Micolón (Rionansa, Cantabria)

The Micolón cave is located in the Cantabrian municipality of Rionansa, in a cliff facing north, dominating the old course of  Nansa river. Today that valley is flooded by the Palombera pool, the construction of which almost floods the cave. His paleolithic art was discovered in 1976 by the Cantabrian Speleo Club. It was studied by García-Guinea and published in local journals. Since 2019, we are developing a research project, led by Diego Garate.

If accessing it is difficult (it is only possible to do it by kayak), the interior is even worse, due to the narrowness of its labyrinthine passageways. Still, Micolón contains a unique set of rock art made up of red paintings of animals (bears, horses and bison) and geometric shapes, as well as engravings of deer and vulvas. A complete red cave bear is the most famous image in the cave. The art is housed in a very special chamber after a narrow and labyrinthine underground path. The entire 2D and 3D documentation process will be developed in the coming months. New parietal vestiges have also been located in remote and very difficult access places in the cave, associated with traces of red dye on the ground.