“Fertilissimi sunt auri Dardae, setae vero et argenti”. Notes on some ancient open-air gold mining sites in Ladakh

Abstract

Listen

Translate article

This paper is intending to give a descriptive account of four sites from Central Ladakh that nearby inhabitants consider to be ancient open-air gold mines and, in so doing, tries to link some physical remains with what the legend of the ants, inherited from Antiquity, may be interpreted as meaning. The point here is not to add another page to the tale, but rather to point to some possible archaeological evidence supporting the fact that Ladakh might well be considered as a possible location of origin for these gold-related tales.