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Quicksilver Flasks (2), New Almaden, California (130131)

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Mining Start Price:75.00 USD Estimated At:150.00 - 300.00 USD
Quicksilver Flasks (2), New Almaden, California  (130131)
SOLD
700.00USDto 6****A+ buyer's premium (175.00)
This item SOLD at 2019 May 16 @ 15:28UTC-7 : PDT/MST
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Two quicksilver (mercury) flasks made of solid iron, heavily rusted from exposure, approx 5 inches in diameter, 12 inches from the bottom to the curved top, and 14.5 inches overall length. One of them has "N ALMADEN" cast into the top. This most likely refers to the New Almaden Quicksilver Mine in Santa Clara County, California -- the oldest and, at one time, the most productive quicksilver mine in the United States. The mine is named for the Almaden Quicksilver Mine in Spain. The New Almaden Quicksilver Mine began operations almost coincidentally with the onset of the California Gold Rush. New Almaden was able to supply copious quantities of mercury that many of the processing mills used to amalgamate gold and separate it from crushed ore. The standard measure of commercial mercury sales is the "flask" which is defined to hold 76 pounds of the liquid metal. Both flasks are empty. New Almaden operated from 1847 to 1976 when it was purchased by Santa Clara County to create the Almaden Quicksilver County Park. The property was remediated after being declared a Superfund site, and the county now operates the Casa Grande Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum in one of the large houses originally built by the mine. These two flasks are significant historical artifacts of the mining history of the West.

Date:
City/County: New Almaden
State: California