Contamina
Contamina
Municipality in Aragon, Spain
Contamina is a municipality located in the province of Zaragoza, Aragón, Spain to the west of the Sierra de Padros, in the upper valley of the river Jalón, a tributary of the Ebro. According to the 2008 census (Instituto Nacional de Estadística), the municipality has a population of 42 inhabitants. In 1930 the population was 252.[2] The 16th-century parish church is dedicated to St Bartholomew and is constructed in the baroque style. It has a notable 16th-century altar depicting the life of Saint Bartholomew in eight panels.[3]
The novel Secuestro y fonda de Cela en Contamina by José de Cora, is set in the pueblo and recounts a fictional history of the kidnapping of 1989 Nobel Prize winner Camilo José Cela by three local inhabitants.[4]
Two kilometres to the east lies the spa town of Alhama de Aragón. The main highway between Zaragoza and Madrid skirts the northern edge of the settlement. This is a rural community with arable and fruit farms. There is a restaurant and a casa rural (self catering accommodation).[5][6]
A few kilometres to the south-east lies the Tranquera reservoir and the ancient Monasterio de Piedra with its famous water gardens.