Inside the mine a number of the open spaces (galleries) have been left untouched for more than 5000 years.

“The Greek mine is exceptional not only for its scope but for its layout as well, which is unlike any mining system existing in the area. The skill and physical abilities of the ancient miners to exploit the ore deposits and then to properly process the ore outside of the mine speaks not only to a deliberate strategy but to spatial and technological control over the entire process. Extracting the silver would have required an exceptional amount of resources and an advanced technical system of a scale unique in the ancient world,” according to New Historian.

“Inside the mine a number of the open spaces (galleries) have been left untouched for more than 5000 years. Mapping the system of mining shafts has proven extremely difficult even for experienced archaeologists, who are required to wear high-tech equipment through the cramped and intertwining network of shafts in stifling conditions and temperatures up to 70° Fahrenheit.”

The publication notes the mine was likely worked by slaves, who would work around the clock in extreme working conditions to extract the ore.

MINING.com reported in November that German researchers detected traces of mining activity in Central Europe dating back to the Bronze Age, which resumed later in the early Middle Ages. The Aegean Bronze Age begins around 3,000 BC.