Idrija Municipal Museum, Prelovčeva 9, SI-5280 Idrija
Ownership
Public
Owner
Municipality of Idrija, Mestni trg 1, SI-5280 Idrija
Local / Original ID Number
510:IDR;RS-22
Type of Object
Mine
Description
Short description
Double-speed manually powered winch has two side brackets on the basic steel panel, which contain the shafts for handles, gears and drum. One or two handles may be attached to the crankshaft. The described winch has two handles placed in a 180° position. The small cogwheel has 12 cogs, the large one has 54 cogs. These cogwheels also move the smaller cogwheel (12 cogs) on the countershaft, which contains a lock with 10 cogs. The small cogwheel on the crankshaft has 12 cogs, the large cogwheel on the countershaft has 54 cogs. Furthermore, on the other side is a small cogwheel with 12 cogs, that is connected with a large cogwheel with 54 cogs and transfers the rotation on the drum. Due to the weak force in the rope, the rope drum is smooth, without threads, therefore the rope can be coiled in multiple layers.
Measures
Length 126 cm, width 192 cm, height 115.5 cm.
Materials
Cast iron, steel.
Dating
End of the 19th century
Author / Producer
Manufacturer information is not known.
Picture attachments
Original use
The winch was used for lifting and lowering the load in the Idrija Mercury Mine pit. The gears enabled the lighter loads to be moved faster and the heavier loads to be moved slower. When lifting lighter loads, the rotation was transmitted from the crankshaft through a pair of cogwheels directly to the rope drum. A lock on the countershaft maintained the position of the load on a certain height, if the rotation of the handle had stopped. For lifting heavy loads, the nozzle had to be removed from the crankshaft and the crankshaft had to be moved in axial direction, whereas the nozzle had to be placed between two rings, so that the crankshaft did not move during operation. According to the testimonials, the described winch was still used in the 1970s for obtaining sand from the Idrijca River in Strug. It was also used for changing the cable of the cableway for ore transportation. After that the winch was stored in the smelting plant under the rotary furnaces.
Present use
The manual winch is being preserved, secured and presented as an important monument of Idrija technical mining heritage with exceptional universal values. The described device is functional. It is a part of the Idrija Municipal Museum collection “Mining machines and devices”. The latter demonstrates the middle-European machine manufacturing at the end of the 19th and in the beginning of the 20th century. The collections contains the restored mining machines and devices, tools and equipment, which were necessary for working in a pit or in outdoor plants. For this reason it represents technical heritage which greatly exceeds the Idrija Mercury Mine framework and is therefore of a larger, global importance.
Original location
The Pit of the Idrija Mercury Mine.
Present location
Francis’ Shaft building (upper showroom).
STATE OF CONSERVATION
History of conservation:
The manual winch was restored between 1990 and 1992. It was completely disassembled, surfaces of individual parts were cleaned with sandblasting process, reassembled and its foundations and top were painted. Additional interventions are not necessary. Security of the premises is ensured.
Present state
good
Necessary activities:
Regular seasonal maintenance.
DOCUMENTATION
Addresses / collections / links etc. where further in-depth information is accessible:
- Inventory Book of the Idrija Municipal Museum;
- Zelenc, Anton. In vendar se giblje: katalog rudniških strojev in naprav. Idrija, Idrija Municipal Museum, 2001;
- Zelenc, Anton. Idrija Municipal Museum: restored mine machines and devices of the Idrija Mercury Mine. Patrimoine de l´industrie, 2004, p. 17–19.