Morata de Jiloca – Castle, Mudéjar Culture and Cárcavas

Culture

On a rise immediately beside the town are the surviving remains of the Castillo de Morata de Jiloca. The Castillo is protected as a military castle and Bien de Interés Cultural (BIC). Its location directly beside the town connects the surviving building fabric with the townscape of Morata de Jiloca.

The Iglesia de San Martín de Tours in Morata de Jiloca is protected as a monument and Bien de Interés Cultural (BIC). It belongs to the type of fortified churches and has a single-nave layout with chapels between the buttresses. The Iglesia de San Martín de Tours contains an altarpiece from the Ermita de la Santa Cruz. This altarpiece is attributed to the so-called Maestro de Morata. In this way, the cultural site combines defensive architecture with an art-historically attributed altarpiece. The church building and the altarpiece are located in the same protected church, while the Castillo survives as a separate military structure on the rise.

Walks and trails

The “Circular desde la escuela rural” project includes a circular route in Morata de Jiloca where visitors can get to know the town’s main sights and their connection to Mudéjar culture. The local hiking trail SL-Z 63 leads from Morata de Jiloca to the Mirador de las Cárcavas. The circular route combines local sights and cultural context, while the SL-Z 63 highlights a named landscape destination. This provides two differently oriented route options for planning: a circular route focused on the town and Mudéjar culture, and a local hiking trail to the Cárcavas.

Nature and landscape

The landscape around Morata de Jiloca includes extensive pine forests and Cárcavas formed by rill erosion. Nearby is the Vega of the Jiloca on the left bank of the river at Morata de Jiloca. It is irrigated by several canals of Arab origin and includes fruit orchards. Wooded areas, eroded gullies and the irrigated river floodplain with its fruit orchards therefore shape different landscape areas around the town. The landscape thus ranges from pine forests and the formations created by rill erosion to the agriculturally shaped Vega along the Jiloca.

A holiday apartment in Morata de Jiloca can be selected based on travel dates, room category and cancellation conditions. The travel dates determine the desired period, the room category describes the room layout, and the cancellation conditions indicate which rules apply to a change or cancellation. Those comparing several offers can weigh these three criteria separately and clearly compare the respective details.

Other places: Torrijo de la Cañada, Farasdués, Sabiñán, Las Cuerlas, Borja, Pintano, Luesia, Boquiñeni.

Annual cycle

The celebration in honour of the Virgen de Alcarraz is scheduled for the first Sunday in August. The celebration in honour of San Martín de Tours is scheduled for 11 November. The two dates mark different points in Morata de Jiloca’s annual cycle and assign the local festival calendar to two different months.

To the overarching travel overview: Zaragoza.