Ethnographic heritage
Beteta not only captivates with its dreamy landscapes and rich history, but also invites you on a journey back in time through its ethnographic heritage. The livestock, agricultural and forestry past is reflected in the numerous traditional vestiges that persist in the landscape of Beteta.
The dry stone walls, which delimited land and roads, were also tools for the control of livestock. The dry stone walls, which delimited land and roads, were also tools used to control livestock. The lime and lime kilns, dedicated to the production of lime and pitch, are vestiges of forest exploitation to obtain materials for daily use. The gancheros, which transported the wood from the Alto Tajo, are another testimony of this activity.
In the surroundings of Beteta are still visible the old threshing floors where the grain was threshed and the old hydraulic mills that transformed the cereal into flour. Some of these mills, perfectly preserved, make up some of the most beautiful spots in Beteta, as is the case of the Huertavellida Mill.
Rural depopulation, aging, the lack of generational replacement and the commitment to more comfortable jobs threaten to make these trades and the heritage linked to them disappear. However, this legacy has been impregnated in the landscape, in the gastronomy, in the folklore and in the architectural elements, waiting to be discovered by the traveler.