Ancient Roman gold mining site of Las Médulas, León, Spain
© DEEPOL by plainpicture/David Santiago Garci
Roman treasure
This landscape might look natural, but it is not. Pictured here is an ancient Roman gold mining site in Las Médulas Cultural Park, in León, Spain. Romans started exploiting it in the first century and continued doing so for the next 150 years. They removed more than 500 million cubic meters of earth and transformed the landscape forever. To extract gold, a complex system of tunnels was created. It is estimated that more than 20,000 people worked on this site. Once the mining was abandoned, nature recovered, resulting in oak trees, chestnuts trees and a range of wildlife including roe deers, wildcats and boars, among other species.
Related Images
Wildflowers in bloom at Lost Dutchman State Park in Arizona
At the top of Mount Fuji in Japan. Happy New Year!
Prairie and pinnacles near Castle Trail in Badlands National Park, South Dakota
Firefall at Horsetail Fall, Yosemite National Park, California
Frontenac Castle in Old Quebec City
Paepalanthus flowers at sunset, Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park, Brazil
Winter at the Isis Temple in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona
Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, China
Bing Today Images
Tulips, Netherlands
Apr 11, 2025
Fiddlehead fern fronds in Quebec
Apr 11, 2022
Stawa Młyny beacon in Świnoujście, Poland
Apr 11, 2017
