Weishan Silver Mine

Weishan Silver Mine

The Weishan Silver Mine is a cultural heritage site protected by Henan Province.

Weishan Silver Mine, also known as Tongbai Silver Mine, remains China’s top silver mine to this day. Located in Guanyi Village, Zhuzhuang Township, the Tongbai Silver Mine boasts not only massive reserves but also high ore grades, earning it the title of China’s richest silver deposit. Natural silver specimens exhibited in museums and academic institutions such as the National Geological Museum, China University of Geosciences, and Changsha Museum all come from the Tongbai Silver Mine.

The ruins of the Weishan Silver Mine are distributed across two sites: Yindongpo and Poshandong. At Yindongpo, 21 ancient mining pits and tunnels have been discovered, while 12 larger ancient mining pits have been found at Poshandong. Around Guanyi Village at the foot of Yindongpo, slag from ancient smelting is commonly seen. Near the foot of Weishan Mountain by Poshan, slag and ceramic shards have also been discovered. Moreover, through the cross-section of the Guanyi River nearby, layered distributions of ancient smelting slag can be observed.

The discovery of the Weishan Silver Mine began during the national cultural relics survey in the 1980s. In 1983, Zhang Weihua of the Nanyang Regional Cultural Relics and Archaeology Team learned that the region’s history of ancient mining and smelting predates the Ming Dynasty, with traces going back at least to the Northern and Southern Dynasties. Historical records indicate that the Fúqí era (470–520 AD) established Weishan County here. In ancient times, this area was a mountain path between Tongbai and Biyang counties, with continuous mountain ranges and sparse population. It is believed that Weishan County would not have been established to govern the area unless there was a significant mine to exploit. At the southeastern corner of Weishan Village, a Quaternary stratigraphic profile exposed by water erosion revealed Tang and Song dynasty ceramic shards excavated by the Nanyang Archaeological Team in 1982 from upper layers of ancient smelting slag. Ancient ceramic shards have also been collected in Mao Gou Chou at Poshan.

Further Reading:

· Second Batch of Henan Provincial Cultural Heritage Protection Units