LIFE AS A SALT MINER
The Wieliczka Salt Mine opened up seven centuries ago, meaning that many generations of miners have experienced varying conditions as workers underground. Towards the end of the Middle Ages there were around 350 people working in the mine. Salt mining at the site was seasonal until the end of the 15th century, but shortly after became a year-round operation. When the mine was in constant use, job numbers increased massively. Miners needed to do much of the extraction work manually, including digging corridors with pickaxes and carrying the heavy salt blocks on their backs between chambers.
Not all workers were human.
From the 16th century until 2002, horses lived at the bottom of the Wieliczka Salt Mine to help people transport salt and materials and to power treadmills. Due to the difficulty of transporting horses through the mine’s tunnels, salt mine horses usually spent their entire lives in the darkness of mines. Miners were expected to treat these horses well, and workers who were responsible for their wellbeing gave punishments for animal mistreatment.