As well as being interested in the history of mining I am interested in the
mythology of mining - the history of which often intertwines with that of
actual mining in that many historical "methods" of locating minerals owed
more to myth than reason or science.
To this end I have been reading Mircea Eliade's The Forge and the Crucible,
which is most enlightening on the subject, particularly chapter 5, Rites and
Mysteries in Metallurgy. Eliade makes references to a book entitled La
tranvaux publics et les mines dans les traditions et les superstitions de
tous les pays by Paul Sebillot. I would like to read this myself but sadly
cannot find an English translation. Might anyone know of one, or even have
access to an unauthorised translation that hasn't been published?
On a similar vein (sorry!) J. Frank Dobie's classic Coronado's Children:
Tales of Lost Mines and Buried Treasure in the Old Southwest (originally
published in the UK as Lost Mines of the Old West) is now available as an
Epub and as a Kindle (it's cheaper on Google Play). As well as a host of old
mine and treasure seeking stories it includes some interesting details of
various pamphlets etc that Dobie collected on such subjects as engaging
"Mephistopheles" as a guide to mineral riches - the usual nonsense! Most
entertaining. Hopefully other Dobie classics will follow onto e-reader.
Best wishes
Tanya
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