MUSEUM AND ROCK-SHELTERS OF CANTOS DE LA VISERA IN YECLA

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Type of site:
Museum and Rock-Shelters

Place of location: Monte Arabi
Village/Town: Yecla
Municipality: Yecla (Comunitat Valenciana)
Region: Murcia
State: Spain
Telephone: (+34) 968 790 901
Website: https://museoarqueologicodeyecla.org/tag/cantos-de-visera/
E-mail: casacultura.yecla@gmail.com

Natural Environment:

The Bicorp-Millares Rock-Shelters are located between the River Escalona, the Muela de Cortes and the Caroig Massif. The relief is very rugged due to numerous ravines that isolate areas and create hills. The highest peaks are Toro (893m), Muela de Bicorp (904m), Hongares (842m), Santís (949m) and Cazmilla (986m). The River Cazuma (or Cazumba) is formed by the union of the Llatoneros and Hongares Ravines, and crosses the area of Bicorp from west to east. The area is ideal for hiking, caving and any other outdoor activity, due to its extraordinary scenery and pine forests. The most emblematic animal in the woodland is the ibex, but the wildlife also includes wild boar, foxes and eagles. The wildlife includes ibex, mouflon, wild boar, fox, rabbit, hares and partridge, making this an area of great natural, ecological and scenic value.

Archaeological evidences in the site:

The Visitors’ Centre in Millares, which holds the “José Martínez Royo” Collection aims to make known the prehistoric heritage of the area. This is the ideal centre to coordinate the visits to the rock-shelters and the dinosaur ichnites in Tambuc Ravine. The creation and training of a group of guides, edition of information leaflets and sign-posting the sites is a priority. The aim is to increase the offer with the preparation and conservation of other sites, such as Roser Rock-Shelter, which offers an insight to other styles of rock art in the area, within the incomparable scenery of the Jucar Gorge. The art is in Bicorp rock-shelters and the different representations reproduce scenes where humans and animals reflect aspects of Post-Palaeolithic life, such as hunting, farming, animal-herding, honey-gathering and fighting. They are generally small and medium-sized compositions, painted in colour-wash, above all in different shades of red. The paintings in Araña Caves are some of the best and most interesting in all Levantine art. The scene of honey-gathering is the most outstanding example, reflecting an activity the local inhabitants still carry out today. It has been estimated that these paintings could be some 9000 or 7000 years old.

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Opening Times:

All year, Friday to Sunday. Visits should be arranged with “José Martínez Royo” Museum Collection on 962 519 000.

Booking and access:

Advance booking on +34 962 519 000.

Nearby cultural destinations:

Bicorp

Nearby natural destinations:

Muela de Cortes. Júcar Gorge. Caroig Massif.

Accommodations (Tourism Website):

Restaurants (Tourism Website):

Age of the artistic representations:

The art dates from a phase in the late Epipalaeolithic and early Neolithic, 9000-7000 years ago. Ancient Schematic art is dated about 5000 BC, while Levantine art and Schematic art is more recent.

General description of the destination:

The Bicorp sites, on public land in Muela de Cortes National Hunting Reserve, involve four elements: a Visitors’ Centre in Bicorp; guides to accompany visitors on the routes, the preparation of two groups of visitable rock art sites (Araña Caves and Moreno Ravine); and the development of the dinosaur ichnite site at Tambuc (Millares). The former site also has palaeontological remains and the latter has ethnographic interest, and both sites can be visited in the same day. Vicent Rock-Shelter has Levantine art, with hunting scenes and animal motifs. The visit is complemented by the palaeontological site with dinosaur prints along the bed of the ravine. Los Chorradores Rock-Shelter contains a scene of honey-gathering, which can be related to the exceptional scene at Las Arañas Cave. In this case, the scenery is dominated by the hydrological works that enabled the development of agriculture in the first Muslim village at Millares.

History of the site:

Research at Millares began very late, in the 1960s. The Grupo Espeleológico Vilanova I Piera de Valencia discovered Las Cañas Rock-Shelter in 1961, and the first studies were carried out then but never published. In 1979, José Martínez Royo discovered El Cerro Cave and informed the Prehistoric Research Service of Valencia. The first studies of the cave and Las Cañas were published two years later. J. Martínez’s explorations have led to the discovery of the other rock-art sites, and now 25 places are known with Historical, Schematic, Ancient Schematic and Levantine art. In the last 10 years, the University of Valencia has carried out research projects to study both the art and the prehistoric occupation of the area. The first rock art in the area was discovered in 1920, when the Araña Caves were found. Since then, this site and its scene of honey-gathering has become one of the most recognisable icons within Levantine art. Further sites were found during the twentieth century and new discoveries are still being made. The caves at Bicorp and in all the Caroig Massif have examples of different kinds of prehistoric art, although the hunting scenes in Levantine art predominate. Schematic paintings with human and animal figures are also common (Moreno Ravine). Macro-schematic art has also been identified in some rock-shelters in Moixent and Millares.

Museographic resources description:

The Municipal Archaeological Museum has rooms with photographs and copies of the paintings at Monte Arabi, and reproductions of the engravings and cup-marks. It also has a large collection of Iberian statues from the Iberian Shrine at Cerro de los Santos, dated in the 5th – 3rd centuries BC, and marbles, stuccoes and mosaics from the Roman Villa at Los Torrejones (1st – 4th centuries AD) and 13th century Islamic domestic goods, from a hoard found in one of the houses in the medina associated with hisn Yakka. Besides, didactic panels in the rock-shelter.

MUSEUM AND ROCK-SHELTERS OF CANTOS DE LA VISERA IN YECLA

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