and it's in a mine. The history page worked for me so maybe we
TORn'ed it? The address is of the page directly is
http://www.salt-mine.com/english/historia.htm . Also try going to the
history part directly form the home page -- I noticed it was a little wierd
about accessing the photogallery from other places.
Apparently the salt miners did some of the work and later outside people were
hired to sculpt as well. The mines have been a tourist attraction for a
very long time-- and some of the carving was done to enhance this it
seems. (The mine began operating in the 11th century). I'll
give you a brief extract from the page and also there is an account by a
tourist in 1850
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1850Wieliczka.html
Excerpt from history page above--I love the salt chandelier!
"The oldest of documents that shed some light on the history of the mine is a
privilege of Casimirus the Restorer of 1044, referring to Wieliczka as "magnum
sal alias Wieliczka."
In the 16th century, the Wieliczka Salt Mine became one of the largest business
enterprises in the then modern Europe. Apart from the staff performing works
directly connected with production and administration, the mine employed
carpenters, barrel-makers, smiths, wagon drivers, and stable boys. The Mine
even had its own kitchens (the predecessor of today's canteen,) an own
physician, and even a specific "welfare system," and "pension benefit."
The mining and resultant excavations could be admired only by members of the
upper classes, and each time an explicit approval of the king was necessary.
Such concessions were issued only occasionally which led the Mine's authorities
to see the potential tourists as intruders dabbling with the production
cycle.
A description of the Wieliczka of that time (1572) is to be found in the
diaries of Jean Choisnin, a Frenchman accompanying the French royal envoy in
his mission to Poland. He wrote that the mine is "a subterranean place into
where for half an hour must one be let down on thick and powerful ropes that
can stand the weight of fifty men coming down. At the bottom, one may see huge
cavities carved in the salt rock to resemble the streets of a city."
"early in the 19th century the number grew to over 100 [tourists] a week. The
Austrian rule in the Mines meant a further step in the development of tourism,
as the Austrians correctly estimated the scenic and educational values of the
Mine, advertising it as one of the prime visiting sites of the Monarchy.
This was the time, when a number of historic chambers of the Level 1 were made
available to the visitors. This gave birth to today's tourist route. The route
was gradually expanded and covered new areas, including chambers and routes
located on levels 2 and 3. A number of attractions were provided to emphasise
the charm of the underground chambers and to make the visiting more
agreeable.
The route was magnificently lit: in the Michalowice Chamber a huge chandelier
was suspended: made of salt crystals it measured 5.5 metres (height) by 3
(diameter) and contained 300 candles. It was lifted by an old gear located in
the Urszula chamber situated above. The visitors were accompanied by miners
with torches, fireworks were displayed, and the most spectacular fragments of
the excavation received grand illumination. Among the attractions were:
crossing a bridge over a chasm, boating on a brine lake, a show of the
so-called devilish ride showing miners being let down on a rope, and listening
to the reverberating echoes of a pistol shot.
Located in the chambers and passages were obelisks, monuments and plaques
carved in salt and devoted to members of the Austrian imperial family and
Austrian nobles. Lętow, one of the chambers was turned into a ballroom, where
the visitors could dance to the music played by a miner orchestra or to marvel
at the production of the Krakow
Wedding."
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We who still labour by the cromlech on the shore,
The grey cairn on the hill, when day sinks drowned in dew,
Being weary of the world's empires, bow down to you,
Master of the still stars and the flaming door. --W.B. Yeats
