The Pindal Cave, in the beautiful village of Pimiango, it was in its way an art center, then related to mystical and supernatural issues. Its walls served for primitive man to release his well-known love for the technique of representation. In the cavities there is a large sample of this purpose, thanks to paintings and engravings that were growing in number and artistic quality generation after generation, throughout 50 centuries since they started, 14.000 years ago.
Why visit the Cueva del Pindal?
The cave, elongated and approximately 400 meters long, was never inhabited. This underscores, even more so, the exceptional function it served. A function that we could describe as cultural, setting aside the semantics of that era, which surely did not make such distinctions.
The Paleolithic artists who lived in what is now Ribadedeva chose the cave because it was suitable for their artistic purposes, rather than for its potential as a house or home. they left a deep testimony of their time based on portraying nature and looking for more complex signs to explain the mystery of existence. They used ocher and black tones; with them they traced fundamentally animal contours. In the end, the paintings would be symbols to identify themselves as a group. The cave that saw them being born became a sanctuary for their immediate descendants and in a jewel for humanity in our eyes
The cavern consists of a vestibule about ten meters wide, to which it continues a wide and unique galleryThe guided tour of the cave leads us to two main areas. Both feature decoration. The first is about 100 meters from the entrance, and there we find the head of a red horse. Further along, still among the rock formations in the same gallery, we discover another horse's head, this time outlined in black, as well as a deer painted in black, suspected to be a reindeer. A little further on, we see markings resembling trees.
The second area that we can distinguish from this first one is located about two hundred and forty meters from the entrance. Here it is the main panel, which consists of an important group of figures. At this point the paintings are as abundant as the engravings. Signs also proliferate. In addition to the points there are more complex shapes that look like clubs. Paintings, due to their degree of artistic abstraction, can be placed at an advanced stage.
Since the beginning of the 20th century, the Cueva del Pindal is part of the Regional Artistic Heritage. Later it is declared a National Monument. In a research work carried out by rock art experts, 1954 manages to date 45 paintings, the most outstanding being 9 horses, 11 bison, 2 elephants, 3 cervids, 1 boar and 1 fish, a wide range of fauna of the time. The close symbolic relationship that united man and animal nature is obvious. Other types of relationships, superstitious or supernatural, correspond to the criteria of contemporary analysts.
On the other hand, The presence of an elephant, or more specifically a mammoth, outlined with faded red lines, is of great importance in the rock art known on the peninsula.Since these types of depictions are very rare. Furthermore, they speak volumes about an extremely cold climate, as already mentioned. And there really were mammoths.
Very close by, on the border between the Ribadedeva council and the neighboring Llanes council, a few years ago A complete skeleton of this type of pachyderm was discoveredHe was waiting for the researchers in a cavity in the cliff that was hidden by the water at high tide. The rescue was very difficult but it was successful, and the reality of his fossils now serves to confirm the veracity of the Paleolithic paintings, which we never doubted.
The environment of the Cueva del Pindal
Approaching the cave of El Pindal can also be a rewarding excursion for the eyes. It is located on the Cape of San Emeterio, on the sea, in a spectacular panoramic view of the cliff coast of these lares. We also have a path along the high coast to walk slowly and admire the Cantabrian Sea and one of its most amazing coastlines. Near the cave we can also enjoy examples of buildings from other times closer, such as the Church of Santu Medé and the ancient monastery of Tina.
Information:
Address:
Pimiango, s / n
33590, Ribadedeva
Telephone Number: 608 175 284
Open: from Wednesday to Sunday, from 10 to 14 hours.
Arrival Guide :
From the N-634 national road, take the local road RA-1 to the place of Pimiango, which is about 2 km. In the village, continue towards the lighthouse by local road until a fork. In front is the parking lot; to the right, road to the cave, which ends in front of the hermitage of Santu Mederu. The cave is about 200 m. accessible by pedestrian path.
More Information: Cueva del Pindal
Text: © Ramón Molleda for asturias.com
