The European Mining Route of Santa Barbara Federation announced the arrival of a new partner: the Civic Association Banský Región – Terra Montanae with its Barborská Cesta (Barbara’s Way), an approximately 200 km long hiking route in central Slovakia. This partnership is intended to bring new cultural horizons to the MINES.B Federation, further enriching it and consolidating the links between the various entities involved.
The Context of Barborská Cesta:
Barborská Cesta is an initiative of the civic association Banský Región – Terra Montanae, which unites autonomous regions, entrepreneurs, tourist organisations, the church, mining associations, schools and universities.
The history of systematic mining activities, metallurgy, coin minting, and copper processing dates back to the 10th century. After the formation of Hungarian Monarchy, Germans and Flemings arrived with knowledge of effective mining methods, which they shared with the local population. Thanks to mining activities, the region became one of the most important intersections of trade routes in Europe and the home of the world’s first technical (mining) university in 1763. Since 1993, a part of the territory around the town of Banská Štiavnica has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The Barborská cesta (route) opens up the localities and heritage associated with mining for both locals and visitors, presented as a whole in its context and in the context of its impact on the development of Slovakia over the past 500 years. The project’s aim is to revive and develop the mining heritage of a multinational and multicultural environment in the heart of today’s Europe.
The Value of Partnership for the Federation:
The entry of Barborská Cesta as a new partner is of crucial importance for the European Mining Route of Santa Barbara Federation. Working with a project that embraces the mining and cultural history of central Slovakia adds an essential piece to the Federation’s mission to preserve and promote Europe’s mining-related heritage. The diversity of the natural landscape and the one shaped by human action in this region is rare, and the partnership aims to share it with visitors and residents, thus helping to revitalise and develop the heritage of a multinational and multicultural environment at the heart of contemporary Europe.