The old Minas de Riotinto locomotives
The old Minas de Riotinto locomotives

The old Minas de Riotinto locomotives

The old Minas de Riotinto locomotives

Martian landscape in the heart of Spain

Minas de Riotinto, Spain

We are talking about over 5000 years of mining history in this area. The landscape has been changed forever, and it looks at some places like a alien planet where red, yellow, purple mingle with green, gray and ocher.

The ten abandoned trains account that the site today are only a small part of this industrial landscape that has been suddenly stopped in 1974. At its peak, there was more than 150 trains who were traversing the long and winding road which stretched over 84 km. Each train had between 20 and 50 cars full of pyrite.

The mine located in the town of Minas de Riotinto, as we know it today, began operating in 1875 and stopped almost 100 years later. Today, if the plant is closed, a museum exists on the site.

Related content

The abandoned chemical plant
Eastern Townships, Quebec (Canada)

For several times I passed by this little factory located in an old industrial area in the Eastern Townships, but I never been inside. Each time, I wondered if it was still active or abandoned. I must say that several tiles were broken, but I was...

The old parochial cinema
Gaspésie, Quebec (Canada)

In 1937, we are in the golden age of cinema and in these Gaspé lands, the pastor of this small coastal village is looking for a way to finance the modern church to which he dreams. Convincing parishioners to provide wood and time to build a small...

The Abandoned Aerodrome
Calzadilla de los Barros, (Spain)

Located a few kilometers from the municipality of Calzadilla de los Barros and its 850 inhabitants, the abandoned aerodrome dates from before the Spanish Civil War which took place from 1936 to 1939 with the victory of General Franco.

It...

The pit - Photo: Jarold Dumouchel
Montréal, Quebec (Canada)

Built in 1954, the Dickson incinerator was, at the time, the most modern one in North America. It was built to replace these old incinerators where horses were used for harvesting waste.

In the 1920s, the city of Montreal was struggling...