What the Prehistoric people left behind
They painted their lives on walls, built fortresses to show off their status, and huntergathering gave way to prestige and power:
Find out more about Dénia's ancestors this weekend.
Prehistoric Dénia rises to the surface this weekend with a rare chance to dig into rarelyseen ancient wonders: the Catxupa Cave and the Benimaquia Iberian village.
Some of the best-preserved rock paintings can be found in the cave within the Montgó complex between Jesús Pobre and Jávea which is normally shut to the public and can only be seen on organised guided tours – like the one happening tomorrow from 10.30. Declared a UNESCO heritage site 20 years ago, the highly-detailed and descriptive symbolism dates from between the late Bronze Age and early Neolithic era, or between 5,200 and 2,000 BCE.
It seems impossible to imagine life between 4,000 and 7,200 years ago, but luckily, those who were living it at the time left the prehistoric equivalent of Facebook photos in their old house so that, in a future age they could never have imagined either, we can now find out what they did all day.
Archers and hunters immersed in a landscape of goats and deer in movement, perhaps sensing imminent danger, is how Dénia museum interprets the black figures on the cave walls - although its archaeologist Josep Antoni Gisbert believes the Catxupa grotto had a 'strongly sacred component' to its purpose: possibly as a sanctuary for hunter-gatherers offduty, and one which has helped to reveal more about the ' customs, legends and rituals' of some of Spain's earliest-known inhabitants.
Fast-forward a few millennia and, on Sunday (August 19) from 10.30, a guided trip to another part of the Montgó tells a very different tale: L'Alt Benimaquia ('The High Benimaquia') settlement on the far north-west of the mountain dates back to between the late 7th and early 6th centuries BCE.
The Iberians – modern mainland Spain's and Portugal's earliest native inhabitants from whom most people with Hispanic DNA are thought to have descended – left a fascinating array of ceramics and solidly-constructed square walled compounds behind them which reveal they were surprisingly civilised, perhaps closer in lifestyle to today's society than to that of the earlier cave-dwellers.
A mock-up of how the Benimaquia may have looked around 2,700 years ago shows it originally had six sturdy cubic towers and an enclosing wall with residential homes inside.
Whilst it mirrors a defence structure – of the type created centuries on to protect the population from Mediaeval invaders – it is thought the formidable fortress-like enclosure was designed as such to show off the wealth and power of its inhabitants.
A new ideology of hierarchy, status and rule was burgeoning at the time and society was far more technologically sophisticated than earlier civilisations, more functional in their artistic expression and more given to propaganda through their architecture – showing off how important they were by building big castle-like houses.
Ceramic household implements have been found in abundance in the Benimaquia, much of it almost intact.
Both tours are free of charge, although booking is strongly advised – call 96 642 02 60 or visit the tourist information office to put your name down.