Odhelius' travelogue (1691-92)

Having completed studies at Uppsala University, Erich Odhelius made a first foreign tour 1683-1687, studying in, e.g., Leipzig, Freiberg, and Leiden. Returning to Sweden, he gradually worked his way up through the mining administration, becoming junior official (auskultant) and assayor in 1687, and head of the Nya Kopparberget and Hällefors mining district (Bergmästare) in 1688. In 1690, he was commissioned by King Karl XI and the Bureau of Mines (Bergskollegium) to make another journey across Europe to study major mining and ironmaking operations. The goal was to assess the production - both in scale and quality - and to evaluate the market conditions for iron exports. A key question was whether Sweden could apply monopolistic pricing, as it had at times done in the copper trade.

The assignment was unprecedented in scope. Over two and a half years, Odhelius visited mining and industrial sites across most of Europe, except for Norway, Poland, and Russia. Despite wars and disruptions, he pursued his task with determination. He sent regular reports during his journey and later produced a comprehensive travel account, which has since become a major source for economic and mining history in Sweden.

Odhelius based his findings on primary sources - such as financial accounts and customs records - and managed to access sensitive economic and technical information thanks to his expertise and strong network. He concluded that the iron market could not support monopolistic pricing, a view that convinced the board.

After his return, Odhelius was promoted within the Bureau of Mines, eventually succeeding Urban Hiärne in a key position. Together, they taught chemical mineral processing, and Odhelius also curated the newly completed mineral cabinet, to which he contributed many specimens collected during his travels. He became Assessor in the bureau in 1695 and was ennobled Odhelstierna in 1698.

For scholarly research dealing with Odhelius, see:

Fors, H. The Limits of Matter: Chemistry, Mining, and Enlightenment. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2015, above all chapter 3 (43-75).

For biographical information, see also:

Grage, E-B. "Erich Odhelstierna." Svenskt biografiskt lexikon, https://sok.riksarkivet.se/sbl/artikel/7644 (urn:sbl:7644)