The Devil’s gold

by Luca Catalano Gonzaga
Part of Invisible people
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In the mouth of the Lien Kawah Volcano in Eastern Java, in Indonesia.  miners descend in search of “devil’s gold”. as Sulphur gets called there since ever. Three hundred men reach the volcano’s top by foot from its base camp at the foot of the mountain every day. They clamber up three kilometers before beginning their descent to the edge of the crater where the sulphur crystals can be found. Nine hundren meters down towards hell, they dare to face the terrible heat, the lack of oxygen and the darkness with no modern equipment.  The sulphur gas burns their throat and lungs and makes eyes water. Only a few miners own old gas masks: many of them prefer to work at night when the temperatures are lower, and wear a wet rag over their mouth under the illusion that they will be protected from the fumes and will be able to breathe a little better. A hard work that will end early; life expectancy for these miners does not exceed the age of fifty. Sheets of sulphur are broken with the help of metal bars and then loaded into wicker baskets weighing 70-90 kilos. each Then, the return trip of the Sulphur miners back to the 21st century begins; trudging under the terrible weight, fighting to keep their balance on their way out of the mouth of the volcano, their spines curving, their shoulders lacerated and their legs bent because of the heavy weight. Finally, the sheets of Sulphur are delivered for the process of purification that takes place during the night and lasts fourteen hours. All this hell for five dollars a day. Ten for those who are able to make the trip twice in a day. (text by Luca Catalano Gonzaga).

  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Poniman, 35 years old, surrounded by a sulphureous cloud, breaks the Sulphur slabs using a metal pole. Working conditions are extremely hard and exacerbated by the unbearable heat.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Suwono, 39 years old, carrying a just extracted slab of Sulphur.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. The Sulphur mine near the Ijen Kawah volcano, in the island of Java, Indonesia, is active since 1969. It currently employs 300 miners who descend facing an unbearable heat, toxic fumes, and huge loads to carry for a bunch of euros.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Mat Buang, 39 years old, a Sulphur miner for 20 years now, protects his face with a wet cloth. He hardly breathes amidst the fumes while searching for Sulphur slabs.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Sulphur miners look for slabs.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. A Sulphur miner tries to find his way through the toxic fumes released inside the crater.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Murahman, 47 years old, a Sulphur miner for the past 25 years, at work. The miners protect themselves from the fumes in a rudimentary way. They are only given a torch and a pair of rubber boots as working equipment. “We work in hell”, they keep saying, “our eyes and lungs burn every day”.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Sapiupin, 39 years old, a Sulphur miner for the past 17 years, looks for Sulphur slabs amidst the toxic fumes. The sulphureous gases burn lungs, skin and eyes.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Mat Buang, 47 years old, a Sulphur miner for 24 years now, makes his way amidst the fumes with the help of a torch.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. A miner looking for Sulphur plates to extract.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Ahmad, 44 years old, a miner for the past 25 years, uses an electric torch to lighten his path while carrying sulphur.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. The mine of the volcano is run by a national company, the miners work on a daily basis and are paid according to the load carried (5 euros per 70 kg).
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Collecting Sulphur among the toxic fumes in the core of the volcano.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Murahman, 47 years old. The search for solidified Sulphur slabs occurs among the toxic fumes.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Sariman, 32 years old, a SULPHUR miner for the last ten years, looks for sulfur slabs. The mine IN the vulcano is operated by a national company, ITS miners work on a dayly basis and are paid according to the carried load (5 euro per 70 kg).
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Sumiati, 24 years old, a Sulphur miner, uses an electric torch to lighten his path while carrying sulfur.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. It’s almost dawn: a group of miners prepare to go back to the base camp. Many of them prefer to work at night in order to avoid the unbearable heat of the day.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Mistar, 43 years old, a Sulphur miner for the past 25 years, uses an electric torch to lighten his way while carrying sulfur. This mine produces 14 tons of Sulphur per day, that gets exported to China and South-East Asia. Sulphur is very present in our dayly life: it is used to refine sugar, to produce sulfuric acid and it can be found in many products of regular use such as medicines, cosmetics, matches, fertilizers, insecticides and fungicides.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Lia Ernawati, 24 years old, a Sulphur miner for the last six years, protects his face with a wet cloth. This is how he tries to breathe amidst the toxic gases that burn lungs, skin and eyes.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Matsari, 49 years old, a Sulphur miner for ten years now, trudges under the overwhelming weight of the Sulphur that he carries on his shoulders.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Haryanto, 29 years old, a Sulphur miner for the past six years, climbs again the volcano to reach the dismantling point, an uphill path that is about 9 km long.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Muraksa, 29 years old, a Sulphur miner, prepares for clambering up to the volcano’s crater carrying Sulphur on his shoulders. He has to climb approximately two kilometers, and it will take an hour and half.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Misnawan 46 years old, a Sulphur miner, puts Sulphur into the baskets.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. The Sulphur slabs are gathered and carried in these baskets.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Alpan, 27 years old, a Sulphur miner for ten years now, looks for Sulphur slabs in the toxic fumes. Most miners prefer working at night to avoid the suffocating heat during the day.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Madrusin, 21 years old, a Sulphur miner. The slabs are carried in sacks so to prevent the Sulphur from scattering along the way.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Hariyanto, 23 years old, a Sulphur miner, with his wife Narya and daughter Pina. He has been from 4 years, twicea day, 5 days a week, from 1 am to 7 am, wearing no gas mask and carrying 70 kg. of Sulphur.
  • Sagiman, 34 years old, a Sulphur miner, with his mother Sumiati and his wife Maryani. He has been working as a miner from 6 years, twice a day, 4 days a week, from 07 pm to 02 am, without using any gas mask and carrying 80 kg. of Sulphur.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Asmura 44 years old, with his wife Sariyah. He has been working from 20 years, twice a day, 3 days a week, from 11 pm to 07 am, wearing no gas mask and carrying 70 kg. of Sulphur.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Portrait of Sulphur miner with their family.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Portrait of Sulphur miner with their family.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Murahman, 36 years old, with his wife Satini and his children Anip and Aska. He has been working as a miner from 4 years, twice a day, 4 days a week, from 7 am to 1 pm, using no gas mask and carrying 70 kg. of Sulphur.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Portrait of Sulphur miner with their family.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Sukari, 37 years old, shows how the heavy load has been tearing his back. The Sulphur extraction is an exhausting work, hazardous to the health as it causes breathing diseases and spinal deformations due to the utmost heavy load. The average life expectancy of a Sulphur carrier doesn’t exceed 50 years.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. A miner shows how the heavy load has been affecting his back. Besides breathing the toxic gases released inside the volcano, the Sulphur miners have wounded shoulders, deformed spines and bent legs due to carrying loads between 70kg (150lb.) and 90kg (200lb.) of Sulphur by shoulder. The Sulhpur miners work for a maximum of 3/4 times a week so to have enough time to recover after the exhausting physical effort they have to bear when they carry Sulphur from the volcano’s crater to the base camp (approximately 11.000ft).
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. A miner shows how the heavy load has been affecting his back. Besides breathing the toxic gases released inside the volcano, the Sulphur miners have wounded shoulders, deformed spines and bent legs due to carrying loads between 70kg (150lb.) and 90kg (200lb.) of Sulphur by shoulder. The Sulhpur miners work for a maximum of 3/4 times a week so to have enough time to recover after the exhausting physical effort they have to bear when they carry Sulphur from the volcano’s crater to the base camp (approximately 11.000ft).
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. A miner shows how the heavy load has been affecting his back. Besides breathing the toxic gases released inside the volcano, the Sulphur miners have wounded shoulders, deformed spines and bent legs due to carrying loads between 70kg (150lb.) and 90kg (200lb.) of Sulphur by shoulder. The Sulhpur miners work for a maximum of 3/4 times a week so to have enough time to recover after the exhausting physical effort they have to bear when they carry Sulphur from the volcano’s crater to the base camp (approximately 11.000ft).
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Sulphur miners on the path that leads to the sorting center.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Sulphur miner takes a break and throws a pebble to a workmate for fun.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. The load is weighed at the base camp, where, at sunrise, this Sulphur miner is returning to be paid for the work done and for the quantity of Sulphur collected.
  • Lien Kawah Volcano, Java, Indonesia 2014. Sahron, 40 years old, ten years of his life spent working in the mine, clambers the vulcano dayly carrying approximately 70 kg of Sulphur in wicker baskets. A path he makes twice a day for 10 euros. On his way up, he stops to catch his breath again and alleviate the pain caused by the weight he carries.

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