The landscape that characterises these unique mountains is the result of an enormous Roman gold-mining project in which water power was an essential tool.
Las Médulas World Heritage Site
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This clever mining operation saw more than 700 kilometres of canals laid out to capture and conduct water from the surrounding area to the heart of the mountains, where it flowed inside the network of cavities to make the conglomerate unstable. A final deluge of water was then introduced, causing a landslide of large quantities of earth to collapse outwards.
After this process, the fine work began, depending on the geological layout of the areas with the highest quantities of gold.
These immense works removed much of the mountains’ mass, leaving only the core. Once removed, the slight slope of the land towards the Sil basin was used to wash and sift the materials in search of the precious mineral that would then be used to mint the imperial or gold coins.
When the Romans began to use the complex mining technique of ruina montium, the appearance of Las Médulas began to change. The mountains were crumbling and the landscape was dotted with fractured testimonies, like pinnacles and rock towers. Today they are the most beautiful reminder of the ancient Roman mining that took place here: they are natural supports that prevented unwanted collapses during the extraction phases.
According to Pliny the Elder in his book Natural History, these mountains collapsed “with a crash which it is impossible for human imagination to conceive, and likewise with an incredibly violent blast of air”.
The extractive human intervention in the landscape meant that, after the demolitions, small valleys, gullies, lagoons, etc. began to form. They were the result of subsequent mining works such as moving the gold-bearing conglomerate, separating coarse pebbles or boulders, sluicing in channels to extract the gold, and the final removal of tailings from the mining installations. These materials piled up and closed off valleys, creating exceptional sites such as Lake Carucedo, a wetland unintentionally created by the Romans, but which today is one of the natural treasures of Las Médulas.
Inspiration for your trip
Explore the most emblematic parts of Las Médulas with itineraries to discover the exceptional natural values of this terrain and its particular cultural features.
If you would like to understand how these landscapes were formed, it is a good idea to start with the main archaeological sites
Be prepared to visit as many as you can, because they are home to traditional architecture made from the materials of the surrounding landscape.
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