Molino de los Barber

Molino de los Barber is a 19th-century water mill in Vega de San Mateo, on Gran Canaria, right on the boundary with the municipality of Santa Brígida, at kilometre 19 of the central road linking Las Palmas with the island's interior.

What is this place?

Also known as Molino de Arriba, the Molino de los Barber is the ruin of an industrial complex that for decades supplied the surrounding area with gofio — the roasted grain flour that is a staple of Canarian cuisine. It was a double mill fitted with two pairs of millstones, and its water wheel is considered the largest that ever operated on the island. Power came from water channelled through the Heredad de Tafira irrigation system, dropping through a shaft known as the "cubo," roughly fifty metres tall — again the tallest of its kind on Gran Canaria.

The complex combined a two-storey mill building with adjoining residential and outbuildings. What set the Barber mill apart from other mills on the island was its degree of mechanisation: it included a washer, a dryer and bucket elevators, making it one of the most modernised mills built on Gran Canaria at the time.

How do you get there?

The ruins sit along the central road (carretera central), around kilometre 19, within Vega de San Mateo, close to the border with Santa Brígida. This road is one of the main routes connecting Las Palmas de Gran Canaria with the mountainous interior, so arriving by car is the most straightforward option — expect a route through terrain with considerable changes in elevation, typical of central Gran Canaria.

What will you see on site?

The mill has been out of operation since the early 1940s and has stood abandoned ever since, so what remains today is essentially a ruin — though the main elements of the original layout are still recognisable: the residential buildings, the mill structure itself, the distinctive "cubo" tower, and sections of the aqueduct that once carried water from the Tafira channel. The whole site shows significant deterioration, visible even from the outside.

Despite its poor physical condition, Molino de los Barber holds the status of Bien de Interés Cultural (an asset of cultural interest) and is listed in the Canarian historical heritage catalogue as an ethnological site. It has also been added to the Red List (Lista Roja) maintained by Hispania Nostra, which flags heritage sites at risk of being lost — underlining both its historical value and its fragility.

When should you visit?

As an open-air industrial ruin, the site can be visited year-round. Choosing a time of day with good light helps bring out the detail in the stone construction and the surrounding rural landscape typical of central Gran Canaria; cooler, drier conditions also make it easier to move around the area near the ruins.

Frequently asked questions

Is Molino de los Barber still operating as a mill? No. The mill stopped production in the early 1940s and has remained abandoned since.

What was this mill used for? It was a double water mill for producing gofio, powered by water from the Heredad de Tafira irrigation channel.

Is the site legally protected? Yes, it holds the status of Bien de Interés Cultural and is listed in the Canarian historical heritage catalogue as an ethnological site.

What exactly can you see there today? The ruins of the mill building, the roughly fifty-metre-tall "cubo" tower, remnants of the aqueduct, and the surrounding residential and outbuildings.