Moon's Clap

Gibraltar Rock sits like a slice of Victoria sponge, a crowning glory on the shores of the Med.  In truth, it is more a layer cake of history; caves in its vast Jurassic limestone cliffs offered shelter to Neanderthal Man, Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Moors & other Islamic conquerors, Spanish and British masters.  It was the last stop in what could have been a nasty, one-way ride over the waterfall at land’s end. 

 

From Wiki

When winds blow from the Levante (mystic east), great swirls of cloud engulf the rock in extraordinary aerobatics.  There is often not another cloud in the sky.  It is easy to see how the ancients imagined it imbued with mysterious powers, a place for the gods. The Phoenicians called it Calpe and its twin across the Straits, Abyla.  The Greeks called them the Gates (or Pillars) of Hercules. 

 

What are these?  Patriotic Public Rest Rooms of course!

Hercules created these pillars to commemorate his rather epic voyage (westwards in a goblet**) so one story goes.  Gibraltar Straits is the location of the 10^th Herculean Labour. (Are you seeing a chance for a bit of a theme here?)  In this neck of the woods, Hercules was obliged to fight Geryon, a three-headed, six legged ogre for his famous cattle.  The cows (were just that!) wandered and gods meddled, so getting said beasties back home to Greece was the most challenging part of his task.  A good Aussie cattle dog would have done him proud, right?

 

The Museum didn’t mention Hercules.  It held other, less improbable treasures.  Housed in the old Ordinance Depot (or Bomb House) this unassuming rabbit warren of displays holds some surprising finds.  Foremost would have to be a replica of the 1848 find in Forbes’ Quarry – an adult Neanderthal skull.  This and other discoveries, including a Neanderthal child, settled Gibraltar’s caves as a rich storehouse of ancient dead.  Excavations by experts continue.

 

The caption says it all - this man existed some 60,000 years ago!!

Another room revealed a mysterious Egyptian mummy (800 BC), complete with wooden caskets.  It was found floating in the Bay in the 1930’s – little more is known about it.  (Perhaps there’s more smuggled than we imagine?) A further treat was found down into the dank underground basement.  A once-luxurious 14^th c Moorish bath-house, complete with steam room and refreshing pool to cool off in after a massage and sauna, had been excavated.  During its life, this complex once served as stables to the Depot. It is gratifying to see, as we learn more about our history, we try to preserve and learn from it.    

 

**The Cap’n would like it noted that we are not about to swap WJ3 for a goblet of any description….