Risco Caído is a land-form and archaeological site on the island of

Gran Canaria Gran Canaria (, ; ), also Grand Canary Island, is the third-largest and second-most-populous island of the Canary Islands, a Spain, Spanish archipelago off the Atlantic coast of Northwest Africa. the island had a population of that constitut ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. The site contains prehistoric cave dwellings, temples, and granaries attributed to the pre-Hispanic culture of the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...

. It is also considered to have been used as an astronomical observatory by Aboriginal people. In July 2019, Risco Caído was named as a

UNESCO World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

. It is also a UNESCO recognised

Cultural Landscape Cultural landscape is a term used in the fields of geography, ecology, and heritage studies, to describe a symbiosis of human activity and environment. As defined by the World Heritage Committee, it is the "cultural properties hatrepresent the c ...

. It is the first World Heritage Site of the island of Gran Canaria and the

province of Las Palmas The Province of Las Palmas (, ; ) is a province (Spain), province of Spain, consisting of the eastern part of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of the Canary Islands. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, capital city of this p ...

and the fourth of the Canary Islands.

Description

Located in a vast mountainous area in the centre of Gran Canaria, Risco Caído comprises cliffs, ravines and volcanic formations in a landscape of rich biodiversity. The landscape includes a large number of troglodyte (cave-dwelling) habitats, granaries and cisterns whose age is proof of the presence of a pre-Hispanic culture on the island, which evolved in isolation from the arrival of North African

Berbers Berbers, or the Berber peoples, also known as Amazigh or Imazighen, are a diverse grouping of distinct ethnic groups indigenous to North Africa who predate the arrival of Arab migrations to the Maghreb, Arabs in the Maghreb. Their main connec ...

, around the beginning of our era, until the first

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

settlers in the 15th century. The troglodyte complex also includes cult cavities and two sacred temples or ''almogarenes'', Risco Caído and Roque Bentayga, where seasonal ceremonies were held. These temples are thought to be linked to a possible cult of the stars and Mother Earth.

Critics

The inclusion of Risco Caído in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites has been criticized by scholars such as the mathematician José Barrios, who considers that there is little scientific reason to consider it an aboriginal astronomical observatory or to support the institutional overprotection of this enclave over others in Gran Canaria, such as the archaeological site of

Four Doors Four Doors is a concept in Sufism and in branches of Islam heavily influenced by Sufism such as Isma'ilism and Alevism. In this system, there are four paths to God, starting with Sharia, then to Tariqa, then to Marifa, and then finally to Haqi ...

.Los que rompen la unanimidad sobre Risco Caído
/ref> The geographer Eustaquio Villalba has also called into question the existence of an astronomical observatory in Risco Caído. Both criticise the fact that a single article (which they consider to have "little scientific basis"), written by the discoverer of the site, Julio Cuenca, has sufficed for world heritage status. According to Barrios, there is no scientific study that supports the archaeological astronomical hypothesis (the fundamental reason why the site was declared a World Heritage Site). He claims that there are no astronomical markers that would verify this theory and that there is not a single published technical report that supports it.Algunas consideraciones sobre las políticas de protección del patrimonio arqueoastronómica de Gran Canaria: los casos de Cuatro Puertas y Risco Caído
/ref>

References

External links

Official Website
in Spanish.
Explore Risco Caído and the Sacred Mountains of Gran Canaria Cultural Landscape in the UNESCO collection on Google Arts and Culture
{{World Heritage Sites in Spain UNESCO Archaeological sites in Gran Canaria World Heritage Sites in Spain Prehistory of the Canary Islands