Stoping
![Sketch painting of miners stoping at the Burra Burra Mine, Burra, Australia, 1847.](/Images/godic/202502/18/S._T._Gill_-_Neales's_Stopes,_Burra_Burra_Mine,_April_12th_1847_-_Google_Art_Project4650.jpg")
![Stoping with an air drill in an American iron mine in the 20th century (museum exhibit)](/Images/godic/202502/18/Miner_In_Raise_24650.jpg")
![A large stope in a salt mine in Poland - now converted into a tourist attraction](/Images/godic/202502/18/Wieliczka_salt_mine4650.jpg")
![A large stope in the Treadwell gold mine, Alaska, USA 1908; an example of shrinkage stoping](/Images/godic/202502/18/Stope_in_Treadwell_gold_mine4650.jpg")
Stoping is the process of extracting the desired ore or other mineral from an underground mine, leaving behind an open space known as a stope. Stoping is used when the country rock is sufficiently strong not to collapse into the stope, although in most cases artificial support is also provided.