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Andes, Potosí Department

Potosi

Cerro Rico cooperative silver mines

Mineral locality Source-confirmed findsLicence or permit

What you could find

Reported finds from this ground.

Crystals and mineralsCrystals and minerals
Coins and tokensCoins and tokens

Also reported: eyes-only: working veins, colonial galleries, sphalerite.

Photos via Wikimedia Commons: Stephanie Clifford from Arlington, VA, USA (CC BY 2.0), West Yorkshire Archaeology Advisory Service, Amy Downes, (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Why this spot

Rockhounding locality: the mountain that bankrolled the Spanish Empire, mined for silver since 1545 and still worked by cooperatives; Potosi is UNESCO listed and on the danger list

Wikipedia documents the 1545 discovery, colonial silver output and the 2014 UNESCO endangered listing over uncontrolled mining

Before you go

Hazards noted for this site.

Serious: 4200 m altitudeSilica dust, unstable historic workings, active blasting
the mountain is UNESCO-flagged for structural instability

Keep exploring nearby

More spots in this area.

Check access and collecting rules for each site.