ABSTRACT
The mines of S’Argentera (from the Catalonian “La Platera”) are a complex of underground argentiferous lead mines that have lain abandoned since 1909. They are located in the proximities of the small picturesque village of San Carles on the Island of Ibiza (Balearic Islands, Spain) in what is now a highly touristic area (Fig. 1). There are documents testifying to the existence of the mines from the XIV century, but the height of their exploitation was between 1867 and 1909, when they were abandoned due to flooding in the richest part of the mine. Strangely, the complex is now completely dry and the ground water level is 20 m lower. Both the external and underground heritage form one of the most important mining relics of the Balearic Islands and the area is in the study stage to turn it into a tourist attraction (Escandell Serra 2001).
