West O’okiep Mine, Okiep
284,000 tons of copper extracted
Photographer Dillon Marsh, whom we have featured earlier, returns with an intriguing photo series that explores the “price” of extracting precious metals and stones from South Africa’s numerous mines.
In his series ‘For What It’s Worth’, Marsh attempted to visualize the amount of copper and diamonds that lay hidden in the mines.
To give a stark visualization of the amount of copper present in the mines, Marsh added computer-generated spheres to his photos.
In contrast, photos that reveal the amount of diamonds present in the mine are almost hidden from sight—its representation is dwarfed by the large holes that were created during the extraction process.
Are you surprised by the sheer amount of precious diamonds and copper “unearthed” by Marsh in his photos? Check out the rest of his photos below.
Nababeep South Mine, Nababeep
302,792 tons of copper extracted
Kimberly Mine
14.5 million carats of diamonds extracted
Close-up of Kimberly Mine, detail showing the total diamond production
Blue Mine, Springbok
3,535 tons of copper extracted
Jagersfontein Mine
9.52 million carats of diamonds extracted
Close-up of Jagersfontein Mine, detail showing the total diamond production
Tweefontein Mine, Concordia
38,748 tons of copper extracted
Jubilee Mine, Concordia
6,500 tons of copper extracted
[via Visual News, Images by Dillon Marsh]