Cultural Abundance

All along the coast archaeologists have found Phoenician, Greek and Roman remains. The Arabic influence has undoubtedly been of extraordinary importance: in almost every corner of Andalucia, the buildings and culture are witnesses to nearly 800 years of Muslim occupation in the South of the Iberian Peninsula. After the first settlements near Pechina (later to be called 'Bayyana'), Muslims, Christians and Jews lived together in perfect harmony.

The building of the Arab fortress Alcazaba on the orders of Abderramán III in the 10th century, beside the present-day harbour in Bayyana, meant the cornerstone of the city now known as Almeria. Due to the growth of the harbour, the new town "Al-mariya" ("mirror of the sea") developed busy trade activity and as a result of  this Almeria replaced Bayyana as the capital of the district.

During the Arabic era, culture and art prospered and even centuries after the decline of the Caliphate of Cordoba into many independent kingdoms (13th century) you find reminders of this epoch all throughout the province.

With the end of the Christian Conquest towards the end of the 15th century, Almeria became part of the Kingdom of Castille. In the 16th century a new epoch began, characterised by the settlement of people coming from all over Spain, the  Corsican attacks, the Muslim rebellion, and their consequent  banishment and a series of violent earthquakes.

Meanwhile the region experienced an exceptional boom in art: to emphasise their reign and power the Catholic Kings built many churches all over Andalucia.

Even today, it is obvious that folklore and the typical celebrations as well as local craftsmanship are the result of the cultural imprint of different civilisations.

Historical and Artistic Heritage

Ermita de San Ramón. Hermitage Church built in 1731 by the "Hermandad de Nuestro Padre Jesús" (Brotherhood of Our Father Jesus).

Ermita de la Virgen de Las Angustias. Church of the Saint of Vera , "Virgen de las Angustias" (Virgin of Anguish) where the statue of the Madonna is kept.

Ermita de San Agustín. Church built in 1520, near the hospital of the same name.

Cerro del Espíritu Santo. "Rise of the Holy Spirit", place of the first Muslim settlement in Vera, destroyed in 1518 by an earthquake.

Convento de Los Mínimos. From 1606 until its secularisation in 1823, a fortress-church of the cloister-community "Minimum Brothers".

Iglesia Parroquial de Nuestra Señora de la Encarnación. Parish and fortress-church built in the first half of the 16th century in the centre of Vera.

Retablo Mayor de la Iglesia Parroquial. Baroque altar-essay that dates from the end of the 18th century, made of wood and divided in three levels: Secular World, Renaissance and Divine Glory.

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