Ore bearing rock brought out of the mine was crushed at the battery by heavy metal stampers and the fine material passed over copper pates coated with mercury. Gold particles would combine with the mercury forming an amalgam which was then scrapped off the copper plates and put into the amalgam bucket ready for retorting too extract the gold. The amalgam of mercury and gold was placed into the retort which was heated to evaporate the mercury. The mercury cooled as it ran down the pipe which was recovered to be reused leaving the gold behind. The gold would later be put into a crucible and heated to burn of impurities and the molten pure gold poured into an ingot.A heavy cast iron bucket 20 centimetres high, 16 centimetres in diameter at its base and 22 centimetres diameter at the top. It has a spout five centimetres wide protruding two centimetres. There is a handle which is a semi- circular shape 19 centimetre wide extending 14 centimetres above the bucket The inside of the bucket has an enamel coating. amalgam bucket, bendigo gold, gold retort

This is a trophy awarded at a camp of the 4/19 Light Horse Regiment. This regiment appeared to have been based in the Corangamite region of the Western District and included regiment members from Warrnambool. It is not known exactly what type of competition was an ‘Officers Flutter’. Light Horse regiments were cavalry regiments that were established at the time of the Crimean War in the 1860s. During the First World War the 4th Light Horse served with distinction in France, Gallipoli and Palestine. In 1948 the 17th Prince of Wales Light Horse, the 19th Yarrowee Light Horse and the 4th (ex 20th ) Corangamite Light Horse amalgamated to form a revived 4/19 Light Horse. This regiment kept alive the tradition of the original Light Horse units, becoming part of the Australian Army Reserve and members served in Vietnam and East Timor. This cup is of interest as an example of the trophies awarded for competition at a Light Horse regiment camp in the 1930s. This is a metal cup (silver amalgam)) with two side handles and a narrow stem attached to a silver base. The cup is attached to a brown Bakelite stand. The inside of the cup has some white paint streaks and the cup itself is much stained and pock-marked. ‘Westminster’ 4/19 L.H. Camp 1938 Officers Flutter light horse regiments. warrnambool district, history of warrnambool

Metal gold retort, it has a two parts circular container attached to crook shaped long handle. A caption reads Mr. G. Humphrey. An amalgam (gold and mercury) is placed inside and fire built around outside. Mercury vaporizes away leaving the gold. Diameter of retort 23 cm. Overall size 37x75 cm.mining, equipment, retort

A Berdan pan was a grinding pan. The circular pan was set at an angle, and as the pan revolved, a heavy iron ball rotated in the lowest point, grinding sand or mineral to a fine powder. It was frequently used to grind impurities out of amalgam (gold in mercury), and to grind batch-lots of heavy mineral. It is also known as a ball mill. Two strong wooden A frames supporting large iron pivotable bowl with a large iron ball inside the bowl. There are cogs underneath bowl which are connected to rotating belts extending from main battery shaft. The chute attached below the bowl is directed into a circular metal container. The frame is painted green.

The medals belonged to Charles Sutherland CORNELIUS No 40595 RAAF. Enlisted in the RAAF on 13.5.1941 age 21 years. On discharge from the RAAF he was a Corporal in No 4 Radio Installation and Maintenance Unit. Refer Reg No's also 94 & 95P..1) Medal: 60th Anniversary of the end of WW11, gold coloured, made of aluminium, zinc and bronze amalgam. .2) Black presentation box for .1). .3) Medal set, brass plate mounted, set of 4 re C S CORNELIUS. 1. Pacific Star. 2. Defence Medal. 3. War Medal 1939-45 4. Australian Service Medal..1) & .2) "60th Anniversary of the end of WW11", "For Service to Australia 1945-2005" .3) "40595 C.S Cornelius"numismatics - medals, containers, military history - souvenirs

Henry Louis, M.A. was an Associate of the Royal School of miens, Fellow of the Geological Society; Fellow of the Institute of Chemistry of Great Britain; Member of the Institution of Mining Engineers; Member of the American Institute of Mining Engineers and Professor of Mining in the Durham College of Science. Green hardcovered book of 599 pages including index and illustrations. Contents include: Mode of occurance of gold; physical and chemical properties of gold; physical and chemical properties of mercury; Primitive Methods or ore-breaking; The stamp; Hoisting gear; Water Supply; Ore-Feeders; Crushing Machinery; amalgamation; concentration; Spitzkasten; Amalgam; Milling; Cam Curve; sampling and assaying; horse-power developed by fall of water; value of gold according to its fineness; conversionInside front cover in pencil "Rhys Brook"

Two pages with printed Woah Hawp Canton Mines N.L. letterhead, and handwritten section. .1) Certification of 12 tons of quartz crushed for Mr G. Barnett (signed J.M. Kerby) on Woah Hawp Canton Mines letterhead and dated 29 August 1910 .2) Certification of crushing yeilded 13 ounces of amalgam. (signed L.E. Trethowan, mine manager) on Woah Hawp No. 1 Gold Mining Company and dated 21 September 1910l.e. trethowan, j.m. kerby, woah hawp, woah hawp no. one gold mining company, woah hawp canton mines, chinese

This photograph is a view from the lower side of the stamper, showing amalgam table, box and stampers. This is one of a series of photographs of the Rutherglen Gold Battery. The battery's purpose was to crush quartz from nearby quartz reefs and extract gold from within. The battery was erected in 1908 and consists of a five-head battery, Wilfrey table, Bergin pan, portable steam engine and shed. The battery was restored in 2011/12 and can be viewed daily between 9.00am and 5.00pm. See website for details. Colour photograph of a large piece of machinery inside a buildinggold battery, gold processing

This photograph shows the pre-heater on the left and the furnace on the right. After clean up of stamper table, amalgam is placed in a retort, then placed in the furnace where mercury is condensed and runs down the small pipe into an enamel bucket and can be reused. This is one of a series of photographs of the Rutherglen Gold Battery. The battery's purpose was to crush quartz from nearby quartz reefs and extract gold from within. The battery was erected in 1908 and consists of a five-head battery, Wilfrey table, Bergin pan, portable steam engine and shed. The battery was restored in 2011/12 and can be viewed daily between 9.00am and 5.00pm. See website for details.Colour photograph of the interior of a room with corrugated iron walls, with a fireplace on the left and a furnace on the right.gold battery, gold processing

Launched on 11 September 1922 and edited by Hugh Denison (who was also the owner of the Sydney Sun), the Sun News-Pictorial was Australia's first picture tabloid daily. t one stage The Sun News-Pictorial then became the highest-circulating Australian daily newspaper. It continued until The Herald Sun was established in 1990 as an amalgam of the afternoon daily, The Herald, and the morning daily, The Sun News-Pictorial. (ref. Herald sun web-site) Ruth Scott, daughter of Herbert Scott and Bertha (nee Coverdale), married David Legge. Patricia Dawn Legge and Kevin David Legge are Ruth and David's children. Lindsay Scott was Ruth's brother.This newspaper is a useful reference tool. It reflects the changes in journalism in the first half - second half of the 20th century.A b/w special edition of the Sun News Pictorial. On the front cover is a print of the first edition, September 11, 1922. It is titled Sixty Years of Sun Days in yellow print inside a blue diagonal text box - looking back over 60 years of Sun News Pictorial a daily newspaper. Handwritten in pen on front - To Ruth from Lindsay Xmas 1982

Gold bearing ore is pulverized by cast iron stampers (steam driven) and material then passes over a large copper plate covered in mercury causing the gold particles to combine with the mercury to form an amalgam which is scraped of and placed in a retort. The retort is heated causing the mercury to evaporate leaving the gold to be refined into ingots. The mercury is cooled as it leaves the retort and is reused. A second tray covered in what is called a blanket traps any fine gold that has passed the first plate. Finally the residue material goes over a vibrating table called a Wilfley Table which captures any iron pyrites which may contain about three percent gold. this is roasted and treated to recover any remaining gold at a special treatment plant.Wooden model of a five heads gold stamper battery. The gold stamper battery is a device for crushing ore. The parts of the battery are cams; dies; guides; kingposts; mortar box; shoes; stamps (or stampers); tappets. gold mining, mining equipment, gold stamper

"The United Pyrites Company's Works are situated about three quarters of a mile from Spargo Brothers, and are on the northern side of the Marong road, in Pinch-gut Gully. Two processes are followed at these works, viz., the amalgamating process and the treatment by means of chlorine gas. The latter is called the Newbery-Vautin system, and the mode pursued is that laid down by Mr. Cosmo Newbery and Mr Vautin, whose names have been given to the process. Mr. Edwards manages these works. Three reverbatory furnaces are used to roast the pyrites, which is weighed in the truck before being put into the furnaces. At this weighbridge a sample of each lot is kept, and if the yield is not equal to expectation, the works are carefully gone over to see where the fault occurs. Care is taken at the furnace to regulate the heat, otherwise the pyrites might slag instead of roasting evenly right through. An immense revolving furnace (made of boiler iron) was used at these works. It was found to be suitable for treating blanket sand, but was not a success for roasting coarse pyrites. The process of amalgamating by means of Chilian mills is the same in these works as at the Western Works, but the United Works are on a larger scale, and eleven mills are utilised. It is the chlorine gas process which is most interesting here. The gas is made from sulphuric acid, black oxide of manganese, and common salt, and the gas is introduced into huge vats, where it works its way through a filter of pieces of quartz and then through the bed of roasted pyrites lying above. The action of the gas transforms the gold into chloride of gold. This is easily dissolved in water, and in that form is drawn off into huge delf jars, where the use of sulphate of iron precipitates the gold to the bottom. A small battery—eight head of stamps in two boxes—is in use here to crush small consignments of stone sent for trial. Test crushings come from all the Australasian colonies, and even from India. The jars used are manufactured at Epsom, and some of the salt used is also of home manufacture, from the Salt Lakes on the Northern plains. Mr. Edwards took us over a new building in course of erection, and in which the chlorine gas is to be generated in the midst of the pyrites— a still further advancement in the new process. There is some very good machinery in this new building, and the tailings from the ordinary pyrites works will also be treated by this chlorine gas system, which has been found to work well at Mount Morgan, in Queensland. The purest of gold is obtained by this process, the gold passing in solution into a charcoal filter, from which it emerges in the shape of metallic gold. We saw some nice cakes of retorted gold at the works. One of 26oz. was from some New Zealand pyrites (2½ tons), and assayed over 23 carats. There were also cakes of Avoca gold, of silver, and of the tremulous amalgam." (The Argus, 4 February 1887)Two handwritten letters to the Ballarat School of Mines on Bendigo United Pyrites Company Letterhead.bendigo united pyrites company, pyrites, ballarat school of mines, j.j. deeble, joel deeble, joel james deeble, a.m. dean, fred j. martell, martell, s.h. cowan, letterhead

The Ballarat School of Mines had a model mine used by students, and to conduct assays for a fee. The Register of Gold Entry Book had to be kept by the Licensed Gold Buyer or Assayer under the Gold Buyers Act.Brown half leather bound register registering receipt of gold. Columns include date, nature of transaction (eg assaying/purchase), age, where employed, business (eg mining, fossicking, assayer, etc), Abode, Signature, Witness, Claim, Mining Division, District, Where Obtained, Character of Gold (eg alluvial, smelted, quartz, etc), Weight, Value, How Gold Treated, To whom delivered after assay or smelting, Date of Assayer's Certificate. ballarat school of mines, model mine, battery, assay, smelting, gold, robinson, frederick martell, r. callister, a. garrard, peter tong, lee sue, ah lung, chinese, f.w. calaby, ah kit, charlie ah lung, ah sung, ah chee, dep choon, charlie ah hing, frederick greaves, peter fong, george ah ki, ah hing, william mong, thomas bell and party, brown hill, dentist, amalgam, albert sydney sergeant, plumber, plumbing, george spence, plumber, commonwealth bank, j. hutton-jones, golden duke mining syndicate, blackwood, d.e.j. grant, eganstown, linton gold mining company, mining, d. bernard, g. peron, john page, david bernard, harry webb, ah fou, w.d. thompson, a.b. tolliday, m. webb

Cast iron mercury bucket, used to hold mercury, potentially in the process of recovering minute pieces of gold mixed in soil and sediments. See research page for description of one process of using mercury to extract gold.gold mines, mining equipment, mercury bucket, miners used mercury in a number of ways to amalgamate gold, with each mill or battery operator having their preferred method depending on the nature of the ore. by the late 1850s the most common way of crushing goldbearing quartz ores or consolidated alluvial cements was in a stamp battery. the battery featured heavy iron stamp heads held in a frame, with each head often weighing up to 500 pounds (226 kg) or more (see msv 1880, page 45) (birrell 2005). stamp heads were lifted and dropped by a rotating overhead cam shaft driven by a steam engine or water wheel. ore was fed into a large cast-iron battery box, mixed with a steady stream of water, and pulverised by the stamp heads. in some batteries, mercury was placed in the base of the boxes to amalgamate with freed gold. the violent agitation of the mercury in the mortar box, however, could cause the mercury to break into myriad tiny globules that were carried away by the water with the tailings, thus losing a certain amount of gold in the process (thompson 1867; ritchie & hooker 1997). the water and sand slurry was splashed by the falling stamps from the box through fine mesh screens and onto inclined wooden tables below the mortar box (figure 2). the tables were covered with copper sheets or plates coated with mercury, which caught and amalgamated with a portion of the gold. the grey putty-like amalgam was periodically scraped off the sheets and retorted in a furnace to collect the gold and recover the mercury for reuse. mercury was inevitably lost from the plates, while poor maintenance resulted in further losses of gold and mercury in the tailings. mercury use and loss from gold mining in 19th century victoria. peter davies1, susan lawrence, and jodi turnbull, department of archaeology and history, la trobe university.