Medieval Islamic town of Los Casares

Description

The Islamic town of Los Casares is located 3 kilometers north of the small town of Riba de Saelices (Guadalajara, Castilla-La Mancha). It is located in an area of great natural beauty, crossed by the Linares river, and as a gateway to several valleys. The town sits on a hillside that is crowned at the top by a defensive tower built by Muslims around the 10th century AD. This tower allowed the control of the territory, especially the entrance and exit to the valleys located further north. The tower rises above the entrance to a cave that preserves an important set of Paleolithic paintings and engravings. The town had at least two phases of occupation in Islamic times. The discovery of a small treasure trove of coins from King Alfonso X, dated between 1,252 and 1,284, testifies that the area continued to be occupied for some time after the Christian conquest of the territory.