El rastro<\/em> literally means “the trail.” In this case, the trail in question is a rather bloody one. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The Rastro’s name refers to the trail of blood that used to stain the streets of this part of La Latina. Madrid\u2019s first official slaughterhouse was built in 1497 at the northern edge of Plaza de Cascorro\u2014right on the outskirts of town. At the time, Madrid was still a small farming village\u2014it would be another 70 years before it became the capital of Spain!<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Along with the slaughterhouse came tanneries, many of which were located along Ribera de Curtidores, which is El Rastro’s main thoroughfare today. Cattle hides were transported to these tanneries from the nearby slaughterhouses, leaving trails of blood along the street. (We promise you won’t slip in any cattle blood while you’re out treasure hunting at this giant market nowadays!)<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The slaughterhouse and tanneries soon made this area the <\/em>place in Madrid to get fresh meat and leather goods. In the 1730s, the neighborhood started to morph into the market that we see today, as more trades moved in. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

It all started with the ropavejeros<\/em>\u2014people who would sell used clothes in wooden, make-shift stalls on the streets. That’s where the Rastro tradition of secondhand treasures began\u2014and the rest is history!<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n