodolite, protractor, compass.

The tools of the underground workers did not differ in variety - they were pickaxe and hammers of different sizes.

In such buckets, the ore was raised to the surface at the initial stage of development of the deposit.

The extracted ore was weighed on a lever scale, then sent to the ore yard of the copper smelter.

Timber and boards for the mine support were made using a trestle and a vertical saw driven by two workers.

In the 18th century, the work was carried out on an industrial scale and mechanization appeared in the mines.

Mechanisms were driven by horsepower in the literal sense.

The ore was moved through the workings using structures operating on the funicular principle. The horse walked in a circle, turning a drum on which a rope was wound, which drove the wagons.

They also operated conveyors to move ore through underground galleries.

Mechanical hoists were used to lift ore from mines.

The lifting mechanism was a large drum, on which two ropes were wound in different directions. When the drum was turned, one rope was wound, lifting the bucket of ore, and the other was unwound, and the empty bucket was lowered into the shaft. This design is also used in modern mines.

Above-ground mining mechanisms were driven by the energy of rivers, on which dams with water wheels were built.

Mechanical energy from the water wheels was transferred to the lifts by means of long wooden reciprocating transmissions.

If on the surface water was a source of energy, then underground it was one of the main enemies. Ground water was poured into the hollows and multi-stage pumps were used for pumping them out.

Water was the main source of energy in the 18th and 19th centuries. In the middle of the 19th century, steam engines were already widely used in industry and mining, but they were not used in the mines of Røros due to the lack of fuel. The surrounding forests were cut down, and coal shipping was unprofitable. Therefore, Røros, passing through the era of steam, immediately entered the era of electricity at the beginning of the twentieth century. The generators were driven by the same energy of falling water.