A concello on the 'dry border' with Portugal, between the plain of A Limia and the Larouco range: heir to part of the Couto Mixto, with wolf traps, rock-cut tombs and nearly three hundred listed heritage sites.
Baltar is a concello (municipality) in the south of the A Limia district, in the province of Ourense, right on the border with Portugal. Its territory runs from the edge of the plain at Garabelos do Bouzo up to the slopes of the Larouco range, and for centuries it was raia seca country: a "dry border" with no river to mark it, crossed by smugglers’ paths and dotted with villages such as As Maus, which once belonged to the Couto Mixto [4][5][6].
Baltar is one of the least populated concellos in A Limia: it had 986 residents in 2016 and 849 in 2025 [1]. Heavy emigration from 1950 onwards explains much of the decline [4].
Landscape
The land is gentle in the north and rises towards the south, wedged between the Montecelo and A Boullosa hills and the Larouco range, which tops 1,300 m and forms the natural border with Portugal [4]. Two rivers rise within the municipality and flow in opposite directions: the Faramontaos, or río da Rousía, runs north-east to the Limia in Xinzo, and at Garabelos forms the small reservoir that supplies the town; the Salas flows west and joins the Limia at Lobios, near the Lindoso reservoir [7]. Three wetlands in the municipality are listed in the Galician Wetlands Inventory: Ponte da Pedra, Veiga de Farei and A Veiga [7].
The soil is granitic and not very fertile. About 45% is woodland and the rest is meadow and fields of potatoes, rye, maize and vegetables, with pigs, cattle and sheep [4].
History
From hillforts to the border
Ancient settlement left castros (Iron Age hillforts) such as O Castro-A Coroa in Abades and Outeiro do Demo in A Boullosa, and mámoas (megalithic burial mounds) such as those of Cairo and Marquiño [12]. The most remarkable is the Outeiro de Baltar on the northern slope of the Larouco: a Portuguese-Galician team found slag there from tin smelting and from bronze-making with local cassiterite, dating from the late Iron Age or early Roman period, something very rare in the Iberian Peninsula; in the 20th century the hill was mined again [18]. In the Middle Ages the area belonged to the house of Monterrei, and tradition places a battle between the king of Portugal and the Moors at Dourique [4]. In Baltar parish, the Gomariz tombs, or Penediña necropolis, preserve four graves cut into the rock, three of them body-shaped, which the Concello dates to the medieval period [9][12].
The name Baltar comes from Baltarii, the genitive of Baltarius, a personal name of Germanic origin [4].
The Couto Mixto and As Maus
The village of As Maus (Meaus), in Tosende parish, was one of the three that made up the Couto Mixto, together with Santiago and Rubiás. This tiny territory between Galicia and Portugal governed itself: its inhabitants could choose their nationality, supplied soldiers to neither kingdom and paid no taxes, and they were ruled by a judge elected every three years [5][6]. The Treaty of Lisbon of 1864, in force from 1868, gave it to Spain; the Couto was first joined to Baltar, but Santiago and Rubiás asked to move to Calvos de Randín, which the provincial council approved in 1870 [4][6]. As Maus still has the Casa do Xuíz (the judge’s house) and a stone that recalls that past [5][12]. The full story of the Couto is told on the Calvos de Randín page, where its capital, Santiago, stood.
Smuggling and emigration
The border was also a livelihood. Today the Concello maintains a smugglers’ route along the paths that locals used to cross the border "in hard times" [5]. In Tosende the heritage catalogue lists buildings linked to that trade, such as the Casa da Sal (salt house), the Casa de Correos (post house) and two shop houses [12]. After the 1936 coup the Baltar border was also an escape route: the lawyer Celso Romero Peláez fled to Portugal this way, and the teacher Antonio Fernández Vences was arrested in San Paio de Abades in September 1948 after twelve years in hiding [19]. From 1950 emigration emptied many of the villages [4].
Heritage highlights
The Xunta’s heritage catalogue lists 299 sites in Baltar: 140 of ethnographic interest, 118 architectural and 41 archaeological [12].
The parish churches of all seven parishes, under full protection; the church of Tosende has an inscription dated 1719 [12][17].
Petos de ánimas (wayside shrines for the souls): almost every parish has one or more, and the Concello highlights their variety; the one at Tosende, dated 1853, has a bull carved on its base [7][17].
The wolf traps (foxos dos lobos) of Garabelos and Tosende: two converging dry-stone walls (sebes) that drove the wolf into a pit; the Tosende trap has information panels [8].
The Gomariz tombs (Penediña necropolis), with body-shaped rock graves [9].
The Outeiro Redondo petroglyphs and the A Boullosa hillfort, in Vilamaior da Boullosa [12].
Bridges and paved roads: the bridge and road at Niñodaguia, the Alboriza and Penaguda bridges, and other stone bridges over the Salas and its streams [12].
Vernacular buildings: houses with wooden galleries, communal bread ovens (such as the one at Tixós), sundials and the unusual casas do boi, where the village bull was kept [7][12].
Festivals and food
Baltar’s popular festival, in the first half of August, largely organised by young people. It mixes traditional games (the card games tute and brisca, the frog toss, sack races, the sogaturra or tug-of-war across the river) with Portuguese games such as xogo do pau and xogo da porca, a paragliding display and music from Galician and Portuguese groups [10].
Magosto, the autumn chestnut feast, with chestnuts served with ribs, pork belly, chorizo, empanada pie and bica sponge cake [11].
The local cooking comes from the pig slaughter: hams, chorizos, blood pancakes (filloas de sangue) and broths of turnip greens or cabbage for the cold winters [11]. More dates in A Limia festivals month by month.
Notable people
Olimpia Valencia (Baltar, 1898 – Vigo, 1987), the first woman to qualify in medicine in Galicia, graduating in Santiago in 1925 and later a gynaecologist in Vigo; made a favourite daughter of Baltar in 2017 [13].
Jerónimo Fernández de Castro (Baltar, 1758 – Albarracín, 1828), Friar Jerónimo de San Félix, minister general of the Discalced Trinitarians and bishop of Albarracín [15].
Antón Riveiro Coello, a writer born in Xinzo, adopted son of Baltar and honorary judge of the Couto Mixto; his novel A quinta de Saler (1999) draws on the Couto’s history [14].
Parishes
The concello has 7 parroquias (parishes, local territorial units) [3]:
According to the INE municipal register, 849 people as of 1 January 2025 [1].
What did Baltar have to do with the Couto Mixto?
The village of As Maus, in Tosende, was one of the Couto Mixto’s three villages. When the 1864 treaty gave the Couto to Spain it was joined to Baltar, although Santiago and Rubiás later moved to Calvos de Randín [4][6].
What is a wolf trap (foxo)?
A trap made of two stone walls that converge on a pit. Villagers held a beat and drove the wolf into it. Baltar preserves the traps of Garabelos and Tosende [8].
Where are the Gomariz tombs?
West of the village of Gomariz, in Baltar parish, along the path that runs from the old school towards the hills; there are four graves cut into the rock [9].
When is the municipal festival?
In the first half of August, with a day of Galician and Portuguese traditional games [10].
O pavillón de deportes de Baltar celebrou este sábado a primeira edición da Feira do Mel da Serra do Larouco, un evento que reuniu a produtores e veciños para poñer en valor o mel de montaña da zona.
A xornada contou cunha gran acollida e serviu para amosar a calidade dos produtos locais. Estes foron os puntos clave do encontro:
Participación: Instaláronse 14 postos de apicultores da bisbarra.
Producto local: O mel da zona destaca polo seu sabor intenso, grazas a unha mestura de carballo,…
A I Feira do Mel da Serra do Larouco, que se celebra o sábado 24 de outubro no Pavillón de Deportes de Baltar, contará cun programa de charlas centrado na apicultura e no seu futuro. Pola mañá, Manuel Aguiar, de Abellas Nais, ofrecerá un panorama da apicultura no país; a divulgadora medioambiental Xiana Albor falará de apicultura e biodiversidade; e os apicultores Mónica Herrera e José Pazos compartirán experiencias de éxito. Pola tarde, os apicultores Benito Prado e Manuel García abordarán o…
Un incendio que comezou este xoves ao mediodía en Calvos de Randín arrasou máis de 140 hectáreas e chegou ata o núcleo de As Meaus, en Baltar, onde a Xunta declarou a Situación 2 polo perigo de que o lume ameace as casas.
O lume comezou ás 13:36 horas na parroquia de Randín. Aínda que o incendio está en zonas de difícil acceso e ameaza varias aldeas, o alcalde de Baltar, José Antonio Feijoo, afirmou que polo momento non foi necesario evacuar a ningún veciño grazia ao gran número de medios e á…
Os veciños de Baltar levan dende o pasado luns sen subministro de auga normalizado debido á rotura dunha canalización principal na capital municipal.
Para intentar que os depósitos se recuperen durante a noite, o Concello estableceu un horario de restricións ata novo aviso:
Con auga: de 08:00 a 00:00 horas (con moi pouca presión).
Corte total: de 00:00 a 08:00 horas.
A falta de presión está a causar graves problemas nos negocios e servizos básicos:
Hostalaría: moitos bares non poden usar…
O municipio de Baltar sofre un corte de subministro de auga potable desde hai tres días que afecta a veciños, hostalaría, centro de saúde e centro de día.
O grupo municipal do BNG presentou este 19 de agosto un escrito no Concello esixindo unha solución inmediata. A portavoz nacionalista, Silvia Piñar, critica a lentitude na reparación e solicita o uso de medios técnicos especializados para localizar a fuga máis rápido, evitando que os operarios teñan que traballar manualmente baixo as altas…
Os veciños de Baltar sofren cortes no subministro de auga dende hai tres días, afectando tanto a vivendas como a negocios, ao centro de saúde e ao centro de día.
O BNG local solicitou información oficial ao Concello este 19 de agosto para coñecer os motivos da avaría e as solucións previstas. Ante a falta de auga, os nacionalistas piden que se activen medidas de urxencia:
Reparto de auga entre os veciños afectados.
Uso de cisternas para garantir o servizo nos centros públicos.
Mellor…
O incendio forestal que afecta a Garabelos do Bouzo, en Baltar, mantense controlado este luns pola mañá, mentres que os dous lumes rexistrados en Rodeiro tamén están baixo control ou estabilizados.
O lume de Baltar, que comezou o pasado sábado ás 12:21 horas, queimou unhas 120 hectáreas. Aínda que está controlado desde a noite do domingo, os equipos de extinción seguen traballando no terreo para apagalo por completo e evitar que volva prender. O alcalde da localidade sinalou que hai sospeitas…
O incendio forestal que comezou o pasado sábado en Garabelos do Bouzo, en Baltar, quedou controlado este domingo ás 21:42 horas. As chamas calcinaron unha superficie provisional de 120 hectáreas.
Para extinguir este lume, que se iniciou o sábado ás 12:21 horas, foi necesaria a intervención dun amplo operativo:
Medios terrestres: 3 técnicos, 13 axentes, 27 brigadas, 15 motobombas e 3 pás.
Medios aéreos: 6 helicópteros e 9 avións.
Ante calquera sospeita de lume, a Xunta recorda que podes…
O lume que comezou este sábado en Baltar quedou estabilizado ás 13:41 horas deste domingo. As chamas afectaron a máis de 120 hectáreas, pero a estas alturas xa non hai perigo para as casas da zona.
Actualmente, as brigadas traballan exclusivamente por terra para rematar de apagar o lume e evitar que se reavive. Estes son os traballos principais:
Maquinaria pesada: úsanse máquinas bulldozers para limpar o terreo de vexetación e evitar que o lume volva prender baixo as cinzas.
Refrixeración…
Un grave incendio forestal arrasou 95 hectáreas na parroquia de Garabelos do Bouzo, en Baltar. O lume comezou este mediodía e estendeuse rapidamente debido ao vento.
O operativo para apagar as chamas é moi amplo e conta con gran despregamento de medios para controlar a situación canto antes:
Medios terrestres: 21 brigadas, 13 motobombas e 3 palas.
Medios aéreos: 9 avións e 6 helicópteros.
Reforzos: Apoio das brigadas de Laza (BRIF).
O alcalde de Baltar, José Antonio Feijóo, confirmou que o…
A área recreativa de Baltar acolleu hoxe unha xornada de festa con xogos tradicionais e música en directo de grupos galegos e portugueses. O encontro, que reuniu a centos de persoas, serviu para que os veciños do concello gozasen dunha xornada de convivencia á beira do río.
A celebración contou con dúas actividades principais:
Xogos tradicionais: actividades de sempre para todas as idades.
Música en vivo: actuacións de grupos da zona e tamén do país veciño.
Un lume declarado este mediodía na parroquia de Garabelos do Bouzo, en Baltar, arrasou xa máis de 20 hectáreas de monte. As lapas achegáronse á aldea de O Bouzo e aos límites do concello de Xinzo de Limia.
O incendio comezou ás 12:21 horas desta xornada do 8 de agosto. A gran columna de fume é visible desde varios municipios da contorna debido á magnitude do lume.
Para controlar a situación, traballan na zona diversos medios de extinción da Xunta e do Estado:
Brigadas de terra.
Medios…
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Map of Baltar
