Espai museístic del Ferro Casa Sintet Alins (Vall Ferrera)

Located in the heart of Alins, in the picturesque Vall Ferrera, the Casa Sintet Iron Museum is a living testament to the rich ironworking tradition of the Catalan Pyrenees. Housed in a former stable and barn of the family home, this museum offers a unique immersion in the history of iron and rural life in the Pallars Sobirà region.

A TRIP TO THE STEEL PAST OF THE FERRERA VALLEY

In 1801, Pau Casimiro Gaspá established a forge in Santa María de la Torre, just 2.5 km from Alins. This forge, the last operating in the valley, was an economic driving force until its closure around 1880, due to the mechanization of iron production and falling prices. The iron produced was transported to various towns such as Sort, La Pobla de Segur, and the Boí Valley, and even exported to France.

The iron produced in the forge was transported by round-footed animals to various points throughout the region: Sort, La Pobla de Segur, La Vall de Boí... In spring, when the river thaws, the river reached a considerable flow, and it was then transported by raft to Lleida, Tortosa, Tarragona and Sagunto; it was also exported to France.

When the price of iron ore was already falling, Casa Sintet 's economy shifted toward livestock farming, an activity they can still claim to be a viable option.

PRESENT

This space opened in July 2014 with the aim of telling the story of the Vall Ferrera steel industry, directly linked to one of the most important families of the Iron Age, as well as the evolution of the same farmhouse over decades; all this in a former court and barn belonging to the same farmhouse.

With a guided tour led by the house's descendants, you'll be shown the entire grounds, where they'll explain, through the more than 300 exhibits from all these eras, everything from the family's origins to the operation of the Forge and the entire economy that revolved around it, and the peasant work that has been carried out at the house for more than 200 years.