BELL PIT Meaning and
Definition
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A bell pit refers to a historical mining technique for extracting minerals, typically coal, during the early years of underground mining. This method involved the excavation of a narrow vertical shaft, often resembling a bell shape, to reach mineral deposits buried deep beneath the surface.
The construction of a bell pit initially started by digging a small, bell-mouthed hole or trench at the chosen location for mining. As the digging progressed, the hole gradually widened and deepened into a bell shape, resembling an inverted cone. Miners would manually excavate the surrounding earth and layers of coal, using manual tools such as pickaxes and shovels.
The distinctive shape of the bell pit enabled efficient removal of the extracted minerals and provided stability to the surrounding walls. It also allowed miners easy access to the coal seam, enabling them to extract it without extensive excavation work.
Bell pits were commonly used during the medieval and early modern periods, between the 13th and 18th centuries, before more sophisticated mining techniques were developed. They were typically utilized in regions where coal deposits were shallow and close to the surface, making it feasible to excavate using such rudimentary means.
Today, bell pits hold historical significance and serve as reminders of the early mining practices employed to unearth vital resources.
Etymology of BELL PIT
The word "bell pit" derives from the combination of two separate terms: "bell" and "pit".
The term "bell" comes from the Old English word "belle", meaning "bell", originally referring to the shape of a bell. It was later used metaphorically to describe various rounded or concave shapes in nature, such as a hollow or a bowl-shaped depression in the ground.
The word "pit" has a Middle English origin, derived from the Old English word "pytt", which means "hole", "pit", or "well". It had a similar connotation to the modern word, indicating a deep or sunken area in the ground.
When these two words were combined, "bell pit" referred specifically to a type of coal mine shaft or excavation method used in the early days of mining. A bell pit was typically shallow and wide at the top, narrowing towards the bottom like a bell shape.
