Engine House in Königsberg/Nová Baňa: evidence and archaeology

Konečný, Peter & Styk, Matej, Engine House in Königsberg/Nová Baňa: evidence and archaeology, Transactions of the 2nd International Early Engines Conference, Volume 2, IEEC & ISSES, 2023 [ISBN: 9781872986258/ISSN: ISSES, Stationary Power v.25 0960-0663], pp.7-22 doi:10.54267/ieec2-2-01

The aim of this paper is to elaborate on the historical background of this eminent historical mining site in Central Europe and then present and analyse the key findings from our excavations of Isaac Potter’s engine house. Despite its notoriety in international historiography and some older detailed studies on Potter by Slovak historians, no efforts were made to locate and excavate the engine site and its associated Althandel shaft in Nová Baňa in Central Slovakia. The archaeological excavation was initiated as a project of a mining museum in the municipality of Nová Baňa. Its aim was to confirm the location of the Althandel shaft, and any building remains of the related atmospheric pumping engine. Based on three years of archaeological and historical research, it was possible to document the existence of the engine house and connect it to the activities of Isaac Potter in Nová Baňa.

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