The Abandoned Gold Mine of Las Médulas

Las Médulas is a unique place that was once the largest gold mine in the Roman Empire. Now it is an abandoned landscape of red mountains and boulders formed by the extraction of gold using hydraulic mining. The ingenious Roman engineers built an incredible water management system that diverted rivers and streams to wash away the soil and extract gold. The mines were so large that they produced as much natural erosion in a single day as a small river does in a year. The result is a stunning landscape that looks like it is on fire when the sun sets over the red rocks. I was able to compare this place with other mines I have visited, such as the salt mines of Wieliczka in Poland or the silver mines of Potosí in Bolivia.