Golconda Mine

Hopton, Derbyshire Dales District, Derbyshire, England, UK

Golconda Mine is a former baryte and lead mine which produced a range of mineral specimens.

Golconda primarily consists of a single deep shaft, with workings running off horizontally at various levels.

Several of the workings run into natural caverns, some of which were surveyed by the Derbyshire Caving Club in the 1980s.

The mine may have been operated from as early as 1678, but the mid 1700s is a more likely date. It was worked for lead ore until the late 1800s, after which its primary output was baryte. It eventually closed for good in 1953.

Anyone attempting to google ‘golconda’ or ‘golconda mine’ may find several mines with an identical name, as the word is used to describe a rich mine or source of great wealth. The word comes originally from the citadel of Golconda, outside Hyderabad, India. 

 

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