Sulfur Miners: Why Some People Risk Their Lives Entering Volcanoes for the Devil's Gold?

Sulfur miners are tasked to break and extract large masses of sulfur from the crater floor, often requiring them to enter a volcano in search of the so-called "devil's gold." Sulfur is a non-metallic chemical element and its pure form is a brittle solid with an odorless smell. It can also be found near volcanoes and hot springs. Since the element often naturally occurs in volcanic areas, sulfur mining has been considered as one of the world's most dangerous jobs.

One such site is Mount Ijen, located on the island of Java in Indonesia. Also called the Ijen volcano complex, a group of composite volcanoes, Mt. Ijen is known for its acidic crater lake, electric-blue fire, and most of all, its rigorous sulfur mining labor. The process requires sulfur miners not only to collect sulfur but also to load it in reed baskets, then carry it to the top of the crater, and place it on wheelbarrows which will travel down the volcano.

What is Sulfur?

(Photo : Photo by Rafif Prawira on Unsplash)

Sulfur has long been known to ancient civilizations, dating back at least to the ancient Greeks. The element is burnt as a fumigant and was even mined near Mount Etna in Sicily, to bleach cloth and preserve wine, according to the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). Long before modern manufacturing of sulfuric acid, raw sulfur was used in the vulcanization of black rubber, as well as in fungicide and in black gunpowder, the RSC adds.

Sulfuric acid or hydrogen sulfate is a "highly corrosive" and "strong mineral acid" where it has the tendency to become a very reactive chemical that dissolves most metals, according to researchers. According to the University of Minnesota Twin Cities (UMN), sulfur has been used for more than 4000 years as a fumigant control, against insects, and for medicinal salves. Yet, unearthing and collecting these chemicals are both dangerous and labor-intensive, as experienced by sulfur miners.

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Ijen Volcano Sulfur Miners

Sulfur miners in Mt. Ijen call "solid sulfur" the Devil's gold not because of its color and the mineral being their source of income, but rather it shows the fact that people who rely on the dangerous element come at a heavy price for their health. Although sulfur mining is also being conducted in other parts of the world, including in the United States, Ijen is the only few workplaces on Earth where sulfur mining is done by hand, according to reports.

Through sulfur mining, modern manufacturing can make steel and aluminum which consists of some sulfur. However, the majority of the collected non-metallic elements are used to produce sulfuric acid, according to the UMN. Afterward, sulfuric acid is then used to manufacture fertilizers and various chemical products, which are utilized by agricultural and other sectors. In 2022, the US produced an estimated 8.6 million metric tons of sulfur.