Las murallas de Mascarell

There are many towns and villages that make an easy day trip from Valencia. One that peaked my interest was Mascarell.

A town entirely enclosed by walls (or murallas) and surrounded by:

A moat.

Well not exactly. There is no longer a moat. The moat was repurposed as irrigation ditches. So now this unique walled town is surrounded by:

Orange groves.

Even better.

Mascarell is one of two completely walled towns in Spain. I am guessing it’s the only one completely surrounded by walls AND orange groves.

To get to Mascarell, I travelled to Nules, which is about 45 minutes north by commuter train from Valencia. Mascarell is a hamlet of Nules, 1 km away. On my train ride, I passed the ancient town of Sagunto and got a good look at the remains of its majestic hilltop castle that dates from Roman times. These are the types of options you have in Spain – rambling castle ruins or medieval walled towns.

Nules was pleasant but after a stroll around the Plaza Mayor and the small book fair I happened upon I was ready to find the walled town. As soon as I started walking out of Nules I could see the bell tower in the distant skyline. And plenty of orange trees. As I got closer I could make out the rectangular shape that is the town’s enclosure.

Walking through the doorway, I left the outside world behind.

The portal of course is not guarded today. It’s one of two main access ways into the small residential community of about 200 people. The defensive tower beside the doorway overlooks a welcoming and manicured garden. The origins of the village were not so peaceful. It was established in the early 1300s when the Moors were expelled from a neighbouring town. The hefty walls, over 1 metre thick and 3.7 meters (12 feet) in height, were constructed starting in 1553. They were made using soil, mortor and brick in a process called Valencian tapia (or “rammed earth”). The relatively well-preserved walls of Mascarell are a good example of this ancient building technique that was common in the 15th and 16th century in the region of Valencia.

The walls that stand today are the original walls. Roughly 500 years old. I learned from a local resident that some modifications have been made over time.

One renovation was the addition of a third door. The elderly woman told me the wall had been eroding from water damage so residents decided to open the crumbling wall and construct a doorway. If you look at the photos below you can spot the new entrance. Garages have also been built into the walls. Since the 1990s, Mascarell has been designated as a property of “cultural interest” so alterations are no longer permitted.

I was surprised to hear there was a school within the walls. She told me the school was one of the reasons she moved to Mascarell years ago. The population has since dwindled so the school is currently not operating.

“Es una pena,” she said. It’s a pity. With many houses now vacant, she was wistful for a time when the village was lively with chitchat among neighbours and the school noisy with the exuberant squeals of children.

Indeed the village was quiet as I wandered the streets, the walls never too far away. I found the bell tower I saw from a distance. The central plaza with the town hall was lovely, though empty of people. Where I did find people was at a cafe in a pleasant inner courtyard where the school was located. I had a cafe con leche. I lingered. I read the new book I bought at the book fair in Nules.

There was no rush. My tour was complete. I was not in a hurry to find the portal in the walls. The portal that would lead me back to the outside world.