Kupferbergwerk Fischbach

Fischbach, Germany, Germany

---

Kupferbergwerk Fischbach near Fischbach in Germany's Rhineland-Palatinate Hunsrück region is one of western Germany's largest and most significant historic copper mines, with high-quality ore extraction documented since around 1400 and first mentioned in 1461.

Operated by Sponheim counts and Wild- und Rheingräfe who split revenues and labor, it peaked economically from 1730-1765 using early black powder blasting techniques before closing in 1792 amid French Revolutionary occupation, with failed 19th-20th century restarts.

Now a visitor mine opened in 1975 with a reconstructed copper smelter and accessible Erbstollen tunnel up to 30 meters high, it offers guided tours revealing medieval mining methods, extensive stollens, and the site's role as a key Nahe-Hunsrück industry alongside gemstone mining.