The prehistoric complex of Provadia-Solnitsata, located near the modern town of Provadia in northeastern Bulgaria, contains the remains of the earliest salt-production center in Europe (5600–4350 BCE), which later developed into the continent’s first prehistoric urban center (4700–4350 BCE). The site includes a salt-production facility with ritual pits, an originally unfortified settlement later enclosed by stone walls, a ritual field, and a necropolis, spanning approximately 30 ha. Its origin and development were closely tied to the Mirovo salt deposit, the only rock salt deposit in the Eastern Balkans, which lies beneath the settlement. Throughout much of late prehistory, the producers of salt or “white gold” held a monopoly over this essential resource across a vast region, from the Danube to the Aegean Sea and from the Black Sea to the Central Balkans. Salt became a strategic raw material, driving both economic and social development. It also functioned as “commodity money,” making Provadia-Solnitsata the first “mint” in prehistoric Europe. The earliest recorded instance of boiling brine in pottery vessels to produce salt in Europe occurred at Provadia-Solnitsata, a method that continued for over a millennium. The heat required for the process was either generated in specialized installations or provided directly by open fire, both relying on burning wood. By the end of the Chalcolithic, a technological shift led to brine evaporation in large basins using solar radiation.