Capilerilla Coun Try: Spain

Si te: Capilerilla Coun try: Spain

C ON TE N TS OF TH E F I L E

Synthesis Architectural typologies present Country’s accepted sites

History and general information Current state of vitality and preservation Transformation process Interventions and rehabilitation programmes Bibliography Lexicon

SYNTHESIS

Capilerilla is situated in the heart of Granada’s Alpujarra Alta, forming part of the municipality of La Tahá along with the population centres of Pitres, Mecina, Mecinilla, Fondales, Ferreirola and Atalbéitar. This grouping of villages situated between the rivers Trévelez and Poqueira, along with the best known examples of Pampaneira, Bubión and Capileira, constitutes the most characteristic inhabited sector of a singular county whose architecture is a remarkable example of insertion into the natural landscape.

Capilerilla can be regarded as one of the least touched examples of the forms of Countr map y grouping in the county of La Alpujarra. The village extends as far as the edge of the rav ine, presenting a settlement made up of several groups of added-on houses. These small nucleuses are joined by terraced land and a series of stone walls around small market gardens surrounded by stands of trees beside the irrigation channels. This original model of settlement is undergoing a process of densification to the point of becoming more compact units which currently constitute most of the county ’s population centres. The urban image comprises narrow streets, covered in many cases by tinaos, which exist when the terrace of the dwelling on the higher part of a slope extends to rest on the lower one, partially covering the street and creating a covered passageway. The dwellings of Capilerilla do however preserve most of the characteristic elements of the architecture of the Alpujarras. The openings are small and generally have log lintels. The walls are built with slate, the stone which is so

plentiful in the area and which splits easily to produce sheets of v ariable sizes. The Regional scale sixties saw the start of a trend of whitewashing the outside of the dwellings, though the original model, which can be seen in some isolated buildings, presents the texture and greyish tones of the stone. Source: Geographic map El Guión 2002. The rooms of the houses are small and covered by f lat floors of chestnut logs and Grupo Anaya. Madrid, 2002. alfajías of the same ty pe of wood to produce a horizontal plane on which the sheets of slate are laid, along with a layer of rough or rammed earth over which a final lay er of waterproof earth is laid, called launa. The eaves take the form of a projecting slate known as a beril, which is stabilised by the castigadera, a larger stone placed on top of the sheet. The launa roofs are an exemplary model of the use of earth as a roofing material and are the identifying element of the architecture of La Alpujarra. It is a characteristic ty pe of earth of the region which we could define as an impermeable clay which has lost the minerals which swell it due to a process of metamorphosis Local sc ale of a physical-chemical nature. This prevents cracking due to retraction when the material dries out after rain and gives the earth the ideal characteristics f or use in roof ing.

ARCHITEC TURAL TYPOLOGIES PRESENT

Grouped habitat in the mountains

COUNTRY’S ACCEPTED SIGNIFICANT SITES

Salàs Vall de Bianya Torroella de Montgrí Vilassar de Mar

Montuï ri Ibiza Puertomingalvo Aledo Detail of the urban fabric Cazorla Osuna Guadix Capilerilla Casares

This project is financed by the MEDA programme of the European Union. The opinions expressed in this document do not necessarily reflect the position of the European Union or of its member States. 1/3 Capi leri lla

HISTORY AND GENERAL INFOR MATION

The county of La Alpujarra was populated by Tartessians, Romans and Visigoths but it was during the Islamic period that it reached its peak, when it became the last refuge of King Boabdil after the Reconquest of Granada and was the setting for the final rev olts of the Moorish population in the Iberian peninsula before its definitive expulsion in the early 17th century. The Islamic culture represented major social and economic development for the county, defining a model of settlement which has retained its basic outlines up until the present day and shows clear similarities with the terraced constructions in the mountain ranges of North Af rica.

In the municipality of La Tahá, there are archaeological remains which testify to Islamic presence in the area. Some years later, Felipe II granted the status of villa to the nearby centre of Pitres as a reward for the courage demonstrated by its inhabitants in the Christian cause in the fight against the Moorish rebels.

 Surface ar ea of the site  Geographical co-ordinates Lat. 36º 57’, long. –3º 21’

 Height above sea l evel 1400 m  Lithology

 Population 32 inhabitants  Population densit y  Average annual maximum temperatures 21.5 ºC

 Average annual minimum temperatures 8.6 ºC  Averag e of maximum temp eratures 33 ºC during the hottest month for 10 year s  Averag e of minimum temperatur es during 1.7 ºC the coldest month for 10 years  Annual rainfall 382 mm  Averag e number of days of rain p er year 80 Graph of average temperat ure and precipit ation

 Specifi c ch aracteri stics National Park of Sierra Nevada (86,208 ha).

 Traditional economic activities The traditional economic activity was stock-keeping and farming on the basis of a complex irrigation system. These days, they have fallen off due to low profitability as a result of the difficulties of mechanisation. In the Arabic period there was an important silk-making industry.

 New economic activities Rural tourism is the foremost source of income in the county, representing substantial changes in work for some sectors of the population, though traditional activities have not completely disappeared. Stock-keeping is maintained to some extent, particularly sheep and goats, though flocks have decreased in recent years. Farming has lost its former importance but almonds, olives, wheat and barley are still cultivated, with some ecological concerns being developed.

 Site’s communications with its terr itor y In the western sector of the county, access from Granada is by the N-323 road, branching off at Béznar to take the C-333. After the town of Lanjarón, the direction is Orgiva, turning off to the left to take the local GR-421 road to Pampaneira and Pitres, where a steep and narrow track leads to the village of Capilerilla. From the east, access is via the pass of La Ragua or by taking the N-340 from Almería.  Landscap e Situated on the south side of the Sierra Nevada, the county of La Alpujarra is situated beside the present-day National Park, a natural space of great ecological and landscape value which was declared Biosphere Reserve in 1986. The landscape is especially humanised and profoundly characterised by the presence of terraces cut into the mountainside around population centres. The existence of a complex network of irrigation channels of Islamic origin whose filtrations contribute to the health of the great masses of trees are favourable to the creation of a special microclimate. The natural park has numerous peaks of over 3,000 metres and is an important Mediterranean high mountain ecosystem, with an abundance of endemic species and the preservation of a high level of biological diversity.

CURRENT STATE OF VI TALI TY AND PRESERVATION

Today , we find the original construction models of La Alpujarra in many v illages in the county. In recent decades a big increase in tourism has led to a major rev italisation of this form of architecture; however, the transformations which are taking place, despite being carried out from the viewpoint of preservation and exploitation of cultural and heritage values, do not always comply with a correct interpretation of the elements of traditional construction.

TRANSFOR MATION PR OCESS

Much of the rehabilitation and new construction being carried out in the region presents the formal elements of the architecture of La Alpujarra. Stone and timber are habitually used, though generally forming part of the decorative elements of the building, rather than carrying out their true structural functions. As regards typologies, the transformations are related to changes in use of the buildings, generally with the disappearance of spaces related to farming activities, which are converted into tourist accommodation, small shops and restaurant dining rooms.

INTERVEN TIONS AND REHABILI TATION PROGRAMMES

Until a few years ago, it was frequent to see the substitution of characteristic elements of traditional construction by conventional materials and systems (floors of rafters and vaults, brick walls, reinforced concrete structures, asbestos cement roofs, metal joinery, etc.). However, due to the appreciation of traditional architecture and planning regulation requirements, the trend is now changing. In the case of Capilerilla, the village conserves numerous examples which have not undergone major interventions. Some of the cases of rehabilitation being carried out form part of programmes financed by the Junta de Andalucía regional gov ernment by means of the Regional Rehabilitation Programme. Likewise, the regional government is developing a project for the rehabilitation of fountains and public washing places in the county of La Alpujarra, which includes the washing place of Capilerilla.

Contacts

Alf onso Castellón Gallegos. Technical architect Rafael Montero. Constructor

BIBLIOGRAPHY

• FEDUCHI, Luis M. Itinerarios de arquitectura popular española. Editorial Blume. Barcelona: 1974-1984. (Volumes III and IV). • FLORES, Carlos. Arquitectura popular española. Aguilar. Madrid, 1973-1977.(Volumes IV and V). • ESPINAR MORENO, Antonio Luis; LOPEZ OSORIO, José Manuel. Transformaciones recientes en la arquitectura, el urbanismo y el paisaje en la Comarca de la Alpujarra. Gazeta de Antropología. Universidad de Granada, www.ugr.es/local/pwlac. Granada, 2000. • FERRER, S.J. Sierra Nevada y la Alpujarra. Editorial Andalucía. Granada, 1985.

File created: 23/02/01 File last modified: 03/05/01