The cliffs of the ancient town of Ronda, cut in two by the 130m (on three sides) gorge of El Tajo (the cut or the slash); the two halves joined by an 18th century arched bridge, the Puente Nuevo (new bridge); are a spectacular sight but this is spectacular country and as breathtaking as the Ronda cliffs are there is more to come. Head west from the town on the A397 towards Montecorto and take a left turn onto the MA549 heading for Montejaque and Benaoján.

Benaoján (an Arabic name meaning either sons of Oján, or, more popularly, house of the baker) is a small white Andalucian hill town renowned for its chorizo sausages; and a short distance away, at a lower altitude, lies Estacion de Benaoján on the main Malaga-Ronda-Algeciras line with a station in many ways reminiscent of America’s Mid-West. There is even a ‘last ditch’ saloon bar on the platform. A short way south west of Benaoján is a turning marked Cueva de Pileta which leads to one of the most unusual and exciting features in Andalucia.

The entrance to the Cueva de Pileta (cave of the bowl or trough), which is part of Las Mesas (the high plains or, literally, tables), lies a short steep climb from the car park. There is a small refreshment hut which sells coffee, mint tea and other beverages to sustain one during the wait (which can be lengthy) for a guided tour. The Cueva is privately owned and securely gated. There is no artificial lighting and those going round the Cueva must carry paraffin lamps supplied by the guide. Photography is strictly forbidden.

Hundreds of bats live in the Cueva and it was the hunt for their droppings, which make excellent fertiliser, that led to the discovery of this cave system by José Bullón Lobato in 1905. In the guide book to Cueva de Pileta it states that one of José’s ancestors was Godofredo de Bullón who led the Crusade which captured Jerusalem for the Christians in 1099. After Godofredo’s death, his brother became King Baudoin I of Jerusalem and it was he who admitted the Knights Templar to that city.

The cave system is of limestone and there are some incredible geological phenomena including the calcite formations of stalactites and stalagmites, some of which were damaged in Antiquity, probably for ritual purposes; the ‘Venus of La Pileta’; and El Organo. The Organ consists of huge vertical pleats of hollow rock which can be played like an organ or a drum. Most memorably The Organ was played by Ringo Starr during a 1960s Beatles recording session in the Cueva.

In 1911 the first archaeological discoveries were made in the Cueva and it was declared a National Monument of Spain in 1924. Discoveries included grinding stones for corn, building debris and traces of ancient hearths, and Mousterian era(80,000 –35,000 years ago) tools. Four skeletons were also found. One lay in a ‘crouched inhumation position’ (curled up like a foetus) at the present entrance to the Cueva (there are at least three separate entrances but two of them require climbing gear). The most important finds however were the paintings (said to be some of the oldest and best in the world) which date back over 25,000 years to the Cro-Magnon (35,000-20,000 years ago) and Levantine periods (originating in the eastern Mediterranean maybe some 25,000 years ago).

The paintings, done in black and a reddish ochre, represent goats, horse, deer, and cattle (all cult animals indicative of a fertility cult); and include a pregnant mare and, in an inner chamber guarded by a bowman and some way from the entrance, the famous pregnant fish. There are red finger marks and the red outline of a hand on the wall around the painting of the fish and infilled outlines of black hands around some of the other paintings. Similar outlines of painted hands have been found in the Neolithic city of Çatal Hüyuk (c7000BC in S.W.Turkey).

It is unlikely that there was habitation of the Cueva much beyond the entrance due to a lack of fresh air and difficulty of access. The ‘Chamber of the Fish’ and other nearby chambers are almost certainly ancient religious ritual areas for the worship of a water deity and/or a mother goddess. Fish worship was not uncommon in pre-history (life originated in the seas) and worship of mother goddesses was universal until c1000BC.

Fertility was always the main theme. The female gave life. The presence of pregnant animals among the painting surrounded by finger marks is suggestive that women came here to worship and to touch a likeness of the goddess in the hope of becoming pregnant; in much the same way that certain saints are still asked for such help today.

Head back from the Cueva de Pileta towards the A397 on the road which passes through the white towns of Benaoján and Montejaque for a spot of lunch at Cueva Del Gato, an original and unusual restaurant specialising in the local delicacies of red pepper soup, rabbit casserole and wild asparragus. It has a pleasant balcony, looking across the Ronda-Algeciras railway line to the Ceuva del Gato (the cat). The Cueva supposedly takes its name from the cat-like appearance to the entrance; but there is also what appears to be the shape of black cat over the entrance.

During the winter months the Cueva del Gato, which is part of the Hundidero (fallen) cave system, floods, like its neighbours, and rushing torrents of water tumble out of the Cueva into a stream below. There is a bridge across the entrance so that one can stand above the waters but access to the Cueva is only possible in the dry summer months and then only with official permission and a trained guide because of its complex nature and liability to sudden flooding. To one side of the entrance hardy troglodytes of yesteryear hollowed out a cave house in the rock.

More information and an exhibition on caves in the area can be seen at the Tourist Office on the Plaza de la Constitucion in Montejaque (tel: 0034 952 167 196) but little English is spoken there.