Lode Geometry in the Central Wales Orefield: Geological Data from Adit Surveys and the Archival Record
This is an extremely important archive of mining and geological history across the Central Wales Orefield (also referred to as the Central Wales Mining District or the Mid Wales Mining District), covering the main extraction area of Aberystwyth towards Llanidloes.
The main lodes host zinc, silver, copper and baryte ores associated with ENE-WSW oriented fault lines and connected to a phase of the Acadian Orogeny that affects Silurian and Ordovician rocks in the area.
Ore mining is believed to have started in Wales with the Romans, continuing through to the mid-1900s when the largest, Cwmystwyth, finally closed. As is so often the case, records of the geology and underground mine workings have potential to be lost as records held by mining companies and local councils are misplaced or destroyed with the passage of time. It is against this challenge that David James has meticulously assembled information from the surviving archives, coupled with his own underground fieldwork. As a retired chartered geologist, he has used his time to examine the structural sedimentology and nature of mineralised lodes in the Central Wales Orefield to produce an extraordinarily detailed record of the veins, geology and mines there.
This is not an easy book to read cover to cover and so it will likely attract readers looking for information on specific mines in the future. What they will find is a comprehensive description of underground workings, structural geology and stratigraphy, as well as notes on the nature of breccias found in the workings.
As mines become inaccessible and our only connection is via specimens within collections, this book bridges that gap and provides geological context to what would otherwise be museum artefacts. Anyone interested in the Central Wales Orefield or the metallogeny of the Caledonides or the United Kingdom should refer to this volume and hopefully some will be inspired to record similar information for other areas of British mining.
Reviewed by Rob Bowell
DETAILS
BY: David James (2024) Self-published, 340 pp. (hbk)
ISBN: 9781399975407
PRICE: £30, order via chairmanwms@gmail.com
