Silver Mines and Mobile Miners in the Southwestern Borderlands of the Qing Empire

Abstract

AbstractThis article explores mining as the motor of temporary and permanent migration into the Far Southwest of Ming and Qing China. It focuses on the workforce of borderland silver mines, specifically on travel routes and the geography of recruitment. Durations and costs of the journeys reflect the existence of efficiently organized networks. The men who set out for the mines did so in the expectation of making money and returning home with handsome gains. This provides insights into the sizeable and profitable non-agrarian sector in the late imperial economy.