As a result of economic and technol

As a result of economic and technological developments,miners and metal workers were among the earliest occupational groups to be studied. The increased volume of trade resulting from the growth of commercial enterprise during the fifteenth century created a demand for an expanding currency and for capital. This need could only be filled by a greater supply of gold and silver, and the mines of Central Europe began to do so during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Owing to this demand, the mines were deepened,and the necessity for delving more deeply into the earth affected the miners' health. The deeper the mines became,the greater were the occupational hazards. The appearance at this time of the first books to be concerned with the diseases and accidents of miners is a reflection of these circumstances.