Ancient and medieval mining engineering in the southwest of the iberian peninsula

This work provides a summary of our knowledge about the old mining works in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula. Thus in the light of recent investigations, always bearing in mind the descriptions of these ancient mining works made by engineers and geologists in the XIX and the XX centuries, we have been able to systematize the prehistoric and proto historic mining works and provide evidence for the existence of underground mining during these remote times, when it was believed that only open-cast extraction took place. In the same way we have looked into all the types of mining works documented from the Roman period to the present day and been able to distinguish a continued use of these during the Middle Ages at a time when, until recently, they were considered hardly to exist. (Author) 41 refs.