AdM Michael
11 years ago
The Ostwig slate mine was featured on TV last Tuesday. Here's the link:
http://www.prosieben.de/tv/galileo/videos/64-bergwerk-tauchen-clip 
Brakeman
11 years ago
Great bit of video, thanks for posting the link. The mine certainly looks to be in better condition than ours over here these days.
The management thanks you for your co operation.
dwarrowdelf
11 years ago
Looks like a great place to visit. The slate walls in there, as I know from the photo albums I have seen, are very impressive indeed, giving the impression of some ancient megalithic construction.
And, has been said above it all looks in remarkable condition.

Below is a PDF advertisement for German slate showing underground slate workings which are still in operation. Looks like there are some vast chambers.

http://rathscheck.io.ua/files/0000/15/00001502.pdf 


Wonder how this slate compares with the various slates from Wales? Does anyone know how similar or otherwise it actually is? Have never knowingly encountered it.
'I wonder how many breakfasts, and other meals we have missed inside that nasty clockless, timeless hole?'

'The Hobbit'
J R R Tolkien.
AdM Michael
11 years ago
Please give me some time as I'm just on my way underground at Nuttlar.
AdM Michael
11 years ago
Sorry, got a bit late last night as there's still a lot of work to be done at Nuttlar. The plan is to open the mine and offer guided tours from this summer on with as little alterations for health and safety underground as possible and what needs to be done is generally well disguised as old. Diving is possible since last year.

There're still to larger slate mines in Germany: Magog and Rathscheck.
The vast chambers are in Spain. The company there is called CAFERSA and is part of Rathscheck group. Both mines import slate from Spain.

The Magog mine is 25 km from Nuttlar. They've introduced some modern machines for splitting and dressing in the last few years.

Hope this link works as good as the first one:
http://www1.wdr.de/mediathek/video/sendungen/lokalzeit/lokalzeit-suedwestfalen/videodieletzteschiefergrubevonnrw100.html 

The video shows the Magog mine.

There were some links between Nuttlar and Penrhyn in the 19th century. The first dressing machines were bought in Porthmadog. There're still 2 mining leases indicating a link: Penrhyn and Wales. They were applied for before 1865. Unluckily there's no more information available in German archives up to now.
dwarrowdelf
11 years ago
AdM Michael, many thanks for posting the video - An interesting insight into what a modern working slate mine is like.
'I wonder how many breakfasts, and other meals we have missed inside that nasty clockless, timeless hole?'

'The Hobbit'
J R R Tolkien.
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