A dolly pot, also known as a dolly, is a portable tool used for crushing small quantities of gold-bearing rock, by hand, in a process known as dollying.
In principle, a dolly pot is somewhat like a large mortar and pestle, but is always made of metal and is intended specifically to crush hard rocks like quartz. It is typically flat at the bottom, rather than rounded as in a typical mortar.[1][2][3] 19th-century versions were often made of cast iron.[2] Modern dolly pots are typically fabricated from steel. The place of the pestle is taken by a long heavy steel rod, at one end provided with a stamping surface.[4][1][3]
The process of dollying is highly labour-intensive. It involves pulverising the rock, by hand, until the gold separates from the surrounding rock matrix. It typically is used only to test for the presence of gold in samples taken from a quartz reef.[5][3]
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![Dollying gold-bearing quartz, using a cast-iron dolly pot, Reno, New South Wales, 1911.[6]](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/Reno%2C_near_Gundagai%2C_NSW_-_Dollying_gold-bearing_quartz_at_Long_Tunnel_Mine_%28Australian_Town_%26_Country_Journal%2C_29_March_1911_p20_%29.jpg/155px-Reno%2C_near_Gundagai%2C_NSW_-_Dollying_gold-bearing_quartz_at_Long_Tunnel_Mine_%28Australian_Town_%26_Country_Journal%2C_29_March_1911_p20_%29.jpg)
Dollying gold-bearing quartz, using a cast-iron dolly pot, Reno, New South Wales, 1911.[6] -
![Steel dolly pots made in 1932[1]](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/56/Dolly_pots_1932_%28Museums_Victoria%29.jpg/158px-Dolly_pots_1932_%28Museums_Victoria%29.jpg)
Steel dolly pots made in 1932[1] -
![Dollying rocks, Northern Territory, 1933,[7] using a steel dolly pot.](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6e/Ben_Nicker_crushing_rock_samples_in_a_dolly_pot%2C_Northern_Territory%2C_1933.jpg/162px-Ben_Nicker_crushing_rock_samples_in_a_dolly_pot%2C_Northern_Territory%2C_1933.jpg)
Dollying rocks, Northern Territory, 1933,[7] using a steel dolly pot.
![Dollying gold-bearing quartz, using a cast-iron dolly pot, Reno, New South Wales, 1911.[6]](view_image.php?q=Dolly_pot&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:Reno,_near_Gundagai,_NSW_-_Dollying_gold-bearing_quartz_at_Long_Tunnel_Mine_(Australian_Town_%26_Country_Journal,_29_March_1911_p20_).jpg)
![Steel dolly pots made in 1932[1]](view_image.php?q=Dolly_pot&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:Dolly_pots_1932_(Museums_Victoria).jpg)
![Dollying rocks, Northern Territory, 1933,[7] using a steel dolly pot.](view_image.php?q=Dolly_pot&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:Ben_Nicker_crushing_rock_samples_in_a_dolly_pot,_Northern_Territory,_1933.jpg)
- ^ a b c "Glass Negative - Dolly Pots for North Broken Hill Ltd., Chas Ruwolt Pty Ltd, 1932". Museums Victoria Collections. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
- ^ a b "dolly pot". Victorian Collections. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
- ^ a b c "dolly pot Meaning and Definition | Spellchecker.net (Definition Dictionary)". Spellchecker.net. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
- ^ "Plan, Design and Build a Dolly pot; hand powered rock crusher". nevada-outback-gems.com. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
- ^ Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions (13 June 2019). "Gold diggers - Resources Victoria". Earth Resources. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
- ^ "A Rich Gold Mine –At the Long Tunnel, Gundagai". Australian Town and Country Journal. 29 March 1911. p. 20. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
- ^ "Ben Nicker crushing rock samples in a dolly pot, Northern Territory, 1933". Trove. Retrieved 21 September 2024.