Barbórka 2024 at KGHM Polska Miedź - a celebration of mining traditions and jubilees
Traditions, jubilees, community - the main celebrations of the mining holiday at KGHM will take place this year on 29 November and 4 December. As every year, there will be no shortage of employee decorations, a ‘Lis Major’ parade and symbolic hide jumping. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Rudna Mining Facility.
St. Barbara’s Day (Barbórka) and its accompanying customs are deeply rooted in KGHM’s mining tradition. These celebrations are more than meetings and ceremonies. Traditions such as jumping over a hide, the induction of young apprentices into the ranks of miners, and ceremonies for the awarding of honorary swords and medals are a symbol of respect for the mining heritage in the Copper Belt.
Barbórka celebrations at KGHM
This year’s celebrations are scheduled for 29 November, when residents of the Copper Belt and visitors will be able to take part in symbolic ceremonies such as the ‘Lis Major’ parade and the ‘jump over a hide’ ceremony in the centre of Lubin. On that day, there will also be ceremonies for the awarding of state and jubilee medals and the traditional feasts - the Beer Tavern and the Ladies’ Miner Feast (Comber Babski).
On 4 December, Saint Barbara's Day, there will be a solemn Mass for the intention of miners and their families at the Shrine of St. Maksymilian, and the day will begin with the traditional miners' wake-up call, which will resound from the early hours of the morning in the cities of the Copper Belt.
The timeline of Barbórka at KGHM
- Friday, 29 November
1:30 p.m. - Barbórka Ceremony, state decorations, jubilee distinctions, and swords award ceremony - ‘Muza’ Cultural Centre in Lubin, 1 Armii Krajowej Street
3:00 p.m. - ‘Lis Major’ parade and hide jumping ceremony (immediately after the ceremony; the parade will depart from the ‘Muza’ Cultural Centre and end at the Lubin Market Square)
- Wednesday, 4 December
6:00 a.m. - Miners' wake-up calls - Lubin, Polkowice, Głogów
9:00 a.m. - Solemn Holy Mass for the intention of the miners and their families - Sanctuary of Maximilian Maria Kolbe in Lubin, 32 Orla Street
1:00 p.m. - Ceremony at the Jan Wyżykowski monument in Lubin
Mining traditions
The mining colours are black and green. The first is a symbol of the underground darkness and the second - of the miners’ longing for the green of forests and fields while working underground. The emblem is a ‘perlik’ (hammer) and a ‘żelazko’ (short pick). Mining weapons include the axe, sword and cutlass.
Appointment as a miner has always been a solemn act. One of its stages was jumping over a hide - a ritual for accepting young miners (referred to as foxes) into the mining profession. Today, jumping over a hide is still cultivated as part of the Barbórka celebrations.
