A side effect of the worst drought in Spain has uncovered a circle of prehistoric rocks on a dam in the province of Cáceres. According to the Portal news agency, the structure is officially known as the Guadalperal Dolmen, but it was named after the Spanish Stonehenge in reference to the British one.
The structure is believed to date back to 5000 BC. dates from. It lies fully exposed in a corner of the Valdecanas Reservoir, where authorities claim the water level has dropped to 28% of capacity.
“It’s a surprise; it’s a rare opportunity to have access to it,” said archaeologist Enrique Cedillo of Madrid’s Complutense University. He is one of the experts studying the circle before it goes underwater again.
The structure has only been seen by researchers four times in history. The first is by German archaeologist Hugo Obermaier in 1926. However, the dolmen was submerged from 1963 when a development project under Francisco Franco’s dictatorship inundated the area.
Local history and tourism associations even advocated taking the Guadalperal Stones to a museum or elsewhere on the mainland.
While there is no agreement on the structure’s destination, the site has become a tourist attraction. Ruben Argentas, owner of a small boat company, said: “Dolmen are emerging and dolmen tourism is starting.”
On the other hand, farmers in the region are complaining about the weather conditions the province is facing. “It hasn’t rained enough since the spring… There is no water for the cattle and we have to transport them,” said José Manuel Comendador. At Rufino Guiné, the pepper plantation was devastated by the drought.
Climate change has left the Iberian Peninsula its driest in 1,200 years, and winter precipitation is expected to continue to decline, according to a study published in the journal Nature Geoscience.
‘Spanish Stonehenge’ emerges in reservoir after drought
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The Guadalperal Dolmen, also known as the Spanish Stonehenge, can be seen due to the receding waters of the Valdecanas reservoir on the outskirts of El Gordo, Spain
Silvio Castellanos/Portal 
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The Guadalperal Dolmen, also known as the Spanish Stonehenge, can be seen due to the receding waters of the Valdecanas reservoir on the outskirts of El Gordo, Spain
Silvio Castellanos/Portal 
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The Guadalperal Dolmen, also known as the Spanish Stonehenge, can be seen due to the receding waters of the Valdecanas reservoir on the outskirts of El Gordo, Spain
Silvio Castellanos/Portal 
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The Guadalperal Dolmen, also known as the Spanish Stonehenge, can be seen due to the receding waters of the Valdecanas reservoir on the outskirts of El Gordo, Spain
Silvio Castellanos/Portal 
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The Guadalperal Dolmen, also known as the Spanish Stonehenge, can be seen due to the receding waters of the Valdecanas reservoir on the outskirts of El Gordo, Spain
Silvio Castellanos/Portal 
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The Guadalperal Dolmen, also known as the Spanish Stonehenge, can be seen due to the receding waters of the Valdecanas reservoir on the outskirts of El Gordo, Spain
Silvio Castellanos/Portal 
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The Guadalperal Dolmen, also known as the Spanish Stonehenge, can be seen due to the receding waters of the Valdecanas reservoir on the outskirts of El Gordo, Spain
Silvio Castellanos/Portal 
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The Guadalperal Dolmen, also known as the Spanish Stonehenge, can be seen due to the receding waters of the Valdecanas reservoir on the outskirts of El Gordo, Spain
Silvio Castellanos/Portal