Sayalonga

Location

Axarquía – Costa del Sol

What to See in Sayalonga

The most significant building in Sayalonga is the Santa Catalina parish church, which was erected in the sixteenth century on the site of a former mosque and sits on the highest point in the town. The church’s interior consists of two naves separated by semicircular arches that rest on quadrangular pillars. The main nave has an interesting Mudéjar roof frame, and in the other we find the chapel of the Virgen del Rosario, with its beautiful polychrome carving from the eighteenth-century Granadino School.

The exterior of the church is extremely simple but is notable for its square-based tower with its octagonal second level with semicircular arches. The San Antón chapel, which houses an eighteenth century polychrome wooden carving, is separate from the church.

The San Cayetano chapel, built most probably in the sixteenth century, stands next to the entrance to the Santa Catalina church. On those days when Christians and Muslims lived together, it was used by Catholics. Nowadays, it hosts a beautiful sculpture of St. Cajetan from the eighteenth century.

La Alcuza

The Mirador del Cementerio is a scenic viewpoint on the outskirts of the village. It affords breathtaking views of Sierra Almijara, Corumbela, Monte Bentomiz, and even the villages of Árchez and Canillas.

During the days of Arab rule, the Cid fountain was the main source of water. Legend has it that El Cid drank water from this fountain when he came to Axarquía. The oil burnt in candles as a tribute to Our Lady of the Rosary on her day, on 7 October, is made from olives from the olive trees growing round the fountain.

The nearby outlying village of Corumbela sprawls over a hill and offers the visitor the chance to admire the San Pedro church, which was also built over a Muslim mosque. It preserves the slender minaret, which the Christians adapted as a bell tower. This Mudéjar-style church is of great architectural simplicity, with a single nave covered by a beautiful coffered ceiling.

This municipality’s cemetery, which can be seen from the road on the way to Cómpeta, is more picturesque than artistic or decorative. The peculiar thing about this small graveyard is its circular shape and vaulted tombs, features so unusual that they can’t help but attract attention. Adjoining the cemetery, there is a visitor centre providing information on the cemetery, the reasons of its shape and it also informs on the history of the municipality since its origins till the present day.

The Museo Morisco is a museum in Sayalonga aimed at showing the historical and cultural assets of this municipality. The building the museum is housed in used to function as a school, an oleander leaves craft workshop. The building itself is an architectural asset, with its hand carved doors, horseshow arches, bright colours and walls with Moorish motifs. The museum is a reference point that offers visitors all the information they need to go on a tour of the municipality. The Museo Morisco opens from May to September, 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 to 6:00 p.m.; October to April, 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The museum is in 3 Plaza Federico García Lorca. Phone: (+34) 952 535 045. Email:
is one of the narrowest alleys, only 55 centimetres in width, throughout Axarquía. "Alcuza" stands for "sieve." It is near Plaza de la Constitución. It has been recently rehabilitated, and passers-by can feel a typically Arab atmosphere.

museomorisco@sayalonga.es.