Muzeum Górnictwa Kruszcowego w Miedziance

About the museum

The Muzeum Górnictwa Kruszcowego w Miedziance (Museum of Metal Ore Mining in Miedzianka), also called the Muzealna Izba Górnictwa Kruszcowego, opened in September 2008. It is housed in modest buildings at the site of the last historic copper ore mine on Miedzianka, in the rooms of a former mining school and mining office. The museum is run by the municipality of Chęciny through the Centrum Kultury i Sportu (Culture and Sports Centre) in Chęciny.

Next to the museum stands a shaft tower from 1902 above the disused 'Piotr' shaft, the only surviving structure of its kind in the Świętokrzyskie Mountains. Miedzianka Hill (354 m above sea level) has been a site of copper ore extraction for centuries, and its mining history is now one of the key elements of the Świętokrzyski UNESCO Geopark.

The exhibition is designed in an industrial style, intended to evoke the interior of a mine. It presents geological collections related to copper deposits, including malachite and azurite, as well as fossils and rocks from the area around Chęciny, among them the famous Chęciny 'marbles'. Part of the display is devoted to people: changes in mining technology and tools, the traditions of the miner's profession, formal mining uniforms, tankards from miners' taverns and old photographs of the area.

A separate thread is the story of the brothers Stanisław and Bolesław Łaszczyński, inventors from Miedzianka. At the beginning of the 20th century they founded the joint-stock company 'Zofia', which mined copper, and in 1902 Stanisław patented a method of copper electrolysis. In front of the building stands a small lapidarium with local limestone and sandstone.

Highlights

• Historic shaft tower from 1902 above the 'Piotr' shaft
• Malachite, azurite and other copper minerals
• Chęciny 'marbles', fossils and regional rocks
• Formal miners' uniforms and mementos from miners' taverns
• The Łaszczyński brothers, inventors from Miedzianka
• Panorama from the Góra Miedzianka nature reserve

Permanent exhibitions

• Górnictwo rud miedzi i geologia okolic Chęcin – Collections of copper minerals, fossils and rocks, and the machines, tools and techniques of historic metal ore mining.
• Tradycje górnicze i bracia Łaszczyńscy – Formal uniforms, mementos from miners' taverns, old photographs, and the story of the inventors from Miedzianka and copper electrolysis.

Founded

2008

Operated by

Centrum Kultury i Sportu w Chęcinach (gmina Chęciny)

Admission & discounts

Standard ticket: PLN 10. Reduced ticket: PLN 8. Group ticket: PLN 7.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

From the centre of Chęciny, take the road towards Zajączek: first along ul. Małogoska to the junction with voivodeship road no. 762, then via Gościniec and Polichno to the village of Miedzianka. In the middle of the village, at a small wooden information board, turn right.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

Souvenirs are sold at the museum, and visitors can get a stamp impression there.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit