CAVE OF THE BATS (CUEVA DE LOS MURCIELAGOS)

The visit begins with the Ecomuseum ecomuseum who presents the cave ecosystem. Its formation, the secondaires and the secondary cavities, the water circuit… everything went on to show you the scenes! You can also slip into the skin of a bat and move in the cave by getting from its point of view. Attention, tight turns…

The visit of the cave takes about 1 hour. Unfortunately, there will not always be a bats, the tourist attendance long ago prompted tenants to move. In the 1950 s, there were no fewer than 15 000 bats, but only a few specimens attached to them were still volettent. You will therefore be able to concentrate on the geological and archaeological aspect of the visit. Engravings have been discovered there recently. In 2002, scientists noticed a sign that until then had escaped them and on which a deer, bovidé and bear were found. But here are the goats that predominate: There are no fewer than 56 ancient Neolithic engravings. Dated 4300 to 3900 years before our age, these are the first drawings of the Neolithic found in Western Andalucia. Among other reasons, one would note an anthropomorphic and another, more enigmatic, which could be an owl.

The journey of the visit takes us down 65 m, until the place where, voluntarily, a woman was buried about 4 000 years ago in a foetal position. We are still wondering about the motivations that have led men to undertake such a well-equipped to bury this woman precisely here, in a very difficult place of access where it is possible to break his neck every step (rest assured, stairs have been built since). Take the time to admire the geological formations of the cave, especially interesting, with numerous stalagmites and stalactites. They are so many in a room that the latter was called the organ room. The visit is in several stages, with the first discovery of the vestibule, which serves a number of galleries that have enabled a circuit to be set up in 8. The gallery of paintings, with goats, precedes the training room, of more geological interest. Corridors and halls follow up to the lowest point, before they go back almost half a kilometre underground. The entire cave is much larger and reaches 2 km.