Dzieje Szybu Regis

The object of the study is the history of the oldest shaft – out of shafts that are still operating – of the Wieliczka Salt Mine. Hollowed out in the centre of the town in the middle of the 14th century, it continued to be the main mining shaft incessantly for approx. 600 years. It was the first shaft to be deepened below level I of the mine (18th century). Here, technical novelties in vertical transport were introduced and the first steam winding machine in Wieliczka was launched in 1861 and later an electric one (1912). The authors present the following issues in detail: construction and deepening of the shaft, modernization of winding machines, the salt mill and the surface infrastructure, changes in nomenclature and revitalization. Available historical sources were used, along with iconographic accounts, mining cartography and technical documentation. The Regis shaft, after completion of renovation work in 2012, started a “new life” contributing to streamlining of tourist traffic in the Wieliczka Salt Mine.