Salt is an indispensable ingredient in any cuisine. The history of salt mining dates back to thousands of years. One of its kind, The Salt Museum in Zigong is unique in China. This museum has a huge collection of artifacts relating to salt mining. Chronicling over 2000 year history of salt mining, this museum should feature on everyone's travel itinerary.
Zigong was once home to a prosperous salt mining industry. Though with changing times the salt mining industries closed down, the remains of tools used here are exhibited and preserved meticulously in the Salt Museum in Zigong. 
Set up in 1959 at the heart of Zigong city, the Salt Museum collects, studies, preserves as well as displays artifacts relating to salt mining and natural gas usage. Stretching from wall to wall, mural paintings show salt preparing and mine drilling. There are more than 1300 instruments on display. Within that, over 500 drilling tools are there. You would surely notice that the instruments were much advanced than the age they were made in. Marvel and appreciate the superb engineering skill of the ancient Chinese.
Xiqin Assembly Hall and Wangye Temple together make the Salt Museum in Zigong. The hall is built on Ming architectural style. Built by merchants who came from Shaanxi Province to trade in salt, the hall itself is worth looking at.
Wangye Temple also houses important and invaluable exhibits relating to salt mining. The original building was destroyed much before. The government rebuilt it in the year 1984. However this new building is a facsimile of the original temple building. The temple has a tea house too. After a tour you can refresh yourself by sipping into green tea.
With more than 20000 people visiting the museum annually, the salt museum in Zigong also lets the visitors to try out salt mining using the tools on display.