Potosí : The Silver City That Changed the World

Description

In 1545, a native Andean prospector hit pay dirt on a desolate red mountain in highland Bolivia. There followed the world's greatest silver bonanza, making the Cerro Rico or ""Rich Hill"" and the Imperial Villa of Potosí instant legends, famous from Istanbul to Beijing. The Cerro Rico alone provided over half of the world's silver for a century, and even in decline, it remained the single richest source on earth. Potosí is the first interpretive history of the fabled mining city's rise and fall. It tells the story of global economic transformation and the environmental and social impact of r.  Read more... Intro Series Page Imprint Subvention Frontispiece Title Copyright Dedication Epigraph List of Illustrations Acknowledgments Preface Timeline Introduction 1 Bonanza 2 Age of Wind, Age of Iron 3 The Viceroy's Great Machine 4 An Improbable Global City 5 Secret Judgments of God 6 Decadence and Rebirth 7 From Revival to Revolution 8 Summing Up Epilogue: Potosí since Independence Appendix: Voices Glossary Notes Bibliographical Essay Select Bibliography Index