Technical department of the museum in the Francis’ Shaft
Presentation
Programmes
Accessibility
Presentation
Programmes
Accessibility
Mining machines and devices
An extremely important and rich collection of Idrija Municipal Museum is the collection of 36 mining machines and devices that are mostly exhibited in the Francis’ Shaft entrance building. These are the centrifugal pumps, the diesel engine, compressors, winches, steam piston machines, power pumps for steam boilers, a steam-powered export machine, steam boiler, the Francis water turbine, locomotives and carts for ore transportation, infantry, planing and radial drilling machines, lathe, threading machine, forging hammer and bandsaw, deep-hole drilling set – all from the end of the 19th or the beginning of the 20th century. Two machines were designed to operate with compressed air.
A large special feature is the steam-powered Kley pump. Due to its enormous dimensions and the weight of components, it captures universal admiration. It was made it in the famous Czech E. Skoda Pilsen factory in 1893. It was pumping water between 1895–1948 from the XI horizon (272m below the surface). It is the largest preserved machine of the Idrija mine, the largest preserved steam engine in Slovenia and one of the largest in Europe. It stands in situ today, at the place where it operated at the time.
The preserved and presented specimens of the technical heritage of the Idrija Mercury Mine, the second largest of its kind in the world, are valuable material evidence of technology development and testify about the modernisation in the mine and implementation of advanced technologies in its production process. They are proof of the unique heritage and universality of this mine, which was entered on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2012 together with the Spanish Almadén.
Why the exhibition of machines and devices in the Francis' Shaft?
The mining machines and devices the museum acquired at its establishment also testify to the purpose of its founding. In 1953, the Municipality founded it primarily to care for the preservation and presentation of the rich mining heritage, both material evidence and knowledge about the operation of the Idrija Mercury Mine. So at the time of the post-war modernisation until the end of the 1950s, many machines and devices that the mine withdrew from operation were brought to the castle courtyard and put on display for visitors. As they were exposed to all weather conditions and consequently damaged, they needed a more appropriate space. At the beginning of the castle restoration in 1988 and the restoration of the courtyard two years later, the machinery was moved to the authentic mining environment of the Francis’ Shaft, restored and appropriately presented there, while the carts for ore transportation to the smelting plant were exhibited at the mining loading station on the plateau above the “Kamšt” water wheel.
What is the Francis's Shaft?
The shafts are a vertical connection between the surface and the working site in the mine. They enabled the entrance and exit of miners, imports of materials and exports of ore from the pit. The entrance building at the shaft was muster point of the miners before the start of the work and a place for placing the export machinery and other devices. Between the end of 15th and the middle of 19th century, nine shafts were built for the mining needs of Idrija. During the great production of mercury, when the agreement between Austria and Spain on the supply of mercury was in force for the needs of the Spanish market, the Francis’ Shaft (or the Francis’s, as locals call it) was opened in 1792, located on the northeastern outskirts of the town. Today, this is the only shaft of the Idrija Mercury Mine still operating and it allows access to the pit to the pumping station, to the sites where the maintenance of the unfilled part of the pit is carried out as well as monitoring the influence area of the mine as a result of 500 years of mining.
Programmes for adult groups
Technical department of the museum in the Francis’ Shaft
Duration:
45min (a tour with a museum guide)
Entrance fee
EUR 4.00/person
Francis’ Shaft, one of the oldest preserved mining facilities still in use today, is where you find Idrija Municipal Museum. It features renovated mining machinery and devices, which are part of the superior mechanical engineering of the 19th century. It includes the largest preserved steam engine in Europe: the 1893 Kley pump from the E. Skoda Pilsen factory; it pumped water from a depth of 272m. The collections is a true paradise for science and technology fans!
School programmes
Technical department of the museum in the Francis’ Shaft
Target group:
Elementary school/3; Secondary school
Connection with the school curriculum: Industrial revolution, Europe and the world in 19th century, technique and technology (technical means), steam machinery, physics, mechanical engineering, energy, UNESCO
Duration:
45min
Date and time:
Upon arrangement
Entrance fee
EUR 4.00/person
All you need to know about planning a successful visit
Opening hours
Tours only possible when accompanied by a museum guide.
Entrance fee
ADULTS: individual / guided group tour
EUR 4.50 / EUR 5.00
DISCOUNT TICKETS (primary- and high-school students, students, seniors): individual / guided group tour
EUR 3.50 / EUR 4.00
FAMILY TICKET: EUR 11.00
Free tickets, discounts, special offers: see LOCATIONS AND EXHIBITIONS -> Gewerkenegg Castle -> Accessibility
The price list applies from 1 January 2023.
Technical department of the museum in the Francis’ Shaft
Tour:
Tours only possible when accompanied by a museum guide.
Starting point:
The museum reception at Gewerkenegg Castle, Prelovčeva 9, Idrija
Special features
You can visit the technical department of the museum when accompanied by a museum guide arranged at Gewerkenegg Castle reception. After a walk through the city centre, you come to Rožna ulica street, then to Aumeški Square (Aumeški trg), where you turn left to the hill. After a 2-minute walk, the entrance building of the Francis’ Shaft is right in front of you. The Idrija Miner’s House is nearby.
Scheduled groups can meet the museum guide at the location there. The bus station is a 4-minute walk from the Francis’ Shaft building.
