Centro de interpretación del Espliego, Escorihuela
Lavender was a very important resource for this municipality, hence the decision to create an interpretation centre with the aim of recovering the subject of lavender and all that it meant for Escorihuela.
In this centre you can see objects that were used for the harvesting and distillation of this plant, where the huge original cauldrons are the most striking.
The materials, which are very varied and in a good state of conservation, have been donated to the CIES by the brothers Jesús and Antonio Luz, who in the mid-20th century were the third largest producers of lavender essence in Spain.
Part of these materials, such as different original utensils and a complete two-body boiler with a conical lid, its corresponding flue and a representative part of the coil, are being restored for installation in the CIES.
In the left wing of the building there are exhibition panels explaining the history of this agricultural work in Escorihuela. There are also planters with specimens of lavandula spicula, this wild lavender whose essence is used to make perfumes and cosmetics.
Finally, an oven has been installed where the distillation process can be seen.
At the same time, special mention should be made of the donation of another 20 boilers, 4 conical lids and 3 grilles, for the creation, in this case, by Juan José Barragán, of a new sculpture located at the entrance to Escorihuela from Alfambra, entitled the Monumento al Espigolero, and dedicated, through the reuse of all these original materials, to the efforts of all those farmers and distillers who developed the exploitation of lavender.
This sculpture is 8 metres long by 8.60 metres high, and in it, 1.35 m. diameter lavender distillation cauldrons have been reused, forming a triangular structure within another, reminiscent of the mountains where lavender was harvested and distilled in the summer months. At the top of the sculpture is a “gleaner” or lavender picker, formed with four reused conical lids, from the same boilers that form the sculpture, and which finishes off the whole ensemble.