Mazarrón

Mazarrón is located in the South of Region of Murcia. This municipality borders Cartagena and Fuente Álamo at its east, Alhama de Murcia and Totana and its North and Lorca at its West. In addition, it adjoins the Mediterranean Sea at its south.[2]

The main landform of the municipality is a mountain range named Sierra de Las Moreras, which is located in the west.[5][6] In regards to waterbeds, there is not any river, but there are several arroyos (creeks) or ramblas and a remarkable one is Rambla de Las Moreras.[7] There is also a group of three ponds named Lagunas de Las Moreras.[8][9]

This municipality has 13 towns and villages. These are Mazarrón which is placed in the southern half and is inhabited by 12,478 people; Puerto de Mazarrón, that is located in the south and is home to 10,253 people; Saladillo, that is placed in the northern half and has a population of 3,086; Ifre-Cañada de Gallego, that is located in the southeast and is occupied by 1,194 people; Balsicas, that is placed in the east and is home to 1,174 people; Moreras (where Bolnuevo is included), that is located in the south half and is inhabited by 1,034 people; Garrobo, that is placed in the northern half and has a population of 475; Leiva, that is located in the southwestern quarter and is home to 306 people; Majada, which placed in the east and is inhabited by 200 people; Ifre-Pastrana, which is located in the southwest and is inhabited by 456 people; Gañuelas, which is placed in the northwest and has a population of 75; Rincones, that is located in the eastern half and is home to 27 people and Mingrano, which is placed in the east and is occupied by 23 residents.[10][11]

The most ancient data which are known about the territory corresponding to the current municipality date from the Middle and Upper Paleolithic. There are some archaeological sites such one which is placed in Permera Cave, other which is located in Los Tollos ravine, one which is named La Peñica and another one whose name is Las Palomas. The two last ones are placed in the hillock Cabezo del Faro.[12]

The remains of these spots consist of material related to manufactured tools such as flint spear tips, scrapers, racloirs and hammerstones. There were also another ones related to ritual burials. As glaciations ended, prehistory communities organizations were developing.[12]

When the sedentism appeared, some material such as ceramic and some structures such as the first megalithic burial sites in Palomarico Cave and Caballo Cave emerged.

In regards to Chalcolithic and Bronze Age in this current municipality, a prehistoric hamlet in a local range named Sierra de las Moreras can be mentioned. A cemetery is located in this ancient locality, but nowadays the only remains of this necropolis consist of a circle-shaped megalithic tumulus.[12][13]

There are also other sites related to these eras such as Ifre, La Ciñuela, one of which is placed in a hillock named Cabezo Negro and another one which is located in a beach whose name is Playas de Calnegre. These ones have argaric origins.

In regards to Iron Age, the presence of Phoenicians in this territory was meaningful. Two Phoenician vessels were discovered in the beaches of Mazarrón. This fact led Mazarrón to be an appealing point related to underwater archaeology.[14]

Replica of a Phoenician boat wreckage that has been found in Mazarrón.

The main activities of this civilization in this territory were the ones related to mining. In this lands these people realized the broad possibilities, especially fishing and plumber mining. The abundance of this mineral has been constant during the history of this current municipality and the mineral was a main resource in the mining activities in Mazarrón.[14]

Phoenicians were who introduced in plumber in this area, but they did not build lengthy settlements. A noteworthy fact of this civilization is the advance in shipbuilding.[14]

During this period there was also Hellenic presence, but their influence in Mazarrón lower than the Phoenician one. Nevertheless, they also set trading routes which affected this village.[14]

Some centuries after the Phoenicians and Greeks, there was an Iberian presence in this area, but this occupancy left few traces.[14]

From 211 to 209 BD there was a war between the Romans and the Punics of Carthage named Second Punic War. In 209, Romans conquered the current Spaniard locality of Cartagena (whose name was Qart-Hadast in that era) and won the war. Great part of the Iberian Peninsula became part under the Roman control and its southeast was included, so the current municipality of Mazarrón was also affected in these facts.[15][16]

When the Romans obtained territory in the Iberian Peninsula, they settled a town in this territory named Ficaria.[14]

During this era, the mining was very important in the territory corresponding to the current municipality of Mazarrón. In this area there are remnats of the presence of the Roman people such as dwelling and object remains. A noteworthy archaeological site related to Romans is the Villa del Alamillo. There are also remains of marble statues of the Roman goddess Ceres.[14]

The Romans built structures for producing a typical roman sauce named garum. It consisted in ferment fish entrails (especially from mackerell).[14]

In the year 711 AD there was a Muslim conquer of great part of the Iberian Peninsula, in particular it was carried out by an Islamic Berber conquering party. Consequently, Mazarrón became part of Al-Andalus, the territory in the Iberian Peninsula under Muslim government and control and also a province of the Umayyad Caliphate.

Due to the Reconquista, the territory became quite uninhabited. In that period Mazarrón was part of the conciliium (a governmental institution of that era) of Lorca. An important construction of this era period is the Vélez Castle.[17]

On 1 August 1572 the king Philip II of Spain conceded Mazarrón the status of villa (a status of localities in that era). Since that fact, an own towncouncil was avoidable for Mazarrón and its period as a municipality (which remains nowadays) started.[18]

Mining activities, as traditionally, was an economy activity in that period and as a consequence an economic rise took occurred.

In that period, besides the economic rise, there was also insecurity in the territory due to pirate entrances and attacks. As a consequence, some towers were built in the municipality.[18]

From 18th century fishing became moderately important and in previous periods this fishing importance did not exist. This significance endures nowadays. The Crown and other institutions began to promote this activity. Other economic activity which began to be done in this century is the alum transportation.[19]

As a result of those economic activities a need of building dwellings on the coast rose. However, there wasn't a weighty town in that area before the 19th century.

In the 19th century, mining continued being an activity an it underwent a boom. This mining rush underwent its peak in the 1840s and mining extraction was favoured by the law. This apogee in mining led to a progress in the environment, many investments, a lot of immigration, electric streetlight, railways, important buildings, miner hospital, etc.[19]

The municipality got into a decline due to the depletion of mining resources in the early 20th century. The decaying situation in which there were even famine spells, was very connected to the political and social situation of the whole country.[19]

The crisis of the municipality has some symptoms such as the decrement of the number of inhabitants - In the year 1900, 23,284 people were living there and 63 years after the number of inhabitants was 17,630. During those years, people in the village just tried to survive and foreign capital stop being invested in Mazarrón. This last fact emphisised the crisis.[19]

Mazarrón began to leave the situation of recession because the economic activity was addressed to other areas and they would bring this territory its current characteristics. During the 20th century the society changed the economic activities from mining to agriculture, construction and tourism.[19]

This festivity is held from 4 to 8 December. It is a patron saint festivity, which is consecrated to the Virgin Mary in regards to her Immaculate Conception. This tradition has its origins in the 18th century.[66]

During these days there are groups of people who get together specifically throughout the festivities and do activities related to the celebration (the Spanish concept of 'peña'). They prepare the events that will take place during these festive days and issues related to that such as the floats of the parades.

Besides the parade, there are other activities such as the election of the queen (a tradition in Spanish traditional festivities is choosing a female child or a young girl who will have the symbolic role of queen during the festivities), popular games, performances from locals, graffiti exhibitions, and some popular contests such as boules contest, pet contests, tennis competitions, soccer competitions, regattas, athletics contests, etc.[66]

• El Saladillo Festivity: This festivity is held on 19 March and it is consecrated to Saint Joseph. In this festivity people in the hamlet do the festive pilmgrim called in Spain romería . Some people eat in the country roast and get together next to the patron saint statue.[67]
• Cañada de lo Gallego Festivity: Its festive days are consecrated to Saint Anthony of Padua. During this festivitiy there is a special mass and a religious parade in which people carry the patron saint statue.[68]
• La Atalaya Festivity: These festive days are consecrated to Corpus Christi. Some activities of this festivity are a mass related to the Virgin of El Rocío, soccer competitions, contests, giant paella tasting acts, etc. Cañadas del Romero Festivity: This festivity is held on 24 June and it is consecrated to John the Apostole. During this festivity there are some activities such as religious parades in which people carry the patron saint statue, a special mass, verbenas, contests, etc.
• Leiva Festivity: This festivity takes place on 16 July. During the festive days there are displays and exhibitions which are arranged by the locals.[69]
• Pastrana Festivity: This festive day takes place on 25 July and it is consecrated to James, son of Zebedee. There are some activities that are carried out by the locals during this spell such as one named 'carrera de cinta a caballo'(horse-drove and sash-wearing races)which consists (as the name indicates) in a horse-drove race in which the horsemen wear a sash and the winner gets a kiss from some lasses who play the role of ladies. People also do calva competitions, soccer matches, etc. Some performances of several kinds also take place during this day.[70][71]
• Gañuelas Festivity: Its festive day takes place on 24 August and it is consecrated to the hamlet patron saint Bartholomew the Apostole. Some activities during the festivities are verbenas, customary dance performances, fireworks performances, etc.[72]
• Majadas Festivity Despite this celebration is consecrated to Virgin Mary in her catholic facet as inmaculate, the date of the festivity takes place on the first week on September instead of its standard corresponding day on 8 December. Some activities which are carried out during these days are boules matches, soccer matches, contests of a typical Spanish dish named migas, etc. There are also music performances that also are interpreted at nights.[73]
• Las Balsicas Festivity The celebration takes place on 28 December. This festivity is named among the local 'Los Rebuznos'. The reason for this name is that the main tradition during this day consists in people making a role and their name is 'rebuznadores'. In that role these people dress up in a specific way and emit the typical sound of donkeys - the bray, whose translation in Spanish is 'rebuzno'. Hence the role 'rebuznador' which can be translated as 'people who bray', 'bray people' or 'brayers'.[74]