The Amber Room in the Palace of Tsarskoye Seloe, in St. Petersburg, Russia

The mystery of the missing room made of the deep yellow-orange Persian amber in the great palace of Tsarskoye Seloe is today still unsolved. It was a room of great mystic, remodeled in 1775 by Catherine the Great of Russia. She had the royal architect Rastrelli incorporate panels of mirrors and paintings among the original carved amber panels to fool the eyes (trompe l'oeil). The entire room took on a yellow gold atmosphere that was absolutely brilliant in illusion. The original room was a gift by Frederick the First of Prussia to Peter the Great in 1715 after Peter admired the small room that Frederick had designed and installed in his Montbijou.

Amber holds many unique images, reminiscent of the bugs and insects trapped within that became the basis for the modern day movies "Jurassic Park" and "The Lost World." Its composition is fossilized resin formed from ancient prehistoric pine trees. Amber was the result of a living plant oozing its sap in jungle heat that hardened and entombed any living insect or small animal that may have come in contact with the sticky ooze.

But, let us continue the story of the missing Amber Room. The Nazis occupied St. Petersburg and its royal village, as well as the Palace of Tsarskoye Seloe for three years, using it as their headquarters during World War II. They were finally driven out in 1944, but while they were occupying the palace they were so intrigued by the Amber Room that they had it dismantled one piece at a time. It was secretly confiscated and shipped to parts unknown. It has been said that the room might have been shipped and stored in the basement of the Konigsburg Castle that was bombed flat by the Allies in 1945. But, wherever it went, to this day not a single trace of the wonderful Amber Room has been found and the mystery continues.

Currently, the Great Amber Room of Catherine the Great is slowly being recreated from old photographs, memories and descriptions. Today's Russian craftsmen are working in the same palace workshops where the original and remodeled rooms were fashioned. The carvings are being painstakingly recreated from nearby Baltic Sea Amber. No date for the completion has yet been set, but once the room is completed it will have been a real artistic and historical undertaking. Extreme care must be taken to avoid such things as temperature and moisture changes, exposure to light and other climatic conditions as the amber can fade in color or crack and craze. So, selection of matching pieces that are to be fitted in a design puzzle of 18th century origin is of utmost importance. The Russian craftsmen take extreme care in every detail to conform to the original design integrity. It is no wonder that no date has yet been set for completion.

AU - Gold - "The Noble Metal"

Since the time of the Egyptians and beyond, gold has been treasured as a metal of great worth. It was said to have been mined in the East Desert and Nubia by thousands of unfortunate slaves that would have worked in the intense heat with rationed water and food. They died by the thousands to extract the rich ore for the pharaohs, lords, nobles and priests. They were such good miners that the ancient mines of Egypt are completed mined out.

Mines today are still endured by tough and sturdy men and women willing to dig the ore from as deep as two miles below the earth's surface. It takes determined mine owners and workers to follow the veins of gold whereever they may lead.

Gold is an excellent metal for jewelry because it is very workable (malleable) and extremely resistant to oxidation and corrosion. (It is the only yellow metal resistant to nitric acid). It is called the "noble" metal because it does not react to any of the ordinary alkalines, acids or natural reagents that may be present nearby in its surrounding rock. It is very heavy and dense and does not usually wash away without extreme force. Even though mechanical weathering may occur on its surrounding rocks the gold usually stays intact. In time it can become a very rich alluvial deposit. It was believed that just such a deposit was found by the Egyptians in Nubia, where an extremely rich concentration of gold within a one hundred square mile area was mined to the depth of seven feet. It was from this deposit that the fabled priceless tomb gold of young Pharaoh, Tutankhamen was masterfully wrought. Just the inner coffin alone of solid gold weighted approximately 2420 pounds (worth 13,000,000 dollars). It is said that when Alexander the Great conquered Egypt he took home over $100,000,000 worth of gold as loot.

It is with pride that we explore some of the terms, stories and intrigue that the "metal of the ages" have given us.

THAR'S GOLD IN THEM THERE HILLS!

THE CALL OF THE WEST - WITH THE RICHES OF SILVER & GOLD WAS NEVER LOUDER THAN FROM THE FLOOD OF MINERS TO STOREY COUNTY NEVADA, VIRGINIA CITY, GOLD HILL & THE COMSTOCK LODE From the 1849 discovery of gold in California, miners (The “49ers” as they were called) headed west with great hopes of fulfilled dreams of hitting the riches of a “mother lode.” While on their travels towards and from California they also worked claims and possible sites along the way. Ever so slowly it was rumored that gold also was in Nevada in a long extended vale of two canyons (Gold Canyon & Six Mile Canyon) because small nuggets and placer traces kept turning up near an area called Gold Hill, north & eastward. These small traces were first discovered by placer mining techniques such as those used by the Grosh brothers, ( Ethan Allen Grosh and Hosea Ballou Grosh, veterans of the California gold fields and sons of a Pennsylvania preacher). The lure of “hitting it big” beckoned others to join them in pursuit of the deep yellow colored ore. So it was not a huge surprise to grubstakers in the know, that a major deposit was found 10 years later, one that was to become the largest mineralized deposit in the world.

GOLD (AU) Silver (AG)

Gold is called the “Noble Metal” because of it's rich luster and the fact that it seldom oxidizes unless exposed to chemicals. It is an element with the symbol (Au) and an atomic number 79. It has historically been the leader of precious metals, as the sign of wealth and royalty since antiquity. It has been used as minted money by the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans and all ancient civilizations. It literally is: a store of value and wealth, used in jewelry and in sculptures, and for architectural ornamentation as gold leaf - since the beginning of recorded history.

Silver is another precious metal that has the chemical symbol (Ag) and an atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal.

Mining is the removal of valuable raw minerals from other geology materials of the earth. Materials recovered by mining include base metals of lead, nickel, zinc & magnesium, precious metals of platinum, palladium, rhodium, gold, silver, copper, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil, gas, shale, marble, salt, (Sodium chloride) and potash, etc.. Many different mining techniques are used for specific situations (or in combinations) and are all based on the terrain and type required. One type is Placier Mining (this type was the same as mining in most parts of the world and the type first used in Storey County) which includes, all surface techniques that do not require drilling and dynamiting or other such heavy equipment required techniques. It is the type which we are most familiar when you think of mining. That is by washing the dirt, sand and gravel from around the small remaining flakes and nuggets called:  alluvial methods such as: panning, dredging, damming, sluicing, crevicing, vacuuming and on dry earth by using picks, shovels and sledgehammers that then require a rocker or screener to separate the metals or gems from the gravel, sand or mud. Placier means "sand bank" in Spanish for this very reason. Another type is: Hydraulic Mining involves the use of high pressurized water that is sprayed directly on rock and gravel and the intense water cuts and breaks up the rock, dislodging ore and placer deposits which is then milled and refined. It speeds up erosion and is extremely environmentally damaging and is now pretty much outlawed everywhere. Open Pit & Stripe Mining, is used to mine diamonds even today plus coal, salt, limestone and gravel, etc. and is a type that strips away top earth and continues to excavate large amounts of ore and surrounding materials using large trucks and earth movers in ever increasing depths and widths. Hard Rock Mining where you follow veins, seams or crevices where ever the desired gems or metals takes you into hard rock. To do this, miners used picks and shovels, hydraulic rock drills, dynamite, TNT and more. Miners dug either shafts that went straight down to follow veins, seams and ore bodies, or tunnels which went somewhat horizontal into rock faces. Shafts usually had some sort of steel tower or head-frame standing over them to support the hoists and lifts. Shafts and tunnels were often supported with large timbers to prevent cave-ins and timber men became very short in supply in the Comstock. And like all deep Hard Rock Mining, most shaft or tunnel mines would eventually flood as they hit the water table and continued below. It this point, water would have to be continually pumped out at great expense to the point where costs verses profits would decide the continuation of the mine or the complete abandonment and closing. This became the case for all the mines of the Comstock Lobe and Storey County, Nevada. Reaching mine depths of 3,200 feet became such an obstacle that the last of the deep Comstock Mines were closed by 1922. The Comstock Lode was the richest deposit of mineralized ore in the world (Not the greatest silver mine or gold mine by themselves but together it was the top in a world as a mining region). But also is noted for the technological advances in mining that revolutionized the industry forever becaused it first used Hard Rock Mining to it's full potential.
 
Ore is the combination of surrounding rock with the desired minerals. The ore can be included with large saturation of rich precious metals or gemstones. It can occur both in natural crystal or solid form.

Milling (Refining) Once the ore is extracted by many different mining techniques, it needs to be processed to get the desired gems and minerals from the surrounding rock. Many different processes can be used and some are very dangerous because of the chemicals used. The Comstock Lode was the most efficient in terms of extraction to refining by designing rail hauling as the means of transportation for the ore directly from the mines to the refiners and then to the minters and bankers. It also was one of the most hazardous for all residents, because of the chemical refining process that used mercury.

Credit the First to Discover
The Grosh brothers were not able to actually file a claim for the area where they discovered gold, because they both meet an untimely death while traveling to file the claim papers. But the word of their discovery, (no matter how hard it was suppose too have been kept secret), still leaked out and the actual four miners that actually rediscovered the outcropping near Gold Hill where the Grosh brothers had mined their ore were: James Fennimore ("Old Virginny"), John Bishop ("Big French John"), Aleck Henderson and Jack Yount. (Their discovery was actually part of the Comstock Lode, but not a main vein). In 1859, one of the main veins was discovered by: Pat McLaughlin and Peter O'Reilly working a claim at the head of Six Mile Canyon which is the one most commonly associated with the discovery of the Comstock Lode.

VIRGINIA CITY, “The Queen of The Comstock”
The shout of gold was heard around the world when finally discovered in 1859 (just prior to the outbreak of the civil war) at the head of Six Mile Canyon. The screams of “Thar's Gold in Them There Hills” were heard around the world and the rush to the Comstock in 1859 virtually shut down the struggling mines in California. A new era in society and mining dawned both scientifically and economically. An outback town grew to 17,000 in less than a year and to 30,000 by 1874 in a most unusual place positioned on the 40 degree slopping grade of Mt. Davidson's east face. It harbored tents, shacks, dugouts and quickly constructed buildings, terracing almost 40 - 60 feet above mines, shafts, holes and mining machinery. At is peak it had 110 saloons, 20 theaters and music halls, state of the art hotels and restaurants, plus 4 churches, several opium dens and a thriving red light district, and businesses that imported everything from all over the world. Yes, indeed it was a wild and most unusual place. It had it's constant supply of prospectors, investors, merchants, engineers, carpenters, gambles, prostitutes, bar owners, gun slingers, firemen, doctors, lawyers & businessmen, people of all social classes, occupations and nationalities all lured by the chances to fine fame and fortune from the silver and golden ore found in the mountains, sand and streams nearby. It brought together a huge populous into a boisterous boom town now rich in history and lore of stories of celebration, hardships and fortunes made and lost.

In 1859, an actual deposit of Comstock Gold was first found by Pat McLaughlin and Peter O'Reilly working a claim at the head of Six Mile Canyon, they were approached by another miner during their celebration who stating boldly that their new find was on his property. Believing him, both O'Reilly and McLaughlin gullibly made an immediate partnership with this prospector named Henry Comstock who's name will be forever etched in history for the discovery of the largest and richest gold and silver find in the world. “The Comstock Lode.”

Justly Named: The quickly populated town was unnamed until miner “Jimmy Fenny”, (James Fennimore) upon the finding of a giant lode of 'gold in quartz' outcropping up in another canyon immediately started a drunken celebration, during which it is said, he dropped a bottle of whiskey on the ground and laughingly shouted the christening of “Virginny Town” in honor of his place of birth. Soon after it was refined to “Virginia City” to be more sophisticated. Jim Fenny sold his stake in the claim for approx. $ 1,500.00 and died penniless in 1861. With the weather turning and the new city appropriately named, the excitement of gold was spreading quickly throughout the nation and the world. But hardships continued with the flooding and weathering conditions that can occur in the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range. One especially dirty problem was the sticky blue-gray clay mud that was everywhere - clinging to boots, cloths, hands, picks and shovels. It was such a problem that miners kept complaining of this huge additional obstacle more than the weather conditions, that is until someone decided on a fluke to have it also tested while in the assay office for gold trading. Surprising it was another huge discovery, richly saturated silver ore valued at $3,000 to $4,000 a ton , (a huge fortune in 1859 dollar value). The blue mud that was such a nuisance and was constantly being washed away from clothing, was suddenly another mother lode for all to extract. This resulted in even more fame and notoriety with the grubstaking of over 20,000 claims with mines, shafts, holes, dugout, slurry runs, creek panning and sand placer mining everywhere and lots of controversies of who discovered what. (many abandon mines, towers and tailings piles are evident everywhere even today after almost a century of weathering the elements) The boom continued for almost 30 years, swelling the area that was also encompassing Gold Hill and Silver City, Carson City to over 60,000 individuals. None the less more news of the great ore fields hit the world just at an extremely important time in our nation 's history which prompted President Abe Lincoln to declare Nevada an official State of the Union on Oct. 31, 1864 even though it did not meet the population required by the Constitution for statehood. It's riches helped finance the Civil War and the Reconstruction of the Nation, railroad development that further connected cities and bringing even more individuals with faster and easier travel. In addition the wealth from the earth had to be shipped, refined, smelted and minted which lead to industrialization and even more supporting jobs to the region and additional states and cities. This Rich deposit of silver and gold reached it peak of production in 1870 -1890 with over 400 million dollars (1n 1800's dollar values) and later another 300 million worth of ore before it all dried up by 1919.

Located: Only 23 Miles From Reno and 2 miles from Gold Hill as well as 40 Miles from Lake Tahoe, and just 15 Miles from Carson City the soon to be State Capital of Nevada. Virginia City was a loud, 24/7 high energy raucous city. The constant sounds of mining and machinery, blasting and the boisterous population of grubby miners, prospectors, gamblers prostitutes and other notables - made sleeping an obstacle and a bee hive of activity both above and below ground. As Samuel Clemens reported in 1864: "The flush times were in magnificent flower!" ". . .The 'city' of Virginia claimed a population 18,000, and all day long half of this little army swarmed the streets like bees, and the other half swarmed among the drifts and tunnels of the Comstock, hundreds of feet down in the earth directly under those same streets. Often we felt our chairs jar, and heard the faint boom of a blast down in the bowels of the earth under the office." Visitors to the boom town were shocked by the constant vibrations, the clanking of metal and equipment and the steam noises of machinery such as shrill whistles, warnings and mine blasting and the constant rhythm of all the hundreds of pumping engines running night and day. Yes Sir, Virginia City had it all: . There were modern hotels, visiting celebrities and performers, Shakespeare Plays and Operas at Pieper's Opera House, opium dens, newspapers, ten competing fire companies, fraternal organizations, at least five police precincts, a thriving red-light district, fancy restaurants, and businesses as well as new steam powered modern mining equipment and technology below ground that created the great riches of Storey County. It helped make the entire area extremely industrial (the first in the world to do industrial mining using water, steam powered drilling equipment, mercury smelting, timber shoring, and heavy duty water pumping) and the smart development can be seen for one example, in the planning of transporting the raw ore via railroad (The Virginia & Truckee Railroad) to Gold Hill and onto sister city - Carson City for final smelting and refining there upon returning with car loads of supplies, equipment and lumber. The flow of money was unprecedented and the wealth made millionaires and billionaires out of dirty everyday common grubstakers. Those lucky enough to find it big, would be immediately enrolled as joining the Millionaires Club located on Main Street (“C” Street) called The Old Washoe Club, which was referred to as “The Billionaire Boys Club.” The Washoe Club, one of the oldest buildings still standing today was first opened in 1862.  Being an actual “millionaire” wasn’t really a written requirement, but indeed memberships were at a very high price.  These memberships included gambling, liquor, and access to the prostitutes that worked there. There were several “secret” entrances and exits for those gentlemen that preferred to be more discreet, and no first or second names (just initials) were ever used on sign in logs and membership lists. As one incredibly rich strike followed another, a rough outdoor stock market and financial community materialized. It grew right along “C” Street where the shares in the various mines zoomed from a dollar and a half to above $1,500 in not much more than a year's time and where the riches mines reached $4,000 per share. With all their new found wealth, they invested in mansions, bought fancy furniture and clothing fashions, etc. imported from all over the world. They invested in banks and other companies all over the USA and abroad. The money made in the Comstock Lode propelled infamous individuals such as William Ralston and Crocker who founded the Bank of California and thus helped fuel the building of San Francisco through ruthless lending and ruthless mining business control. Others like Moguls: George Hearst, William Sharon and William Ralston, John Mackay, Adolph Sutro, William Flood and Leland Stanford all made their fortunes and fame in Virginia City. Other cities were helped by the great wealth of the Comstock such as Denver (Another Minting Center for the Liberties and Morgan's Silver Dollars along with San Francisco ) all later connected by rail. Virginia City fame was rekindled in the late 1960's Bonanza TV Series but featured a Virginia City that was easily accessible via wagons and horses on level ground but in reality it was just the opposite for this wild west premier mining town which seemed to defy gravity.
George Hearst did not start as a newspaper owner and editor as the name sounds, (his son is the newspaper tycoon that we are most familiar). He started the actual family fortune with a $400 loan to speculate in the mines of the Comstock. The MacKay Mansion as it later was called was built in 1859 and was the mining office of Gould and Curry Mining Co.. Within the three story mansion were living quarters for a young mining superintendent by the name of George Hearst. He was a very astute investor and parlayed his small loan into several million dollars before moving onto California investing heavily in timber. But all the while he continued to speculate in mining in Utah and South Dakota. He amass his fortunes to hundreds of millions at the time of his death with much diversification and continued investments in mining and affiliate industries. However - it all started in the Comstock Lode for Mr. Hearst.

John MacKay: With the departure of Hearst from the Mansion, the job of superintendent of the Gould and Curry Mine was filled by a new gentleman who took up residence. His name was John MacKay, an apprentice shipwright from Ireland, who was born in 1831. He became one of the most powerful and wealthy in all of Virginia City, and became known as”The King of The Comstock.” As a young 20 year old citizen of the Mansion he was well experienced with mining having worked extremely hard digging for four dollars a day as a pick and shovel man, then slowing (because of all his ship woodworking training and skills) he started working as a timber man and then as the superintendent of the Gould and Curry Mine. And finally as a lumber contractor earning a great reputation for solving unique shoring situations. All the while trading labor for mine shares. And as the Comstock flourished so did the wealth building of John MacKay. He was a honest, hardworking friendly and sincere shy Irishman that everyone respected and admired for his hard work. He continued from mine shares to buying claims that continued to be extremely successful and soon owned controlling interest in the “Kentuck Mine” as well as the Hale, Norcross, Gould and Curry, Best and Belcher Mines. He became partners with James Fair as the mines seamed to dwindle in revenues in the six mile canyon area in the early 1870's after the great Virginia City fire and the recession (after the Civil War ended). However with great intuitiveness, they continued to invest heavily in the possibilities of even greater discoveries. With keen planning, they started a new mine exploration between the Ophir and the Gould and Curry after gaining ownership of both and blended them all into the new “Consolidated California and Virginia Mines.” As history and luck would have it, the new mine shaft hit the largest silver deposit in North America. Over $ 133,417,000 were hauled the the surface from this mine complex alone. Becoming one of the richest men in America, John MacKay used his wealth to help those in need as a world class philanthropist. His actual investment to lay the first transatlantic ocean cable through his great silver and gold mining wealth helped to make the whole world a smaller place. The MacKay Mansion still stands in respect to the “King of the Comstock.” Samuel Clemens, came to the Comstock as a miner. Barely making ends meet he started working for The Territorial Enterprise Newspaper as a young writer of 26 years, reporting to the world the great and exciting times from Main Street (“C” Street), Virginia City. It is here that he first coined the pen name of “Mark Twain,” after he himself tried the hard work of mining in many locales and states while heading westward. All his hard work resulted in the making roughly $50 per week by picking and shoveling while food, and housing costs were approx. $ 60 per week. He was not a stupid man when he decided on a job that was much easier and much more comfortable for him in both mind, spirit and pocketbook with his internal wit and style, by becoming a writer and making statements such as:

Gold Hill The Grosh brothers first find was here. Two miles south along the west ridge of 6 mile canyon and just south of Mount Davidson, (the area where sand panners and prospectors following the rumors of possible gold for years on their way to the gold fields of California), a small settlement of near a hundred transient miners quickly turned into 8,000 when the news of “Gold in Storey County, Nevada hit. It was never an official town until 1865 with 1,000 registered voters. It was basically a group of businesses and individuals who's sole purpose was mining and refining the rich metal ores of Storey County. Gold Hill became forever locked into the history of the Comstock Lode by simply becoming a large extension and expansion of Virginia City's greater deposits of ore. It was connected to everywhere by stage coach and the Virginia & Truckee Railroad hauling ore directly from it's mines as well as directly from Virginia City.

The Virginia and Truckee Railroad:
Prior to the building of the railroad, large 10 – 16 team horse and mule trains were used to haul the heavy ore. All lighter freight and passengers were transported by stage, horse and wagons and individual horses. The unprocessed ore was hauled to the mills and refiners by these large teams, which in return brought back to the mines all the wood, lumber, machinery and tools needed. Like the pictures of the famous “20 mule team” Borax wagon train, each trip would be with two to four heavily loaded wagons. If was rough and hard work. When the Ophir Mine was in her glory, these teams would be lined up from 1 to 3 miles in length all heading south to Gold Hill and Carson City and on many occasions would block the streets of Virginia City for hours at a time. It all changed with the building of the single line steam railroad. The Virginia and Truckee became one of the most famous short line railroads in American History. It was built to connect Reno in the North West to Carson City in the south and east to Virginia City, Gold Hill, Silver City and Minden further south. Up to 45 trains a day arrived and departed the single rail line showing the true industrialization of mining in the region and the strong organization to load and unload each train. The same as the large team horse trains, it hauled ore from the mines to stamp milling and refining centers and returning with lumber, passengers, more prospectors and supplies. It carried President Grant and other ambassadors and dignitaries from all over the world in the ornate passenger coaches. Designed and completed in less then one year, it became an overnight marvel of tunneling and trestle building by railroad engineers. Tunnel #4 into Gold Hill and the enormous Crown Point Trestle were the most famous points of interest seen by all travelers. (The trestle can be seen on the original State Seal of Nevada). The original line from Virginia City to the Sister City and State Capital, Carson City is planned on being completed by 2012 for travelers of all ages to experience one of the most famous steam railroads in the world that is still active.

The Mines of the Comstock Lode, Brought many “Firsts” to the Mining Industry.
1) It was found that with the aid of dynamite and T.N.T., water powered steam driven compressor drills and powerful hoisting machinery that industrialized Hard Rock Mining would revolutionize mining forever as big business.
2) First miners Union was formed in Virginia City. The Western Federation of Miners as it was called became the spokesman for safety and better protection for the large pool of miners.
3) First to connect the mines by rail to milling and refining centers, then to mints for quick production of the ore into finished coinage and use the return trip for hauling supplies lumber, water, equipment and new miners. In 1869, the Virginia & Truckee Railroad was built by Wm. Sharon and Wm. Ralston to fulfill the many hauling needs of the region. Connecting The Comstock Lode mines of Virginia City to Gold Hill and onto Carson City following the sometimes steep and sharp curves of the canyons. It was an engineering marvel at the time because in order to reach the heights of Virgin City and Mt. Davison it was necessary to build an enormous trestle. The Crown Point Trestle was just such a feat. Unbelievably it took only 30 days to lay out the rail bed and only 9 months to actually complete it with a crew of over 1200 rail layers (mostly oriental Chinese). Upon completion it connected the difficult region's mining terrain to the milling and metallurgy refining centers of Gold Hill and Carson City as well as Silver City and onto mints and banks in Denver and San Franisco by tying into the first transcontinental railway (making it a real rail network) which was also completed in the same year.
4) The railroad brought not only industrial supplies to Virginia City but the Eastern effects of a finer life - fancy furniture, stone for an opera house (performers included Artemus Ward and Edwin Booth), and carved woodwork for a six-story hotel. First City to be almost entirely imported, be it lumber for the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada's near Tahoe, water and machinery from the North East, from overseas for fine linen and delicate fashions and furniture, etc.. Virginia City had it all thanks to the railroads.
5) First to have industrial businesses and banking involved in the monetary and supply support to the miners as “a big investment business,” because of the need for heavy industrial equipment to dig deep while trying to pump out the nuisance of the underground steam heated water that constantly flooded shafts and levels of the deep mines. And to financially support and even own the mills and refining companies which unfortunately created the great high finances of monopoly building.
6) The largest Silver & Gold regional deposit in the World.
7) The first hotel elevator in the West was in Virginia City in the International Hotel. A six story hotel that was a marvel of technology to use the new “rising room.”
8) First City to be built directly over mines.
9) First Hard Rock Mining in the world to develop and use large effective water pumps to constantly keep up with the removal of the heavy 108 degree arsenic ladened ground water thus allow drilling far below water tables of this mining region. The deepest mine shaft was an unheard of 3,862 in depth all due to great innovation creativity and adaptation to the new situations afforded in this region through newly developed engineering.
10) First to use timber shoring to solve the many cave-in problems that occur with hard rock mining. This new method of shoring was solved by the method of square-set timbering invented by a German named Philip Deidesheimer soon after his appointment as superintendent of the Ophir Mine. Previously timber men placed vertical posts on either side of a tunnel capped with another timber (post and lintel architectural building techniques dating back to the early Greeks) across the top. But Mr. Deidesheimer designed the technique of using timber cubes that measured six feet squared. With this technique many new advantages plus stronger supporting was of great value. Voids caused by excavation of the ore would occur but was immediately filled with this framing allowing for any directional change to follow the ore vein and this timber lattice technique was extremely successful. Unfortunately this technique requires tons and tons of lumber which stripped miles and miles of timber from lands as far away as California. Dan De Quille, an associate of Samuel Clemens, who chronicled regional events for three decades, called the Comstock Lode "the tomb of the forests of the Sierras."
11)
12) Early in the history of Comstock mining, there were heavy flows of water to contend with. This called for pumping machinery and apparatus, and as greater depth was attained, larger pumps were demanded. All the inventive genius of the Pacific Coast was called into play, and this resulted in construction of some of the most powerful and effective steam and hydraulic pumping equipment to be found anywhere in the world. Initially, the water was cold at the top levels, but the deeper and deeper miners followed the veins they hit large heavy flows of hot water. This water was hot enough to cook an egg or scald a man to death almost instantly. Many lives were lost by falling into sumps and pools and the hot and steamy water made mining conditions almost unbearable. It therefore called for a cool supply of air by new creative means of fans, blowers and various kinds of cooling ventilation apparatus and ventilation shafts.
13)
Out of the thousand of grubstakers that invaded Storey County the actual winners of great fortunes were only a few dozen. Hundreds sold out claims for next to nothing or didn't stay for the long haul assuming the fields would be dried up as it happen with the placer deposits in California. Plus other new areas in Utah, South Dakota and Colorado also shouted the call of gold and silver. For thousands of grubstakers they just moved on to other pursuits after investing in failed mine stocks with their small life's fortunes. But many worldwide astute businessmen made thousands of dollars as mine backers, silent partners, stockholders and investors without ever lifting up a shovel and pick. Eventually over time it almost completely eliminating the small independent prospector from the mining industry forever, that is until the call of gold in Alaska and the great Klondike Strikes rekindled the passion and adventure for the common independent grubstaker. None the less this city became the most noted city in the world, “Virginia City was and is a remarkable place, and its riches continue to stir the imagination. It is now one of the largest Historical Districts in the United States with original building from the early 1860's.
It was no easy time for miners in this particular region, hardships were more numerous than successes: Broken spirits and lost dreams of unfortunate grubstakers that had claims jumped or no luck what so ever to show for all their money, hard work and years of pick and shoveling. There were many deaths, from mine cave ins, and explosions from gas vapors and mine floodings. Deaths by the arsenic ladened water, dangerous mercury smelting vapors in the air, natural spring flooding, rough winter snows and cold. Death from fires, gunfights, legal disagreements, fights over ladies and poker, run-away wagons, desert heat of the summer, no timber - only sagebrush and of course snakes and scorpions just to name a few of the many hardships endured for the dreams of riches from gold.

Disasters:
Spring flooding and runoffs was always a hardship, with the worst occurring in 1862 when ravines and canyons void of any water retention areas, dams, trees and grasses that could help with large runoffs caused by heavy rains and melting snows. It caused huge landslides and flooding to the entire region. All the damages was rebuilt or replaced immediately by dedicated miners, claim owners, residents and business owners.
The Great Fire of 1866 that burned a large portion of Virginia City: As reported in the New York Times: “The recent fire in Virginia City has left 500 residences homeless and has caused over $ 200,000 in damages.”
The End of the Civil War and the following Post War Depression of 1864-1866 caused hardship for all, the rich and the poor alike. With deflated money, supplies were more expensive and hard to get.
Mine Cave-ins, one of the most famous, the Gold Hill “Yellow Jacket Mine Disaster” of 1875 left many miners lost or dead. Of course there was no OSHA at the time to keep safety foremost in importance to the mine owners and bank financiers, so it was not unusual for a miner to be killed every week by cave-ins or mine fires cause by igniting gases. Or for at least one person to be injured every day by falling into the honeycombed shafts and holes of the Comstock or falling into pools of hot steaming arsenic ladened pools or sumps of 108 degree waters removed from the depths of the mines.
Working to new depths to follow the veins of gold and silver deeper and deeper into the earth required great physical fitness, and engineering creativity and innovation. Miners had to go shirtless to survive and deal with the intense heat because working 2,000 to 3,200 feet underground brought new problems and occupational hazards such as: heat exhaustion, pneumonia and rheumatism and dehydration. It was reported that heat increased 5 degrees for every hundred feet of depth. At 3,000 feet, a miner could only work for 15 minutes at a time out of every hour, and ice allotment per miner was at a high of 95 pounds per day in order to keep hydration at the maximum. In addition, all wood handles of picks and shovels would become so hot that all miners were required to wear gloves for protection. Seeing and breathing in the dense steam clouded tunnels was extremely hard because of the steam drilling machinery and the sweat that ran down constantly from the head. So miners and timber men constantly had to be watchful and ready to run, from cave-ins, fires, toxic gas, and because if a scalding water pocket was hit, the dangerous water would pour into the tunnel, and miners had to run and jump into lifting cages, risking quick and certain death if the hoisting mechanisms failed to lift them quickly enough.
All of the hard rock mining ore of the Comstock Lode was meromorphic in formation unlike the alluvial and placer deposits in California and as on the surface of the Storey County Canyons, and thus it in addition to new mining techniques it also required serious processing in the milling and refining companies. In Mark Twain's book: Roughing It, Clemens describes the tough times and extra steps necessary to refine the silver and gold from the bearing ore. Once extracted from the mines, workers would break up the ore bearing rock (quartz based) with sledgehammers and then crushed to dust by heavy machines. The result was then mixed with water, mercury and salt in large heating tanks. The mercury is attracted to the silver and gold particles and can dissolve the particles that now must be heated in a pit or furnace. Anyone knowing about mercury will tell you of the dangers of heating it, since it will evaporate into the air leaving the pure gold and silver but causes extreme dangerous toxic air quality that can cause damage to the lungs and body. It is estimated that over 15 million pounds of poisonous mercury was evaporated into the air during the lifetime of the Comstock. Today the region is still heavily contaminated with levels of mercury 26 times more than the allowable Federal Mining and Air Purity Standards. What ever green life that existed in the canyons would be more than killed by the heavy contaminated air. The average life span in Virginia City at the time was 28 years for all residents because of the air quality. I

Ghosts of Storey County The areas of Gold Hill and Virginia City have many intriguing legends of the believed many supernatural residences that have long called the many sites within the Storey County Canyons home, such as: Allison Orrum Hunter Cowan Bowers and adopted daughter Persia in their former mansion in Gold Hill now know as The Gold Hill Hotel. The 37 miners that lost their lives in a mine collapse and bodies never recovered buried forever below. A young lady that haunts the Silver Queen Hotel in Virginia City seen about the hallways and staircases In the Millionaires Club (The Old Washoe Club) a ghost of a little boy, who was killed by a horse drawn wagon in the 1870's can be seen around the spiral staircase area.

Other Mines to Visit in Nearby Nevada
(They either have mine tours or are area's that can be explored by hiking or ATVs)
Tonopah Historic Mining Park
Chollar Mine (Carlin Trend)
Newmont Mining Corporation
Royal Peacock Opal Mine
Rainbow Ridge Opal Mine
Bonanza Opal Mine
Kinross, Round Mountain Mine
Barrick's Ruby Hill Mine Tuscarora
Mountain City, Gold Creek and Tinto

The Story of Alexandrite

The first ever discovery of Alexandrite took place in a remote area of Russia on the Asiatic side of the Urals along the Tokovaya River near the city of Ekaterinburg (named for the beloved Empress Catherine II). In a few short years it became one of the richest gemstone mines in the world, rivaling the great emerald mines of Cleopatra in Sikeit, Egypt’s Zabara Mountain region. From this mining area, in addition to alexandrite came emerald, aquamarine, amethyst, chysoberyl, quartz, blue topaz, fluoritie, apatite, rutile and phenakite. Ekaterinburg -- as fortune would have it -- was located on the great road from Russia to Siberia, which turned it into a fair sized city by the turn of the 1800's. Within a short time it became a city where most of the population was associated with mining, cutting and carving gemstones or minting coins. (Today it is know by the name of Sverdlovsk, having been renamed by the Soviets). It is very seldom visited by tourists since very little is left of the rich mines once associated with the region.

As the story goes, the first discovery of gemstones in the region took place by a peasant charcoal-burner who was on his way to Ekaterinburg. Following along a trail next to the Tokovaya River, he had to pass over a large, recently storm fallen tree. Surprisingly, within its large exposed roots he found sparkling gem crystals. As a loyal citizen, he took the crystals to the gem cutting lapidaries within the city. Of course the businesses were closely controlled by Czar Nicholas, who was immediately notified of the great find. Soon after, government mines were everywhere within the region, using local citizens as the workers.

Of great interest was a member of the chrysoberyl family, a most unusual stone, first described as a stone "with the ability to change color under prevailing light. In daylight, rich green colors reflected from its rich dark purplish background, while at night, under artificial light, it emitted red hues." It was, by chance, first discovered on April 23rd, 1830, Czarevitch Alexander Nicolajevitch's birthday after whom it was so named "Alexandrite." It became an instant hit and it’s unusual colors (the reflected colors were also the colors of the Russian Military) made it an instant novelty. It became an even more popular gemstone when its young namesake Alexander became the Czar of Russia in 1855. Alexandrite became so highly prized it is said that by 1898 it was selling for as much as $38 per carat for top quality stones. The thin vein deposits were usually mined by open pit or trench techniques by very crude methods. The long harsh winter brought mining to a standstill during the bitter cold season.

Despite the many stones that were mined compared to the many other gemstones this area did not yield large crystals of facet-graded quality for the demanding Russian lapidaries. Only a few stones of any size over 3 carats were ever found and cut from the Tokovaya River deposits and in time have become the rarest and most expensive gemstones on this planet. It is believed that the largest specimen ever found is presently housed in the Fersman Mineralogical Museum in Moscow. It is approximately 18 X 13 centimeters and contains at least 22 large crystals in matrix. Today a one carat Alexandrite of outstanding quality is approximately $10,000.00. Only small and insignificant pockets of crystals have been found throughout the world until the rich deposits recently discovered in Brazil in the mid 1990’s.

History of Zoisite ( Tanzanite )

Located in the northern part of Tanzania, in the Usumburu Mountains inhabited by the farming and herding Masai people of Africa, in an area called Merelani we get one of the world's most exquisite gem forms of Zoisite. Zoisite was so named after the Czechoslavakian Baron Zois von Edelstein who first discovered it. But his discovered variety was a lifeless grayish white and yellowish brown which had very little importance, prominence and demand as a gem material in his homeland's region. It was not until 1966 in a far away continent in a very arid region of Africa that one of the most recent and sensational gems the world has seen was discovered by an Arusha tailor named Sousa. Of exceptional beauty in its dark blue, violet-purple colorization, it was first believed to be a rich colored sapphire material, until researched with proper sophisticated gem identification equipment and found to be a completely new gemstone form of Zoisite, never seen before. One year later Tiffany's & Co. created a huge sensation with their advertised announcement of the new gem, calling it from its country of origin, "Tanzanite."

The Merelani Mine is located south of the famous landmark, Mount Kilimanjaro and north of the Olduvai Gorge where the famous paleoanthropologist Louis Leakey made his famous early man discovery. The nearest town, Arusha, is over 50 kilometers to the northwest. It is a desolate region where in 1997 a sudden deluge of over 7 inches of rain flooded the mine and killed over thirty miners. It took almost a year to pump, dig and dry out the mine plus claim the bodies, during which time a tremendous increase in the prices of gem tanzanite was noticed on the world markets because of the lack of material available. Most crystals, although heat treated for increased color uniformity and saturation of hue, are not found in the natural colors of deep violet-purplish blue but in the more common colors of gray, brown, yellowish-brown, green and light green with occasional pink and red along with white and transparent. Mining in the Merelani region is extremely harsh and difficult since the material is found in very heavily metamorphosed layered rock requiring intense laboring. In addition to the many climatic hardships in the short 24 years of existence of this deposit, the mining area has experienced political unrest and revolts, tribal fighting for control, civil unrest, infighting over claims, constant insects, extremely poor mine safety, cholera epidemics, flooding, feudalistic overlords (working miners in poverty while paying them next to nothing). Many fine crystals have been discovered at this one and only know source.

Tanzanite's strong pleochroism (the ability of the crystal to exhibit color changes when rotated in light-although lost in heat treating), is a real asset to the natural stone's brilliance when faceted and polished. Larger crystals that will allow 4 carat finished gemstones are quite rare, and the largest flawless tanzanite (found to date) of 122.7 carats finished, is currently in the Smithsonian Institution's Gem Collection. Most crystals from the mine are either sent to nearby cutters in Africa or shipped to Belgium or Germany for finishing, with India being the largest cutter today. Although relatively soft, when first discovered it was suggested to not be mounted in rings where the gems could easily be scratched or broken, so extreme care in wear and cleaning is highly recommended. Current prices for the deep rich blue, violet purple gemstones vary from $650 to $1,000 per carat depending on clarity and the gem's evident pleochroism characteristics. Fact: 1) The deeper the color and clarity the more expensive the stone per carat weight. Fact: 2) It was recently voted as a new official birthstone (the very first in over 95 years), for the month of December symbolizing prosperity along with Turquoise, Blue Zircon and Blue Topaz.

AGATE–(All Quartz based gemstones) For the healing of all chest and lung aliments plus boils, envy, epidemics, protection from the powers of the evil eye, fear, falling sickness, indigestion, insanity, kidney problems, loose teeth, pestilence, sea sickness, tender gums, tired eyes, ulcers and vertigo

Amber– Legend holds that the wearing of amber protects the wearer from croup, ear infections, fevers, arthritis, hay fever and tonsillitis

Amethyst– Protection for headaches, gout, hangovers, liver ailments, plagues, poisons, stomach disorder, tumors, toothaches, evil sorcery

Bloodstone–Protection from bladder problems, excitability, gall stones, hemorrhoids, loss of smell

Carnelian–Helps avoid bad tempers, hemorrhages, loss of voice and tumors

Coral–Protects the wearer from a weak heart, teething, hemorrhages, colic, convulsions, contagious diseases, blood problems, weak heart, evil sorcery, eye problems and protection from the evil eye

Diamond–Protects from loss of courage, nightmares, psoriasis, dermatitis, loss of strength and evil spirits

Emerald–Helps to protect the wearer from constipation, gastritis, leprosy, loss of appetite, plagues, possession by demons and evil spirits and snake venom

Flint–Legend holds that the wearer is protected from warts, rheumatism, allergies from nursing milk, kidney problems, labor pains, bladder issues and cramps

Garnet–As legend holds, garnet protects from open wounds, incontinence, plagues, melancholia, evil thoughts and drowning

Hematite–Helps in the protection of snake bits and their poisons, stomach disorders, headaches, kidney problems, bladder problems and eye complaints

Jade–Protects from stomach disorders, weak heart, hemorrhages, loss of voice, liver and leg problems, blood purification, bone problems, food allergies, excitability and foot complaints

Jet–Protects the wearer from faintness, falling sickness, King’s evil, toothaches and sadness (mourning)

Lapis Lazuli–Helps the wearer from labor pains, melancholia, skin disorders, timidity, depression, eye complaints and apoplexy

Malachite–Protects from evil sorcery, insomnia, allergies to nursing milk, rheumatism, teething, and weak heart

Moonstone–Helps avoid sterility, epilepsy and fevers

Opal–Protects the wearer from contagious diseases, epidemics, eye problems, melancholia

Quartz, Rock Crystal–Protects from gall stones, dropsy, colic, gout, kidney problems and infections from wounds
Rubies and Red Spinels–As legend holds gives the wearer great strength, luck and protection in battle plus protection from all illnesses.

Sapphire–It is said to protect the wearer from eye and vision problems, fevers, arguing, boils, loss of courage, mental health, plagues, poisons, skin disorders, tired eyes, ulcers, and vertigo

Sardonyx–(a banded form of onyx, quartz) as legend holds, the wearer of this gemstone is protected from ulcers, vertigo, insanity, insomnia and indigestion

Serpentine–Protects from dropsy

Turquoise–Helps the wearer in the prevention of eye strain, plus protection from poisons, the evil eye, falling sickness, protection from demons and evil spirits

Topaz–Protects the wearer from tired and red eyes from straining, ulcers, vertigo, rabies, poisons, hemorrhages, gout, jaundice, melancholia and hemorrhoids

Tourmaline–Helps the wearer in the avoidance of timidity, fright from terror and dread

Zircons–Helps the wearer from plagues, melancholia, insomnia, jaundice, bad tempers, dropsy, epidemics and fevers

The Power of Crystals

From the earliest times of human occupation of the third rock from the sun, they have been drawn to the many shiny and colorful objects that could be found and fashioned into adornments. The earth has over 2,000 different elements and minerals of which only a few hundred could actually be used as true gems, possessing the qualities of brilliance, color or beauty. Over the many thousand years that gems have been hunted and desired many many legends, superstitions and folk lore have evolved between gems and there associations with magic, evil, wealth, power, health, luck, love, fame, fertility and honor, etc.. Almost all minerals have crystal properties of growth and many crystals have as mentioned been sensed to possess special powers and energies that emulate from within to form an energy field around.

The 7 Chakras (In Priority from the Root to the Spiritual Center)

7) The Base of the Spine (The Root Chakra) Associate Gem Color – RED
It is the energy point of the body that can maintain the body’s physical vitality and enhance sexuality

6) The Abdomen Associate Gem Color – ORANGE
This is the location to enhance the gut instincts, the spleen, liver and intestines

5) The Solar Plexus Associate Gem Color – YELLOW
Its location is specific to enhance and stimulate the liver and pancreas

4) The Heart Associate Gem Color – GREEN
It is the Energy Center (The Energy Chakra) for love, companionship and caring plus the local for Thymus and Immune System

3) The Throat Associate Gem Color – BLUE
The energy center for the Thyroid Gland plus the helper for all speech and communication skills

2) The Brow Associate Gem Color – PURPLE/INDIGO
This is the energy center for the Pituitary Gland plus the controller of the Dream Center and the Spirituality Center

1) The Crown of the Head Associate Gem Color - VIOLET
The Dominant Center that starts the flow of all energy and power through the body to the Root Chakras. It is located atop of the Pineal Gland and enhances thoughts and wisdom as well as calms headaches and bad thoughts.