Fuentes de Cesna – Villavieja, Castle and Springs

Prehistory and Tour

In Fuentes de Cesna, in the municipality of Algarinejo in the Province of Granada, Villavieja is an archaeological site. The site is protected as a Bien de Interés Cultural (BIC) in the category of archaeological zone. In terms of European prehistory, Villavieja is considered a reference site for evidence from the Copper Age. Three walls, up to three metres high, are located on the prehistoric site. The guided tour combines a route across the site with information panels and the preserved walls. The tour is accessible to all visitor groups year-round. It is possible to travel there by car. At Villavieja, the protected archaeological status, its classification within European prehistory and visible structural remains from the Copper Age therefore stand side by side.

Cesna Cultural Park

Cesna Cultural Park is located one kilometre from the present-day centre of Fuentes de Cesna and includes various elements of natural, historical and ethnological interest. Fuentes de Cesna offers scenic, historical-archaeological and ethnological routes through the former settlement, which has been enhanced as Cesna Cultural Park. The cultural area therefore extends beyond a single building and connects the former settlement with different forms of interest.

Fuentes Viejas

Fuentes Viejas is built around three springs: Fuente de La Plaza, Fuente de Enmedio and Fuente del Caño. The three names are part of the local landscape, as is the location below a long, rocky escarpment with a troglodyte-like appearance. From Fuentes Viejas, there is a view of the Iznájar Reservoir. In Fuentes Viejas, the remains of houses that were gradually abandoned after the collapses of 1942 and 1963 have been preserved. The springs, rocky escarpment, view of the reservoir and remains of the abandoned houses form the distinctive features of this traditional local landscape.

Cesna Castle

Cesna Castle was a defensive stronghold on the Nasrid border. Cesna Castle can be reached on foot from the GR-5400 road, which connects Fuentes de Cesna with Zagra, via a route of approximately two kilometres through olive groves that descends to the castle ruins. The route leads from the connecting road through the olive groves to the preserved remains of the former fortification. Three towers remain from the ruins of Cesna Castle. Parts of the wall are also among the preserved remains. Since June 1985, the remains of Cesna Castle have been protected as a Bien de Interés Cultural. Thus, the historical function, route and preserved structural elements of the castle have been handed down at the same site.

Festivals in Fuentes de Cesna

A festival is held in Fuentes de Cesna in honour of the patron saint San Jerónimo, including a Eucharistic celebration. During the Fiesta del Emigrante, an evening festival event takes place in Plaza de San Juan in Fuentes de Cesna. The event includes musical performances. The festivals therefore combine the religious occasion in honour of San Jerónimo with the evening event and the musical performances of the Fiesta del Emigrante.

To the higher-level travel overview: Algarinejo.