ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES - RISCO CAIDO

On 8 July 2019, in Baku, the cultural landscape of Risco Caído and the sacred spaces of the mountains of Gran Canaria were declared a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site. Situated in the interior of the island and on its heights, this impressive 18,000 hectare area, or about 11% of the island's surface, covers a steep area with cliffs, ravines and a huge Caldera, the result of a volcanic eruption. Tejeda's. Described by the writer Miguel de Unamuno as a "petrified storm". An essential set for understanding the lifestyles and cultural practices of Aboriginal peoples. In addition to the risco caído site, this complex contains more than 1,500 caves that make up a troglodyte landscape, divided between Artenera, Tejeda, but also Agaete and Gáldar. Composed of caves, natural or artificial, which have been used as dwellings, granaries, cisterns and burial places. Sometimes also decorated with rock engravings or inscriptions of the Libyan-Berber type. The most recognized hypothesis concerning the origin of these aboriginal settlements is an immigration of Berber populations from North Africa, probably around the ^1st century, who lived in isolation for nearly 1,500 years until the Hispanic conquest.

The Risco Caído website. Discovered in 1996 by the archaeologist Julio Cuenca, it is the most spectacular set of caves in Gran Canaria. In total, there are 21 caves containing cave paintings of great importance, often related to the cult of fertility and religious and magical beliefs. One of its most significant elements and the jewel of this ensemble is an Almogarén, a specifically Canarian term that refers to the places where the aborigines practised their religious rites: a circular space crowned by a 5-metre high dome. A performance if we know that the Aborigines had no metal instruments at their disposal. Also noteworthy is an entrance dug into its vault, which, by letting in the light of the summer solstice in the fall, was to serve as an astronomical marker to determine the different seasons of the year and to organize the harvests accordingly. On the walls there are various inscriptions in the shape of an inverted triangle, symbolizing fertility. This temple could have been linked to the cults of the stars and Mother Earth.

The Cave of the Candiles, is pierced in the mountain of Artenara, and its main attraction comes from the cave paintings that cover its walls.

The Archaeological Complex of Acusa, one of the most important in the region, preserves caves that were used as dwellings or funeral sites.

As for the Caballero Caves, this area of refuge for shepherds is also a precious testimony to the life of the Guanches.

An interpretation centre of the Risco Caído and Sacred Mountains, located in a cave, offers suggestions for itineraries and provides information about the complex and the life of its inhabitants through numerous audiovisual means and a permanent exhibition. The centrepiece of this exhibition is a life-size reconstruction of cave no. 6.

Four routes allow you to discover its landscapes: a circular Cruz de Acusa-Las Hoyas- lugarejos-Coruña; the circular of Tamadaba; the crossing of Roque Nublo and Cruz de Tejeda in Artenara (from 2h to 3h30).