Underground Olkusz

A few metres below the paving of Olkusz Market Square lie the cellars of a town hall that has not stood above ground for two hundred years. Underground Olkusz (Podziemny Olkusz) is a pair of underground exhibitions – one beneath the remains of the medieval town hall, the other beneath the former Royal Quarter – telling the story of a town that lived for centuries from mining silver and lead. It is the best place to understand why Olkusz is nicknamed the "Silver Town" and why a miner's pick appears on its coat of arms.

History: a town hall nobody finished demolishing

A town hall stood on the square from the Middle Ages – the surviving cellar walls are dated to the 14th–15th centuries and have been listed as a heritage monument since 2011. The building was pulled down in the first half of the 19th century, but, according to the town's history, removing the foundations and cellars was no longer worth the effort. They became the core of the first route. The second lies in the cellars of the Royal Quarter, seat of the mining authorities, where a royal mint opened in 1579 operated around the turn of the 17th century, striking thalers, groschen and three-groschen coins among others.

Restoration of the Royal Quarter and the town hall cellars began in 2018 and, according to Radio Kraków, cost more than PLN 25 million in total. The works took over three years and produced a multimedia museum run by the town.

What to see beneath the town hall

The first exhibition follows Olkusz from its medieval mines to its heyday at the end of the 16th century. The highlight is a large model of the town on which key buildings light up at the touch of a screen. There is also a 3D model of the town hall, which served as council seat, chancery and town jail. Look out for a replica of the astrolabe of Marcin Bylica, a native of Olkusz who became astronomer at the court of King Matthias Corvinus of Hungary. A separate section covers the coat of arms with the pick, first recorded in 1386.

What to see beneath the Royal Quarter

The second route is more hands-on. You can set in motion models of old mining machinery – a horse gin, ore washer, Archimedes' screw and paternoster pump – and see replica furnaces for smelting lead and silver. A set of scales holding four similar-sized objects shows just how heavy lead is. Display cases hold finds from the excavations: pottery, stove tiles, miners' and smelters' tools and lead organ pipes.

Did you know?

• The "Silver Chamber" holds a replica of the Silver Cross of the Olkusz Miners – the original, donated in the early 17th century, is in the town's basilica.
• Among the finds is a lead cloth seal from around 1600 that travelled to Olkusz all the way from London.
• A special press lets you strike your own replica of an Olkusz three-groschen coin.
• A timber-lined corridor recreates the drainage adits that carried water out of the mines by gravity.

Tripto tip

The museum is open Tuesday to Sunday, 09:00–17:00 (last entry 15:30) and closed on Mondays. A standard ticket costs PLN 25, a reduced one PLN 20, and an audio guide PLN 10 (as of October 2026). Allow about 90 minutes for both routes. The temperature underground is 16–20°C, so bring a light layer even in summer. The entrance is at Rynek 4, and there is free parking at ul. Mickiewicza 18. Afterwards, step into St Andrew's Basilica to see the original silver cross.