The Caves of Don Gaspar ( es, Zona Arqueológica de la Cueva de Las Caves of Don Gaspar) is an important
archaeological site located in the north of the island of
Tenerife (
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...
,
Spain).
The ''cueva'' is located in the municipality of
Icod de los Vinos. It consists of a series of deposits belonging to the ancient
Guanche culture, which form an interrelated complex. The caves include the ''Cave of Don Gaspar'' itself, the ''Cave of Las Palomas'' and three nearby caves. They were inhabited by the aboriginal Guanche
Berbers
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, region1 = Morocco
, pop1 = 14 million to 18 million
, region2 = Algeria
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.
In the ''Cave of Don Gaspar'' there are three levels of occupation, the oldest from the third century CE, while the occupation level in the ''Cave of Las Palomas'' is even older, dating back to the third century BCE.
The caves are however famous for the discovery of plant debris in the form of carbonized seeds of wheat, barley and beans.
This finding helps verify the practice of
agriculture on the island of Tenerife in times of the Guanches.
The cave is declared a Site of cultural interest by the
Government of the Canary Islands
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
.
See also
*
Cave of Achbinico
Cueva de Achbinico, also called cave of San Blas ( es, cueva de Achbinico) is a Roman Catholic church and cave located in Candelaria, Tenerife, Canary Islands (Spain).
After the conquest of the Canary Islands it was the first Christian sanctu ...
*
Cave of the Guanches
References
{{Navbox prehistoric caves
Guanche
Tenerife
Don Gaspar
Don, don or DON and variants may refer to:
Places
*County Donegal, Ireland, Chapman code DON
*Don (river), a river in European Russia
*Don River (disambiguation), several other rivers with the name
*Don, Benin, a town in Benin
*Don, Dang, a vill ...
Archaeology of Tenerife
Bien de Interés Cultural landmarks in the Province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife