The municipality of Paredes is rich in geological resources and the proof of this fact is the countless mining explorations that took place in this territory.
Complexo Mineiro das Banjas - Sobreira
Paredes
The exploitation of gold is the one that stands out, mainly because it was developed at least since Roman times. The testimonies of this intense activity were marked in the landscape and consist of a set of mining works of exploration in the open - cuttings; underground exploration works - extraction, drainage and wells galleries. There are also traces of workshop villages (fragments of ceramics of construction and common use) that show the practice of metallurgical treatment of primary ore and where numerous millstones (whole and fragmented) and apiloaders have been found.
During the end of the 19th century until the middle of the 20th century, mining works of various metals, such as gold, silver, lead, antimony, were developed, important to the point of building the Banjas Mine Complex.
Source: https://www.cm-paredes.pt/