Intrigue in Huelva: The Enduring Malacate of Pozo Rotilio

Silent is the rhythm of Pozo Rotilio, a testament to the enigma that encompasses the malacate. Standing tall at 12 meters, this Koepe-type extraction tower at Huelva is a relic of the Riotinto-Nerva Mining Belt, a monument erected by the Spanish Company of Rio Tinto Mines between 1966 and 1975. Its purpose was to mine 'San Antonio', a mineral discovered by the same company. The mine was christened after Rotilio Martínez Barreiro, the director of Rio Tinto Mines from 1954 to 1974. Sitting as one of the last two such structures in Spain, the malacate still poses a complex puzzle, with an unresolved mission to extract 'San Antonio'. The operation came to a standstill in 1980, apparently without any signs of profitability. In the year 1998, the malacate underwent restoration, a mantle taken up by the Rio Tinto Foundation.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons