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Cova de l'Olla

Cova de l'Olla

Petita cova de 33 m. de recorregut al Montmell

Montmell, El • Baix Penedès33m10m

Small cave with a 33 m passage in Montmell, with a single sloping chamber and archaeological remains from the Eneolithic to the Bronze Age.

Characteristics

Location

About 50 metres above the right slope of the Sant Marc ravine.

There are different options for the approach: from the road from la Juncosa del Montmell to Aiguaviva, past the coll de l'Arca and almost in front of the Claravalls farmhouses, a track in very good condition leaves and runs through the Sant Marc valley; the turn-off to Mas Bartomeu is left on the right and you continue straight on until a double bend (right-left) shortly before reaching the barranc de les Fontanilles. Beside the track there are steps cut into its edge and from here a small path-trail climbs steeply; following it and taking a fork to the right you reach the first entrance of the cave.

Access can also be made from the TP-2442 road from Sant Jaume dels Domenys to Pla de Manlleu, where past km. 8, almost in front of the Cal Sumoi farmhouse, a track leaves to the left that connects in the area of the barranc de les Fontanilles with another track coming from Aiguaviva and with the one described in the first itinerary.

Mapa

Entrances

Always verify coordinates and access conditions before setting out.

  1. Cova de l' Olla

    Elevation: 485 m

    41.334680, 1.509425
    UTM 31T (ED 50) 375369 4577186
Download all entrances as GPX

Photos

Cova de l'Olla - Photo, Montmell, El, Baix PenedèsView image
Click to enlarge

Espeleoindex · CC BY-NC 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ · Image © its author.

Image 1 of 4

Description

Morphology

Consisting of a single sloping chamber of about 18 x 18 x 6 metres approximately, with two small side chambers and a second entrance hanging on the NW side.

Other details

Based on the archaeological remains found, it seems to be a cavity more of a funerary type than one used as a dwelling. The materials studied range from the Eneolithic to the Bronze Age and it seems that it was also used in Iberian times.

History

It seems entirely probable that the cavity cited by Font i Sagué in his Catalogue (1897) as Cova del Sumoy (sic), without giving any kind of data and which he places in Marmellar, is the one known today as Cova de l'Olla. The oldest reference we know of comes from a visit made by Dr. Francesc Español in October 1950 during one of his biospeleological researches.

Bio

Coleoptera: Troglocharinus espagnoli Zariquiey (subspecies ollai)

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Bibliography

Lagar, A. (1972).- “Cavidades de Aiguaviva – Montmell (Tarragona)” Senderos (166): 12-18. Unió Excursionista de Catalunya. Barcelona.

· Coordenades, fotografies i altres dades extretes del blog: Espeleobloc (post del 15-12-2009).

Source: Espeleoindex (espeleoindex.com), modified. CC BY-NC 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/