EXCERPT FROM SARA’S
JOURNALJanuary 26, 1999
Huerta Santa Maria
Near Galaroza
Rio Tinto
35 Kilometres from Santa Maria is the oldest, and one of the
largest opencast mines in the world. The giant mines at Minas de Rio Tinto have
been exploiting silver, iron and copper since Phoenician times. The civilizations that
have inhabited the area in the past 5000 years have left evidence of their use of the
mines. The Rio Tinto Company shares their finds at the Riotinto District Museum, the only
one of its kind in Spain.
The museum is cold. We are growing accustomed to the large, portable,
gas-fired estufas that sit in each room. Everyone in Spain has one in January.
The museum houses, in near perfect condition, a Roman waterwheel found
within the mines. Also on display are pottery, decorative objects, funeral items, statuary
and construction materials all, which show early settlements to be involved in a high
level of mining and metallurgy activity from the Bronze Age to the present.
The Rio Tinto Mines Railway was at first used for mining operations,
transporting the concentrate to the port of Huelva. With the passage of time the railway
became an integral part of the cultural heritage of the Riotinto District, transporting
visitors to the mines and through the countryside from the coast.
As part of the railway exhibit the museum houses The Maharajah’s
Carriage, deemed to be the most luxurious narrow gauge passenger carriage in the world.
The wooden cars are furnished with leather-upholstered reclining chairs and games tables.
The walls and ceilings are ornately carved with Eastern designs, as the carriage was
originally built for a trip that Queen Victoria was going to take to India. The visit was,
at the last minute cancelled, and the carriage was moved to Spain to be used by the King
Alfonso XIII for a royal visit to the mines. I am tempted to climb aboard for a relaxing
journey—it would be quite comfortable to have a nap in the plush, reclining seats,
but the carriage sits still, on a track that ends at the edge of the garage-like room.
