Terms of Use
ご利用上の制限事項や注意事項についてのご案内
Please read the terms of use and agree to them before using this website.
「ARCHIVES」について
ウェブサイト「ARCHIVES」は、東北と新潟の鉱山跡に残る遺構を写真に記録し、歴史とともに紹介することを目的として 2016 年に開設しました。
かつて朝廷や幕府の奨励のもとに繁栄した日本の鉱業は、明治期に入ると国の重要産業に位置づけられ、拡大する軍備を背景に近代化が進められました。 各地の鉱山では山間に町や集落が築かれ、集まった多くの労働者やその家族で活気を帯びました。 終戦後、復興に向けて再建が急がれた石炭鉱業に続き、金属鉱業は朝鮮戦争に伴う特需景気を受けて生産を回復させます。 その後、日本経済が成長を続ける中で石油への燃料資源の転換、回収硫黄の市場流入、貿易自由化の促進などが図られ、国内の鉱業はかつてない難局に直面することとなります。 やがて、各地の鉱山は輸入資源の台頭、円相場の高騰を受けて衰退の一途を辿り、その多くが閉鎖を迎えました。
莫大な資金と労力、時間を費やして築かれた鉱山施設は、役目を終えた今もなお、山中にその佇まいを残し、往時の繁栄を偲ばせています。 時間の経過は素材の変質や植物による侵食をもたらし、そこは匂いや湿気を帯びた空気を湛え、趣と存在感に満ちた空間へと創り上げられていきます。 巨大な建造物が自然へと還りゆく中で見せる美しさ、かつての喧騒を失い、廃墟と化した空間に漂う静寂の空気、寂寥感、空虚感などを写真を通してご鑑賞いただければ幸いに思います。
なお、鉱業には鉱毒による環境汚染問題の他、殉職者を伴う鉱山災害、軍需産業への支援、朝鮮人をはじめ、中国人や外国人捕虜に対する強制労働などの歴史があります。 当サイトは、被害に遭われた方やそのご遺族に、不快な思いを抱かせることを目的としたものではありません。
About This Website
This website, established in 2016, presents photographs and the history of industrial heritage with a focus on abandoned mines in the Tohoku Region and Niigata, Japan.
The Japanese mining industry, which prospered under the encouragement of the Imperial Court and later the Shogunate in earlier times, developed due to modernization and military expansion from the Meiji period onward. In each mine, laborers and their families gathered from around the country, and mining towns or settlements formed around them were lively. After the war, the coal mining industry was rapidly reconstructed for economic revival, and later the metal mining industry recovered its production due to special procurements during the Korean War. Subsequently, during the period of rapid economic growth, the domestic mining industry faced an unprecedented situation, including the transition from coal to oil as the primary energy source, the emergence of refined sulfur in the market, and the advancement of trade liberalization. Consequently, numerous mines went into decline due to the influx of inexpensive imported resources and the sharp appreciation of the yen, leading to their closure one after another.
Mining facilities, which took an enormous amount of money, labor, and time to construct, still stand in the mountains even after losing their function and retain remnants of their former prosperity. Moreover, material deterioration and plant invasion progress over time, creating a space with an atmosphere and presence, where smells and humidity hang in the air. I would appreciate it if you could take an interest in the beauty of the structures returning to nature, or if you could experience the silence, desolation, and emptiness of the abandoned ruins through the medium of photographs.
It should be noted that, the history of the mining industry includes mine disasters with death tolls, support for the munitions industry, and the use of Koreans, Chinese people, and Allied prisoners of war for forced labor, in addition to the problem of environmental pollution. This website is not intended to cause discomfort to anyone.
Takashi SEIJI
Guidelines for Using This Website
Privacy Policy
プライバシーポリシー（個人情報保護方針）についてのご案内
This privacy policy shall be governed by the laws of Japan.