Krzemionki Opatowskie has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It is a region of prehistoric flint mine, there are also two mines “Borownia” and “Korycizna” and a village called “Gawroniec”.
Krzemionki was considered a special place because it is said to be the oldest evidence of industrial human activity. Mines were discovered only in 1922, and since 1994 they are a historical monument. A year later they were also recognized as a nature reserve.
This year, there were 36 nominations from around the world, but only one from Poland. A well-deserved place on the UNESCO list is a great advertisement for Krzemionki Opatowskie, which will certainly attract tourists not only from Poland, but from whole world. The facility is located in the Świętokrzyskie Province, near Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski.
In Krzemionki there are about 4,000 shafts (up to 9 meters) connected by a network of sidewalks. In the limestone mines, flint was mined, which was used to manufacture tools.
Despite the very long history of this place, both underground architecture, such as pavements and the landscape on the surface, have survived remarkably well – you can still see the glaciers pouring into the mines, surrounded by the folds of limestone debris.
picture source: facebook/krzemionki
