Quintería Caves in the Rural Environment of Daimiel and Manzanares, Province of Ciudad Real

Abstract

The quintería cave dwellings in the municipalities of Daimiel and Manzanares and environs in the Ciudad Real province represent heritage of great value, the result of adaptation to the environment and scarce resources. This building type has not been the subject of specific studies in this area, so the object of this survey is to document quintería caves as widely as possible, with a bibliographic review of various documentary and cartographic sources. The caves were then identified and documented and persons associated with them were interviewed. This approach has allowed us to detail the constructional systems, building processes, and state of preservation of more than a hundred such structures over the last ten years. The current state of neglect of these cave dwellings, regarded until recently as substandard housing, is jeopardizing a remarkable type of Manchegan folk architecture.