The Mines of Tharsis

Originally published in 1967, this book discusses the attempt in ancient and modern times to exploit one of the great mineral areas of Europe. The extraordinary Roman workings at Tharsis in south-west Spain were reopened in Queen Victoria’s reign, with the copper and sulphur they contained being much sought after. The mines at Tharsis played an important part in the formation of the United Alkali Company and in the discovery of the revolutionary MacArthur-Forrest gold extraction process, so critical for South Africa. At the time of its publication, no comparable study of a major mining enterprise existed. The author successfully synthesised the scientific and technical factors with the economic, social and political ones. The continuous struggle for both mining efficiency and markets is discussed, as are the difficulties caused by the Great Depression and the Spanish Civil War. The book will appeal to historians, students of business history and marketing, applied science and technology as well as those interested in the problems of foreign enterprise in what was (at the time) a relatively undeveloped country.