A horse-mill, called “the Pole”

A horse-powered hauling gear, called “the Pole”, is the oldest and at the same time the largest mechanism for horse-powered transport in Wieliczka. Such mechanisms were installed over the shafts in Wieliczka and Bochnia mines since the half of the 15th century. Two centuries later they were also installed underground. In the Cracow Saltworks they were used until the second half of the 19th century. It is big in size: 16.4 metres in length, 11.5 metres in width and 8.8 metres in height. The hauling gear was moved by four pairs of horses and could lift up to 2 tons of load from a depth of up to 80 metres. Approximate daily performance 80 tons.