The Mining Museum

Rosia Montana has always had a significant economic importance due to its gold and silver resources. The mining wealth of the Apuseni Mountains was likely a major factor in the conquest and occupation of Dacia by the Roman Empire between 106 and 275 AD. The frequent association made between the history of the Roman Empire during the time of Trajan and his successors and the gold of the Dacians or the gold extracted from Dacia, although not yet proven, opens up an approach that addresses the history of European culture - namely that of the Roman Empire recovering from crisis. It saw  the beginning of an impressive construction boom initiated by Trajan, among which are the construction of Trajan's Forum and Trajan's Column as well as the Basilica Ulpia.

During the Roman period, Roșia Montană became an established mining center, with a diverse population consisting of experienced miners and settlers. A major priority was the modernization of gold and silver mining, replacing traditional methods with new technologies introduced by specialists from the Empire. Roman mining works include galleries and shafts made using fire, a mixture of water and vinegar, along with common techniques using chisels, picks and hammers.

Work in the mines was extremely hard and required hard skills. According to the waxen tablets discovered at Roșia Montană, there was a great shortage of labor, and in many cases, women or children were employed for various tasks, as was the case most of the time in mining areas in the Apuseni Mountains. The waxen tablets found at Roșia Montană are of particular importance; they are Roman accounting records or legal contracts. They provide a precise perspective on how life was in the Roman period. Also, one of the tablets mentions February 6, 131, and the locality of Alburnus Maior, the Roman name for Roșia Montană.

The Mining Museum within the former state run Roșia Montană Mining Enterprise is a historical complex that exhibits clear traces of the town's mining past. It contains the offices of the mining administration, the miners' appeal hall, access to the underground network, and other specific facilities. 

The Roman Gallery within the Mining Museum in Roșia Montană is the only section currently accessible to the public from the immense underground mining network of Roșia Montană and represents a unique opportunity to understand how the Romans exploited gold 

Come to Roșia Montană, visit the Mining Museum and let local guides show and explain how gold mining  evolved from ancient to more recent times.

The UNESCO tour of Rosia Montana is a project implemented by the non-governmental organization ‘Rosia Montana in Patrimoniul Mondial’. The audio-tour is co-financed by Romania’s Administration for National Cultural Funds. We based our story telling on local anecdotes and the works listed on the bibliography on our website. We encourage you to follow the trail that we prepared for you via our website. This will ensure that you discover all objects and their stories of Rosia Montana. Have a pleasant journey and ‘drum bun’ as we say here.