Graffiti found near Costa Tropical rivers could shed light on area's industrial past

Jennie Rhodes

Almuñécar

Wednesday, 12 July 2023, 19:11

The Junta de Andalucía has authorised Almuñécar town hall to carry out an archaeological investigation on graffiti discovered on the canal walls of the town’s Verde and Seco rivers. The graffiti is believed to date from the 19th to the mid-20th century, according to the councillor responsible for the culture and heritage department, Alberto García Gilabert.

"This is yet another example of the importance of Almuñécar's archaeological heritage, which spans all historical periods. For this reason we are going to make an inventory of all the historical graffiti, as they offer valuable information about the time when the retaining walls of the rivers were being built to protect the sugar cane and later subtropical plantations from floods, and which, historically, have played an important role in the economy of our municipality," said García Gilabert, who thanked the municipal archaeologist, Elena Navas, for her work.

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According to the town hall it was residents of Almuñécar who alerted the council to the existence of graffiti on the banks of both rivers that run through the town. The graffiti depict scenes including boats and marine animals, as well as an extensive repertoire of names and dates. The value of the historical memory and its conservation, in the context of flourishing Costa Tropical at the time thanks to the production of sugar and tropical fruits, is the motivation behind the study, the town hall said.

Acording to Navas, "the study will provide us with information on the social, economic and environmental changes that have taken place in Almuñécar throughout history, while at the same time protecting the cultural heritage related to water as a natural resource of enormous interest in this area of the Granada coast.”

Alberto García Gilabert highlighted the objectives and work to be carried out on the retaining walls of the Verde and Seco rivers. "The inventory will include graphic and photographic documentation of the historical graffiti, as well as the structural elements. This will be accompanied by a description of the construction techniques used, indicating the masonry, construction materials used, rigging, etc.," he explained.

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The councillor explained that the work would be carried out in three phases: "The first will be field work with a complete visual exploration and the identification of the historical graffiti. The second phase will focus on laboratory work in order to process the data collected and produce the results and the third phase will be the creation of a catalogue and itinerary for public dissemination as well as scientific and informative publication.”