Salt & Shadow: The Inspiration of Salina Turda

I’ve had a few people ask what the pictures on the site are of and it occurred to me that most people haven’t heard of this amazing place. Walking through the narrow tunnels, spiraling wood staircases, and modern glass elevator genuinely feels like you’re transported to a whole new world! I visited Salina Turda back in May 2025 and remember thinking that I wanted to incorporate elements of it into the book (The Price of Creation).

First, some background: Salina Turda is a salt mine in Transylvania with written documentation first naming it as far back as 1271 CE. Salt has always been important and this place stands as a testament to its role in antiquity all the way up to the 1930s.

When you enter the mine, you walk about a kilometer into the center of an inconspicuous hill in the middle of Transylvania. Once you’re deep into the shaft, you forget where and when you are as you make your way into various chambers showcasing mesmerizing salt striations and nearly two hundred year old machinery.

Readers of tPoC will be transported to this place when references to The Mountain and passages within/without it are made!

If you ever find yourself in Romania, I strongly suggest making the trek out to visit this hidden gem as the scale of the hidden world underneath our feet is revealed to you around every corner, down every shaft, and up and down 26 stories (wear comfortable shoes!).

https://www.salinaturda.eu/
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-LFR