Water and foul air were constant companions in historical mining — and often a real danger. Even early on, miners sought technical solutions to keep workings dry and bring fresh air deep into the mountain.
In 1556, Georg Agricola first described mine dewatering machines in detail in his work “De re metallica libri XII”. At the time, simple lifting devices — today collectively referred to as chain pumps — used vessels attached to continuous chains, which were pulled through the mine water by a drive mechanism and then raised (Fig. 1). Unlike the chain pump, the rag and chain pump lifted water continuously. The rotational movement of the drive wheel set a chain with leather balls in motion, which ran through a pipe standing in the mine water. The balls drew the column of water in the pipe upwards. As the pipe remained continuously filled, each successive ball carried more water upwards (Fig. 2). However, only with the introduction of simple piston pumps as drainage machines (Fig. 3) did it become possible to maintain systematic drainage even in deeper workings.
In addition to mostly manually operated bellows, various ventilation machines were employed in historical mining. In “De re metallica libri XII” (1556), Agricola also describes ventilation wheels, which were powered either manually (Fig. 4) or mechanically (Fig. 5). These generally consisted of a circular housing with a centrally mounted drive shaft. The housing had two openings: one connected to an air duct — the so-called “Wetterlutte” — leading into the mine, while the other opening remained uncovered and served as fresh air intake. Inside, blades were mounted on the shaft. When rotating, they compressed the air inside the drum and forced it through the duct into the workings.
If foul air had to be extracted, the duct was attached to the suction opening. Where technically possible, the direction of rotation could also be reversed, allowing the ventilation wheel to draw stale air out of the mine.
All these inventions demonstrate how much technical knowledge, ingenuity and experience were required to make mining possible at all.
Fig.1 Chain pump with vessels (Georg Agricola 1556)
Fig.2 Rag and chain pump (Georg Agricola 1556)
Fig.3 Pump for water drainage (Georg Agricola 1556)
Fig.4 Ventilation wheel with manual drive (Georg Agricola 1556)
Fig.5 Ventilation wheel powered by water (Georg Agricola 1556)
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