[11] He depicts this deposit as bigger than the main halite mines of the time, such as those in Spain, Switzerland, Poland and the County of Tyrol with a calculated resource estimation of one million cubic meters.

Von Humboldt also criticized the excavation techniques as being unpractical for future exploitation, recommending drift mining instead, since the halite tunnels don't require beams, lowering the costs.

[11] Years before the underground church was built (around 1932), the miners had carved a sanctuary, as a place for their daily prayers asking for protection to the saints before starting to work.

In 1950, the construction of a bigger project had begun: the Salt Cathedral which was inaugurated on August 15, 1954, and dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary, Patron saint of miners.

The Industrial Investment Institute, together with Salinas Concession and the Colombian Society of Architects opened a contest for the design of the new cathedral, the winner of which was the project presented by Roswell Garavito Pearl[13] which included structural changes in the access tunnel and the dome.

The main sections of the building are: Four large cylindric columns represent the Four Evangelists The cathedral has an electrical generator and access for vehicles to the inner space (for emergencies only).

The cathedral is within a larger complex, Parque de la Sal (Salt Park),[14] which also includes a museum of mining, mineralogy, geology and natural resources.