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Discovery of the Potosí Silver Mines

Type Event Region Bolivia Time 1545

Around 1545 Spanish colonists discovered astonishingly rich silver deposits at Cerro Rico near present-day Potosí, Bolivia, rapidly turning the highl…

Timeline

  1. 1545Cerro Rico · PotosíColonists found silver-rich veins at Cerro Rico on the Potosí plateau; news spread quickly, drawing large numbers of prospectors and laborers to this remote highland region.
  2. 1545–1546Potosí · PotosíThe Spanish colonial authorities established mining concessions and labor-service systems; Potosí's population grew sharply, becoming a key node linking the Andes, Pacific ports, and the global silver trade.

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