Exhibition showcasing millennia-old salt mining tradition opens in Figa spa resort

An exhibition bringing together the results of 20 years of archaeological research on the ancient salt exploitation of Figa - Bistrita-Nasaud Couty opened on Friday at the recreational center of the spa resort, showcasing artifacts even over 3,000 years old.

The event also marks the 2025 European Archaeology Days, along with an open door day at the Figa archaeological site on Saturday, June 14, from 10:00 to 18:00.

The manager of the Eastern Carpathians National Museum (MNCR) Valerii Kavruk said at the opening of the exhibition that the Figa site is unique in Romania and among the few in Europe that offers information about salt exploitation since the Bronze Age, with prehistoric mining tools being uncovered here in a perfect state of preservation.

"After 20 years of research, Figa is among the top five archaeological sites of its kind in Europe. Apart from the fact that we discovered very well-preserved traces of salt exploitation which helped us understand the various technologies used, we also had a surprise no one expected: a lot of prehistoric wooden objects, whose value exceeds the theme of salt exploitation, because until recently it was thought that no prehistoric wood had been preserved on Romania's territory," said Kavruk.

He added that the Figa site also allows the study of climate oscillations over the last five millennia, as well as of the management of forest resources from prehistory to the present.

The exhibition features a more than five meters long wooden ladder dating from the time of the early Dacians - a one-and-only such item in Romania, oak or elder wood troughs used to split the salt rock by freshwater injection, some dating from the period 1,600-900 BC, gutters, twig ties, wooden shovels and hooks, stone hammers, as well as photographs of the archaeological site.

The event is organized by the Eastern Carpathians National Museum in partnership with the Culture Ministry, the Bistrita-Nasaud Museum Complex and the Beclean City Hall, which has Figa and the Baile Figa resort under its jurisdiction.

The exhibition can be visited until December 29, Tuesday to Sunday between 10:00 and 18:00.