Stamp mill is a machine that crushes ore by pounding it repeatedly with heavy steel stamps. The word 'stamp' is pronounced /stæmp/ in IPA, which means that 'a' is pronounced as short 'æ' sound. The word 'mill' is pronounced /mɪl/, with the 'i' pronounced as the 'ɪ' sound. The spelling of this word is straightforward and follows the rules of English phonetics. The stamp mill was commonly used during the 19th century in mining industries to extract gold and other valuable minerals from rocks.
A stamp mill refers to a power-driven crushing machine used for the reduction of hard materials, such as rocks and ores, into smaller pieces. The machine operates through the application of heavy impacts generated by a series of hammer-like metal stamps that are repeatedly raised and dropped onto the material being crushed. Stamp mills are generally composed of a large, sturdy building housing multiple stamps, which are mounted on a rotating horizontal shaft. The stamps themselves are typically made of iron or steel and have a cylindrical shape, with a heavy flat top surface.
As the stamps are raised, a cam mechanism lifts them against gravity before releasing them to freely fall onto the material. This results in a powerful crushing action that breaks down the material into smaller fragments. The broken fragments then pass through a grid-like screen, which ensures that only particles of a specific size are discharged from the machine for further processing. Stamp mills were commonly used in mining operations during the 19th and early 20th centuries to crush ores and extract valuable minerals, such as gold, silver, and copper.
Stamp mills played a crucial role in mining operations by enabling the efficient extraction of valuable minerals from relatively low-grade ores. While stamp mills have largely been replaced by more modern crushing and grinding technology, they remain an important part of mining history and are sometimes preserved as exhibits in museums and historic sites.
The word "stamp mill" has its etymological roots in medieval Latin and Old French. The term "stamp" is derived from the Latin word "stampe", which means to crush or pound. It then entered Old French as "estamper" with a similar meaning. The word "mill" comes from the Latin word "molīna", meaning a mill or grinder. Over time, these two words were combined to form the compound term "stamp mill", specifically referring to a machine that crushes or pounds materials, often associated with ore extraction or metal production.