Workplace "underground":

this is how Sulzbach's ore was mined.

The sketch of the underground routes, tunnels and shafts (black and white) in the background is not to scale and is simplified. The inserted illustration (blue) shows the actual construction of the winding shaft, head frame with pit cages and the St. Anna shaft hall.

Plan source (background, B/W): MH-Mitteilungen, August 1973, pp. 10 and 11, ‘Schematic section through the iron ore mine’.

section through the Eichelberg iron ore mine’, inserted illustration (blue): Josef Starkl

Installations in the mine for ore extraction

(01) Main filling station above ground

The shaft hall was the end of the haulage frame exit.

(02) Winding shaft

It was used for the vertical transport of the hoisting frames, electrical cables, compressed air and water pipes were located here, and ladders were installed as an escape route to the top.

(03) Main filling point underground

The entrance ended at the main conveyor line.

(04) Elevator shaft for the miners as a blind shaft

The miners used ladders to reach the routes or tunnels located higher up or lower down.

(05) Material shaft as a blind shaft with cable winch

Here, vehicles, tools, machines and equipment could be transported to routes or tunnels further up or down.

(06) Tunnels and mining galleries

Here the ore was mined and loaded into wagons

(07) Conveyor line

In this line, ore and crews were transported on mine railways or transported on conveyor belts.

(08) Ore shaft for pouring the ore into a secondary filling point

At the bottom, the ore slid into a hopper to fill the hoisting wagons.

(09) "Ore roller" as a tipping device for ore

A sloping track end with stoppers made it easier to empty small conveyor wagons by tipping them.

(10) "Filling point" on a secondary conveyor line

The conveyor wagons or conveyor belts were filled by opening the ore hopper.

(11) Main mine route with mine railway

An electric mine railway system passed through here with ore, material and wagons for the crews.

(12) Rotary tipper for emptying the mine wagons

Due to the design of their rigid troughs, the medium and large conveyor wagons could only be emptied here.

(13) Sloping conveyor belt for filling the measuring pockets of the skip system

The ore falling out of the circulating tipper was transported approximately 15 metres upwards.

Facilities in the mine apart from ore extraction

(14) Ventilation routes

These tunnels were connected to ventilation shafts or ventilation boreholes.

They were used exclusively for the ventilation of tunnels and shafts.

(15) Drainage sections

These ran under or along the conveyor lines and were located in the deepest part of the mine. This is where the water from the tunnels and shafts ran together and was fed into the pumping chamber.

(16) Pump chamber

The mine water from the drainage areas was pumped from here to the surface.

(17) Ventilation shafts

These could be former extraction shafts, which, in addition to their ventilation function, could also serve as an escape route in an emergency.

(18) Ventilation borehole

These boreholes were used exclusively for the continued supply of air for breathing