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Cornish Mine Terms 
Copper  Ore Dressing

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Click to see process layout at South Caradon mine  This diagram has been constructed based on the written description given in Bryan Earl in his excellent book "Cornish Mining". It has simplified some of the possible material flows but does show the basic features of a Victorian mine's Copper Ore dressing process. Size reduction operations are shown in yellow and classification/ concentration operations in blue . 
Hand sorting (picking) of  was a feature of Copper dressing and it arose from the Ores characteristic of breaking into a fine powder when stamped. This trait that made stamped ore difficult to treat without causing excess losses. 
Other more complex ore processing diagrams do exist but this model will explain the basic layout of most Copper mine dressing floors. 		 A simplified diagram of the copper dressing process. 

 The terms explained 
Ore Classification
Prills
Drage
Halvans
Drage Dressing
Ragging Manual
Spalling Manual
Cobbing Manual
Bucking Manual/Powered
Jigging Manual/Powered
Halvan Dressing
Stamping Powered
Trunking
Buddling Powered
Tozing Powered/Manual
Three primary material streams are shown, Prills,Drage and Halvans.  

The Halvan processing was a series of water based functions whilst Drage dressing relied heavily on manual labour . Wherever possible copper ore was separated from the gangue by hand. This hand picking occurred underground and within the dressing floors.  
Copper dressing therefore  traditionally employed large numbers of women (Bal Maidens) and children. . 
 
 
 
Other related terms Examples
 
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