Culture and landscape of Catalonia

Rock paintings

Horses, red deer, bulls, archers and hunters: schematic and abstract drawings of figures which anticipate the discoveries of modern art. The Mediterranean region of the Iberian Peninsula boasts the most important collection of rock paintings in Europe, declared World Heritage by UNESCO. Catalonia plays host to 60 sets of paintings in stone, caves and rock shelters: a fascinating and intriguing legacy that transports us to the beginnings of civilisation.

Megalithic monuments

Neolithic man buried the dead in the ridges encircling settlements. Menhirs and dolmens can be seen in other places. Many of these monuments have been conserved and exemplify a heritage in full harmony with the landscape.

Megalithic monuments in the Serra de I'Abera. Five signposted routes allow visitors to discover a collection of 115 dolmens and 15 menhirs dating from Neolithic times between La Jonquera and Vilamaniscle, a stone's throw from Cap de Creus (Costa Brava).

Various megalithic monuments can also be seen in the surrounding area of Llanga, Port de la Selva and Cadaques, near the sea. A megalithic route brings together three unique dolmens in Roses.

Dolmen of the Cova d'en Daina.

A large-scale very well preserved tomb in Romanya de la Setoa (Costa Brava).

Places to see

Cave art route. Coordinated by the %0 Museu d'Arqueologia de Catalunya, it takes in three prehistoric sites:

Abrics de I'Ermita Rock Painting Interpretation Centre in Ulldecona (Montsia, Tarragona). Eleven rock shelters featuring paintings of hunters and symbolic figures, and an interpretation centre to gain a better understanding of the context and the symbolism.

Prades Mountains Rock Painting Interpretation Centre in Montblanc (Conca de Barbera, Tarragona).

An approximation of prehistory from the perspective of art and the history of culture.

Roca dels Moros at El Cogul

(Les Garrigues, Lleida). The most well-known collection of rock paintings in Catalonia. Noteworthy among the animal and human figures of El Cogul is the depiction of a ritual dance: the phallic dance.