Archive · 12 Sep 2026
Following Olive Oil From Andalusian Groves to Ancient Rome
Visitors can see how extra-virgin olive oil is made in Andalusia.
The process begins when olives are harvested and crushed.
The oil is then extracted and stored.
A museum explains more about olive farming and oil’s long history.
Its ceiling has a huge artwork showing a farm worker and flowing oil.
Farmers reuse tree-pruning leftovers as ground cover.
Processing waste can be returned to the land as organic fertiliser.
The museum also tells how old olive-oil containers from Baetica helped form a hill in Rome called Monte Testaccio.
Visitors can follow extra-virgin olive oil production from harvesting and crushing through extraction and storage.
The museum features a 900-square-metre ceiling artwork depicting an olive-farm worker and flowing oil.
Olive groves operate as a circular system by reusing pruning and processing waste.
The exhibition explores olive oil’s history, including medicinal and non-culinary uses.
Discarded Baetican oil amphorae accumulated in Rome and formed Monte Testaccio about 1,700 years ago.
- Who
- Olive-farm workers, olive growers, and museum visitors are central to the account.
- What
- A working mill and museum show the production, reuse, and history of extra-virgin olive oil.
- When
- The account references the present-day mill and museum, as well as events about 1,700 years ago.
- Where
- Andalusia, with historical references to Baetica and Rome.
- Why
- To explain how olive oil is produced, how waste is reused, and how the product shaped history.
- Product
- Extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
- Production stages
- Harvesting, crushing, extraction, and storage
- Artwork size
- 900 square metres
- Waste reuse
- Pruning residue becomes ground cover, while processing waste becomes organic fertiliser
- Historical reference
- Olive oil was used for medicinal and other non-culinary purposes
- Ancient landmark
- Monte Testaccio formed from discarded oil amphora fragments in Rome
- Approximate age
- The amphora fragments accumulated around 1,700 years ago