In the Spanish province León, there is a small village that carries a great history. The area is called Las Médulas and is recognized by the orange, spiky mountains that surrounds the village. Las Médulas used to be gold mines and since 1977 the area is listed as a world Heritage site.
Many years
ago this area was a part of the Roman Empire. The Romans found that the orange
mountains contained gold and made Las Médulas into the most important goldmine
of the Roman Empire. They used a special technique to bring out the gold. They
made tunnels in the stone and after that they pumped down big amounts of water
in a short time in the tunnels. This brought a powerful force that made the
stone explode and parts of the mountains to fall off. The using of this
technique resulted in giving the mountains the shape that they have today. To use this technique the Romans had to have
access to a lot of water. Down in the village there was a lake that gave them
this. This lake does not remain today. The mines were active for 160-190 years
and they found over 4 tons of gold.
Today Las
Médulas is a place of culture and history and the village receives visitors
from different parts of the world. If you visit Las Médulas today you will be
able to get a guided tour in the museum wich is located near the mountains. The
guided tour will explain about the different methods to extract gold and
stories about the humans who lived there and their lives. After the exciting
tour you can take a walk in the mountains for a full experience. If you visit
Las Médulas in the right season you should definitely take a trip to the
village. You can buy local souvenirs there and other things such as jam, nuts
and other food.
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