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The Wieliczka Salt Mine
Author(s) -
Hallett Don
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
geology today
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.188
H-Index - 17
eISSN - 1365-2451
pISSN - 0266-6979
DOI - 10.1046/j.0266-6979.2003.00365.x
Subject(s) - foothills , geology , loess , pleistocene , fluvial , front (military) , glacial period , archaeology , paleontology , main central thrust , geomorphology , geography , oceanography , metamorphic rock , structural basin , cartography
Just a few kilometres south of Cracow, in southern Poland, the scenery changes abruptly from the fluvial plain of the Vistula river, mantled by tills and loess deposits of the Pleistocene glaciation, to a boldly undulating topography representing the outermost thrust sheet of the Carpathian mountains. These northern foothills of the Carpathians are known in Poland as the Beskid Mountains. The Carpathian thrust front can be traced from Upper Silesia through Cracow and Przemysl in southern Poland as far as the Ukraine and Romania. At several places along the thrust front, salt deposits have been found, which have been mined over many centuries. One of the best known mines is located at Wieliczka, 15 km south‐east of Cracow. The mine is a popular tourist location, but it also illustrates some spectacular geological features.