La Palma's Sistine Chapel of rock art

Located in the municipality of Garafía, La Zona Arqueológica de La Zarza y La Zarcita is a site of the Benahoarita culture on the island of La Palma. Discovered in 1941 by Don Ramón Rodríguez Martín, the complex consists of five stations of Benahoarita rock engravings, as well as pastoral settlements and several seasonal shelters. It is considered the Sistine Chapel of rock art in La Palma, being unique in all of Canarias for its vastness and the complexity of its motifs.

In La Zarza, there are 39 panels of engravings on both sides of the caboco, though they are difficult to differentiate as they are practically joined in some cases. On the right margin, the engravings are oriented towards the winter solstice sunset, the twilight of Casiopea, and the alignment of Kochab and Polar during the summer solstice. The panels closest to the central part of the ravine coincide with these stellar events, while most of the motifs are on the left margin, showing four different orientations including the summer and winter solstices and the equinoxes.

In the neighboring ravine of La Zarcita to the northwest, there are two different stations. La Zarcita I consists of two panels oriented to the summer and winter solstice sunsets, while La Zarcita II is larger with 20 panels. These are turned toward the three most important solar orientations, as well as the appearance of Casiopea coinciding with the heliacal rising of the star Canopus in mid-August.

All the motifs represent a series of metaphysical ideas through geometric abstraction, acting as intermediaries between the real world and a more abstract and spiritual domain. The petroglyphs transmitted messages shared by the social group, expressing the eternity of the stars. The motifs can be grouped into four main categories: spirals, circular forms, meanders, and linear forms. They were placed in prominent locations following specific patterns, with the intention that their visibility could be maintained to reactualize sacred time.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons