Village
Novelda is an inland municipality of the Vinalopó Mitjà comarca, in the province of Alicante, known for its grape production and its trade in spices and marble. On the hill of la Mola (541 m), where the castle that gave rise to the municipality stands, the sanctuary of Santa María Magdalena also rises today. Conquered from the Muslims, the town was part of the Kingdom of Murcia between 1243 and 1252 and joined that of Valencia in 1296; in 1366 Peter the Ceremonious ceded its lordship to Mateo Gornay, and in 1448 it was constituted as a barony. The archaeological remains found in its territory date back to the Eneolithic. Its arid Mediterranean climate records barely one day of frost a year. It has 26,606 inhabitants (INE 2025).
Monument
The castle of la Mola stands on a hill at 360 metres above sea level, 3 kilometres from Novelda, overlooking the middle valley of the Vinalopó; it was part of the network of castles and towers that defended Andalusi territory against the Christian kingdoms. Its first settlement, from the Bronze Age, lay on the southern slope; in the 10th century an Islamic fortified enclosure was built, and with the Almohads, in the 12th, a walled and towered enclosure of polygonal plan was added, of which four of its eight turrets remain. Around the middle of the 13th century it was conquered by the Infante Alfonso of Castile, and in 1305, with the Pact of Elche, it passed to the Crown of Aragon; James II ordered its reconstruction, adding the singular triangular tower of the 14th century. It has been a Monumento histórico-artístico (Spain's former heritage-protection designation, later absorbed into the Bien de Interés Cultural category) since 1931.
Monument
The sanctuary of Santa María Magdalena stands at the foot of the hill of la Mola, in Novelda, next to the castle of la Mola. It was built to a design by the Novelda-born engineer José Sala Sala, with some inspiration from the modernism of Antoni Gaudí, and bears a distant resemblance to the Sagrada Família in Barcelona: its jug shape symbolises the one the saint carried with balm to Jesus. The works, begun in 1918, continued in three phases until 1946. The façade, with two 25-metre towers topped by a cross, combines pebbles from the Vinalopó River, polychrome tiles, brick and masonry. In the apse the image of the patroness of Novelda is venerated, and every 22 July, her feast day, the selection of the grapes that accompany her in procession is held here.
Activity
Novelda's patronal festival, from 18 to 25 July, honours Santa María Magdalena. Its annual celebration was agreed on 19 January 1866 in thanks for having spared the town from a cholera epidemic, and it includes Moors and Christians parades and the Embajada.
Curiosity
The bagged table grape of the Vinalopó is a designation of origin, granted on 24 November 1982, for the table grape grown in the comarca of Medio Vinalopó, in Alicante. The bagging technique, first documented in Novelda in 1919, protects the fruit from birds, insects, pests and bad weather, and delays its ripening to extend the harvest season. It is produced in seven municipalities — Aspe, Hondón de los Frailes, Hondón de las Nieves, Monforte del Cid, Novelda, La Romana and Agost — with two protected white varieties, ideal and aledo, classified as extra grade (minimum 200 grams, no defects) or first grade (minimum 150 grams). A good part of this grape is destined for the tradition of eating twelve grapes on New Year's Eve.
Monument
Modernist building in Novelda reflecting the architectural splendor of the early 20th century in the comarca of El Vinalopó Mitjà. Located on calle Mayor, it is the work of the Murcian architect Pedro Cerdán, who completed it in 1903 on commission from Antonia Navarro Mira for her private residence, which is why it is also known as casa Navarro or casa de la Pichocha. With a ground floor and two upper stories, it stands out for the wrought ironwork of its balconies and windows, and for a singular Modernist staircase with an interior columned courtyard. It served as a family home until 1936, during the Civil War it housed the barracks of the Italian command, and in the postwar period it functioned as a school, before becoming a museum after its restoration in 1977.
Historical milestone
He was born in Novelda in 1713. He took part in the geodesic expedition that measured the arc of meridian in the viceroyalty of Peru, reformed the Navy's arsenals applying English techniques and directed the Academy of Naval Guards of Cádiz until his death in 1773.
Historical milestone
The quarries of the surroundings and the cutting works made Novelda during the twentieth century one of the greatest Spanish centres of marble working. From here comes crema marfil, a pale limestone that is exported in slabs and blocks to dozens of countries.
Food and drink
Since the beginning of the twentieth century Novelda has concentrated the packing of saffron and of spices in Spain. Its companies buy, clean and grade the threads, and from here comes a good part of the saffron and the paprika that are exported under a Spanish brand to Europe and America.