Water Supply Data Humberstone Chile
by James Brunker
Title
Water Supply Data Humberstone Chile
Artist
James Brunker
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
Detail of a faded noticeboard in a storehouse in the abandoned nitrate mining town of Humberstone in northern Chile recording the amounts of saline and fresh water supplies available. Humberstone was founded in 1872 and was one of hundreds of mines that flourished in the Atacama Desert during the region's nitrate mining boom of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The introduction of chemical based fertilisers led to steep decline in the industry and the site was finally abandoned in 1960; it is now a designated UNESCO Heritage Site. The site is next to the Pan-American Highway not far from the small town of Pozo Almonte and the historic port city of Iquique; the latter was the most important nitrate exporting port on the Atacama coast.
Photograph © James Brunker. Reproduction, transmission or publication in any form without written permission strictly prohibited.
Uploaded
February 6th, 2015
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