When Murcia university (UMU) lecturer Ignacio Martín Lerma managed to squeeze his head inside after months of excavation and shine a torch to see what was behind some rocks inside the Cueva del Arco in Cieza, his team’s suspicions that another cavity lay behind were confirmed.
However, this cave – which they thought would be no larger than about 20 metres – turned out to be hundreds of times larger, extending over 1,500 metres, making it one of the five largest in Murcia region and it still has not all been explored.
Sr Lerma has assured that this cave ‘opens a new door to prehistory’, as it was not only spectacular but also contained very important discoveries – and will probably reveal many more surprises.
The Cueva del Arco is a complex of caves concentrated in a large arc of natural rock in the Almadenes canyon in Cieza.
The first campaign of excavations there began in 2015, since when it has generated great scientific and public interest.
Full report in Friday’s Costa Blanca News
