Activate your senses!
If we take a map and look for the westernmost west of the province of Jaén we stumble upon a spectacular viewpoint overlooking an endless sea of olive trees. A town that has one of the greatest histories of the towns of Andalusia; “Porcuna”, a luminous crossroads between olive trees and olives, but also a victorious city with a noble title given to it by Julius Caesar himself when he settled there with his troops after the battle of Munda.
It is said to be a city of cities because of its illustrious past and active present, since in the last twenty thousand years it has been a privileged place, from the first Paleolithic periodical stays, with an uninterrupted occupation during all the recent Prehistory (Neolithic, Copper and Bronze), Protohistory (Final Bronze, Ancient Iron and Iberian World) and Ibero-Roman sequences and High and Low Roman Empire. And then on the Roman, the medieval Arab and the Christian city, until we reach our intercultural present, the result of miscegenation.
It is also a city that archaeologically it is an archaeological museum, has among other famous sculptures the famous Iberian bull of Porcuna. Since it is a place linked to the stone and in which gastronomy plays a very important role.
In the visit to this town we can activate a route that awaits us a path of activities, sensations and knowledge, as one of his anecdotes “Porcuna at one time was from Cordoba and Alfonso X changed it by Cabra that at that time was from Jaen”, or you can also examine his attractive book “Vocabulary Porcunero”, with ‘old Castilian words that are still used today in Porcuna.
A book born from the people, for the people and for everyone who wants to know the roots of this town. It is a compilation of porcunera speech words that constitute a very original document, in which the inhabitants of this city express their feelings and their way of life. Hence the origin of the name of our family-owned company QueoPorcuna (QUEO means parsimony, tranquility, and so are our olive groves, a haven of peace in the countryside of Jaén), focused on the production of extra virgin olive oil, under the brand of Queo Porcuna with a spirit of innovation and tradition that comes from our ancestors born in Porcuna.
The most popular attraction for this visit is:
– The Arch and the Parish Church of Nuestra Señora de la Asunción (XX century) are located in the Plaza de Andalucía. The church has in its three vaults mural paintings of the Cordovan painter Julio Romero de Torres.
-The New Tower or Boabdil Tower was completed around 1435 by the Order of Calatrava on one side of the Moorish castle. In 1483 Boabdil “El Chico” lived there for several months after being taken prisoner in the battle of Lucena.
-The Paseo de Jesús has been, for a century, the nerve center of the city’s recreational life. It is a large wooded park, historic garden, containing countless botanical species, its large monument that refers to the olive grove and beautiful viewpoints overlooking the countryside.
-The Stone House was built by the stonemason Antonio Aguilera “Gronzón” between 1931 and 1960. Its beautiful and complex architecture is one of the best examples of local stonework and the genius of its creator.
In our town, for centuries, olive oil has been a source of life, culture and economic sustenance that has formed an inseparable part of a society that has lived by and for this wonderful product that is EVOO. The relationship that oil has maintained and continues to maintain with us is well known. This link is so close that health specialists have assured that the men and women of our land live longer than those of other provinces of Andalusia and that the reason, among other things, should be sought in a diet rich in extra virgin olive oil.
That is why Porcuna is so committed to the olive grove that the Department of Agriculture of the City Council of Porcuna in 2007 organized its First Olive Oil Fair with the title “City of Porcuna”.
This fair is held in the month of November coinciding with the “World Olive Day”, with the aim of promoting our most important product, extra virgin olive oil. In which we can enjoy a craft market, a fair of agricultural machinery, a contest of skill with tractor and trailer, the traditional feast of the hole watered with the rich oil from local mills and spectacular workshops such as oil tasting, making olive oil soaps or the preparation of seasoned olives.
In the organization of this fair, collaborate with the City Council of Porcuna, local olive oil cooperatives and mills, women’s associations, agricultural organizations, establishments of plant protection products and other businesses in the municipality.
We invite you to visit this unique Andalusian village, YOU ARE ALWAYS WELCOME!
