The Flickr Pobladodelaatalayita Image Generatr

The Protected Landscape of Malpaís Grande is a natural area on Fuerteventura Island. It spans 1,719 hectares on the island's west coast. The name "Malpaís Grande" refers to a volcanic landscape formed by historical eruptions. This area features volcanic rocks, cliffs, and black sand beaches, and is home to a diverse range of flora and fauna, including endemic species.

Established in 1987, the Protected Landscape of Malpaís Grande aims to preserve and protect the area's natural and cultural value. Visitors can enjoy activities such as hiking, bird watching, cycling, and water sports. It's important to follow the rules to ensure the protection and conservation of this valuable natural heritage.

The Poblado de La Atalayita (La Atalayita settlement) contains aboriginal remains, including livestock structures and dwellings, which give this natural monument high archaeological value. These remains show the presence of aboriginal populations in the area before the arrival of European colonizers and their influence on the local landscape and culture.

La Atalayita is named after the nearby hill, which stands at 90 meters high and was used by the indigenous people as a lookout point to oversee the area. From the top, they could spot incoming vessels and alert the community.

️📍 This photo, captured from the summit of that same hill, features the landscape of Malpaís Grande, Barranco de Abajo, the Interpretation Center, and the archaeological site of Poblado de La Atalayita, along with the surrounding stone walls.

Valle de Pozo Negro, Antigua, Fuerteventura, Islas Canarias

The settlement of La Atalayita is an archaeological site, whose occupation dates back to the aboriginal period of Fuerteventura, the mahos (people of Berber origin from North Africa who lived on the island before the conquest in the fifteenth century) and has been reused, continuously, by the shepherds after the conquest and colonization of the island.

The site occupies an approximate area of 45,045 m2 and is made up of 115 structures of different typologies and complexity, which can be divided into: vaulted constructions, mixed constructions made up of vaulted enclosures with other larger ones, traditional construction, volcanic tube conditioning and other circular constructions whose functionality is still unknown.

The first studies carried out in the settlement began in the decade of the 50's and 60's with the Excavations Commissioner Sebastián Jiménez Sánchez, who called it El Saladillo. It is from 1974 when it will be known by the name of La Atalayita, starting in January of that same year the three campaigns of archaeological excavations developed between 1974 and 1977 in charge of Professor Demetrio Castro Alfín. During those years a large amount of archaeological material was collected on the surface, composed mainly of fragments of handmade ceramics with decorations, belonging, according to the researchers, to the aboriginal stage of the island; fragments of plain, popular and lathe-made ceramics, as well as malacological, lithic and bone material. In the cuts made, the same typology of material was extracted, except for some objects such as a metal fragment and a pin of the same material and also some pieces made of shells, polished and with holes, in the shape of a pendant.

The singularity of the constructions of the settlement, as well as its location between two protected areas of great natural and cultural value such as Malpaís Grande and Cuchillos de Vigán, make it one of the most relevant sites of the island's archaeological heritage.

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El Poblado de La Atalayita es un yacimiento arqueológico, cuya ocupación se remonta a la época aborigen de Fuerteventura, los mahos (pueblo de origen bereber procedente del norte de África que vivía en la Isla antes de la conquista en el siglo XV) y ha sido reutilizado, de forma continuada, por los pastores después de la conquista y colonización de la Isla.

El yacimiento ocupa una superficie aproximada de 45.045 m2 y está formada por 115 estructuras de diversa tipologías y complejidad, las cuales podemos dividir en: construcciones abovedadas, construcciones mixtas formadas por el adosamiento de recintos abovedados con otros de mayores dimensiones, construcción tradicional, tubo volcánico acondicionado y otras construcciones circulares cuya funcionalidad todavía se desconoce.

Los primeros estudios realizados en el poblado se iniciaron en la década de los años 50-60 con el Comisario de Excavaciones Sebastián Jiménez Sánchez, quien los denomina con el nombre de El Saladillo. Es a partir de 1974 cuando será conocido con el nombre de La Atalayita, iniciándose en enero de ese mismo año las tres campañas de excavaciones arqueológicas desarrolladas entre 1974 y 1977 a cargo del profesor Demetrio Castro Alfín. Durante esos años se recogió gran cantidad de material arqueológico en superficie, compuesto mayormente por fragmentos de cerámicas realizadas a mano y con decoraciones, pertenecientes, según los investigadores, a la etapa aborigen de la Isla; fragmentos de cerámica lisa, popular y a torno, así como material malacológico, lítico y óseos. En los cortes realizados se extrajo la misma tipología de material, exceptuando algunos objetos como un fragmento de metal y un alfiler del mismo material y también algunas piezas realizadas en conchas, pulidas y con orificios, con forma de colgante.

La singularidad de las construcciones del poblado así como su situación entre dos espacios protegidos de gran valor natural y cultural como es el Malpaís Grande y Cuchillos de Vigán, lo convierte en uno de los yacimientos más relevantes del patrimonio arqueológico insular.

Valle de Pozo Negro, Antigua, Fuerteventura, Islas Canarias