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Mine of Arnao

Castrillón, Avilés, Asturias

1 Villages · 2 Monuments · 3 Nature · 1 Curiosities

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Mine of Arnao

Curiosity · Castrillón, Avilés, Asturias

Spain's first coal-mining operation, begun in the late 16th century when the friar Agustín Montero discovered the mineral in the nearby cliffs and obtained permission from Philip II to work it; the coal was then exported to Portugal from the port of Avilés. It is also the first undersea mine in Europe. In 1833 it was acquired by the Real Compañía Asturiana de Minas, a Belgian company that in 1855 raised the wooden headframe of the pozo abuelo, the first vertical shaft in Asturias, and built a mining village around it with a casino, schools and housing for the miners. In 1853 a zinc factory was set up nearby, which also drove the growth of Salinas and San Juan de Nieva. The progressive flooding of the galleries, below sea level, forced its closure in 1915.

Photo: JuanDanielSG (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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