International Conference 'Early Steam Engines in Central European Mining'

To commemorate the tercentenary of the first atmospheric steam engine, an international conference First Steam Engines in Central European Mining was held from October 7 to October 8, 2022 in the Old Castle in Banská Štiavnica.

 Medzinárodná konferencia Prvé parné stroje v stredoeurópskom baníctve

The aim of the conference was to present the latest archaeological, historical and technological research on the subject of early atmospheric steam engines and the buildings in which they were located. Based on real examples, were presented different approaches that can be used in order to reconstruct this pioneering technology and present it to today's public. The general theme of the history of technology and industrial archaeology was also approached by papers presenting new technologies, archaeological methods and virtual reality.

The conference was prepared by the Slovak Mining Archive in Banská Štiavnica, the Slovak Mining Museum in Banská Štiavnica and Althandel Civic Association and was held in the attractive interiors of the Old Castle in the medieval mining town of Banská
Štiavnica. 

The opening ceremony of the conference was attended by His Excellency Nigel Baker - British Ambassador to Slovakia and Mayor of Nová Baňa, Branislav Jaďuď, alongside Peter Konečný from the Slovak Mining Archive and Zuzana Denková from the Slovak Mining Museum.

The conference also included a guided tour of the exhibition “The Engine That Changed the World: The Story of Isaac Potter's Fire Engine” and a field trip to Althandel in Nová Bana (Excavation site of Isaac Potter's Engine House from 1722).

Conference programme:

  • David Perrett: The Survivors – Their Story
  • Miroslav Lacko: Mining and Fiscal-Military State: Habsburg Metal Production for Global Markets in the 18th Century
  • Marek Uškrt – Peter Konečný – Milan Palou: Physicians, Soldiers, Diplomats, Engine Builders and Entrepreneurs: Speculative Investments in an Early Modern Gold Mine (Althandel, Nová Bana, 1723-1730)
  • Steve Grudgings: Thomas Newcomen – The Man and His Engines
  • James Greener: Who Was Isaac Potter?
  • Peter Konečný: How to build an Atmospheric Steam Engine Outside of Great Britain: The Engines at Althandel in Nová Baňa and Joseph & Magdalene Shafts in Štiavnické Bane
  • Matej Styk: Archaeological Excavation of the Engine House at Althandel in Nová Bana
  • David Hardwick: Newcomen Engine Buildings in 18th Century Europe: Comparative Architectural History
  • Peter Konečný – David Hardwick: Handling of the Technology and Preserving: Last Atmospheric Steam Engine House in Hungary (Štiavnické Bane, Königsegg shaft, 1758)
  • Gerald Müller – Branislav Mereš: Thermodynamic Assessment of the Newcomen Engine & Its Application to the 1722 Nová Bana Engine
  • Alice Reininger: „... I saw Mr. Kempelins Machine at Work Today ...“: Wolfgang von Kempelen and James Watt
  • Jan van de Veen: Development of Steam Engines in the Netherlands (1750-1850)
ALTHANDEL

ALTHANDEL, o. z.
Dlhá lúka 730/52,
968 01 Nová Baňa
Slovakia
IČO 54342431

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