Salzbergwerk Berchtesgaden

Description

In the Berchtesgaden Salt Mountains the Salzbergwerk Berchtesgaden combines industrial production with museum-educational presentation. The mine is located in the Salzberg precinct of Berchtesgaden and is one of the main attractions of the Berchtesgadener Land; with 330,000 visitors (as of 2014) and a visitor entrance used annually by about 390,000 people, it is a significant draw.

Salt mining formed the economic backbone of the monastic foundation of Berchtesgaden by the 13th century at the latest and influenced its political development. Initial exploitation dates back to the 12th century: even then there were accesses to salt springs, systematic extraction and trade began under Provost Dietrich, and his successor intensified the salt trade. From the end of the 12th century rock salt was extracted in Schellenberg and at the Golmbach and channelled via wooden troughs to evaporation pans. The actual driving of the mine workings now known as the Salzbergwerk took place in 1517 west of the Gollenbach district; the first gallery was called the Petersberg Stollen.

Ownership changed several times: from the imperial provostry, which in 1559 was elevated to a Prince‑Provostry, through periods of external administration in the 17th and 18th centuries to secularisation in the 19th century. During the 20th century the operation was transferred into a state mining enterprise and later incorporated into joint‑stock companies; since 1995 the salt mine has belonged to Südsalz GmbH within the group of Südwestdeutsche Salzwerke AG.

Mining has been carried out continuously and traditionally by wet extraction since 1517; brine was formerly produced in sinkworks, today in borehole flushing plants. The Haselgebirge has an average salt content of around 50 per cent; roughly 850,000 m³ of brine are extracted annually. About 100 employees work at the plant, some 50 of them underground.

Visitors can use a 1,400‑metre mine railway with a 56‑centimetre gauge; it is operated on 400‑volt direct current via a side contact rail. The visitor route was completely modernised in 2007 and reopened as SalzZeitReise – Erlebnisbergwerk Berchtesgaden, with multimedia presentations on the history of extraction methods and on‑site processing. After donning overalls, guests descend via stairs or miners’ slides to an underground salt lake, which is crossed by a cable‑hauled ferry; the guided tour lasts about one hour. In addition, special events are held at the mine; since 1990 there has been an 850 m² salt therapy tunnel used for therapeutic visits.