Mining Area of the Great Copper Mountain in Falun - UNESCO ...

The legendary figure of the billy goat Kåre, who is said to have discovered the mine
once upon a time, is one of the installations you can see at the Falun Mine. Another
figure is the first tourist, drawn by J.W.C. Way at the Falun Mine in 1824.
An impressing picture meets the many visitors of the Falun Mine. The old chief
buildings for the head administrators of the mine, from left, Geschwornergården, Stora
Gruvstugan (The Mine Museum) and Bergmästaregården .A special wieving point
(below) has been built up at the edge of the Big Pit.
Water was needed for the furnaces in medieval times and for the mine from the 1550s.
West of the mine there are lots of dams, canals, dikes and ditches. These pictures shows
the dikes, dam and dam-house at Korsgården.
Big slag heaps reminds us about the copper furnaces from old ages. At Korsgården
(above) there has been three furnaces and a water-mill. Nearby the furnaces there are
many old and characteristic miner-yeomen homesteads. One of the best preserved from
the 1700 th century is Harmsarvet (below).
The miner-yeomen homestead Harmsarvet (above) was built up in the 1640s by the
bergmästare (head director) Hans Philip Lybecker as his private home and farm just
outside Falun. In september 1647 the Queen Christina was his guest. At that time
Lybecker was also appointed the Mayor of Falun. During his working-period the Great
Copper Mountain produced its biggest amount of rawcopper, 3.000 tons in 1650 and
became the most important mine in Europé.
The New Crown dike is an impressing waterway from Korsgården till the Falun Mine.
It was built during 1738-1747 on the hillside of the Gruvriset Mountain.
The New Crown dike (above) from 1738-1747 and the Old Crown dike (below) from
1554-1555. The dikes lead water from the lake Vällan to the Falun Mine and are about
2 km long.
The Town Hall of Falun was built 1647-1653 with support from Queen Christina and
the government of Sweden. The upper floor was added to the building about 1670 and
since that time the Town Hall have had the same appearence. Above is a newly taken
photograph and below a water-colour painting from 1840.
The mining-company, Stora Kopparbergs Bergslags AB, have an impressing headoffice
(above) situated at the main square. The buildings dates from 1766-1905. The old
Copper-weighing House (Kopparvågen) was the place where the miner-yeomen every
friday delivered their rawcopper produced at the furnaces. This building (below) dates
from 1774-1775.
A Silver-foundry from 1884 is the only remaining from the old furnaces. In this
building
The old church, Stora
Kopparbergs kyrka, was
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