Logbook · 10 places

What to see and do in Elche de la Sierra

What to see and do in Elche de la Sierra (Sierra del Segura, Albacete): 10 places across monuments, nature, activities and curiosities, with a photo and a Google Maps location.

1 Villages · 3 Monuments · 1 Nature · 3 Activities · 1 Curiosities · 1 Food and drink

When to go to Elche de la Sierra: festival calendar

February: San Blas in Elche de la Sierra (February 3)
September: Festivities of septiembre de Elche de la Sierra (Del 15 al 19 de septiembre)

How far each place is from the centre of Elche de la Sierra

Church of Santa Quiteria de Elche de la Sierra 150 m

Towns near Elche de la Sierra

What to see in Letur 10 km · 14 places
What to see in Férez 11 km · 7 places
What to see in Ayna 12 km · 11 places
What to see in Liétor 13 km · 12 places
What to see in Socovos 14 km · 8 places
What to see in Molinicos 17 km · 11 places
What to see in Bogarra 21 km · 11 places
What to see in Alcadozo 23 km · 7 places

Spain › Castilla-La Mancha › Albacete › Sierra del Segura › Elche de la Sierra

What to see and do in Elche de la Sierra

Elche de la Sierra
Village
Municipality of the comarca of Sierra del Segura, in the province of Albacete, famed for the carpets of dyed sawdust made on the night before Corpus Christi, a tradition begun in 1964 and declared a Festival of National Tourist Interest in 2014. Its church of Santa Quiteria is a Neoclassical temple raised in the 1780s by the architect Francisco Pérez Rodríguez, and through the district run the canyons of the Segura, with pools and numerous springs; a Roman inscription suggests the place may have had the status of a municipium.
Church of Santa Quiteria de Elche de la Sierra
Monument
A neoclassical church built in the 1780s by the architect Francisco Pérez Rodríguez. With a Latin cross plan and side chapels, it covers some 1,350 square metres and has two bell towers.
Town Hall of Elche de la Sierra
Monument
A building of the early 19th century on the Plaza Ramón y Cajal, with two storeys and round-arched openings.
Aguado Theatre
Monument
Theatre opened in 1917 with a performance of the work Agua, azucarillos y aguardiente, burned down in 1994 and reopened after its refurbishment in 2015, the main stage venue in Elche de la Sierra.
Canyons of the Río Segura in Elche de la Sierra
Nature
Gorges carved by the River Segura within the municipal district, with pools and bathing spots. The municipal district also has numerous springs such as El Alamillo, Fuente Hilario, La Poza and Fuente Carrasca.
Sawdust carpets for Corpus Christi in Elche de la Sierra
Activity
The Alfombras de Serrín (sawdust carpets) are made on the night before Corpus Christi in the streets of Elche de la Sierra (Albacete), where residents, organised today into peñas, create mosaics and religious scenes with dyed sawdust and wood shavings. The idea was born in 1963, when Francisco Carcelén, after seeing the flower carpets of the Octava del Señor in Terrassa, thought of making use of the surplus wood shavings from local sawmills, dyed with the dyes from his clothing business; in the early hours of 28 May 1964 he made one together with ten young people from the town along the route of the procession, surprising the residents. Sawdust replaced shavings from 1967, the competition was established in 1969 and the Asociación de las Alfombras de Serrín was founded in 1990. In 2014 they were declared Fiesta de Interés Turístico Nacional (Spain's highest level of tourism recognition for festivals).
Festivities of septiembre de Elche de la Sierra
Activity
The town's main festivities, with bulls released within the enclosed area of the town in the morning and afternoon and verbenas organised by the peñas. They are held from 15 to 19 September; the bulls remain in the corral Colorao until that day. In the morning, between eleven and one, two young bulls are released, and in the afternoon, around five, a single animal is released. The peñas organise free verbenas every night in the Placeta del Gorrinero since 2007. In 2014 the festivities were declared de Interés Turístico Nacional (a national-level tourism designation).
San Blas in Elche de la Sierra
Activity
The feast of San Blas is celebrated in Elche de la Sierra (Albacete) on 3 February, in honour of the town's patron saint. The programme includes the Vuelta a la Peña de San Blas and the encierros de San Blas, of lesser standing than those of September, which draw large crowds to the plaza de la Iglesia and the plaza Vieja. Residents distribute the rollos de San Blas among themselves, blessed by the patron saint and formerly carried on donkeyback, though today they are taken by lorry for convenience.
Elche de la Sierra in Roman times
Curiosity
Elche de la Sierra almost certainly held the status of a Roman municipium: this is indicated by the inscription CIL II 3538, which records the donation of Gallio Fusciano for the building, repair or fitting-out of a curia, the seat of the municipal assembly, a type of building typical of Roman administrative centres. The site has also yielded other inscriptions, among them those of Licinio Galión and Lucio Emilio Flavo, which confirm the importance of this Roman settlement in the area.
Mountain andrajos
Food and drink
A broth stew with thin cakes of unleavened dough broken by hand, cooked with hare, rabbit or cod, tomato and pepper. The name alludes to the shreds of dough, which stay tender and absorb all the flavor of the broth.