First mention of salt come from the Old Testament. In the Bible the salt was treated as an extremely important substance and was used by worshippers as a sacrifice.
In ancient times, it was used as a payment instrument. In exchange for salt it was possible to get many valuable products.
The Hebrews were the first ones who discovered healing properties of salt, therefore they often used it during their religious ceremonies.
The Romans discovered preserving properties of salt. They used it to keep meat, fish, vegetables and cheese fresh for a longer time. It also played an important role in trade in the ancient Rome. Salt was used as soldier’s pay.
In Tibet and Ethiopia salt was used to mint coins used as a payment instrument.
In the medieval Europe salt was so important that it marked the routes of international trade. So called "salt roads” were created for transportation of salt.
Over the time, a tax from salt extraction was introduced because this material was easy to extract and it was relatively easy and fast to become rich.
At the turn of Middle Ages and Renaissance first attempts were made to obtain salt from sea water. So far it had been extracted from rock beds only. It was made in so called salt bays from which clean salt was extracted.
In the 14th century salt became known as „white gold” – this name shows the importance of salt in everyday life in those times.
It is often said by the historians that salt was one of the reasons that led to the French Revolution. The tax, called la gabelle, had been increased and decreased many times but it lasted until … 1945. And even today it is prohibited in France to produce salt independently and without a special permission of the Ministry of Finance it is not allowed to take even one liter of sea water.
However, salt taxes were not introduced in France for the first time, they were applied earlier by Arabs, Normans, ancient Chinese and Indians. Until the 19th century salt was treated only as a spice and preserving agent but with time it found a new application in industry. It is hard to believe that currently there are over 14 thousands of products made based on salt.
Because salt was treated as a Holy thing given by Gods, there were many symbols and beliefs related to it. In many parts of the world it is associated with hospitality and sharing bread and salt is a symbol of brotherhood. Spilled salt means the end of brotherhood and Gods’ favors – to prevent it you must throw three times a pinch of salt through your left arm. For the ancient Romans spilled salt was such a bad sign that they sprinkled it in conquered cities to destroy harvest.
In Poland, it is believed that spilled salt is a sign of quarrel and welcoming guests with salt and bread is a sign of hospitality and friendship.