The majestic underground multi-level city, completely carved out of salt boulders, is located near Krakow (Poland) and it was created in the old Wieliczka mine. The structure, inconspicuous from the outside, conceals in its depths a fantastic city, hidden at a depth of 100 meters and striking with masterpieces of architectural creations.
Each of its elements is made from rock salt by craftsmen, ranging from pompous chandeliers and charming gnomes to an amazing temple and palace located on the shores of an underground lake.
The Wieliczka Salt Mine is the most famous landmark in Poland.
The history of this mine began many centuries ago, at the time when a rock salt deposit was found in 1044 and King Casimir I issued an order for its extraction. Until the 13th century, salt was simply evaporated from the salted water, and then mines were organized.
Salt stalactites in the Wieliczka mine.
Huge salt chandeliers adorn the galleries and grottoes of the entire underground city.
For many centuries, salt was considered white gold and therefore the mine played a very important role in the economic life of not only Poland, but the whole of Europe. For several centuries, such significant salt mines deepened and grew to an impressive size, becoming a real testing ground for the creative activities of the people who worked there.
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Monument to salt miners in the city of Wieliczka (Poland).
Considering that salt miners were underground for 17 hours a day, and in order to somehow diversify the monotonous work and decorate the place of work, especially creative personalities began to create statues from salt blocks.
Azure-colored lake in the underground city.
Over the seven centuries of the mine's existence, it has turned into a huge underground kingdom, occupying nine underground levels, starting from 60 meters and going down to 300 meters, with a total length of almost 300 km. It has become not only a place of mining, but also an amazing space of artistic creativity, unique sculptural and architectural products made of salt, surprising with the skill not only of laying tunnels and galleries, but also of wooden fixtures created by ordinary carpenters.
Wooden staircases along which the workers of the mines descended.
Since the 15th century, the Wieliczka Salt Mine began to be shown to noble persons, distinguished guests of the royal court, because only the king could give permission to visit the most important object. In the beginning, it was a simple interest as a profitable and grandiose enterprise. Later, when local craftsmen began to create incredible sculptures and whole compositions from rock salt, people were eager to see this man-made beauty.
With the help of such buckets and lifts, the salt was lifted to the ground.
So gradually the vast underground labyrinths of corridors and chambers began to turn into an amazing city, in which there was a place for extraordinary grottoes and basilicas, sculptures and bas-reliefs, a real palace and the most incredible temple - the Chapel of St. Kinga, located at a depth of 101 meters.
Salt grotto labyrinths in Wieliczka.
From the 16th century onwards, tourist routes were laid out with great care and the higher the secular status of the guests was, the more varied and rich excursions were organized and the more extreme entertainment became. In order to emphasize the special beauty of some places, they were illuminated with torches, creating an amazing atmosphere of unreality of what was happening.
The guests of the mine were escorted over the bridges hanging over the salt lake.
Among the most popular entertainments were: riding on decorative carriages on a horse road, passing over an abyss along a narrow bridge, boating on a salt lake, as well as a special performance of "hellish ride" showing the most dangerous descent of miners into the mine and listening to the echo of a pistol shot.
Figures of salt gnomes greet guests of the mine (Wieliczka, Poland).
Naturally, access to these incredible underground labyrinths was given to a narrow circle of highly respected people and only in the 20th century it became possible for everyone to see this splendor with their own eyes.
Nicolaus Copernicus chamber with a sculpture installed in 1875.
This unusual place has been visited at all times by famous historical figures, whose names can be found in a memorial book, which has been kept since the first visits to the salt mine. These are Nicolaus Copernicus, to whom a chamber was even dedicated, in which a majestic salt sculpture was installed, and I. V. von Goethe, and F. Chopin, and Jan Mateika, D. I. Mendeleev and many other famous figures.
A large number of salt figures adorn the underground city.
Royal persons also visited these unusual mines, starting with the ruling dynasty of Polish kings and ending with the French king Francis I and the Russian emperor Alexander I.
Wax figures in the underground salt city.
A very interesting fact (some argue that this is a joke of the guides): visitors were allowed to touch the exhibits with their hands and even lick the salt, but no more than … 2 kg, and this was strictly monitored.
The Wieliczka Salt Mine still operates a sanatorium.
In addition, since the 16th century, Polish doctors convinced the king that this mine could cure many ailments of the respiratory system and various infectious diseases. After all, already in those days they knew that there were no bacteria, no dangerous viruses and even fungi in it. But the air contains a large number of elements that are useful for the human respiratory tract. Therefore, in one of the galleries, baths were opened, which are still working today. Danilovich's trunk is the oldest surviving one, because it was cut through in the middle of the 17th century.
Statue of St. Anthony in the oldest chapel in Wieliczka.
The miners were a very pious people, so they built temples and chapels underground so that at any moment they could kneel before the Holy Face. The chapel of St. Anthony, created at the end of the 17th century in a huge block of salt, has survived to our times. She is famous for her unusual sculptures of the Crucified Christ, the Mother of God and the Child and, of course, Anthony himself.
Chapel of St. Anthony in the underground city.
All carved sculptures in the temple have a greenish tint due to the very structure of the rock salt and, unfortunately, tend to melt, because the cave is very humid.
Bust of Casimir the Great in a salt mine.
On one of the levels in the first half of the 18th century. the Chamber of Casimir the Great was created with a bust of the king, created in honor of the monarch who issued a decree regulating the extraction and trade of salt.
The majestic temple of St. Kinga in the underground city.
A sculpture of Princess Kinga, who is presented with her ring by salt miners.
Particularly noteworthy is the only temple in the world, built at such an impressive depth (101 m) back in 1895 in one of the formed grottoes and named after the Polish princess Kinga.
Incredible interior of the Chapel of St. Kinga.
Everything in this unique church is made of rock salt, from parquet flooring to unique bas-reliefs and sculptures, an altar and incredibly beautiful salt chandeliers. This extraordinary temple still holds festive liturgies, and newlyweds strive to get married in it.
Scheme of the underground city of the Wieliczka salt mine.
Wieliczka is now considered one of the most popular destinations in the tourism industry in Poland. Tourists from all over the world come to see the most amazing salt mine on the planet. A fantastic excursion into the underground salt world begins with a descent of 380 steps that lead to the first underground level, located at a depth of 64 meters.
The mine has its own concert hall.
There is even a restaurant in the underground city.
In total, visitors are shown three levels, the last of which reached a depth of 134 meters. During the existence of the mine, more than three thousand chambers were cut down, but tourists visit only 20, the most impressive ones. Starting from the descent into the mine, there is no limit to the delight and surprise of visitors; there are few places to see such splendor in the mine.
There is a special route for extreme tourists.
For lovers of more extreme travel underground, a special route has been created, "The Roads of a New Adventure", which runs not along the excursion ladders, but along real mine workings and reaches six depth levels.