The Rock of Gibraltar- Not-Quite-the-World-Traveler Review

The Rock of Gibraltar - Not-Quite-the-World-Traveler Review

Tucked away at the far end of the United Kingdom's former empire at the edge of Spain and almost reaching across to Africa lies a little peninsula of land dwarfed by a giant limestone rock edifice rising 1,398 feet and overlooking both the Bay of Gibraltar and the Alboran Sea.  

http://kids.britannica.com/elementary/art-11047/The-Rock-of-Gibraltar

Gibraltar, once the home of one of the 7 Ancient Wonders, where myths hold that The Pillars of Hercules stood sentinel here, guarding over the edges of the known world. Called "Mons Culpa"  by the Romans, the opposing Pillar in Morocco being "Jebel Musa" (Mount Moses in English). However, not only were the Phoenicians, Greeks, the Romans, the Moors, the Vandals and Visgoths, the Africans, the Spanish and the United Kingdom all vying for this chunk of historic real estate, excavations show that Neandertals used the caves as early as 30,000 years ago. 

www.gibnet.com

Modern travelers can, on a clear day, see across the strait to Morocco in North Africa, and rise from a sea-level entry of the peninsula to O'Hara's Battery at 1,398 feet above sea level, where one side of the Rock is dropping off in near-vertical cliffs. The town of Gibraltar is primarily inhabited by military, dock workers and ever-present tourists. Short on land area, the entry roadway is bisected by Gibraltar's airport runway. Upon crossing the border from Spain, suddenly signs change from imperious Spanish to quaint English, and the Barbary apes (macaques) inspect all tourists thoroughly. All affairs are staunchly presided over by a Moorish castle on the heights overlooking town. The Moorish occupation lasted for 710 years and the castle was originally built in AD 711, though most has worn down to ruins. The principal building that remains is the Tower of Homage, a massive building of brick and very hard concrete called tapia. The upper part of the tower housed the former occupants' living apartments. This tower and a Moorish bath remain and are open to tours.

Composed of limestone, the Rock is riddled with over a hundred caves - the most prominent of these being St. Michael's Cave- used as an infirmary, a picnic ground, concert hall and theater, a dueling ground, as a prison, and during World War II was fully prepared for a role as an emergency military hospital, though it was never used as one. While blasting for additional air exchange holes for the cave, Lower St. Michael's Cave was discovered, and the area opened up now contains even a stage where the annual Miss Gibraltar pageant is held, as well as electrical lighting and theater seating for 100.

http://www.arrakeen.ch/andalusia/114%20%20St.Michael's%20Cave.JPG

St. Michael's even has an air of mystery with an unexplained disappearance by an off-duty officer and his companion. Colonel Mitchell and his counterpart disappeared in 1840 while searching for adventure in their down time, however they left on their expidition and were never seen again, despite extensive explorations of the cave system in 1840, 1857 and 1865. Additional scientific examinations of the cave between 1936 and 1938 combed the known areas of the entire cave system, but the officer's remains were never recovered, nor evidence of their whereabouts ever obtained, leaving an eerie unsolved mystery. 

Additionally of note on Gibraltar, the Barbary Macaques are the only known population in all of Europe, and the roughly 300 animals are under strict care, receiving supplemental food in the form of fruits and vegetables in addition to their forage sources, as well as veterinary care. All of the "Barbary Apes" are individually tattooed and microchipped. Truly a fascinating place.

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Facts from Wikipedia:

• 
  The first factual description of the cave was written in 45 AD by Pomponius Mela, an Algeciras born geographer. He described Gibraltar as:"A mountain with wonderful concavities, which has its western side almost opened by a large cave which may be penetrated far into the interior." However, the writings of Homer as well as artifacts discovered in the cave show that it was already well known to the ancient Greeks, Romans and Phoenicians.
• In 1974 a Neolithic bowl was discovered in the cave, one of many examples which prove that the cave was known to prehistoric man. Another would be the recently discovered cave art depicting an ibex drawn in charcoal on one of the cave walls. It has been dated to the Solutrean period (15,000 to 20,000 years ago) based on the style used. However, since two Neanderthal skulls have been discovered in Gibraltar, it is possible that they were among the first to set foot in the cave around 40,000 BC.
• Further excavations have uncovered numerous prehistoric artifacts such as stone axes and arrow heads, shell jewelry, bone needles as well as a large collection of pottery
• The Cathedral Cave in the Gibraltar cave complex was long believed to be bottomless, making St. Michael's Cave the subject of one of Gibraltar's most famous legends. It was believed that the cave is one end of a subterranean Ley tunnel over 15 miles long which passes undersea across the Strait of Gibraltar. Legend has it that the Barbary Macaques entered The Rock from Morocco by this passage.
• As the Rock of Gibraltar was thought to be one of the legendary Pillars of Hercules, the Ancient Greeks also believed the cave be the Gates of Hades, an entrance to the underworld
• Rumor holds that as long as the Barbary Apes survive on Gibraltar, the British will continue to hold Gibraltar. So firmly rooted was this suspicion that during war time in 1942 when the population dwindled to a mere 7 individuals, the replenishment from Morocco of additional monkeys was ordered by Sir Winston Churchill
• The Barbary Apes are a misnomer as macaques are actually monkeys, not truly apes. They are featured on both the 5 pence and penny coins of Gibraltar.
• The upper portion of the rock is preserved as a Nature Park and habitat for the famous Barbary Apes.
• Gibraltar was featured in Steig Larsson's best-seller "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" trilogy.



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• All pictures credited in captions.