New photos give a glimpse inside the world's biggest underground chapel - where everything is made of salt. Nine miles outside Krakow, Poland, is the town of Wieliczka with a population of just under 24,000 people. It's hosting a special service this Easter more than 100 metres below ground. The 13th-century mine, which is UNESCO heritage site, was named Magnum Sal or the Great Salt when it was discovered. Inside, it is like a maze with endless corridors and over 2,000 chambers across nine levels. The deepest is 327m beneath the surface but tourists are only allowed as far as 135. Around 101m down is arguably the most impressive chamber – one of several underground worshipping sites – St Kinga’s Chapel. The £25 chunky
Amazon holiday sandals that look just like Dr Martens The Polish town hides a 13th-century mine below the ground ( Image: Jam Press) The deepest level is 327m beneath the surface but tourists are only allowed as far as 135m ( Image: Jam Press) A sight to behold, the space is around 12m high, 18m wide and 54m long, with salt crystal chandeliers lighting up the room and intricate art pieces – including a salt replica of The Last Supper, made by miner Antoni Wyrobek. There’s also a statue of Pope John Paul II, made by Stanislaw Angel and added in 1999 – reportedly the only salt statue in the world that depicts the Pope. And on the right wall, you can spot a nativity scene, carved by Mieczysław Kluzek. The sacred location hosted a concert on March 20, organised by Marcin Świątkiewicz, the artistic director, and Patrick Ayrton, the conductor. The mine is maze of endless corridors and more than 2,000 chambers across nine levels ( Image: Jam Press) The UNESCO heritage site is named 'Magnum Sal' or the Great Salt ( Image: Jam Press) The chapel is dedicated to Kinga, a 13th-century princess. She was the daughter of King Béla IV of Hungary and married Bolesław V the Chaste, a Polish duke. As the legend goes – the details vary somewhat according to who you ask – as part of her dowry, Kinga was given a ring by her father that contained rock salt, and brought this with her to her new home. Soon after, the mine was discovered. The chapel is dedicated to Kinga, a 13th-century princess ( Image: Jam Press) The chapel is made entirely from salt ( Image: Jam Press) Another section of the attraction, the Janowice Chamber, features a scene depicting Kinga’s story with a statue of the princess. Wieliczka, which is no longer used to harvest salt, has plenty else to keep you entertained including glimmering man-made pools, incredible ball and conference rooms and even a miner’s pub. There is even salt replica of The Last Supper, made by miner Antoni Wyrobek ( Image: Jam Press) A shop also provides Polish snacks and tourist trinkets, including a salt-inspired skincare line. The Mirror reported on another salt mine in the
UK where the key to humans living on
Mars or the
moon was being tested more than a kilometre under North Yorkshire in a working salt mine. Scientists have turned deep tunnels under the countryside more than a kilometre under North Yorkshire into an underground lab to investigate how scientific and medical operations would take place in other-worldly environments. One of the works of art inside the mine ( Image: Jam Press) Researchers at the University of Birmingham have launched the Bio-SPHERE project in one of the deepest mine sites in the UK. It is based in a 3,000-metre tunnel network which enables researchers to recreate the conditions humans would experience in similar caverns on the Moon and Mars. This includes remoteness, limited access to new materials and challenges in moving heavy equipment around.