ABSTRACT
Tangible examples stem from Egyptian civilisation, and from the Greek, Roman, German, Swedish, British, French, Austrian and Spanish experience. All through the ages, possession of mineral deposits and the ability to work and process minerals and metals have motivated tribes and nations either to develop their communities by raising their general cultural and living standards, or to defend themselves against invasion by others for the same general purpose. Among the many reasons for the decline in mining activity in Britain were excessive taxation, excessive distribution of profits as dividends to shareholders and lack of a studied government approach to taxation incentives. Landlocked Switzerland produces high-precision instruments and machinery ranging from delicate wristwatches to the largest steam turbines, pumps and marine diesel engines, for all of which it enjoys an extremely high reputation in world's markets. The development of a high standard of living in any country almost invariably depends upon the active search for and exploitation of indigenous mineral deposits.
