Nerva is located 4km east of Minas de Rio Tinto, and its fate has been similarly entwined with that of the famous mines. The mine you can visit as part of the Mining Park, Peña del Hierro, is actually located within the municipality of Nerva.
As well as its mining heritage, Nerva has Roman remains in Las Arenillas; in fact, the village takes its name from the Roman emperor Nerva, who ruled briefly in the 1st century AD. The Cerro del Moro mine was used for silver from the 1st century BC (you can see a fragment of this silver, as well as a carved Carnelian ring found nearby, in the Mining Musem in nearby Las Minas de Riotinto), but mining stopped in the second half of the second century AD.
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Some remains were confirmed by mine archaeologists as being from the second century BC. Even further back in history, there is a dolmen, known as La Lancha, where various vessels were found, now also on display in the Mining Museum, plus the Neolithic burial ground of Parritam, west of the village.
The village's more recent history dates from 1885, when it was made into a municipality independent from Zalameda la Real. It reached its peak of inhabitants in 1940, with nearly 15,000.
The main square has a noteworthy red-brick Ayuntamiento (town hall) building, which dates from 1893, with a Mudejar-style octagonal tower. The two fountains, Campofrio and Pozo Bebe, both also date from the late 19th century.
Contemporary art enthusiasts shouldn`t miss the Museo Vazquez Diaz, housed in an interesting modern building. The artist studied in Paris and was a contemporary of Picasso. He painted a series of frescoes on Columbus for La Rabida monastery, and you can see replicas of these displayed in the museum.
Fiestas are concentrated into the month of August, with the town patron on San Bartolome on 24 August, and the town fiesta on 7 August.
To get to Nerva, which is 74km from Huelva, take exit 75 off the A49 towards Trigueros. Then take the N435, and after Trigueros and Zalamea la Real, carry on along the A461 to Minas de Rio Tinto. At Minas, take the A476 to Nerja. This map will show you where Nerva is.
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