What we understand as heritage.

We understand our heritage to be all the things that people and society value and consider their own. It encompasses all the legacies, knowledge, experiences, and wisdom passed down from generation to generation that shape our understanding of life. In other words, heritage defines, to some extent, who we are and where we come from.

Heritage can be tangible or intangible. Tangible heritage includes buildings, works of art, monuments, and nature. Intangible heritage includes musical creations, gastronomy, proverbs, and historical customs that make us who we are.

What we know about European heritage.

European heritage is everything that forms part of European history, culture, and identity. It teaches us what people have created throughout the centuries. It includes not only the buildings, monuments, and works of art that constitute the physical or material part, but also the intangible traditions, customs, and languages ​​that have historically developed in Europe and that make us different from other places in the world.

The fact that Europe is such a diverse place enriches European heritage, as each country contributes its idiosyncrasies, its way of seeing and understanding life.

We are the result of the civilizations that have inhabited this continent in the past, and heritage acts as a link between our past and our present and future. It is up to us to care for and preserve it so that we can teach future generations its importance. Keeping collective memory alive is fundamental to fostering respect for the historical and cultural diversity of the European continent.

In short, European heritage is a shared treasure that unites and enriches us as a civilization and provides us with our own identity based on our history and our roots.

The history we can find in the heritage that surrounds us.

The heritage of our people is closely linked to the different episodes of history. Within our municipality lies a pre-Roman archaeological site called El Torelló, which is also the name of the town's other secondary school. The Romans left us roads and villas that are preserved as archaeological sites (the Via Augusta near Onda).

From the medieval period, we have a Muslim legacy, such as the urban layout of our town and neighboring villages, and many of the castles and fortresses that still stand today, like the famous Castle of 100 Towers in our town. As the Christian Reconquista progressed, a whole series of religious monuments filled our towns. We have Gothic and Baroque churches in our town and in nearby villages.

In the modern era, the ceramics industry developed, which is very important for our town because of the wealth it generates, and for neighboring towns because it has provided jobs for a long time.

In the 20th century, there was a civil war, which left behind a significant military heritage in the Sierra de Espadán mountain range. Fortifications and trenches built using dry stone are still preserved in the mountains. Today, many people visit them, and they also generate wealth for the towns that possess this type of heritage.

What we consider most important in our heritage.

We are a high school that serves students from all over the region. Our name comes from the mountain range that surrounds us: IES Serra d'Espadà. Our location is strategic, crossed by paths that have run since ancient times, traversing the entire mountain range and connecting it to the coast and one town to another. These paths that unite the territory are part of our heritage, as they have served to connect generations.

The rich forests and biodiversity of the Serra d'Espadà, which we are learning to appreciate because they are unique, are another important part of our heritage. They are not the most visible from an economic point of view, but they are the ones that have always been there.

We consider our heritage to be all the monuments in our town and nearby towns, whether churches, chapels, sculptures, or other works of art. Our pottery, which is exported worldwide, is also part of our heritage. Our language, Valencian, a language unique to this region, is also part of our heritage, as are all our daily customs that make us who we are… like paella on Sundays, oxen, processions, fireworks, and music…