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Points of interest in Zahara

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Former Church of Santa Maria de la Mesa

At the present time the only thing that stands out is the tower built of irregular rigging with brick courses at different heights. The buttresses for its support stand out, located at each vertex of the hexagon, and in each of its faces the square mechinales are evident. The one we see today, by its structure, construction and use, must have belonged to the 15th century and was part of the Main Church built by the Christians after the first conquest of Zahara in 1407. It remains to be seen if it occupies the place that previously would have the mosque, as long as there was a permanent Muslim settlement would be logical its existence, and as in other cities conquered by Catholicism during the Middle Ages, the churches would be located on the old mosques. Currently it has been partially restored, and houses the interpretation and information center of the excavations and archaeological interventions carried out in the Medieval Village.

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Medieval Village

XIII to XV centuries. There are few remains left of the ancient medieval village of Zahara so that we can get an idea of what its original appearance was. Not surprisingly, the entire town was surrounded by a defensive cordon consisting of stretches of wall with towers from stretch to stretch, being the whole set crenellated, and even in several places defended by two walls, which are three if we consider the castle itself. The best preserved stretch of wall is in the eastern part. Of the original defensive complex, what is most striking today, being the only thing preserved, is the Torre del Homenaje, located at the neuralgic point of the castle and at its highest point - at 605 m. above sea level. The exterior, adapted to the terrain, has a practically square floor plan (12 x 12.60 meters) and rounded corners, a product of the assimilation of Nasrid military architecture with Christian architecture as in the case of nearby Olvera. The interior of both floors is divided into four compartments each, by means of lowered arches that crisscross to form these spaces, and that are covered, in turn, by vaults vaídas vaídas. In the lower chamber -where we currently enter- we are surprised by a large stone of unknown function. On the second floor there is a chimney -of Christian tradition- and two windows of large proportions, located antagonistically. The last floor corresponds to the roof itself, where we find the chimney exit and four large corner merlons, which constitute the crenellation. The communication of the floors is made by means of vaulted stairs built in the interior. As defensive artifices we find: the arrow slits, of small size and located in different points; remains of probable matacán on the original door of entrance to the second floor, built of brick; and a slope, in the northwest face, that fulfilled different functions. The Torre del Homenaje (Homage Tower) is summarized as a building that participated in and, at the same time, individualized the castle: it fulfilled the function of being the last redoubt where to take refuge in case the rest of the town had fallen, with the hope, on the part of the besieged, that help from the outside or a negotiated peace would allow them to stay alive.

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Santa María de la Mesa Church

XVII Century. It was finished in 1755 under the direction of the sculptor architect Antonio Matías de Figueroa, being built on the site and taking advantage of many of the materials that until 1731 occupied an old chapel called San Francisco, thus giving way to what we see today. On the outside, the main façade stands out. It presents a baroque façade of pink marble whose top coincides with the crown in curved bevel that covers the front of the central nave. It is the work of the master builder Diego Pérez de Acevedo. There is a second entrance called the Door of Forgiveness; it is finished off with a curved pediment. In height stand out the dome, in curvilinear form and covered by glazed tiles and the bell tower. It is topped with a pyramidal roof, covered with eighteenth-century blue and white tiles of Sevillian tradition. It is a temple of three naves, the central one, higher and wider than the lateral ones, is separated of these by pilasters of Tuscan order that support groin vaults, and gallonada dome in the transept, on curly cornice. Inside the church it is of highlighting the organ, that is installed on a semicircular arch that covers the entrance of the main door, it is of century XVIII. At the foot of the central nave we find a choir with lectern and fifteen seats, one for each clergyman that in 1779 counted the parish. It is made of Flanders pine wood by the Sevillian sculptor Francisco del Valle. The top of the headboard is by Juan Ignacio de Salamanca. The High Altarpiece, with a good artistic balance, is of baroque style. Other smaller altarpieces are distributed in the other naves. Finally, we have to mention the Treasury or Parish Museum, magnificent expression of the religious art, in which we can find: several chalices (the oldest of the XVIII century); a portaviático of 1666, made by the Sevillian silversmith Juan Birto de Espinar; several wrought silver rods; and a collection of religious attire from the XVI to the XVIII centuries. The most important pieces due to their popular roots are a sacramental script (1760 - 1765) and an ostensory (1775). The first is made of embossed silver with bells and was exhibited at the Ibero-American Exposition of Seville in 1929. Nowadays it gives way to the processional procession every year in the feast of Corpus Christi. It is one of the most representative pieces of the Sevillian goldsmithery of the XVIII century. The rich ostensory, as well as the rococo style script, is an authentic work of art, it is also carried in procession on Corpus Christi day, its height is 85 cm. And it weighs 6.3 kg. The whole monstrance is made of silver and precious stones.

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Clock Tower

XVI century. Attached to the hermitage of San Juan de Letran and as the only remnant of the old hermitage, stands the popular Clock Tower, which was the bell tower. It takes its present name from the installation at the beginning of the century of a pendulum clock on its upper floor.

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Historical Complex

Zahara has been declared a Historic-Artistic Site since 1983, justified by its rich past, which is evident in its monuments, in the urban fabric of its streets with its traditional houses, in its history and its cultural heritage. In addition to its beautiful whitewashed streets, flowery balconies and magnificent viewpoints. The town of Zahara, presents a popular typology, the location along a sloping hillside, has configured Zahara, today, of a peculiar urban framework, product of the irregularities of the terrain. A terrain that forces the streets to be staggered, in such a way that walking between them, either closes the view or become wide viewpoints. Zahara still has a wide mosaic of the characteristic traditional houses of the Cadiz mountains: composed of two floors, irregular and wide walls, whitewashed facades. But, nevertheless, there are two types of houses: those with small windows and doors and simple ironwork, which would correspond to the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries; and the representatives of the two later centuries, which come to introduce a third body with circular holes, decorate their facades with frames for the window openings and can even introduce shield on the cover. There are in Zahara a series of natural fountains scattered around the town, in those places where the hollows allow the exit of fresh water from the mountain aquifers. These are: the Fuente de la Higuera (on the road to Paseo de la Fuente), El Pilar (at the entrance of the village, on the road coming from Algodonales), and at the exit, on the road leading to Arroyomolinos, the Fuente de la Calera, and on the road leading to Grazalema, the Fuente del Altabacar.

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Chapel of St. John Lateran

XX Century. Small church built in 1958, on the site occupied by the former hermitage of the same name. Of a single and wide nave, its front is a wide semicircular arch crowned by three espadrilles, which shelter bells cast in the same year of the construction of the temple.

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Arroyomolinos Recreational Area , La Playita

Located right at the foot of the Monte Prieto mountain range, only 300 meters from the Cueva del Susto, kissing the banks of the reservoir, in the middle of the Natural Park. It is a large space between orchards and fruit trees, with an area of 63,362 m2, where the course of the river has been used to create a small artificial beach and that, especially in the summer months, you can enjoy the tranquility that this place offers. But its use is not conditioned to the summer months, but to have a bar-restaurant and tables scattered and isolated throughout the enclosure with barbecues, playgrounds, can be accessed at any time of year. This recreation area has in the bathing area of specialized personnel in lifeguard and first aid, the water is treated and in perfect condition, the water temperature is ideal to soothe the intense heat of the summer months, you can also rent loungers, tables, chairs and horses to enjoy the environment. It also has a bar and at the foot of the bathing area, as well as several toilets scattered throughout the enclosure. There are a large number of barbecues, but we recommend that those who have it, make use of it. Parking is guarded throughout the day.

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Natural Park, Garganta Verde and its Hermitage

Zahara is the last town nestled in the most outstanding western massif of the Cordilleras Beticas. Of limestone nature, it is also the highest and steepest mountainous group of the province of Cadiz, reaching in the peak of the Torreón, in the Sierra del Pinar, its highest height, 1654 mts. Its municipal district, declared Natural Park by the Junta de Andalucía in 1984, contains areas of great natural interest. From the geomorphological point of view we can highlight the Garganta Verde E, where we can find the famous "Ermita de la Garganta"- grotto formed by the action of geological agents, and worth admiring (see routes of interest) and the Garganta Seca, surprising cracks carved into the ground by the continuous passage of water. The pinsapar, forest formation of Mediterranean firs unique in the world, the pinsapo (Abies pinsapo) is a relic of the Quaternary, which is manifested in its fullness. Along with this wealth of vegetation, the fauna is richly represented. We can highlight in the mountains of Zahara the presence of the mountain goat (Capra pyrenaica), the roe deer (Capreolus capreolus). Also worth mentioning is the great variety of birds that fly over these mountains, the most emblematic being the imperial eagle (Aquila adalberti), which flies over our skies as a home range and the resident golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos). Other smaller birds of prey are the Bonelli's eagle, the peregrine falcon, the sparrow hawk and the Egyptian vulture among many others, without forgetting that one of the largest colonies of griffon vultures in Europe is in our area (green gorge).

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