History, Culture and Traditions

Vallehermoso comprises an important amount of artistic, architectural and intangible properties of special interest. Traditions and costumes, which are considered heritage, are preserved as well as examples of its historical past that can be seen in its streets and museums.

The traditions and its repetitions over the generations, have provided and old legacy which is of a great interest. Examples of this are the way of building the houses, growing crops, the elaboration of objects for the house, agriculture or food or the different folk art examples such as the romances and the “baile del tambor” (traditional dance with the drum), the legends or “el silbo gomero” (a language using whistling).

To start with the craft, we have to take into account that a great part of the products or utensils were produced to be used daily and with the raw material that the rich Nature of Vallehermoso provided. For example, we find the rustic pottery at the highest areas, the wood used for kitchen utensils, musical instruments or architectural elements, all of them coming from the rich indigenous Monteverde; the craft of the “ristra” (which is the name for the skin from the banana tree that is used as a kind of leather) the traditional basket weaving using cane and willow, the textile mills, the goatskin and so on.

It is important to notice the food and agriculture products such as the “miel de palma”, “almogrote” “mojos”, jams and cakes which turn the rich agricultural production into real gastronomic gems.

A great important cultural element is the musical tradition from La Gomera and the written word that is the romance from La Gomera, which are both part of the famous “baile del tambor” mentioned previously. They are a unique ancestral chant and dance in the Hispanic field due to the use of mediaeval romances which have been preserved and adapted since the conquest in the island.

Finally, we can mention the heritage of buildings which is worthy of study and admiration because of the presence of architectural styles coming from the south of Spain and Portugal that Vallehermoso has preserved in its only 500 years of history.