World Art Utopia

Unirea Salt Mine

A giant chamber of the Unirea salt mine in Slănic, Romania, with striped salt walls and a lone visitor tiny at the foot of a salt pillar.
Artwork FileSlănic, Romania

Unirea Salt Mine

SeenMar 2006

Salina Slănic Prahova · Slănic, Prahova County · opened 1938

Photo: Beradrian / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0), as published on Street Art Utopia.

Unirea is the best-known mine at Slănic Prahova. It was opened in 1938, salt was cut there from 1943 to 1970, and it has been a tourist site since 1970. Digging out 2.9 million cubic metres of salt left 14 trapezoidal chambers, which SALROM puts 208 metres below ground. Source Source Checked

Seen Mar 2006: the dated photo. SALROM still describes visits to the mine. Source Source Checked

💡 4 things to know

  1. Opened in 1938Slănic’s town hall says Unirea was opened in 1938, with extraction starting five years later. Source Checked
  2. Mined until 1970SALROM says salt was dug in Unirea until 1970, when work moved to the Victoria mine. Source Checked
  3. Fourteen chambersRemoving 2.9 million cubic metres of salt left 14 trapezoidal chambers. Source Checked
  4. Down by minibus or liftSALROM says visitors go down by minibus to 208 metres; the town hall says by lift, over 200 metres. Source Source Conflicting

📍 Where it is

Salina Slănic Prahova, Slănic, Prahova County, Romania; the photo’s description calls it the Unirea level of the Salina Veche salt mine. Source Source Source Checked

Open in Maps

Opens a map of Salina Slănic Prahova. The chambers are underground, so there is no Street View of them.

🗓️ Sightings

  1. 1938

    Mine opened

  2. 1943

    Extraction begins

  3. 1970

    Becomes a tourist site

  4. 200619 Mar

    Unirea level photographed

Green stamps mark dated photographs; amber stamps mark records or reports; red stamps mark loss. Publication dates are not camera dates.

🗞️ In the sources

SALROMSalina Slănic Prahova page

“Mina Unirea este rezultatul excavării a 2,9 mil. m3 zăcământ de sare care a creat cavităţi cu volume gigantice: 14 camere cu profil trapezoidal”

Unirea Mine is the result of excavating 2.9 million cubic metres of salt deposit, which created cavities of gigantic volume: 14 chambers with a trapezoidal profile.

Read the source

✅ The facts

Opened
1938 Source Checked
Extraction
1943–1970 Source Source Checked
Tourist site
Since 1970 Source Source Checked
Depth
208 m (SALROM) or over 200 m (town hall) Source Source Checked
Access
Minibus (SALROM) or lift (town hall) Source Source Conflicting
Chambers
14, trapezoidal Source Checked
Salt removed
2.9 million cubic metres Source Checked
Photographed
19 March 2006 Source Checked

🔗 Related

All sources & image credits

Last checked: 5 November 2026. How we verify art