Cueva de los Letreros

Andalucía


Of the several Unesco-protected cave-painting locations in the area, this Stone Age ceremonial site is the star. The reddish drawings, made before 5500 BC, show animals, a large horned figure dubbed El Hechicero (The Witchdoctor) and the indalo, a stick-person whose outspread arms are connected by an arc (possibly a bow), among other things. Visits are by guided tour only, departing from the entrance of Camping Pinar del Rey, 1km south of Vélez Blanco off the A317.

The indalo is seen all over Almería, on walls and pendants, and as the province's official symbol. Some believe it's a lucky charm, and there’s enough evidence of its use in earlier centuries (and millennia) for ethnologists to surmise it may be one of the longest continually used symbols in human culture.


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