Cuevas de San Marcos is a town and municipality in the province of

Málaga Málaga (, ) is a municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 578,460 in 2020, it is the second-most populous city in Andalusia after Seville and the sixth most pop ...

, part of the

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Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a ...

in southern

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 ...

. The municipality is situated in the northern part of the

Antequera Antequera () is a city and municipality in the Comarca de Antequera, province of Málaga, part of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia. It is known as "the heart of Andalusia" (''el corazón de Andalucía'') because of its central locat ...

region, on the border of the province of Córdoba from the river valley of Genil to the Sierra Malnombre and Camorro de Cuevas Altas. It is also located within the

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, ...

of Nororma. It borders the provinces of

Granada Granada (,, DIN 31635, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the fo ...

and Cordoba to the north, the comarcs of

La Axarquía LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...

to the south and Antequera to the west. The town is situated at an altitude of 420 meters above sea level. By road Cuevas de San Marcos is located 88 kilometers from

and 487 km from

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

. It is a farming village, with a predominance of olive growing and oil production of the "Hojiblanca" variety. Its name comes from its patron saint,

Mark the Evangelist Mark the Evangelist ( la, Marcus; grc-gre, Μᾶρκος, Mârkos; arc, ܡܪܩܘܣ, translit=Marqōs; Ge'ez: ማርቆስ; ), also known as Saint Mark, is the person who is traditionally ascribed to be the author of the Gospel of Mark. Acco ...

, and its famous Cave of Belda. Cuevas de San Marcos has a population of approximately 4,000 residents. It covers an area of about 37.50 km². The natives are called ''Cuevachos''.

History

The history of the town of Cuevas de San Marcos traces its beginnings to 1806. Formerly known as Cuevas Altas, its separation from Antequera was what led to his establishment as an independent municipality, receiving the new name as it is known today. At the foot of Sierra Camorro, sits this villa, which has all the progress of life that has taken place throughout history. Before it was known as Ciudad de Belda. It stands at the foot of a mountain, where there is a cave called Belda, which is located on the north side of the town and belonging to mountain range called the "Sierra del Camorro." The mountain range consists of limestone and marls from the

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The J ...

period at a height of 907 meters. Situated on the summit of this mountain is a

Paleolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός ''palaios'', "old" and λίθος ''lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone too ...

site leaving open the possibility in the past the existence of a castle and its forts, which were destroyed by the

Moors 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 ...

. Within the cave, the existence of at least three lakes and numerous galleries is known of, which shows kilometers of stalactites, formed over decades. In the first lake, remains of an ancient burial site were found and in the other two lakes pottery was found. Both can found in the City Museum or the Provincial Archaeological Museum.

External links

Official website

References

Municipalities in the Province of Málaga {{Andalusia-geo-stub