Las Médulas, Nature reserve and former gold mine in León, Spain.
Las Médulas is a former open-pit mining area in the mountains of León in northwestern Spain, now protected as a nature reserve and archaeological site. The landscape shows red clay formations with peaks, caves and deep valleys, surrounded by chestnut forests and scattered observation points.
The Romans began extracting gold here in the first century through a technique that used water to erode mountain slopes and expose the ore. The work lasted about two centuries and left behind an altered landscape with channels and aqueducts covering great distances.
The name refers to a Roman settlement and the Latin word for nymphs or shrine of this region. Visitors today see the connection between engineering skill and the lives of people who built channels and diverted water courses here.
Several hiking trails lead through the terrain and connect the observation points with the entrances to galleries and caves. A visitor center offers explanations about mining technique and the geology of the region, without requiring special equipment.
The Romans moved over millions of cubic meters of earth and rock here by using water pressure to collapse entire slopes. The red color of the formations comes from iron oxide in the clay, which glows especially intense in sunlight.
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