Conlig
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|---|---|
 Main Street | |
  Location withinCounty Down | |
| District | |
| County | |
| Country | Northern Ireland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | NEWTOWNARDS |
| Postcode district | BT23 |
| Dialling code | 028 |
| UK Parliament | |
| NI Assembly | |
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Conlig (Irish:An Choinleac, meaning 'the hound-flagstone')[1] is a village andtownland inCounty Down inNorthern Ireland. It is considered a suburb ofBangor.
The area includes extant ancientcopper mines. Weapons forged with the copper from this mine have been found across Europe, and was traded for tin fromCornwall during theBronze Age.Copper mining in the area declined, though the site at Whitespots in the village subsequently became one of the most important sources for minerals in the United Kingdom during the 19th century. At this time, the mines were the largest such complex in Ireland, and produced around 13,500tonnes oflead between the late 17th century until the end of the 19th century, making it one of the major lead mines of the British Isles during that time.[2] Production stopped in 1900, after a decline from 1854.[3]
The area contains the only known occurrence of the mineralharmotome in Northern Ireland.[4]
Much of the area has been developed by theDepartment of Environment (DoE) as acountry park, and the site can be accessed via theSomme Heritage Centre's car park.[4]
Whitespots has been designated anArea of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) by the DoE in 1998.[4][5]
