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local Saturday 30 November 2024
The Bushiribana Gold Mill Ruins and its history

Aruba Island Gold Mining Compa-
ny Ltd, the gold mill at Bushiribana
was constructed in the area where
most gold was found by locals. The
story of gold on Aruba actually
dates back to 1725, when a first
exploration for gold on the island
was commissioned by the Dutch
West India Company. Under the
(Oranjestad)—The Bushiribana leadership of Mr. Paulus Printz, a
Gold Mill Ruins is one of the most three-year search was conducted
visited places by tourists on the is- on Aruba, to no avail. Though they
land, as it lies along the northern found some gold, it was enough to
coast line near the mini pool and motivate a further search, and the
on the way to the Natural Bridge. assignment was discontinued by
Despite its seemingly plain ap- Printz himself.
pearance, this ruin represents one
of the most important histories of It wasn’t until 100 years later, in
the island: The Aruban Gold Rush. 1824, when a young boy found a local merchant who then sold the primitive methods to dig and carve
lump of gold while out herding his lump for $70. Unbeknownst to the out gold from the rocks. Aruba Is-
Built in 1872 by English company father’s sheep. His father took it to a boy and his father, they quite liter- land Gold Mining Company Ltd.
ally struck gold, and as word got was no different, but used a unique
out, a gold fever spread among method that involved grinding the
the locals who started searching rocks and letting the dust be blown
for more gold. About 25 pounds away by the strong northeast wind,
worth was found. leaving clumps of gold behind. The
next step was melting the gold and
At the same time, the Aruban gov- letting it attach to quicksilver in or-
ernment took immediate actions, der to obtain pure gold. All these
and informed Curacao that gold processes were done at the Bushiri-
was found. At first, everyone could bana Gold Mill.
look for gold, as long as they sold it
to the government. However, after The gold mill itself had a short life-
some time, the government decid- span: only 10 years in service, but
ed to implement stricter rules and its structure remained relatively sol-
banned local search parties. id till this day, and is now a histori-
cal remnant. q
Over the years, concession-holding
had seen different companies from Sources: Etnia Nativa & goldminer-
around the world, all of which used anch.com.

Ever heard of the cah’i orgel?

A key instrument in Aruban folklore music

the old and young. reer became one of the the cah’i orgel produces
composers for the Aruban music similar to that of a pi-
The origin of the cah’i or- national anthem. ano, and is accompanied
gel is said to have come often by someone else
from Europe around 150 Rufo Wever was a young playing the “wiri”, a percus-
years ago. A cross breed musician in 1937 when he sion instrument made out
between the barrel piano established his own cah’i of steel and reminiscent
and the organ, the most orgel business on the island. to the Spanish guiro. Back
popular stories said that the Before that he experiment- then, you would often also
instrument came from ei- ed with his uncle’s cah’i or- find someone playing the
ther England or Germany, gel, and he over the years triangle alongside the cah’i
but made its way to Italy he learned to build and re- orgel and wiri. In Aruba, the
down to Venezuela, where pair the instrument. In fact, cah’i orgel and wiri is used
in 1881, Mr. Horatio Sprock he was incredibly skilled in for traditional music genres,
(1866-1949) from Curacao this, and he was one of the such as the Aruban waltz,
was first introduced to it. few to have recognized tumba, mazurka and more.
After that, Sprock made his from the start that the cah’i
own cah’i orgel “Josefina”, orgel is an instrument that Fun fact: another name for
and successfully debuted needs preserving. the cah’i orgel is the “tin-
it on the streets of Barqui- gilingi box.”
simeto. Back in Curacao, As mentioned, the cah’i
he started his own cah’i orgel is a music box. made Source: “E Cilinder Magico
(Oranjestad)—The cah’i or- bean. This instrument is a orgel business along with from mahogany wood, it entre Aruba y Curaçao” by
gel music box is an impor- staple in our folklore music, his brother Luis. In Aruba, it contains a cylinder with a Marilyn Alcalá-Wallé, Herta
tant and unique instrument and its significance in the is said that the cah’i orgel maximum of eight music Parabirsing-Balentina and Ni-
dia Rosaria-Wallé.
that is used on the ABC is- traditions of Aruba has and was introduced by Rufo pieces. By rotating the lever
lands in the Dutch Carib- continues to bring together Wever, who later in his ca- on the front side of the box,