The snow stores at the Cathedral

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria · Category: Memory · Subcategory: Memory spaces

From the end of the 17th century until well into the 19th century, the site before us was occupied by the so called neverías or snow stores.

At this time it was not known how to make ice, which was actually quite a delicacy for society for its culinary values as well as in the manufacturing of soft drinks, and especially for its healing qualities as an analgesic and anti-inflammatory agent.

For this reason, the idea came about to preserve and transport the snow that fell in winter at the summit down to the island's capital. As Salvador Miranda so clearly puts it in his study on the snow wells, the precipitations of such an appreciated element signalled the start of frenetic activity. The snow was collected before the sun could melt it, and was squashed into rectangular blocks and covered with thick layers of straw and ferns, and kept in dark pits dug out of the ground at the highest peaks of Gran Canaria. It could stay hard for years in these conditions.

It is easy to imagine the value of such prized merchandise. The Cathedral Cabildo government cleverly managed to make the most of its commercial value, and had two wells built up at the summit. The first of these, the oldest of the three existing ones in Gran Canaria, was made in 1694, followed by another one in 1699. In summer the ice was loaded onto the backs of oxen, and brought down to the Cathedral of Santa Ana. It was then unloaded into the storage areas and was traded around the city allowing the canons to make money on it. 

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