What can be seen in an unrealistically beautiful salt mine in Poland

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Salt is such a familiar product to us that it would seem that there is nothing more elementary in the world, but not everything is so simple. The Wieliczka Salt Mine in Poland is one of the most famous in Europe. Moreover, their history goes back more than seven centuries! The salt mine looks more like an underground city - there are as many as nine levels with underground chambers, huge halls, underground lakes and unique chapels. The long passages between the levels are adorned with artfully carved salt sculptures, magnificent salt chandeliers and sumptuous bas-reliefs.

The Wieliczka Salt Mine has proven that salt can be a masterpiece. These mines were opened in the 13th century and since then they have remained working. Incredible time for a manufacturing enterprise! The mine is included in the First UNESCO World Heritage List.

The depth of the mine is over 300 meters. Everything about it is made of salt. It looks so unrealistically beautiful that it looks more like some kind of fantastic movie, and not a banal thing with which we season our lunch every day.

A bit of history

Since ancient times, people have not imagined life without salt. It was not only a seasoning for food, salt was used instead of money. The history of the Wieliczka Salt Mine goes back to the Middle Ages. Then this place was called Magnum Sal or Great Salt. It was the largest salt deposit in Poland. The history of salt mining, the oldest and most dangerous industry, is extremely fascinating.

First, the salt was mined using an evaporation method. This method is only suitable for surface deposits. Until the 12th century they were completely depleted. People began to dig wells to get salt. As it turned out, down there, whole blocks of salt - this is how the history of the mine and underground mining began.

The right to develop was usurped by the rulers of Poland. Since the funds had to be invested simply huge, private mining was also allowed in the region. Only an entrepreneur, having invested money and found salt on his site, lost ownership of the mine, it automatically passed into the hands of the crown. The developer was given compensation in the form of reimbursement of expenses, interest from future production, the right to one-time development and the post of bahmister.

Mining profits grew very quickly. By the 14th century, income from the Wieliczka salt mines accounted for a third of the entire revenue side of the state treasury. In the 16th century, it was one of the largest manufacturing plants in medieval Europe. Everything was well thought out and reasonably arranged there. In addition to production personnel, the mines had their own carpenters, blacksmiths, grooms, coopers, charioteers, cooks, doctors.

At that time, all work on the extraction of salt was carried out manually, with the help of human strength. In the 15th century, the transport of salt from the mine began to be carried out with the help of horses. The process was partially mechanized and this had a significant impact on the profit margins.

With the help of the proceeds from the mine, the king maintained the University of Krakow, and later was able to restore and complete the Wawel Castle. The office of the crown was abolished after the first partition of the Polish state in the 18th century.

The Austrians radically changed their approach to salt mining. Good mining specialists were sent. They have significantly improved the technical condition of the mine. Wieliczka began to develop actively. A power plant and a railway were built there, which connected the city with Krakow.

All manual labor was replaced by mechanics, a salt mill and a steam lifting machine were built. At the beginning of the 20th century, a new, fully mechanized salt-making machine was installed. To this day, salt is produced there by the digestion method. All this time, the development of the mine continued both as a production enterprise and as a tourist facility.

During the war years, the mine also developed very actively. Production has increased significantly. Hitler even wanted to build a military factory there, but this idea was unsuccessful. After the war, mining began to be carried out somewhat ill-considered and, as a result, the balance of rocks was disturbed. This began to threaten the lives of people. In the middle of the 20th century, most of the cells were in disrepair. The government decided to start work to ensure the safety of the mine.

In 1992, a disaster occurred at the mine - a water leak into the mine workings. I had to curtail the industrial extraction of salt and leave the mines only as an object for excursions. Every year they attract more than a million people who want to contemplate this stunning beauty. Indeed, over the centuries this place has turned from a dark cave into majestic palace chambers, worthy of kings.

Salt as an art object

Salt seems to many to be a very fragile and delicate material. In fact, its strength is similar to that of gypsum. Salt processing is not very difficult, but professional cutting requires a lot of professionalism and experience. After all, each salt crystal differs from another not only in hardness, but also in color. Each is unique and can be used in different ways during the cutting process.

Tourists can see the whole underground city. The huge halls are illuminated by giant chandeliers carved from salt crystals. The corridors are decorated with various sculptures and monuments, also made of salt.

In the 15th century, a tour of the Wieliczka Salt Mine was available only to privileged, royal guests. At first, it was demonstrated as a production for the extraction of salt. Later, as a mysterious underground labyrinth, consisting of long corridors and salt caves.

The mine in Wieliczka was visited by such grandiose personalities as Nicolaus Copernicus. There is even a memorial for him. Konrad Celtes, Joachim Retyka, Adam Schroeter and many other philosophers, artists and scientists have also been there. For people of the simple class, this was inaccessible. And excursions from representatives of high society were also not particularly encouraged, as they interfered with the production process.

Later, several staircases were built, especially for tourists. Several cells on three levels were available for inspection. They created wonderful lighting there. Salt crystals shimmered in the light of several hundred candles on massive chandeliers. This made the mine a fabulous magical place, the beauty of which was breathtaking.

Tourists were offered various entertainments: passing over an abyss, boating on a salt lake, a demonstration of miners going down the mine. A ballroom was set up in one of the cells, and an orchestra played there.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the first chapel was built in a salt mine. Its walls are decorated with luxurious reliefs on biblical themes. Now the salt mine is positioned not only as an object for excursions, but also as a complex of therapeutic measures. A health resort center was built on the territory for the treatment of respiratory diseases.

It's a crime to be in Krakow and not visit the Wieliczka Salt Mine

Many Poles will give you this answer to the question of what are the main must-see sights in Poland - Krakow and Wieliczka. It's a crime to not visit Wieliczka while in Krakow.

If you're lucky, you might get to one or two parties in the mine. There are a couple of cameras where it is possible to arrange it. One large ballroom (Warsaw Chamber) and several smaller ones. The mine is famous for its New Year's concerts, which take place on the first weekend of January.

It is very difficult to imagine the full scale of this underground structure. Only 2% of the entire complex is accessible to tourists. The corridors of the salt mines form a veritable labyrinth that stretches to a whopping 150-odd meters in length. In total, the mine has nine levels, and the lowest is at a depth of 326 meters underground.

If you liked the article, read another one about masterpieces created by the Creator himself salt sculptures of the Dead Sea, which make you freeze with delight.