Since the middle of the 16th century, namely the Sengoku period, demand for gold and silver increased for financing the war effort and for giving awards, and therefore gold and silver mines were actively developed to increase the production of gold and silver, especially the latter, the production of which was world's biggest and is estimated to have reached one third of the entire world's production.
16世紀中頃すなわち戦国時代より戦費調達および賞賜のための金銀需要が拡大し、日本各地において金鉱山および銀山の開発が活発となり増産が行われ、特に銀は世界一、二位を競うほどの産出高を誇るようになり、全世界の約三分の一を産出したと推定されている。