Phuket Town and the Island’s Tin Museum are very much connected. After all, the Island’s wealth was initially built on the tin trade and allowed Chinese immigrants to grow wealthy from this business. So on a rainy day, I got into my rental car and started driving. The first stop was the Mining Museum.
The Mining Museum and the History of Tin on Phuket.
Bronze which is an alloy of mostly copper and some tin, gave its name to one of the periods of antiquity. Most of the worlds tin deposits are found in conjunction with granite. Veins of tin down as hard containers ran through the granite but were impossible to mine for the ancient miner.
The ancient miner used cassiterite, an oxide formed by weathering of the surface of the tin deposit. In Thailand, there is evidence of good bronze work dating back to 3000 B.C. Including 10% tin. A dagger found from Ban Chiang in North East Thailand dated back to 3600 B.C had 2.5% tin. Read more here.
The Main Range Granitoid Province in western Peninsular Malaysia, southern Peninsular Thailand and central Thailand is almost entirely made up of biotite granite (184–230 Ma). Tin deposits associated with these granites contributed 55% of the historic tin production of Southeast Asia.
sciencedirect.com
Furthermore,
The Southeast Asian Tin Belt is a north-south elongate zone 2800 km long and 400 km wide, extending from Burma (Myanmar) and Thailand to Peninsular Malaysia and the Indonesian Tin Islands.
sciencedirect.com
In 1583 the Portuguese had a depot for the tin trade in Talang, and in the 17th century, they were pushed back by the Dutch to control tin. The Dutch, in their turn, were expelled by the inhabitants of Thalang, and then the British Captain Francis Light came to establish a trading station and developed a partnership with the Governor of Thalang.
In 1809 new deposits of tin was found in today’s Kathu area. This was the birth of modern tin mining in Phuket. Chinese migration real took off, and gradually, new mining methods started where it was possible to break down soils and rocks with water to reach the tin veins. At the end of the century, Phuket town was so important that it was put directly under Bangkok control.
The Kathu mining museum is located on a prime developing real estate. Pretty much in the hills in the middle of the island. The persons behind it themselves do have some money. The grandeur of the soft pinkish Sino-Portuguese building increases your expectations quite a lot. But actually, the building is, in my opinion, the real highlight here.
In the 20th century, marine vessels were utilised to dredge ore from the seabed and then these were used inland as well. In the 1960s, a tin smelting plant was built and contributed to the wealth of Phuket. A decision was made to develop tourism into the island from 1973, and the tin mining was gradually decreased after large protests against a new tin ore smelting factory in 1988. This was the birth of a new era, tourism. Read more about this narrative on Phuketindex.com.
The actual exhibition about tin would need some modern digitalisation or at least some pedagogical touch that would help it take off. A knowledgeable guide could be helpful as well. There is so much more that could be made out of the museum to explain the importance of tin for Phuket Island.
Tin was found in the Kathu district of Phuket and was mined until 1992 on Phuket. Tin ore also existed in quantity in the neighbouring Andaman coast from Khao Lak to Takua Pa.
In another section o the museum, you walk into a Chinese junk, and there are lifestyle exhibitions about how the Hokkien immigrants lived. But again, there are primarily many selected items exhibited without many stories engaging the visitor. I spent about an hour here. Then I proceeded to Phuket old town.
Returning to Phuket Old Town
I have been coming here continuously since 2011, and the old heritage of Sino-Portuguese shophouses and the historic banks has gradually been restored and at night illuminated. It is a gastronomic and cultural relief to get here after a few days at the beach.
A visit to Phuket town is a must. So many delicious restaurants, high-quality coffee shops, Chinese shrines, galleries and of course, the Instagram hot spots with street art. The street art project has a name, FAT—the Food Art Town in Phuket. The artwork is located in a compact section of town. Have a look at Phuket Magazine for where to find the best spots.
I am particularly fond of the area around On On hotel and Kasikorn Bank. I had time for some single-origin coffee on soi Romanee, and for some time, I wanted to try the Crab House. Something I didn’t regret.
Weirdly enough, some beach restaurants served no crab, but in Phuket town, I could indulge in it.
A three star classic in Phuket Town.
Did you know?
- That the word Phuket derives from Bhukit, a Malay word is referring to the word hill.
- On European charts previously, you would see the name Junk Ceylon a corruption of the Malay Tanjung Salang.
- The infamous soi Sea Dragon gets its name from the Chinese legend that Phuket is a golden sea dragon called Hai Leng On, also considered a protector of Phuket.
Looking for good places to eat in Phuket Old Town?
Apart from the Crab house mentioned above, you can check out my foodie guide here.
As for hotels on Phuket Island.
On the map from Booking.com there are a lot of suggestions. If you book via some of the links it will generate some earnings for me that help me keep the page alive. To you it is no extra cost. Thanks for contributing to Thailand Tidbits.
Booking.com