Las Médulas

About this place

Las Médulas is a historic gold-mining site near the town of Ponferrada in the El Bierzo area of León province, Castile and León, northwest Spain, about 17 km southwest of Ponferrada in a straight line. It was the most important gold mine and the largest open-pit gold mine in the whole Roman Empire, and it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The dramatic landscape is the result of a Roman technique called «ruina montium», wrecking the mountains, described by Pliny the Elder in 77 AD, in which a mountain was undermined with huge quantities of water. The water came through at least seven long aqueducts from the streams of the La Cabrera mountains, and the same channels were used to wash the gold deposits. LIDAR aerial surveys in 2014 confirmed how widespread the Roman works were. Peaks and towers of eroded red and orange earth rise among dense green forests of old chestnut trees, like the remains of carved mountains. The red glows at sunset, and cloud and mist curl around the peaks on damp days. Visitors walk trails among the red towers and old tunnels, and climb to the Orellán viewpoint for the widest view over the whole landscape. Most start from the village of Las Médulas, and autumn is lovely when the chestnuts change colour.