Murtas: Church, Festivals and Trovo

Within the protected historic site of Alpujarra Media Granadina and La Tahá, the third polygon concerns the Cerrajón de Murtas.

Culture and Townscape

The parish church of San Miguel in Murtas was built at the end of the 18th century. Its foundations were laid on those of an earlier mosque. San Miguel has three high naves. Its features include neoclassical details and elements made from locally quarried red marble. Its bell tower is a prominent visual landmark throughout the Sierra de la Contraviesa.

The combination of older foundations, the late-18th-century construction and the later furnishings makes San Miguel a place with several historical layers. The three high naves, the neoclassical details and the locally quarried red marble all contribute to the church’s appearance. The bell tower defines not only the building itself but can also be seen beyond Murtas as a visual landmark in the Sierra de la Contraviesa.

A walk through Murtas takes you along whitewashed streets with traditional chimneys, flat terraos roofed with launa and covered tinaos. The façades feature tiles bearing quintillas, five-line poems. Alpujarran trovo is a form of improvised poetry accompanied by lutes, guitars and violins. In Murtas, troveros compete in verbal duels known as controversias. The silver image of Santa Cruz de Caravaca is the patron saint of Murtas.

The quintillas are therefore directly present in the town’s streets and on its façades. In trovo, both the improvised nature of the poetry and the accompaniment by lutes, guitars and violins are part of the traditional expression. In Murtas, the controversias give this tradition the form of a verbal duel between troveros.

Winemaking

The Museo Enológico de la Contraviesa is part of the Centro Temático del Vino. It is located in the oldest part of the winery. The museum houses a collection of objects related to the region’s winemaking tradition. It also displays numerous agricultural implements and tools used in the region for various tasks.

The museum thus brings together the history of winemaking and the region’s practical working life. The collection on winemaking tradition is complemented by agricultural implements and tools. These exhibits represent various tasks carried out in the region and broaden the focus beyond the wine itself to the associated forms of work.

Festivals

During the Romería de la Santa Cruz, participants travel from the pilgrimage chapel to Cortijo Morgana. The romería ends when the procession returns to the pilgrimage chapel in Murtas. The San Miguel festivities in Murtas take place every year on the last weekend of September. These festivities include musical performances and communal meals.

The romería combines the journey to Cortijo Morgana with the return to the pilgrimage chapel in Murtas. The San Miguel festivities have a fixed date in the annual calendar: they take place on the last weekend of September and include musical performances and communal meals.

The Fiesta de la Parva is celebrated in August. During this fiesta, visitors can take part in threshing grain.

Routes and Landscape

The windmill of Murtas stands in the Cuatro Vientos area. From its base, it offers a 360-degree panoramic view. A hiking route leads to the remains of a former fortification that guarded the crossing over the Contraviesa.

The windmill in the Cuatro Vientos area and the former fortification represent two different traces of the landscape’s history. The mill is distinguished by its 360-degree panoramic view. The hiking route, by contrast, leads to the remains of the structure, whose former function was to guard the crossing over the Contraviesa.

More local pages: Diezma, Dílar, Puebla De Don Fadrique, Hernán-Valle, Los Tablones, La Mamola, Cúllar Vega, Otívar

For the higher-level travel overview: Granada.