Cullera () is a city and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

located in the

Valencian Community The Valencian Community ( ca-valencia, Comunitat Valenciana, es, Comunidad Valenciana) is an autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish autonomous community after Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid with ...

. It is part of the

province of Valencia Valencia ( ca-valencia, València) is a province of Spain, in the central part of the autonomous Valencian Community. Of the province's over 2.5 million people (2018), one-third live in the capital, Valencia, which is also the capital of the au ...

and the

Ribera Baixa Ribera Baixa () is a ''comarca'' in the province of Valencia, Valencian Community, Spain. Municipalities *Albalat de la Ribera * Almussafes * Benicull de Xúquer *Corbera *Cullera * Favara * Fortaleny *Llaurí * Polinyà de Xúquer *Riola *Sol ...

comarca A ''comarca'' (, or , or ) is a traditional region or local administrative division found in Portugal, Spain and some of their former colonies, like Brazil, Nicaragua, and Panama. The term is derived from the term ''marca'', meaning a "march, ...

''. The city is situated near the discharge of the river

Júcar left The Júcar () or Xúquer () is a river on the Iberian Peninsula of Spain. The river runs for approximately 509 km from its source at Ojuelos de Valdeminguete, on the eastern flank of the Montes Universales, Sistema Ibérico. Its most i ...

in the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...

Geography

Cullera is situated at the mouth of the

river, 40 km from the capital of

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...

and 56 km from the international airport of Valencia aeropuerto de manises.

Areas in Cullera and ''hamlets''

The parts and areas of Cullera are: *El Brosquil. *Cullera-Park. *Cap-Blanc. *El Dosel. *El Estany. *El Marenyet. *Mareny de San Lorenzo. *Mareny Blau. *Bega de Mar. *El Perelló.

Bordering cities

Sueca,

Corbera Corbera is a municipality in the ''comarca'' of Ribera Baixa in the Valencian Community The Valencian Community ( ca-valencia, Comunitat Valenciana, es, Comunidad Valenciana) is an autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most popul ...

Llaurí Llaurí is a municipality in the ''comarca'' of Ribera Baixa in the Valencian Community The Valencian Community ( ca-valencia, Comunitat Valenciana, es, Comunidad Valenciana) is an autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most popul ...

, Favara,

Alzira Alzira may refer to: * ''Alzira'' (opera), an opera by Giuseppe Verdi *Alzira, Valencia Alzira ( es, Alcira) is a city and municipality of 45.088 inhabitants (62,094 floating population) in Valencia, eastern Spain. It is the capital of the ''coma ...

and

Tavernes de Valldigna Tavernes de la Valldigna (, es, Tavernes de la Valldigna) is a Municipalities in Spain, municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain, located in the district of Safor, 54 km far away from Valencia, Spain, Valencia. It is the biggest town ...

all neighbour Cullera. They are all in the province of

Topography

The mountain of Cullera, known as ''Munt de l'Or'' or ''Muntanya de l'Or'', is the last mountain in the

Iberian System Iberian refers to Iberia. Most commonly Iberian refers to: *Someone or something originating in the Iberian Peninsula, namely from Spain, Portugal, Gibraltar and Andorra. The term ''Iberian'' is also used to refer to anything pertaining to the fo ...

before the

. It has an altitude of 233 meters. The historical parts of the city are to the south, and the modern tourist district is to the east, looking to the sea. The ''San Lorenzo'' lagoon is a small lake situated north of the mountain. It once formed part of a much bigger lake before the lands were drained for agricultural use. The lake now marks the southern limit of the ''Parque Natural de la Albufera''.

Demographics

Economy

The economy in Cullera is traditionally based in agriculture, with

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima ''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...

and

oranges An orange is a fruit of various citrus species in the family Rutaceae (see list of plants known as orange); it primarily refers to ''Citrus'' × ''sinensis'', which is also called sweet orange, to distinguish it from the related ''Citrus × ...

as important crops. Fishing, historically a large part of the economy, has diminished in importance due to important tourism developments, both nationally and internationally, in the region. There is a port in Cullera name
Puerto de Cullera
which is connected with a municipal fish market named Lonja de Cullera.

Historical and artistic landmarks

*Castle: At the top of the mountain, dominating the city and the sea, there is a fortress built in the 13th century over the old

Moorish The term Moor, derived from the ancient Mauri, is an exonym first used by Christian Europeans to designate the Muslim inhabitants of the Maghreb, the Iberian Peninsula, Sicily and Malta during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a distinct or se ...

fortress. It once was walled, although those walls no longer remain. Located there are the rest of the old towers, forming part of the old walled area on the mountain. *Sanctuary of the ''Virgen del Castillo'': (19th century) Within the fortress, there is the sanctuary of the ''Virgen del Castillo'', whose festival is celebrated the week after

Passover Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday that celebrates the The Exodus, Biblical story of the Israelites escape from slavery in Ancient Egypt, Egypt, which occurs on the 15th day of the Hebrew calendar, He ...

. *Church of the Saint Johns: A neoclassical temple from the 17th century built over an older

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

temple. Inside, there is a ''sacristía'' and the interior of a bell tower. The temple has recently been restored. *''Torre del marenyet'': An old

watchtower A watchtower or watch tower is a type of fortification used in many parts of the world. It differs from a regular tower in that its primary use is military and from a turret in that it is usually a freestanding structure. Its main purpose is to ...

built to watch the Júcar river. It was erected in the 15th century as a defense against

barbary pirates The Barbary pirates, or Barbary corsairs or Ottoman corsairs, were Muslim pirates and privateers who operated from North Africa, based primarily in the ports of Salé, Rabat, Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli, Libya, Tripoli. This area was known i ...

. *Cave of Dragut: This cave depicts the invasion of the

Berbers , image = File:Berber_flag.svg , caption = The Berber ethnic flag , population = 36 million , region1 = Morocco , pop1 = 14 million to 18 million , region2 = Algeria , pop2 ...

in Cullera, and it is said that the pirate

Dragut Dragut ( tr, Turgut Reis) (1485 – 23 June 1565), known as "The Drawn Sword of Islam", was a Muslim Ottoman naval commander, governor, and noble, of Turkish or Greek descent. Under his command, the Ottoman Empire's maritime power was extended ...

was once there. *

Air-raid shelter Air raid shelters are structures for the protection of non-combatants as well as combatants against enemy attacks from the air. They are similar to bunkers in many regards, although they are not designed to defend against ground attack (but many ...

-Museum of the ''Mercat Municipal'': A bomb shelter constructed under the Town's Market under the threat of air bombing during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...

. * Hermitage of the stone saints (

Abdon and Sennen Saints Abdon and Sennen, variously written in early calendars and martyrologies Abdo, Abdus, and Sennes, Sennis, Zennen, are recognized by the Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest ...

): The building, situated on a hill surrounded by rice crops, was dedicated to these saints because they are related to the welfare of the crops. Nowadays, the Hermitage, which was built in the 18th century, has been reconverted into a museum dedicated to rice, from species to crops and tools, which is very important for

Valencian cuisine 250px, '' Oranges, typical fruit from Valencian Community'' Valencian cuisine is a Mediterranean cuisine as cooked in the Valencian Community, Spain. Its basic ingredients are vegetables, seafood and meat. It is famous worldwide for its rices, su ...

. *Abric Lambert

cave paintings In archaeology, Cave paintings are a type of parietal art (which category also includes petroglyphs, or engravings), found on the wall or ceilings of caves. The term usually implies prehistoric art, prehistoric origin, and the oldest known are mor ...

: Named after its discoverer Lambert Oliver, the Abric Lambert is located in the north-west side of the mountain. The paintings are several figures painted in a dark red shade with cruciforms and comb-shaped figures that have been interpreted as animal and human figures.

Food

The typical food of the region is the so-called

Mediterranean diet The Mediterranean diet is a diet inspired by the eating habits of people who live near the Mediterranean Sea. When initially formulated in the 1960s, it drew on the cuisines of Greece, Italy, France and Spain. In decades since, it has also incor ...

, which is characterized by a rich selection of vegetables. In Cullera's orchards, there are many citrus crops (oranges, mandarins and lemons), as well as fish and seafood of the nearby sea. Alongside the offerings of the orchards, not to mention the seafood, there are dozens of ways to prepare rice: ''arroz al horno'', ''arroz a banda'', etc.

Twin towns

Le Bourget Le Bourget () is a Communes of France, commune in the northeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre zero#France, center of Paris. The commune features Paris - Le Bourget Airport, Le Bourget Airport, which in turn hos ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

(1982) * Ouroux-en-Morvan, France *

Jever Jever () is the capital of the district of Friesland in Lower Saxony, Germany. The name Jever is usually associated with a major brand of beer, Jever Pilsener, which is produced there. The city is also a popular holiday resort. Jever was granted c ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

(1998) *

Syktyvkar Syktyvkar (, rus, Сыктывка́р, p=sɨktɨfˈkar; kv, Сыктывкар) is the capital city of the Komi Republic in Russia, as well as its largest city. It is also the capital of the Syktyvkar Urban Okrug. Until 1930, it was known as U ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

References

External links

Instituto Valenciano de Estadística
*https://web.archive.org/web/20060204235358/http://www.costamediterranea.com/dondeir/valencia/cullera.html *http://www.valencians.com/valencia/rb/cullera {{authority control Municipalities in the Province of Valencia Mediterranean port cities and towns in Spain Ribera Baixa Seaside resorts in Spain