At the top of the Almiserà mountain, 725 metres above sea level, there are remains of a Muslim construction that was part of the fortifications of La Vall de Gallinera.
An aerial photo taken by the United States airforce in 1956 permits us to identify the perimeter of the fortification that Rafael Azuar Ruiz describes as follows:
…and so the existence of the magnificent fort of Almiserat is explained, with a rectangular layout of four circular cubes projecting outwards at its extremities and two squares on its visible side wall, similar to the Umayyad castles of the plains of Syria or some of the ribats in northern Africa, but due to its small size, just 35 metres long and 22 metres wide, and its location at the geodesic point of the Almiserat peak, without a doubt it was a fort used exclusively for military purposes.
Fragments of three of the circular corner cubes are currently visible, as well as remains of two squares that appear on one of the side walls.
CHRONOLOGY
The Almiserà fort is the oldest fortification in La Vall de Gallinera. It was built quickly, probably during the period 920-930, but it seems that it was not used for more than a century. It has been excavated, studied and written about by André Bazzana. Its occupation is related to the submission of the Berbers of this area to Caliph ‘Abd al-Rahman III.
The facilities of a TV relay, a radio station’s equipment and a fire observation hut have been built and installed on top of these remains, damaging what had survived over the centuries after the fort was abandoned.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
BAZZANA, A. (2005): El Fortí Omeia d’Almiserà en el cim del Xillibre. Separata del llibre de festes de Pego 2005.
