What is "bergregal"

The Bergregal, or Bergwerksregal, was the historic right of ownership of untapped mineral resources in parts of German-speaking Europe; ownership of the Bergregal meant entitlement to the rights and royalties from mining (Berg in this context = "mining" and regal = "regale" or "right" as in droit de régale). Historically, it was one of those regalia, or privileges, that originally constituted the sovereign rights of the king (Berghoheit or "mining sovereignty"). In addition to the Bergregal there was also the Münzregal or "minting rights", an important sovereign privilege, which was a consequence of the Bergregal, since coins were minted near the mines from which their metal was obtained.