TRADITIONAL GOLD MINING IN AKYEM ABUAKWA IN GHANA’S EASTERN REGION

Abstract

This study examines precolonial gold mining in Akyem Abuakwa in Ghana's Eastern Region. It uses a historiographical approach, combining primary and secondary data and oral interviews to show the mineral processing and metallurgical technology used in mining Abuakwa gold in the historic period. It also demonstrates that precolonial gold mining in Akyem Abuakwa was less destructive to the environment, compared to the modern mining. It also highlights the techniques utilised by native Africans to mine gold, before the advent of Western technology and finance.