The 12th Symposium took place on September 30 to October 4, 2013 Bolzano / Bozen capital of South Tyrol in the Museum of Nature. The symposium was organized by Christopher Hauser of the Austrian Geological Department in Vienna in Collaboration with Benno Baumgarten and Evelyn Kutatscher of the Museum of Nature in Bolzano. Two excursions were planned during and after the symposium: one was to Pfundererberg mine and the other was to Schneeberg mine in the heart of the Alps which produced silver, lead, and zinc. They were closed down in 1985 and turned into museums