Mining is part of our identity, we are proud of it and we want its heritage to remain with us. With the Mining Museum in the City of Acrobats, we will keep this identity alive - as a reminder of hard work, "kamerašaft" and love for the environment where we live.
Why did we decide to buy? Jure explains. At first we thought there would be some hunkers available, but then we were surprised to find out that there was a lot of equipment and that we could present the story well with it."
Among the many pieces of equipment, Jure has his favourite: "Personally, I like the tunnel boring machine the best. I joked that we would rebuild it, put it on Gabrsko in a northerly direction, fill it up with petrol, refuel it and then wait a month or so if it comes out in Prebold. "
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Vision for a mining museum
With the purchase of the equipment, the idea of creating a mining museum began - first in the City of Acrobats, and perhaps one day in the cave itself.
"Ideally, we should put mining equipment where it belongs, in the mine. We have well-preserved 16 km of connecting tunnels linking Trbovlje, Hrastnik, the separation plant along the Sava. The Frančiška tunnel fan station is right opposite the City of Acrobats. There are some fantastic spots in the mine, one of which is the so-called Ajnzer shaft, the engine room of a 100 m shaft inside the mine. It remains in exactly the same condition as it was almost twenty years ago, when it last took miners down. Something like this is not something you see every day. The route to the shaft is quite challenging, as you have to descend to it via the R2 on-ramp at Retje," says Jure.
In this project, where we are only at the beginning of our journey, we have received help from retired miners from the Perkmandeljc. We have done many things with them, most recently, as Jure told us, a clean-up around Ajnzer and in the cave.
"Conversations with former miners reveal how our towns and cities functioned in the past. In their spare time, they were the engine of the city's development, sports, culture, common activities, and a lot of infrastructure was built. In certain sports we were at the top in the former Yugoslavia. At the moment, we do not have the same opportunities to reach for such top results, but we have the task of giving young people good opportunities to develop in various fields, at least up to secondary school, so that they can live their dreams. There is a lot to learn from these men of vision," says Jure.
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Respect for the past
Juret's thought sums up the heart of this project: 'The past must be respected and preserved for future generations. From the past we learn and draw inspiration, and our roots give us support in stormy times.Our history goes back much further - there are remnants of the Celtic past in Zasavje. The rich history of our region is still relatively unknown, so it is right that we reveal it and give visitors an insight into what has shaped us."
Below you will find some more photos and short descriptions of the larger pieces of mining equipment we have purchased. The smaller pieces are too numerous to list, but each one tells a part of its own story and is part of the rich history and heritage of mining in our country.
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