Periana

Interesting facts
Area: 58,50
Number of inhabitants: 3.500
Descent: Perianenses
Monuments: Church of San Isidro Labrador, Lavadero (washing place) de la Cruz, Moorish Baths and the Almazara.
Geographical situation: In the interior of the Axarquía, 23 kilometres from Vélez and 58 from Malaga, at 547 metres above sea level.
Tourist information:
Town Hall, Plaza de Andalucía, 1. 29710. Phone: 952 536 167 Fax: 952 536 276

There are two ways to get to Periana. One can take the road through the Mountains of Malaga, a winding country road that passes through Colmenar to bring us to Periana. The second is the most suitable if we leave from the Axarquía, since it starts from Vélez, bringing us by the Viñuela road and the Puente de Don Manuel cross roads, where we turn to the left and follow the route to the town. The municipality is in a privileged position in the Axarquía region, in a valley surrounded by hills with an abundance of water that feeds the cultivated plots below. This has created a micro-climate that has attracted settlers from pre-historic times. We know this from remains found in the Cerro de la Alcolea, at 731 metres above sea level and facing Mondrón; the Neolithic site at the Cerro del Fuerte and the Marchamonas area, situated to the north of Periana.
During the Moorish domination, hamlets like Mondrón and the Baños de Vilo existed in what is now the urban centre, and the water from these baths was used for medicinal purposes. At that time Periana was probably a farmhouse that grew into a series of defensive fortresses, one on the hill of Santana and another more southerly in a place called Pereiro, the origin of the town's present-day name. But it was not until the end of the 18th century, in 1761 to be exact, that the area became an independent municipality. Until then it had been under the jurisdiction of Vélez, and in an even earlier period, of Riogordo. With independence came the conversion of the hermitage into a parish church. An earthquake in 1884 destroyed a large part of the town, and it was subsequently re-constructed with aid from the rest of the country and abroad. In our time Periana is a prospering agricultural town, famous for its olive oil and peaches. In fact, its annual peach festival is considered to be one of the best of its kind in Spain.


Outstanding visits
Church of San Isidro
The Church of San Isidro is the most important building in the town. It was built after the earthquake in 1885, as re-construction work was going on around it. The style is a mixture of neo-Mudejar, built in three naves and dressed in brick on the outside.
Interesting routes
Periana extends in a fan shape over the foot of the Sierra de Alhama mountain range. The most interesting of its narrow and twisting streets are calle Pablo Ruiz Picasso and calle Rosales, and the streets surrounding the Fountain of San Isidro, like the passageway of La Cuca. Most of the houses are of one or two storeys, whitewashed on the outside, although there are some bigger family homes from the 18th century in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento. Another interesting plaza is La Lomilleja, to be found at the entrance to the urban centre on a rise that provides wonderful views over the valley and the reservoir of La Viñuela.
Baños de Vilo Spa
These baths are now under re-construction, in the hamlet of the same name. Baños de Vilo, at just 2,5 kilometres from Periana, and the sulphuric, medicinal waters attract people to the place. It is not known how far the baths date from, although many people came here for health reasons during the second half of the 18th century. In 1828 a type of boarding house was built nearby, and a bathing house. Later problems of ownership -the Town Halls of Vélez and Periana claiming ownership - resulted in the buildings being abandoned, but at the end of the 19th century the then owner, Emilio de San Martín, carried out reforms on the place. A storm in 1907 destroyed what had been done, and it was not until the 1990s that the Town Hall acquired the spa and began to work on the structure once more.