Sponsors: Finale Računalniške storitve, Alenka Štuhec s.p.; Repro d.o.o.; Repro MS d.o.o.; Regis d.o.o., računovodske, knjigovodske in revizijske dejavnosti; Etol d.d.; PeCe s.p.; Univoxa d.o.o.; LemaSoft s.p.; RTV Slovenija; Prevozništvo Korenin; Hema d.o.o., oblikovanje in izvedba razstav; Trajanus d.o.o.; MTI d.o.o.; Mesnine dežele kranjske; Prijatelji mineralov Prirodoslovnega muzeja Slovenije

Minerals from the Mt. Peca underworld

Mt. Peca has become an important symbol of Koroška on account of history, greatness and beauty. We know Mt. Peca as a fatherland of legendary King Matjaž and of course as a land of lead ore. First notes about lead ore in this area are from 1424 and the first written sources about mining under the Mt. Peca are from 1665.

In the history of more than 300 years of mining in Mežica 800-km pits were made and 19 million tons of lead zinc ore was dig out. Mt. Peca was mined from 2000 m above sea level to the depth of +267 m at Žerjav. The biggest problems were with pumping out water, because they had to pump out about 19 million m3 of water every year.

Mineral wulfenite is the first to be mentioned. Wulfenite is oxide lead and molybdenum ore, named after Austrian mineralogist F. X. Wulfen (1728-1805). In most cases wulfenite is yellow, orange or reddish orange and could be find in several crystal forms. For some time wulfenite crystals in Mežica mine were used as a molybdenum ore. In the last years – together with an increasing interest for minerals - wulfenite becomes an important and indispensable in mineral collections throughout the world.

Beside wulfenite there are other nice formed crystals from the Mt. Peca underworld. Calcite crystals are becoming more and more important in the last years. Cerussite, anglesite, gypsum, hydrozincite, hemimorphite and some other minerals are worthy of notice

In 1987 Slovene government decided to close Lead and Zinc Mine Mežica step by step by the end of 2002. Some parts of mine are under water; the others cannot be reached any more. So the chances of exceptional findings of nice formed crystals are becoming more and more seldom. The part of the mine has been rearranged as an tourist site, so visitors can go into the old mine and become miners for some time, they go in by train for miners into the Mt. Peca underground. They could find out the miner’s work and see a lot of specimens of Slovene technical heritage. Besides the tourist mine they have arranged the Museum, where tourists could see the ores, fossils and minerals from Mt. Peca underground, miner’s maps and a lot of other interesting things.

Our collection of minerals from Mt. Peca underground was limited, so we are very proud of this new acquirement that we have got with co-operation with Ministry of Culture (Department of Cultural Heritage) and collector Franc Marzel. Collection of minerals of Mt. Peca underground is significant in many ways. First of all it is now possible to see these minerals in central museum, that cares about this kind of natural heritage in Slovenia. Mineral admirers, amateurs, our visitors and experts could examine minerals from Mt. Peca underground now - and we hope soon also in our proposed new building. It is to be mentioned, that this collection has also scientific meaning because a lot of things are to be studied and not all of minerals of Mt. Peca underground were analysed by experts.

Slovenian Museum of Natural History is in close co-operation with Lead and Zinc Mine Mežica, with some other institutions in Slovenia and abroad, and with amateur collectors. We are sure we are able to prepare a great exhibition of minerals from Mt. Peca underground together – complete, perfect and all in one place. And we hope it will happen because the beauty of Mt. Peca mineral heritage has taken the name of our country throughout the world and nevertheless it is a significant part of our natural heritage.