Former silver, cobalt, and uranium mine at Zschorlau, whose 18-metre 1888 iron Fördergerüst — the oldest surviving iron headframe in the western Erzgebirge — stands as a listed monument and Flächennaturdenkmal at the northern edge of the village.
The Türkschacht at Zschorlau, also known as Schacht 83, is the principal remaining surface structure of the Fundgrube Türk, an ore mine in the Schneeberger Bergrevier whose Grubenfeld was probably first granted in 1513 and whose first belegbare Fundgrube on the Türk-Flachen is recorded from 1481. The shaft reaches a final depth of 315.2 metres with seven levels. Silver, cobalt, and bismuth were the primary products over the mine's long operational history; in the last phase uranium was the most important product.
A Pferdegöpel was erected in 1843 but demolished in 1931. In 1888 the present 18-metre iron Fördergerüst was erected alongside a Treibehaus, replacing horse-powered winding with steam. Active ore extraction was ended in 1937.
In 1948 to 1957 the Wismut AG, operating as Soviet-controlled uranium mining company, re-opened the shaft as Objekt 83 and extracted uranium alongside the existing complex ores. Ore extraction finally ended in 1957. The Fördergerüst was declared a Denkmal in 1982 and restored in 1985–87 and 1994–96.
Since 1994 the Türkschachthalde has also been protected as a Flächennaturdenkmal for its specialised plant communities.
The Türk-Flachen, the flattened ore-bearing geological structure south-east of Schneeberg, lie in a NW–SE-trending Mulde between the Gleesberger Granit and the Eibenstocker Granit. The up-to-30-metre-thick Türk Flachen separates the two granite massifs. A Suchstollen is attested from 1504 at the earliest, and the first belegbare Fundgrube on the Türk-Flachen is recorded from 1481. The Grubenfeld Türk was probably first formally verliehen in 1513. In the following period it was operated as a Beilehn of the north-westerly Fundgrube Bergkappe. The im 15. Jahrhundert angelegte Fürstenstolln served for Wasserlösung (drainage) and was extended in 1825 to reach greater depth. Extraction of silver (as argentum), cobalt, and bismuth continued through the succeeding centuries; the name Türk refers to the orientation of the ore seam rather than to any historical person. The Fundgrube Türk is documented as one of several productive Schneeberger Gruben that have contributed to over 8 Tonnen of silver, 900 Tonnen of cobalt oxide, and associated bismuth and nickel production from the Schneeberger Lagerstätte across five centuries.
By 1843 a Pferdegöpel was erected at the Türkschacht to improve ore hoisting; it was demolished in 1931. In 1888 the present iron Treibeturm (Fördergerüst) was erected alongside a Treibehaus (Maschinenhaus) housing a Dampfmaschine, replacing the Pferdegöpel and increasing hoisting capacity. The Fördergerüst, approximately 18 metres high, is a cast-iron riveted lattice construction that has since been acknowledged as the oldest surviving iron headframe of the western Erzgebirge Altbergbau. At a Teufe of 315.2 metres, the shaft encountered seven Sohlen. Active ore extraction was finally ended in 1937.
In August 1946 the Soviet military administration imposed control over the entire Schneeberger Bergbau under Feldpostnummer 27304 of the Red Army; this organisation became the Sächsische Bergbauverwaltung and was the forerunner of the Wismut AG, established on 6 June 1947 under Generalmajor Michail Mitrofanowitsch Malzew. The Türkschacht was initially of limited interest to Wismut because uranium was only rarely encountered in its field. In December 1948 Wismut, acting under Befehl 01477, began the Aufwältigung of the Türkschacht under the number Schacht 83 (also Objekt 83), reactivating it to the level of the Marx-Semler-Stollnsohle. From 1948 to 1957 the Wismut extracted uranium alongside the existing complex ores (bismuth, cobalt, nickel, silver). From mid-1955 Buntmetallerze were also extracted alongside the uranium. After the closure of Schacht 130 of the SDAG Wismut in September 1955, the Türkschacht was the last active shaft in the Schneeberger Lagerstätte. Following a Ministerratsbeschluss of March 1957, the mine was closed on 1 August 1957 and a Betriebsabteilung of the VEB Wolfram-Zinnerz Pechtelsgrün briefly assessed the 3,000 to 4,000 tonnes of remaining ore reserves; its conclusion was that continued extraction was uneconomic, and operations ceased.
In 1982 the Fördergerüst of the Türkschacht was declared a Denkmal by the then Rat des Kreises. A first Sicherung und Rekonstruktion was carried out by the Bergsicherung Schneeberg in 1987. From 1994 to 1996 a further full Rekonstruktion was completed and the Fahrbarkeit of the shaft to the level of the Fürstenstolln Sohle was established. In 1994 the Türkschachthalde was also placed under protection as a Flächennaturdenkmal, in recognition of the specialised plant communities that had developed on the ore-bearing waste rock of the Halde's southern slope — a xerophytic and oligotrophic community found in the Erzgebirge almost exclusively on former mine spoil. The Türkschacht is described as the Wahrzeichen von Zschorlau and stands at the northern edge of the village as a widely visible landmark.
In December 2010 the Sächsisches Oberbergamt granted a Bergbauberechtigung for exploratory works on the Grubenfeld Türk to the Sachsenerz Bergwerks GmbH, founded in September 2010 with its registered office in Espenhain; the IG Historischer Bergbau Zschorlau and the Gemeinde Zschorlau maintained public access to the site throughout this period.