History of Mining

This paper has as purpose the presentation of the activities of extraction and valorisation of the deposits of solid utile mineral substances on the territory of Romania, along four historical periods comprised between Paleolithic Era and the end of the Millennium II A.D. For each period of time, the exploited and valorised deposits are shown, presenting the utilised exploitation methods, utilized work technologies and the obtained economic results. Within paper, a special importance is given to the presentation of the main operations from the production process: ore excavation from the massif, loading and transport of the extracted material, water evacuation, ventilation and lighting of the mines, ore processing and utile substance obtaining. The evolution and spreading of the technical knowledge about mining was sustained by the activity of applicative research and by the specialty education and therefore the paper presents the existence and development of the research and mining medium and superior education of Romania. The chapter ends with the presentation of some actual tendencies of the Romanian mining industry.