About the Cemetery
The Parish Cemetery of Olvera originates back to 1573, when the parish acquired the lands of an old olive grove after the construction of a primitive church in the middle of the 16th century. As usual, this space was intended for the burial of those who could not afford to be buried inside the church, in the underground vaults. This cemetery remained the only one in Olvera until 1899, when the Municipal Cemetery was built. The Parish Cemetery was closed on 2 March 1932, during the Second Spanish Republic, due to the law of secularization. However, in 1938 secularization and seizures in Spain ceased, returning the ownership and management to the Church.
This graveyard stands out for its location hung to the void, anchored to the great rock on which the Castle sits. From there you can contemplate some excellent panoramic views of the region. It also stands out for its artistic and historical values, and you can appreciate the constructive evolution of the niches of the municipality, at the beginning of stone, lime and sand, and today of brick. Its exceptional degree of preservation allows you to find epitaphs barely readable by the passage of time. The orography to which it had to adapt has given the elongated form that it currently shows. Despite being mottled to the space, it has been possible the construction of family mausoleums, chapels and graves.
On All Saints Day, Olvera Parish Cemetery looks like no other day of the year, being the meeting place of neighbors and outsiders who come to him in order to adorn it. Every corners of the narrow streets that compose it have ornamental elements, flowers and candles that stand out between crosses of forge and marble angels.
Important graves or monuments
The Entrance (19th century):
The entrance to the enclosure is made through a grid that gives way to a kind of corridor located between two houses, which becomes a space of transition between
the street and the cemetery in an Andalusian typical esthetic.
Arab Wall, BIC - Element of Cultural Interest for the Ministry of Culture,
Gobernment of Spain (The 12th century):
Today several towers and walls are conserved of which was the walled
fence that defended the town that would rise in its interior. It starts from the angle of the
south side of the castle following south and west. The round passage is preserved in the
wall. The set is constructed of rigid walls of small size and irregular shape.
Castle of Olvera, BIC - Element of Cultural Interest for the Ministry of Culture,
Gobernment of Spain (The 12th century):
The Castle was built at the end of the 1th Century and formed part of the defenses of the Nasrid kingdom of Granada. At 623 meters above sea level it is the highest
point in the locality, Its strategic position allowed a view of the castles along the frontier
that separated Muslim and Christian Spain. Its irregular foundations are adapted to the
craggy cliff on which it sits.
Address
Plaza de la Iglesia, nº11,11690 Olvera (Cádiz)
Spain
Contacts
Juan Caballero de las Olivas y BuzónEmail: parroquia.olvera@gmail.com
Phone: 956120388
Excmo. Ayuntamiento de Olvera
Email: ayuntamiento@olvera.es
Phone: 956130011