ANTONÍN MINE (ST. ANTONI EISENSTEINZECHE)
Introduction
The Antonín Mine, originally known as St. Antoni Eisensteinzeche, was located in the Eliáš Valley in the Jáchymov mining district. It represented a rare example of a site primarily dedicated to iron-ore extraction rather than the more typical silver or uranium mining.
History
The exact date of establishment is unknown. By the mid-19th century the mine was operated by a private mining company employing about five miners. The workings consisted of two shafts approximately 20 and 28 metres deep. Annual production reached roughly 1,200 to 1,500 tonnes of magnetite and hematite ore. A map from 1842 records the presence of a mine office building and two smaller operational structures.
Description and present state
The deposit was linked to skarn layers formed by metamorphic processes near intrusive bodies. These hosted magnetite ore and hematite lenses ranging from about 7 to 30 centimetres in size, with the skarn thickness reaching approximately 6 to 20 metres. South of the mine the skarn reached the surface, allowing some ore to be extracted by surface mining. Today only terrain remains survive, including the remnant of one shaft and a spoil heap marking the former site.
