The "Help of God" mine - lead and silver mining near Großsachsen
Mining at Beltzberg near Großsachsen was first mentioned in the Electorate of the Palatinate Mining Ordinance of 1551. During the Thirty Years' War and into the second half of the 18th century, the mines seem to have been idle.
The main operating phase of the "Help of God" mine began in 1773. In 1776, a "union" was founded to financially secure investments in mining. However, this alliance of noble and bourgeois financiers had little luck, because during the operating period up to 1783/84, the mine did not produce the hoped-for yield of silver and lead, but only debts and disputes. After processing, 2.5 kg of silver could be smelted from 5 to 10 tons of ore concentrate at best. Due to the nature of the ore, there were always major difficulties in the processing and smelting plant at the site of the later Klosa mill (above the Kunz mill).
The entire operation employed between 24 and 33 people. The particularly hard rock was partly blasted with black powder; the faces and roofs (walls and ceilings) of the tunnels were then reworked by hand in these places.
The conveyor tunnels are quite spacious, in which cart runners could extract ore and waste in an upright position.
A technical peculiarity of the mine can be seen on the mine plan of the mining master Ludolph from 1778. The two main tunnels rise to different degrees after the branching. They were connected to each other after 1778. Due to small temperature differences within the mine, ventilation (air circulation) was achieved without the need for a deep air shaft in the rear part of the mine.
You can reach the mouth of the pit via the path downstream. Since the pit serves as a winter quarters for bats, the lighting system is switched off during the winter months. It is not possible to visit the interior of the pit.