Benahadux

Benahadux, Bajo Andarax Municipality

Benahadux is a town that belongs to the Bajo Andarax and located around the capital, in a landscape full of vegetable gardens and fruit growing in the valley of the river and another one rough and arid in the last spurs of La Sierra de Gádor.

Benahadux borders the Almeria municipalities of Gádor to the north and west, Rioja to the north, Pechina to the east and the municipality of Huércal de Almería to the south.

To 1,5 kilometres from Benahadux it is located the area called El Chuche, with more or less 250 inhabitants. It is here where there are the oldest human settlements in the area. Located in a plateau (El Paredón), in the right bank of the river Andarax, El Chuche offered perfect strategic and economic conditions for its settlement.

The oldest archaeological remains show the settlement of El Chuche during the Bronze Age, coinciding with the Cultura de Los Millares (2500-2000 B.C.). During the V-II centuries B.C. El Chuche represents an authentic Iberian town (oppidum): it is Urki (Urkesken is read in two bronze coins), that will be turned into Roman Urci, town quoted by Plinio el Viejo, Pomponio Mela, Ptolomeo, Marciano and the Itinerario de Antonio. Exactly from this place name comes from the voice Chuche. The exploitation of the fertile lowland of El Bajo Andarax was its economic basis, in the hands of an aristocratic society. With the arrival of the Christianity, we can find evidences of an important Christian community in the region, setting up Urci in see, from what San Indalecio is his first bishop.

Coinciding with the widespread crisis of the Roman Empire (IV-V centuries), the town of Urci was disappearing, at the same time that at the other side of the river was taking shape a new settlement, the «fundus Bayanus» or Pechina. In the VIII century, when the Muslims conquered the Iberian Peninsula, in the Bajo Andarax were settled a series of Arab yemenis clans, one of whom (the Banu Abdus) gave rise to the present town of Benahadux, a town place that would come from the quoted patronymic. Benahadux would be, like this, one of the varied farmhouses that settled the valley of El Andarax that during the Nasrid age had a small population centre around the boulevard (11 houses) and a mosaic of 43 dispersed houses in the vegetable gardens.

Monuments

Parish Church of La Viergen de la Cabeza, from XVIII century.

Archaeological Sites

Site of El Cerro de El Paredón.
It covers the Prehistoric and Early Christian periods.

Town Planning

El Chuche.

Casas cueva.

Benahadux Gastronomy

Migas cortijeras. Pipirrana. Choto al ajillo. Rabbit with garlic.

Sweets: Borrachillos. Papaviejos. Leche frita (made with milk and flour fried in egg). Soplillo. Hornazos.

How to get there

You have to exit Almería towards Huércal de Almería, cross this town and continue through the road 340. Follow towards: Almería – E-15 – N-340 – Nijar – Murcia. In the roundabout, take the salida 1 and continue in: A-92A towards: A-92 – Benahadux – Guadix. Continue in: A-92A, follow the signs until you get Benahadux.

Distances from Benahadux

Almería 11 km
Gádor 5,5 km
Viator 6 km
Vera 80 km
Níjar 36 km
Pechina 2,5 km
Campamento 11 km
Huércal de Almería 6 km