It has an impressing altitude of 4827m and is gleaming in different shades of red behind the city of Potosí, this is the mountain 'Sumaj Orcko'. This name was given by the Inkas and means nothing else than 'beautiful mountain'. When the great Inka Huayna saw the moutain the first time, he anticipated the richness within the mountain. Die Inkas dug and found silver. But when they continued to go deeper into the mountain, they heard a deep voice from the deep, like a thunder: 'You are not destined to get the silver!' The Inkas took flight and from this day on the mountain was called Potosí: 'the thunderous'. Now it was to the Spaniards to recover the treasure, not without using the indios as cheap workers. They found a gigantic silver ledge. And this is how the mountain got its thrid name - Cerro Rico: 'rich mountain'. Potosí developed to one of the richest cities in the world. The pavement were silvered, more than 50 pompous churches were built. Furthermore they built there own mint, the Casa Real de la Moneda. Doch zu welchem Preis? If we can believe some estimations 8 million indios died in the mountain - in the gate to hell. If you are looking at the mountain today it looks like a cheese with all its holes. Every possible location was covered with pits. And now the intangible: The indios today still dig and use the same methods like hunderts of years ago.