THE CANCHO DE LA MISA

As a stony colossus, it cannot be missing in these pages the famous Cancho de la Misaimportant icon of the Sacred MountainThe first settlers of the area were undoubtedly aware of this great mass. Mother CivilizationThose ancient populations that worked with the grandiose, with the magical, with the grandeur of the megaliths.

With the passing of time it would have been reused by the pre-Roman settlers of the Metal Age, looking for the relevance that the existing seduction in this place would give to that stone mass, that rocky outcrop, to be used as a sanctuary: it has been known for decades that it was once a prehistoric altar because they found a tray with cups of the Argaric culture, as a trousseau, and that it is one of the most important places to be used as a sanctuary. Sacred rock used more than 2000 years ago by the inhabitants of the pre-Roman settlement of Risco Chico. Not surprisingly, this giant rock that marks the ascent to the Sierra is one of the best known by visitors and researchers, not only because of its majestic size but also because it creates a magical space that makes it impossible for hikers to pass by without stopping to rest or have a snack at its feet.

And from here, the route from this sanctuary to the entrance door to the castro (a few meters above as you go up the old road) can be called C.Initiatory AminoThe first one, which in pre-Roman times, budding warriors, protected by the priests of the time, would surely go through in order to proceed with the metamorphosis that every man had to undergo once in his life. The initiation rites in this sanctuary, separated from the castro, would be carried out preferably on nights of full moon, in an atmosphere of tottering figures and shadows, of insecurity and mystery, watched over by huge rocks that guarded the office, and led by the priests who imbued the neophytes in the depths of their being and of the night, with the desire to change their puerile essences forever and to rebirth the warrior spirit that would accompany them for the rest of their days.

Its current name derives, apparently, from the fact that it was used by the Muslim troops that accompanied the National Front from Africa at the beginning of the Spanish Civil War to perform their prayers, that is to say, their “mass”.