SALT IS SERIOUS BUSINESS
Salt has been revered since ancient times. Across the world, entire cities have been founded around salt extraction, and vast trade routes have been built to transport this mineral. Its value went beyond mere culinary use - it was a symbol of wealth, a means of preservation, and even a form of currency. From the salt mines of the Balkans to the salt terraces of the Andes, from ancient Chinese salt trades to the legendary African routes, this simple yet essential mineral has played a crucial role in shaping civilizations.
One of the most important qualities of salt is its ability to preserve food. Long before the invention of refrigeration, people relied on salt to keep meat, fish, and other perishable goods from spoiling. By drawing out moisture and creating an inhospitable environment for bacteria, salt helped societies store food for long periods, ensuring survival through harsh winters, long journeys, and times of scarcity. This made salt not just a valuable commodity but a necessity for explorers, traders, and entire civilizations.
This vital role of salt in preservation led to the rise of entire settlements built around its production. Let’s explore some interesting salt production regions.
Salt of the Balkans
An important site linked to the history of salt is the archaeological complex Provadia-Solnitsata, near the town of Provadia in Bulgaria. This ancient settlement mound sits atop a rich deposit of rock salt and is considered Europe's oldest known salt production center. Led by Professor Vasil Nikolov, excavations have revealed that the settlement emerged around 7,500 years ago, flourishing precisely because of its access to this valuable resource. The people of Provadia-Solnitsata extracted salt by evaporating brine from nearby springs, creating highly sought-after salt bricks used for trade. The wealth generated from salt production allowed the settlement to develop impressive fortifications, making it one of the earliest known fortified prehistoric towns in Europe.
Excavations at Provadia-Solnitsata, near the town of Provadia, Bulgaria.
Copyright by: By Томасина - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=94182741
Not far from Provadia-Solnitsata, another important source of salt in Bulgaria is the Black Sea, or more precisely, the salty coastal lakes along its shores - Shabla Tuzla, Nanevska Tuzla, Balchik Tuzla, Pomorie Lake, and Atanasovsko Lake. Today, only the latter two remain active.
Salt extraction in these lands is an ancient tradition, passed down through generations. The salt pans in Pomorie have been in use since the 5th century BCE. Those interested in the traditional methods of salt production can visit the Salt Museum in Pomorie, which showcases the ancient Anchialo technology for sea salt extraction. The museum consists of an exhibition hall and 20 hectares of active salt pans, where salt is still harvested using the same techniques as in antiquity. Visitors can witness the entire process firsthand, talk to the salt workers about their craft, and immerse themselves in the authentic atmosphere of the past.
Atanasovsko Lake, Bulgaria. Photo by: Evgeni Dinev.
Atanasovsko Lake, Bulgaria. Photo by Evgeni Dinev.
Another fascinating example lies north of Bulgaria, in the heart of Transylvania - Salina Turda, Romania’s most remarkable salt mine. This underground marvel was formed over millions of years as salt deposits remained after the evaporation of an ancient sea that once covered the region. With a history spanning over 2,000 years, the mine was actively used for salt extraction from antiquity until the early 20th century. Its vast caverns, some plunging over 100 meters deep, showcase beautifully carved salt walls and intricate tunnels.
Incredibly, the salt reserves of Turda are so immense that they could meet the global salt demand for 60 years if needed. Today, Salina Turda has been transformed into a unique attraction, where visitors can explore its surreal underground landscape and experience the rich history of this extraordinary site.
The Salina Turda salt mine, Romania. Photo by Vincent Erhart on Unsplash
The Salt Mafia
Like other places in the world, salt was not just part of cuisine in ancient China – it played an important role in the economy of the country. The strive to innovate salt production and trade, let to new ways of government taxation – the famous salt tax was one of the important sources of government revenue.
The involvement of the government in salt trade created what we may call an ancient mafia – salt rights were given by the imperial authority to merchants, who in their turn sold the commodity to markets. This monopoly led to salt trafficking, led by gangs of bandits and rebels.
Aquaculture and Salt Production Bohai Bay (Seen from space in1979).
By NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using Landsat data provided by the United States Geological Survey. Caption by Michon Scott. - http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=36953, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6100636
Culturally, salt plays a key role in China as well – it is considered as one of the seven necessities of life, that are mentioned in many proverbs.
Multiple excavations have shown that salt production began in China around 6,000 years ago, with underground brine sources at Bohai Bay, during the Dawenkou Culture, while the earliest written reference, from around 800 BCE, states that during the Xia dynasty (c. 2070–1600 BCE), salt was produced by evaporating sea water.
The Terraces of the Andes
On the other side of the world, in the heart of the Peruvian Andes, lie the ancient salt mines of Maras. These salt pans have been in use since around 2000 BCE, through various pre-Hispanic eras, with particularly intense use during the Inca period. Archaeological findings in the region, including ceramic fragments from the Chanapata culture (200 BCE to 700 CE), Killke culture (1000 CE), and the Inca civilization, confirm the long-standing significance of these salt mines.
Salt mines of Maras. Photo by Guido Avogadro on Unsplash
The salt terraces, fed by a natural mineral spring, have been carefully maintained and used by local communities for centuries. Today, the landscape remains an active site of salt production, where locals continue to use ancient techniques. It is also a significant cultural and archaeological location, with 15 registered sites surrounding the salt mines, including Inca burial sites.
Salt Trade Routes
In some regions and periods of history, salt had greater value than gold and thus emerged the salt trade routes, connecting distant regions and facilitating the exchange of goods.
In Italy, the Via Salaria, which owes its name to the Latin word for "salt," was a vital route for transporting salt. It connected the Sabine people living near the Tyrrhenian Sea to the salt marshes at the mouth of the Tiber River, known as the Campus Salinarum, near Portus. People closer to the Adriatic Sea also used this route to collect salt from production sites in the region. Some remains of the mountain sections of the road still exist today.
Sign for historic Salt road. Bavaria, Germany.
Copyright: By Thomas Then - Self-photographed, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4172029
Similarly, in Africa, the Trans-Saharan trade linked the salt mines of the Sahara Desert with the sub-Saharan kingdoms, making salt a key part of the trade between North and West Africa.
Salt from the Sahara Desert was one of the most valuable trade goods in ancient West Africa, where natural salt deposits were scarce. It was transported through camel caravans across the desert and by boat along rivers like the Niger and Senegal. Once it reached major trading hubs such as Koumbi Saleh, Niani, and Timbuktu, it was either traded further south or exchanged for items like ivory, grains and metals. The most common trade involved bartering salt for gold dust, which was mined in southern West Africa. Salt was so valuable in some areas that it was considered equivalent to gold in worth, highlighting its essential role in the region's economy.
Remarkably, some of these historic salt trade routes are still in use today. The Agadez - Bilma route, for example, continues to operate, linking the Aïr region of Niger to the salt pans near the Kaouar cliffs. This grueling caravan journey, taking around three weeks to complete, follows a centuries-old tradition where traders exchange food and supplies for bricks of salt. Historically controlled by the Tuareg, the route once boasted massive caravans of up to 10,000 camels stretching 25 km across the desert.
Slabs of salt from the mines of Taoudenni stacked on the quayside at the port of Mopti, Mali.
Copyright: By Taguelmoust, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1719379
Another historic route once stretched from Timbuktu through Taoudenni and Taghaza to the Mediterranean, with massive caravans carrying gold and slaves north in exchange for salt and manufactured goods. Until the 1940s, the great Azalai salt caravans still consisted of thousands of camels, making the grueling journey across the desert. Even today, after reaching Timbuktu, slabs of salt from Taoudenni continue their journey by boat to markets in Mopti and beyond, proving the mineral’s lasting economic and cultural significance in West Africa.
Rock salt at the market in Mopti, Mali.
Copyright: By Robin Taylor - https://www.flickr.com/photos/robinelaine/48077056/in/set-1046668/, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4578829
A camel train for salt transportation in Afar Region of Ethiopia.
Copyright: By A.Savin - Own work, FAL, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=67777308
As Kahlil Gibran wrote “There must be something strangely sacred about salt. It is in our tears and in the sea.” .
Salt has been a cornerstone of life, from preserving food to shaping economies, ever since ancient times. It seems that sometimes the most basic things, like salt, are essential to all of us.