The rare metal that once had miners traveling more then 100 metres below Ringwood

Antimony, a silvery-grey metal known for its use in hardening and strengthening other metals, was discovered in Warrandyte in 1864 and later discovered in Ringwood in 1869.

The Ringwood Antimony Mining Company was the main operation in the area, extracting the mineral for making a range of things, including pewter, vulcanised rubber, paint and medicines.

Miners used the frame at the top of the mine shaft, known as a poppet head, to transport the ore up and down the shaft, descending more than 100 metres.

The Ringwood mine produced more than 3,000 tonnes of antimony ore over its lifetime, which represented about 15 percent of Victoria's antimony production between 1869 and 1892.

The former Ringwood Council built a replica poppet head at Ringwood Lake Park in 1987 but it was destroyed by fire in 2005 and demolished, leaving only the gin wheels on the top left.

Visitors to Ringwood Lake Park can check out a replica mine shaft showing the cramped conditions experienced by the miners, as well as old photographs and signs explaining the history of the mine.