Historical overview

For centuries, Karkonosze has been reminded to humans as an unknown and inaccessible mountain region. Although, already in the second century n.e. the greek geographer-Ptolomeo was the first who showed Karkonosze on his map of Eastern Germany and Sarmatia, the mountains still remained uncultivated until the X-XI centuries.
The first expedition in inaccessible mountain areas, regarded as deities, were flowing out with reverence for the forces of nature-sources giving rise to rivers. Ancient cultural paths later became the roots of the oldest trails and roads in Karkonosze.
The mountain resources in the form of bullion and precious gemstones have been magnetic to treasure hunters in Karkonosze. Probably from the 12th century, foreign visitors called Walończykami or Walloons penetrated the mountains looking for gold and precious stones. Survived to this day the Karkonosze carved into the rocks of the old Walloon signs, that point the way or had hidden the entrance to places rich in ores and rocks looking for.
Iron ore resources, also discovered by treasure hunters led Karkonosze to become a scene of mining activity. From the fourteenth century in the metal-bearing areas of these mountains, a number of centers of mining - metallurgical, where the mined ore and cast iron. The main area of mining activity on the Silesian side Giant was Kowarski district comprising the valley Jedlicy and the main center Płóknicy in Kowary. The territorial scope of the Kowary mine in the sixteenth century reached up to the Valley of the massif Łomniczki Śnieżka. The existence of small and short-termed mining operation centers were also noted in the area of Karpacz and Szklarska Poręba.