Idrija Občina Idrija
—  Town and Municipality  —
Downtown
Location of the Municipality of Idrija in Slovenia
Idrija Location of the Town of Idrija in Slovenia
Coordinates: 46°00′11″N 14°01′42″E / 46.003°N 14.02841°E / 46.003; 14.02841Coordinates: 46°00′11″N 14°01′42″E / 46.003°N 14.02841°E / 46.003; 14.02841
Country	Slovenia
Government
• Mayor	Bojan Sever
Area
• Total	293.7 km2 (113.4 sq mi)
Population (2002)[1]
• Total	11,990
• Density	41/km2 (110/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+01)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+02)

Idrija (Italian and German: Idria) is a small town and municipality in the Goriška region of Slovenia. It is known for its mercury mine (currently in the process of closure) and lace.^[2]

Near Idrija there was an archeological find of an approximately 43,100 year-old juvenile cave bear femur at Divje Babe, which may be a prehistoric flute.

History [link]

The hilly landscape above Idrija

Under Austrian rule it was known as Idria. Mercury was discovered there in 1497, and mining productions were taken over by the government in 1580. See Idrija mercury mine. Idrija was a comune of the Province of Gorizia (as Idria), except during the period between 1924 and 1927, when the Province of Gorizia was abolished and annexed to the Province of Udine during Italian rule (1918–1943, nominally lasted to 1947).^[3]

According to legend, a bucket maker working in a local spring spotted a small amount of liquid mercury over 500 years ago. Idrija is one of the few places in the world where mercury occurs in both its elemental liquid state and as cinnabar (mercury sulfide) ore. The subterranean shaft mine entrance known as Anthony's Shaft (Antonijev rov) is used today for tours of the upper levels, complete with life-sized vignettes of workers over the ages. The lower levels, which reach to almost 400 meters below the surface and are no longer being actively mined, are currently being remediated.

The ghost town of New Idria, California, a site of mercury mining during the 19th-century California Gold Rush, was named after Idrija.

The Parish Church in the town is dedicated to Saint Joseph the Worker and belongs to the Diocese of Koper. There are three other churches in Idrija, dedicated to The Holy Trinity, Saint Anthony of Padua and to Our Lady of Sorrows.^[4]

Notable natives and residents [link]

• Aleš Bebler, Slovene Communist leader, resistance fighter, and diplomat;
• Stanko Bloudek, designer;
• Aleš Čar, writer;
• Karel Dežman, Carniolan politician and scholar;
• Belsazar Hacquet; French natural scientist;
• Vladimír Karfík, Czechoslovak architect;
• Pier Paolo Pasolini, Italian film director and poet;
• Marko Ivan Rupnik, artist, philosopher and theologian
• Giovanni Antonio Scopoli, Italian natural scientist.

References [link]

External links [link]

• Idrija, official page of municipality (in Slovene)
• Idrija on Geopedia
• Idrija municipal museum
• Local newspaper
• Tourist info
• Tourist information, a page in English about the town and its history.
• Town portal