by Peter S Burr

“Mines and Minerals of the Mendip Hills will not only become the standard reference on the subject, it will remain so for many years” - Chris Howes, Descent

This book is recommended to anyone interested in the Mendips, in British geology or mineralogy, or in British mining, social or economic history.

With the exception of one chapter which deals with the origin of the mineral mendipite, every effort was made to make the contents of the book understandable to the lay person.

The book is profusely illustrated with some 200 photographs and many maps and diagrams, and contains some 2,700 manuscript, newspaper, and literature references.

Costs £80 £70 which includes UK p&p and consists of two hardback volumes and 1,000 pages, all colour.

This book was written for those of you who are interested in:

• The mineral deposits of the Mendips.
• The mines that exploited many of the deposits.
• The village communities that relied on the mines for their livelyhoods.

In its two volumes and 1,000 pages it covers all aspects of these subjects, but also includes 2,700 references for those of you who may wish to delve more deeply.

The various mineral deposits are described in detail based on:

• A comprehensive literature survey.
• Historical documents located all over Britain.
• New observations above and below ground.
• Chemical and isotopic analyses of many ores and minerals and the rocks that host them.

Much of the information presented is completely new, and as such, provides completely new views of the mineral deposits and their origins.

The mines are described in detail based on:

• Historical documents located all over Britain.
• Contemporary newspaper reports found in more than 40 newspapers and more than 15 million newspaper pages that were searched.
• Exploration above and below ground.

Much of the information is new and has not been published before.

The book describes many of the extant remains and artefacts of mining such as:

• Historical buildings.
• Mining tools.
• Share certificates.
• Old mining maps.

These paint a vivid picture of mining life.

Also included are some personal belongings of the miners that have been found in the old mine workings such as tobacco pipes and „Tynewaters.“

Where available detailed information is provided on:

• Ore production.
• Mining expenditures.
• Financial returns.

And much information is also provided on the mining families.

Their incomes from mining, agriculture, and crime (!), and what they spent their meagre incomes on.

Much of this information is new.

Finally, much information is provided on the minerals of the Mendips based on historical specimens in various museums and on those collected by the author during the last 50 years.

Detailed information is provided on the mineral mendipite, and its origin.

This book, which is the culmination of more than 30 years of geological and historical research, attempts to illuminate the subjects of its title from a number of different view-points, and to provide a fairly comprehensive record of a past industry, all traces of which will soon have disappeared.

The first part of the book provides an overview of the various mineral deposits of the Mendips, and then ascribes these to various types of mineralisation (for example, the “Mendip Lead,” “Mendip Zinc,” and “Harptree Bed” mineralisations).

Each of the different types of mineralisation is then described in detail based on a comprehensive survey of available manuscript sources, the published literature, extensive observations in the field (both above and below ground), and many new analyses of rocks and minerals.

The second part of the book describes a number of mining areas in the Mendips, and a number of specific mines and quarries (for example, the “Green Hill” lead mines, the Nunney Iron Mine, and Merehead Quarry), each of which is allocated a separate chapter. These are divided uniformly into three sections: Geological History, Mining History, and Social History, and it is hoped that a wide range of readers will therefore find something of interest.

Much interesting information was unearthed covering not just the Bristol and Mendips area, but Britain as a whole, from pre-Roman times to the present day. New information is provided, for example, on the Elizabethan monopolies and the role of German technologists and merchant bankers in them, and on the lives of some famous naturalists such as John Beaumont and John Woodward.

This book is recommended to anyone interested in the Mendips, in British geology or mineralogy, or in British mining, social or economic history.

With the exception of one chapter which deals with the origin of the mineral mendipite, every effort was made to make the contents of the book understandable to the lay person.

The book is profusely illustrated with some 200 photographs and many maps and diagrams, and contains some 2,700 manuscript, newspaper, and literature references.