These blocks of salt bound with straw, and called 'amole tchew' (??? ??), were collected in Ethiopia by Major Powell-Cotton while hunting and exploring the country in 1899. Salt has been mined ...

East Africa's Afar depression is one of the ... After each incursion, the seawater evaporated, leaving behind thick layers of salt. This "white gold" has long been an important source of income ...

But extracting the coveted salt means descending into dark caves, then blasting and carrying heavy rock. Faizan Panjwani: The problem is the massive size of the blocks that come from the mine.

Why it's incredible: The salt pans look like a colorful patchwork quilt from above. Walvis Bay is a port city on the Atlantic coast of Namibia that is home to an enormous sea salt production plant.