A Puzzling Hillfort: La Muela de Arriba Reveals its Mysteries

Standing at the archaeological site of La Muela de Arriba in Requena, Spain, the first impression is not one of a strategic vantage point. The site is on a hill, but it is blocked on the west by the Sierra del Rubial, and the view to the north, east and south is obstructed by distance. Yet this inconvenient location was chosen by the Iberian people who originally inhabited the site. La Muela de Arriba dates back to the 4th century BC and was one of a network of settlements that controlled the area around the Magro river.

Unlike its neighbours, this site was equipped with a wall, standing tall at the highest point of the hill, on a surface of 16,128 m². It is believed that the population primarily relied on farming, livestock, and some metallurgy for their economy. However, the site was abandoned at the beginning of the second century BC, when the Romans arrived and changed the power structure of the area.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata