📅 A Definitive End: South Crofty and the Last Tin Smelted
In March 1998, South Crofty—Cornwall’s final working tin mine—was closed. South Crofty had operated for over 400 years and was the last tin mine producing in Europe when it shut down.
Following the closure, South Crofty concentrate stocks from the last production at Wheal Jane were stored at Wheal Jane’s laboratory and gradually smelted from 1998 until around 2024. These represent the last commercially smelted tin in Cornwall, previously used for South Crofty Collection jewellery.
🎯 Spotlight: Lot 129 — Cornwall’s Final Tin Ingot Up for Auction
This is truly a historic offering: Lot 129, described by Lay’s Auctioneers as “A Cornish Tin Ingot. A unique opportunity to purchase the last tin from the last Cornish mine.” This ingot truly represents the final act of Cornish tin smelting, cast from the very last concentrate processed from South Crofty after its 1998 closure.
Weight: 12.5 kg (28 lb)
Hot marks: It bears both the traditional Lamb & Flag hot mark and a new Wheal Jane hot mark created specifically for the final ingots from the last consignment.
The ingot will sell on 7 August 2025, at Lay’s Auctioneers in Penzance—part of the Antique, Interiors and Asian Sale—with all proceeds benefiting Children’s Hospice South West.
The lot includes:
A framed certificate of authenticity, detailing provenance and technical history.
A jar of South Crofty high grade concentrate from the last day of production at Wheal Jane—the very material from the final day of South Crofty’s tin production, stored and refined at Wheal Jane Laboratory.
