ACINIPO the ANCIENT ROMAN CITY

Acinipo is located on a limestone table, well defended on all sides, which reaches 999 m. altitude. Under this table there is an aquifer that drains into various springs. In the fertile environment there are iron, copper and lead mines, exploited since prehistory. Its strategic position allows it to control the upper basins of the Guadiaro and Guadalete rivers. Archaeological excavations indicate that Acinipo was first occupied in the Copper Age (3000 BC). In the 9th and 8th centuries B.C. the place comes into contact with the Phoenicians established on the coast of Malaga. At the end of the 7th century B.C. Acinipo is abandoned and the population settles in the nearby Silla del Moro, to return to reoccupy the table throughout the 5th century (Iberian period). The Roman presence from year 206 BC brought about great changes, such as the construction of buildings monumental monuments and the coinage of its own, which shows spikes and clusters of grapes, symbols of the prosperity of the city. Converted into a Roman municipality, it was cited by classical authors such as Strabo and Pliny. Starting from the 3rd century AD. Acinipo entered in decline, replaced in its administrative role by the close Arunda (the current Round). However, the table continued to be occupied until medieval times, when the ruins of the theater were reused as a watchtower. Acinipo table Acinipo has been known since the 16th century as "Ronda la Vieja". After intense looting, excavations began in 1967, focusing on the theater, listed as National Monument. Subsequently, remains from the protohistoric period and new Roman buildings were excavated. In 2011 the Junta de Andalucía declared it an Asset of Cultural Interest the entire Acinipo table and a wide margin of his entourage.

THE ROUTE OF THE VISIT The access to the archaeological zone is next to the car park. At the bottom of the table are the PROTOHISTORIC CABINS from the 9th-8th centuries B.C. It is about five houses, highlighting two of plant circular of 5 m. diameter and built with a stone plinth. They have a cobbled porch at the entrance and a small fireplace inside to heat the room and to cook food. In these cabins have appeared handmade ceramics typical of the local population, but Phoenician amphorae containing salted fish. Starting the ascending path, the first thing that attracts the visitor's attention are the large piles of stone ("majanos"). Its origin is in the work of clearing the land to be able to cultivate it, which in Acinipo was carried out until 1970. These "majanos" are made up of construction material from demolished Roman buildings. The next stage is the DOMUS, the Latin name for Roman manor houses. Partially excavated, the The house consisted of two floors and was developed around a central patio, in which there was a lararium, an altar dedicated to the household gods, currently covered awaiting restoration. Built as a dwelling private in the 1st century AD, later it was used as a craft workshop and possibly also for functions trade, lasting its occupation until the sixth century.

https://www.juntadeandalucia.es/export/drupaljda/instituciones_culturales/17/04/Informacixn_ACINIPO_Castellano.pdf