gems, garnet, almandine, analytical, provenance, Bohemia, Czech Republic, history

Schmetzer presents a detailed historical study of garnet mining at the Zödl near Radenthein in Carinthia, reconstructing the development of the operation and the involvement of the Hofer family of the Zillertal. Drawing extensively on family correspondence, contracts, parish registers, archival records, newspapers, and earlier literature, he traces the Hofers’ transition from tailoring and the mining and trade of “Federweiß” (asbestos) to garnet mining and commerce, and documents the organization of mining, processing, and sales to cutting centers, particularly in Bohemia. The study follows several generations of the family and describes the roles of Joseph Hofer I, Johann Hofer I, Franz Hofer II, Joseph Hofer III, and later the foreman and mine manager Andreas (Andrä) Schösser. It provides details of working conditions and processing, including the garnet stamp mill, problems with sieving and recovery of smaller stones, and interruptions caused by winter weather. Correspondence from 1866–1870 and 1909–1924 supplies particularly detailed information on the commercial and practical operation of the enterprise. Mining at the Zödl continued under Schösser until the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 brought the operation to an end.