Santa Olalla del Cala

The village is situated in the southern slopes of the foothills of the Sierra Morena mountain range close to the border between the regions of Andalusia and Extremadura. The municipality is in the northeast of the Province of Huelva, and is within the Aracena Natural Park,[5] which is a protected areas of the Community and occupies the entire north of the province. The village sits on the eastern slope of a proment hill which is topped with a castle fortress, a parish church which in the past has been a Jewish synagogue and a Moorish Mosque. The surrounding countryside consists of meadows and small hills covered predominantly forest of oaks, chestnut trees and scrubland, through which numerous small streams flow, forming a landscape of outstanding natural beauty.

The local economic activity of the municipality is in agriculture especially Olive groves and Holm Oak foraging groves. The village is also renowned for its cork and wood crafting works as well as embroidery and crochet needle Crafts. Other working activities in the village also include wholesale and retail trading, houses building, activities related to the sale and repair of private and agricultural vehicles and motorbikes. The local gastronomy incorporates a large range of tasty products derived from the Iberian pig. Santa Olalla’s famous sausages are the best elements of its gastronomy.

The west elevation of the castle

The castle stands on a prominent rocky ridge above the village. The fortress, although the ramparts are reminiscent of Moorish castles, was built by the Christian king of Castile, Sancho IV in the thirteenth century replacing a much smaller fortress which had been built earlier by the Muslim rulers of Andalucía. The Muslim structure is thought to have been built on top a much early Roman fortification. The castle was part of a defence system built to protect the city of Seville from the Portuguese. This defence system was called the Banda Gallega or The Galician Band. The system composed of three lines of defence, which mostly utilized older Moorish fortresses. The first line contained the castles of Aroche, Encinasola and Fregenal de la Sierra. In the second line was the Torre of San Bartolomé and Cortegana castle. The third line included Santa Olalla del Cala and the fortress at Aracena.

The Plateresco style Cross on the 'Silver Way'

The church of Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion stands at the southern end of the rocky hill were the castle is situated. The church you see today has had different uses in since it was first built in the 9th century. In the 10th century it was a synagogue and was the Jewish quarter of the village. Two columns from that period can be seen inside the church. During the period of Muslim occupation the building became a mosque. The Apse still retains it Mudejar style with its brick arches and vaults. Two noted features of the Christian church include a fine example of a Gothic doorway, and a statue of the Virgin de los Dolores carved by the Spanish Baroque sculptor Juan de Mesa y Velasco of Seville. Unusually, there is also a preserved ship's anchor, kept here to commemorate the time when Santa Olalla was the base to a Maritime infantry regiment during the Napoleonic wars.[6]

• (in Spanish) Statistics about Santa Olalla del Cala

• 
  The castle viewed from the east
• 
  The Church de Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion in the village of Santa Olalla del Cala
• 
  Street leading up to the castle in the village of Santa Olalla del Cala
• 
  View of surrounding countryside to the west of the castle

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Santa Olalla del Cala.