The extreme drought occasionally exposes beautiful places. Spanish archaeologists react with surprise as receding water uncovers a prehistoric stone circle in the central province of Cáceres.
The Dolmen de Guadalperal – the dolmens of Guadalperal – that is the official name of the Spanish Stonehenge. The stone circle is located at the bottom of the Valdecañas reservoir on the Tagus River in the Extremadura region.
The historic monument, which dates back some 7,000 years, was discovered in 1926 by German archaeologist Hugo Obermaier. But in 1963, it flooded during the construction of a dam under dictator Franco. Since then, the Dolmen de Guadalperal only four times fully visible.
“It’s a surprise, it’s a unique opportunity to study Spain’s Stonehenge,” said archaeologist Enrique Cedillo of the University of Madrid, one of the experts who races against time to study the stone circle before it submerges again. to stand. The stone pillars were also visible in 2019, but before that it was already fifty years ago.
Check out the images from 2019 below. Text continues below the video.
Their presence is also good news for Ruben Argentas, who organizes boat trips. “The dolmen are emerging and tourism has started immediately,” he told Reuters news agency after a very busy day. Argentas takes tourists with his boat to the site of the stones and back so that holidaymakers can view the historic landmark up close. Where the Spaniard is delighted with the tourists, surrounding farmers complain about the water shortage.
Local residents have been advocating for some time to move the historical remains to a place where they are always visible, so that they can become and remain a tourist attraction. For the time being, however, it is uncertain whether that request will be complied with.
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