Ambrosio Cave, Spain
The Ambrosio Cave Natural Monument is a Natural Monument located in the Province of Almería, Spain. This archaeological site is situated at the northern edge of the Vélez-Blanco municipality and is classified among the. It protects the surroundings of the Ambrosio cave, a rock shelter measuring 38 meters wide, 18 meters high, and up to 17 meters deep, where remains from the Paleolithic period have been found. The shelter opens onto a nearly 100-meter-high cliff, oriented east-west above the Moral stream, and is formed by limestone from the upper Burdigalian to lower Langhian geological stages. It is one of the most significant Paleolithic sites in southeastern Iberia due to its extensive stratigraphy, which documents layers from the Upper Paleolithic, including the Solutrean period, through the Epipaleolithic and Neolithic periods, up to recent prehistory. The cultural sequence from the Upper Paleolithic and Epipaleolithic is particularly noteworthy.
The shelter has been designated a World Heritage Site since 1998 as part of the Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin on the Iberian Peninsula.
Description
Known since the early 20th century and extensively studied as an archaeological site through numerous campaigns, the cave’s parietal art was not discovered until the 1990s. In recent years, significant Paleolithic engravings and rock paintings have been uncovered. A particularly important discovery occurred in 1992, revealing numerous artistic expressions, both engraved and painted, grouped into three panels. Panel I is located in the outer area of the shelter, on the same wall, 4.5 meters from the entrance. It consists of exclusively incised representations, totaling five figures: a fusiform bird, a right-facing equid with a nearly right-angled cervico-dorsal line, and two less-defined equids.Panel II, located further inside, was hidden beneath a thick layer of intact sediment and blocks from uncontrolled excavations. It features a complex set of engraved lines and two red patches. A standout feature is a splendid painted horse. The head shows one ear and a fragment of the other, with a jawline inflection that does not fully take on the characteristic duck-bill shape. The rear part of the front leg, the belly line, and the hindquarters are missing. In the upper corner of the panel, two engraved horse protomes facing each other have been identified, along with another finely engraved horse representation. Additionally, traces of three other horse heads and some black patches are present.
Panel III is located on a heavily weathered whitish surface and contains three faded pictorial groups of limited representativeness.