Logbook · 7 places

What to see and do in Arcos de las Salinas

What to see and do in Arcos de las Salinas (Gúdar-Javalambre, Teruel): 7 places across monuments, nature, activities and curiosities, with a photo and a Google Maps location.

1 Villages · 2 Monuments · 1 Activities · 2 Historical milestones · 1 Food and drink

How far each place is from the centre of Arcos de las Salinas

Church of Arcos de las Salinas 50 m
Javalambre Astrophysical Observatory 5.9 km

Towns near Arcos de las Salinas

What to see in Torrijas 7.8 km · 3 places
What to see in Puebla de San Miguel 11 km · 12 places
What to see in Aras de los Olmos 11 km · 4 places
What to see in La Yesa 13 km · 1 place
What to see in Alpuente 13 km · 14 places
What to see in Titaguas 14 km · 7 places
What to see in Abejuela 15 km · 3 places
What to see in Riodeva 17 km · 2 places

Spain › Aragon › Teruel › Gúdar-Javalambre › Arcos de las Salinas

What to see and do in Arcos de las Salinas

Arcos de las Salinas
Village
Arcos de las Salinas is a municipality in the comarca of Gúdar-Javalambre, in the province of Teruel, at an altitude of 1,081 metres and 73 km from the capital, watered by the Arcos and Torrijano rivers. It owes its name to the inland salt works located almost two kilometres from the village, already active in the mid-12th century after the conquest of James I; in 1357 they were fortified, turning the well building into a defence tower. Worked first by the Comunidad de Teruel and later by the State, they were privatised in 1907; they preserve two wells, one with a waterwheel driven by draught animals, and wooden channels that carried the salt water to the crystallisation ponds. On the Pico del Buitre (1,957 m) stands the Astrophysical Observatory.
Javalambre Astrophysical Observatory
Monument
Astronomical observatory located on the sierra de Javalambre, taking advantage of the excellent quality of its skies, certified as a Starlight Reserve. Its facilities stand on the Pico del Buitre, at 1,957 metres, within the municipality of Arcos de las Salinas, and are managed by the Centro de Estudios de Física del Cosmos de Aragón, which developed them from 2007 after a first failed attempt in 1992. It has two professional telescopes, the JST250, of 2.55 metres, and the JAST80, of 80 centimetres, dedicated to mapping the universe for the study of dark energy through the J-PLUS and J-PAS projects; in 2020 JPCam was installed, a camera of over 1,200 million pixels, the second largest in the world after the one at Pan-STARRS in Hawaii.
Church of Arcos de las Salinas
Monument
Church of la Inmaculada in Arcos de las Salinas, in a village whose salt works, documented since the mid-12th century, were fortified in 1357 and remain today in the hands of the Campillo family, owners since 1907.
Festivities of Arcos de las Salinas
Activity
The festivities of Arcos de las Salinas are celebrated in a town whose inland salt works, active since the mid-12th century with production already documented in the Bronze Age, were fortified in 1357 and passed under a state monopoly regime in 1749; since 1907 they have been owned by the Campillo family.
Fortification of the salt works
Historical milestone
The salt pans had been in activity since the middle of the twelfth century and in 1357 they were fortified, turning the structure of the well into a defensive tower. Recent excavations have documented salt production as early as the Bronze Age.
The salt monopoly
Historical milestone
In 1749 salt passed to a monopoly regime and the working of it ceased to be in the hands of the commons to come under state control. In 1907 the Campillo family acquired the salt pans, which have remained in private ownership ever since.
Salt from the Royal Salt Works
Food and drink
The salt spring still feeds evaporation beds where salt is obtained by traditional procedures. These are among the oldest inland salt pans of the peninsula, with production documented since the medieval period.