Çankırı Tuz Mağarası

Çankırı Tuz Madeni

Useful Information

Location:	Balıbağı village, 18 km south of Çankırı. (40.544362, 33.759633)
Open:	All year daily 10-16:30. [2020]
Fee:	Adults TRL 7, Children TRL 3. [2020]
Classification:	Salt Mine Oldest Mines
Light:	Incandescent Electric Light System
Dimension:	L=8 km, Ar=800 acres.
Guided tours:
Photography:
Accessibility:
Bibliography:	Hakan Ozsen, İhsan Özkan, Cem Sensogut (2011): Assessment of Pillar Dimensions of Cankiri-Turkey Rock Salt Mine by Numerical Analysis DOI: 10.5593/sgem2011/s03.109. researchgate Takashi Ito, Nazlı Tunar Özcan, Ömer Aydan (2021): A comparative study on creep responses of rock salt of Çankırı (Turkey) under uniaxial compression and Brazilian testing conditions together with impression creep tests Conference: 15th Japan Symposium on Rock MechanicsAt: Kansai University, Osaka, January 2021 researchgate
Address:	Çankırı Tuz Mağarası, türkiye çankırı, Çivi Köyü Yolu, Çankırı Merkez/Çankırı, Tel: +90-376-212-1400.
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

3000 BC	mining by the Hittites.
2005	rock salt sculptures created by faculty members and students of the Marmara University Faculty of Fine Arts Sculpture Department.
2012	Orkhon Monuments produced from rock salt.
08-NOV-2013	historic mine transferred to the Provincial Special Administration Directorate for development.
2014	halotherapy station created in the mine.
26-APR-2017	transferred to Çankırı Municipality to be used for tourism purposes.
2019	partly developed show mine opened to the public.

Geology

Description

Çankırı Tuz Madeni (Çankırı Salt Mine) is actually better known as Çankırı Tuz Mağarası (Çankırı Salt Cave). For some reasons the turks do not understand the concept of show mines, anything underground is a cave. The local salt mines are ancient, the earliest known mining happened 5,000 years ago by the Hittites. And the mines were almost continually operated, at least at a low level. They work until today, the production is used for many different products. Beneath table salt and industrial use, it is used to produce esoteric healing lamps similar to the infamous Himalaya salt lamps. An abandoned part of the mine was transferred to the Çankırı Kaya Tuzu Mağarasının Turizme Kazandırılması Projesi (Project for Turning the Çankırı Rock Salt Cave to Tourism). It was made safe for tourists, equipped with light, and finally opened to the public.

The planned infrastructure for the sight includes galleries with sculptures and reliefs in the mine, the yaran culture promotion gallery, restaurant, cafeteria, multi-purpose meeting room, children's playground, fossil museum, masjid, light effects systems, decorative salt pool, sports activity area, and salt therapy rooms for the treatment of lung diseases such as asthma and bronchitis. Several components were completed when the mine was first opened in 2019. The rest is still under constructuin and each part will be opened as soon as it is completed.

The salt mine is used for various exhibitions. Quite obvious are machinery and tools used for salt mining. One exhibit is a wooden carriage which was used to transport salt blocks. Another exhibition shows dead animals which were conserved in the salt mine. It seems when there were still animals in use in the mine; the miners discovered that their dead bodies did not decompose if they were left in the mine. One of the animals, a dead donkey, was obviously used to pull a carriage. Abd finally there is an exhibition of rock salt sculptures created by faculty members and students of the Marmara University Faculty of Fine Arts Sculpture Department in 2005. The exhibition also shows Orkhon Monuments produced from rock salt.

The cavities were used for numerous events over the years in cooperation with the Turkish Culture and Arts Joint Administration and TURKSOY and Çankırı Municipality. An exhibition with the paintings of Prof. Hüsamettin Koçan, former Dean of Marmara University Faculty of Fine Arts, named Salt Taste was opened. There was a piano convert with Tuluyhan Uğurlu and Yaran Shows took place durimg the Ahi Culture Week.

The salt mine is still operating, 500-1000 tons of salt is produced daily in the mine, 150,000 tons of salt annually.