Visit the Mint 

The Friends of the Segovia Mint Association had been offering guided tours of the Royal Mill Mint (1583) from 1997 up until the beginning of the restoration project.  Now, Mankind's Oldest Industrial Monument is completely restored, thanks to a $16 million dollar rennovation project which lasted 4 years (from February 2007 to May 2011).  The project was paid for by the Ministry of Housing, the Assembly of Castile and Leon, and Segovia City Hall.  (info. and photos of the reconstruction).  However, the restored Mint complex, today, still remains without its corresponding "Museum of Minting Technology", and is completely empty of contents. Nevertheless, Segovia City Hall is currently offering occasional guided tours of the Mint complex.    For information about these guided tours, please contact the Segovia City Hall Tourism Office, listed below. 

Visitors Reception Center - Reservations Office
Azoguejo, 1, Segovia  Tel.: (+34) 921 - 466 720  /  21
www.turismodesegovia.com  /  info@turismodesegovia.com 

According to Law 37 / 2007 of April 19, article 71, Segovia City Hall, has  "the obligation to permit public access" to this Site of Cultural Interest, "for a minimum of 4 days per month, free of entrance charge, during predetermined and publicized days and times."

Below you will find a large selection of the most recent photographs of the Segovia Mint, taken after the completion of the restoration project.  (Click on photos to enlarge). 


The monumental neo-classic entrance to the Segovia Mint, as seen from Coin Street.


The Segovia Mint (lower left) in the Eresma River valley, with the neighboring Alcazar castle in the background.

Close-up shot of the Segovia Mint, taken from the Alcazar castle. 


View of the Mint taken from atop the cliff on the other side of the Eresma River.


View of the Mint with its weir, or dam, and sluice gates on the Eresma River in the foreground, and the Alcazar castle above.


View of the Segovia Mint from the other side of the Eresma River, with the historic walled district of the city above..

The ROYAL SEGOVIA MILL MINT COMPLEX was restored from 2007 to 2011 by the  Volconsa-Velasco company, using an Implementation Project drawn up by the architect Eduardo de la Torre Alejano and his team.  This Project was based on the "MUSEUM GUIDELINES PROJECT", drawn up for Segovia City Hall in 2004 by Glenn Murray, winner of the Grand Prize for EUROPEAN UNION CULTURAL HERITAGE EUROPA NOSTRA - 2009.   In 2010, Segovia City Hall won the second place award for WORLD HERITAGE CITIES given by the Spanish Ministry of Culture, for having restored the Mint: "and considering the importance of the architectural restoration of a building designed by Juan de Herrera, for restoring this Industrial Heritage Site and its explanation through a Museum Project. This represents a restoration of great significance, carried out with due concern for its environmental surroundings, architecture and history.

---

THE MONUMENTAL ROYAL MINT COMPLEX 
AS SEEN FROM ITS SURROUNDINGS

---

THE MONUMENTAL MINT COMPLEX
AS SEEN FROM COIN STREET

---

TICKET OFFICE FOR
THE MINTING TECHNOLOGY MUSEUM
(historic guard station)

---

THE MINTING TECHNOLOGY MUSEUM BUILDING
(historic coining departments)

---

THE SEGOVIA MINT'S CULTURAL BUILDING
Library, temporary exhibits hall,
research center, multi-purpose lecture halls.
(historic foundry, reception and dispach desk, treasury, assay and weighing rooms, factory archive and offices)

---

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE MINT'S LOCATION

The Segovia Mint is nestled in the narrow Eresma River valley, just outside the medieval wall that surrounds the historic district of the city, at the foot of the Alcázar castle. Looking towards one direction the castle looms overhead, and off towards the other is the splendid 15th century Parral Monastery. The entire area is classified as a green, protected zone. Historic monuments, garden patches, trees, the Eresma River -- crossed by two ancient bridges -- and the small neighborhood of San Marcos, comprise the Mint's surrounding landscape.

The river, with its tree-lined promanade, is the centerpiece of the Mint’s setting. It’s flow pauses briefly at the Mint’s weir (dam) where water is drawn off to to feed the waterwheels which powered the Mint’s machinery. The visitor feels transported centuries back in time, surrounded by monuments, trees and the river. No modern building interrupts the setting.

The complex of buildings which makes up the Mint is situated on the left bank of the river, set up against Coin  bridge to the Parral Monastery, and bordered by “Calle de la Moneda” (Coin Street). Access to the complex is via the huge neo-classic monumental entryway. Upon entering, one finds oneself on the upper level of a great, split-level central patio, surrounded by buildings that served as departments of the historic industrial manufacturing plant. The entire panorama from the upper patio, has the castle and the Parral Monastery for its backdrop.

The buildings along the upper patio level are the ones which did not require water power for their function: historic foundry, reception and dispach desk, treasury, assay and weighing rooms, factory archive and offices. The great machinery building sits along the length of the lower patio level, with the canals and waterwheels on its back side. The upper level of the machinery building is connected to the upper patio level via a curious footbridge which exits into a sunken stairway leading between the two patio levels. On the other side of the canal is the “old mill”, with its own patio, views and ambiance.

Adjacent to, and in back of the administration building, is the factory’s historic romantic garden. It’s a hidden garden which is accessed through two doors, which guard its private setting. In the center is a gazebo with a fountain, and a room with a small balcony overlooking the river where the king enjoyed fishing for trout when he visited his Mint.