Village
Pliego is a municipality of about 4,000 inhabitants in the centre of the Region of Murcia, in the Mula River comarca and on the northern slope of the Sierra Espuña. Within its territory lies the Bronze Age site of La Almoloya, an urban centre of the Argaric culture active for much of the second millennium BC, where in 2014 a rich grave assemblage was found, including a silver diadem in a princely tomb. There was also fortified Islamic settlement next to the La Mota ravine, abandoned after the Mudejar rebellion of 1264-1266; the current town, defended by a castle of Andalusi origin, came under the dependency of the Order of Santiago from the 14th century onward. Its economy was traditionally based on agriculture, with the apricot tree as the most prized crop.
Monument
Parish church of Pliego built in 1667 and declared a national historic-artistic monument; it is the main religious building in the town centre. This declaration, which also recognises it as a Bien de Interés Cultural (Spain's highest level of heritage protection), dates from 1983.
Monument
Two 12th-century medieval castles stand in the municipal area of Pliego, in the Río Mula district. The castle of Pliego rises on a hill east of the town, overlooking the village; it has an almost triangular layout with seven towers and a main tower, plus an outer enclosure built of rammed earth. Although deteriorated, it has undergone recent restoration work. It was declared a Bien de Interés Cultural (Spain's highest level of heritage protection) on 7 August 1997, under code RI-51-0010065, as a fortification of Andalusi origin.
Monument
Museum in Pliego with archaeological finds from the Roman and medieval periods in the area.
Nature
Settlement of the El Argar culture in Pliego, covering 3,100 square metres, which housed a population of some 250 people and where a silver diadem was found in 2014.
Nature
Bronze Age urban centre on a hilltop in the foothills of Sierra Espuña, the cradle of Argaric society between 1800 and 1400 BC. It was an important centre of political power, where a silver diadem was found, a piece unique for its period among those preserved in Spain, along with recent finds of defensive stretches and buildings built against the walls.
Curiosity
Found in a double grave at the La Almoloya site along with a rich set of grave goods, this silver diadem is the only piece of its kind from the Bronze Age preserved in Spain and has been interpreted as a symbol of political power held by a woman of the Argaric elite.
Monument
The Poblado de La Mota, declared a Bien de Interés Cultural (Spain's highest level of heritage protection) in the 1980s, is one of the most notable heritage sites in the municipality of Pliego. It is a fortified Islamic settlement, also known as the Castillo de las Paleras, located beside the barranco de La Mota. It was abandoned after the Mudéjar revolt of 1264-1266, when its population moved to what is now the centre of Pliego.
Monument
Former 13th-century medieval fortress that commanded the route towards Sierra Espuña, of which remains survive as part of the defensive heritage of the Mula river valley.
Monument
Group of traditional vernacular architecture that preserves the layout and building techniques of the municipality's old Moorish quarter.
Monument
Hermitage in the foothills of Sierra Espuña where the patron saint of Pliego is venerated, the starting point of the procession that carries her down to the village during the patron saint festivities.
Activity
Pliego's main festivities, which include 'La Alborada', a mass celebrated at dawn on 7 September announced with rockets and bells, after which the image of the patron saint is carried from her hermitage to the village accompanied by the town band.
Nature
Pliego's territory forms part of the Sierra Espuña Regional Park and offers viewpoints such as the Alto de la Muela de Pliego and the Alto de la Almoloya, as well as the Ermita de la Santa and old snow wells once used to keep ice.
Monument
A building erected in 1802 to a design by the architect Jerónimo Martínez Bricero de Lara, historically used for collecting taxes paid in kind.
Monument
An 18th-century manor house, family property since 1804, where the poet and journalist Federico Balart was born; it stands next to the town hall and opposite the Church of Santiago Apóstol.
Monument
The Clock Tower and sundial of Pliego's old town, next to the Ermita de la Virgen de los Remedios and the Casa de la Tercia. The sundial disappeared, and to this day the circumstances of its disappearance have never been clarified.
Curiosity
A journalist, poet and literary critic (Pliego, 1831 - Madrid, 1905), a member of the Real Academia Española, to whom his native town dedicated a street, a bust and the name of its secondary school.
Nature
A natural canyon cut into the rock in the district of Pliego, within the Sierra Espuña area.
Nature
A cave at the head of the Rambla de los Molinos, in the municipal district of Pliego.
Monument
The declaration of 1985 protected the remains of the fortress that dominates the Mudéjar township and opened the way to the archaeological campaigns that have documented the Andalusi origin of the town and its Santiago period.
Historical milestone
The excavations of the Argaric settlement brought to light a palatial complex and, beneath its floor, a princely double burial found in 2014, whose grave goods have forced a rethinking of the political organization of the peninsular Bronze Age.
Food and drink
Bread kneaded by hand in a wooden trough and baked in a wood-fired oven, with a dense crumb and a thick crust, which keeps for several days; in Pliego it is still the basis of the migas with trimmings and of the mojes of the local table.
Food and drink
The goat herds of the sierras that surround the district give the meat for this roast, cooked slowly in the oven with little more than garlic, oil and wine; it is the dish of the municipality's family celebrations.