Remolinos Salt Mines

Remolinos is a town in Zaragoza, Spain, located on the banks of the Ebro River and known for centuries for its subway mines of rock salt, still in operation today.

These mines were already exploited in Roman times, although it was in the Middle Ages when they began to appear in royal documents. This exploitation intensified when the kings of the Crown of Aragon made use of the mine, being the only one of similar characteristics in the whole area and constituting a monopoly in Zaragoza. At this time, salt became one of the greatest revenues of the Crown, as it was a fundamental product for preserving food and necessary for the survival of the communities. Years later, demarcations were created and the mines became private property.

Little by little, small companies or individuals ceded their properties to "Salinera Aragonesa", until, after several owners, the "Real" mine ended up being the property of the English company "The Pure Salt Limited", later "Purasal".

But, how many mines are there really in Remolinos?
In 1909, 59 mines were exploited, although only some of them, such as La Real, El Garbanzo, El Ángel or El Balcón, were exploited with a certain intensity. Even today you can still see, at the foot of the Remolinos escarpment, numerous entrances to the small mines that were being worked until the beginning of the 20th century.