One of the world's oldest salt mines

The Wieliczka Salt Mine near Krakow has documented references dating to 1044 and began continuous rock-salt extraction in the 13th century, making it one of the oldest working salt mines in the world. Commercial mining continued for roughly seven centuries before finally stopping in 1996. Its underground chapels and salt-carved sculptures, made by generations of miners, now draw over a million visitors a year as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.