Potosí is one of Bolivia's most historic colonial cities, the capital of Potosí Department and, with its centre at an altitude of 4090m / 13,420ft, one of the highest cities is the world. The colonial city was founded in 1545 as Villa Imperial de Carlos V at the foot of Cerro Rico ("Rich Mountain" or "Rich Hill") which dominates views of the city. Cerro Rico's huge silver deposits soon meant that Potosí became one of the most important cities in the Spanish Empire and the world's largest industrial complex at the time. By the early 17th century Potosí was the largest and richest city in the Americas, producing much of the silver from the New World and rivalling the great European cities for splendour. Estimates put the number of slaves (mostly indigenous people brought from other parts of the Spanish Empire in South America) who died inside Cerro Rico extracting the silver in millions.
As the silver started to run out Potosí's fortunes declined considerably, though tin mining became important in the mid-19th century. Today mining is still the mainstay of the economy, and many beautiful colonial buildings (most notably churches and the Casa de la Moneda / Royal Mint) survive as a reminder of Potosí's glory days. The historic city, colonial period industrial sites and Cerro Rico itself were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site on 11th December 1987. Continuing large scale mining operations and the degradation of Cerro Rico led to UNESCO putting Potosí on its List of World Heritage in Danger in 2014 and management plans in place for Cerro Rico. Despite this, mining operations still continue and the summit area of Cerro Rico has suffered serious subsidence and collapses. Images of mines and mining activities on Cerro Rico are in the separate sub-gallery.