Craftsmanship and rural life
The province of Salamanca treasures ancestral trades and traditions that have given rise to beautiful pieces of craftwork.
Metalsmiths and jewellers use precious metals to master the interlacing of the renowned Salamancan filigree in the provincial capital city of Salamanca, as well as in other municipalities all through the province, such as Ciudad Rodrigo, Mogarraz, San Martín del Castañar or Tamames. Crafted stonemasons, successors of those who helped decorate temples and palaces in the past, now work on sandstone in Villamayor as well as on granite in Sorihuela and Los Santos.
The humble clay in Alba de Tormes, Cespedosa or El Bodón is then transformed by potters and ceramists in domestic utensils and real works of art that anyone can afford nowadays. Villoruela then becomes the focus of wicker production, while La Alberca and Mogarraz carefully work the wood, and Montemayor del Río masters chestnut basketmaking.
Cotton and wool furnish the sewing craftsmanship of El Bodón and Morasverdes, allowing for the manufacturing of flashy embroidery in Sierra de Francia mountains. Livestock vocation in the province fosters the existence of expert leather workers and shoemakers in Macotera, Salamanca, Villavieja de Yeltes, Ciudad Rodrigo, Béjar and Mogarraz.
All of these are examples of the master artisans’ good deeds, whose labour enriches the culture and originality of this land.
Duero river interpretative museum in Hinojosa de Duero
In these facilities, the town hall of Hinojosa has gathered one of the most varied collections of objects in three rooms. On the ground floor, visitors shall be able to discover the best works of the museum: a collection of Roman funerary steles, together with other archaeological objects.
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Museum of the chamber pot
In the heart of Ciudad Rodrigo, at the foot of the Cathedral tower, travellers shall find one of the most original museums in this country.
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Museum of the Salamancan plains and countryside in Macotera
The natural environment of the Salamancan countryside and prairies suggests a secular dialogue between nature and men. We are placed before a slowly modified landscape that is a remarkable example of environmental sustainability.
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Linen ethnographic museum in Peñaparda
This museum extends over the process of linen production from flax cultivation to the moment skeins are brought to the loom.
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“Saturjuanela” House Museum
The “Saturjuanela” House Museum in La Alberca is a private initiative which pretends to dignify the traditional way of life of the village, which was economically humble but rich in values and symbols.
"Casa de las Artesanías" ethnographic museum in Mogarraz
Right in the main square of a village that is a museum in itself, the visitor will find a simple yet attractive display focused on the most representative craftwork in Sierra de Francia mountains.