About Iznajar
The Town
The town is built around the ruins of the 1,200-year-old Moorish castle which
tops a rocky outcrop. Although the ruins are in a poor state of repair they offer
fantastic views of the surrounding area and the walk up to them through the old
winding streets is lovely. Parts of the fortified town walls can also still be
seen.
The Iglesia de Santiago church dates from the fifteenth and sixteenth
centuries and is notable for its Baroque altar piece. Also of interest is the shrine of the Ermita
de la Antigua, which was built in the seventeenth century and features a curious domed vault, which leads on to an even more unusual eighteenth century dressing room. Iznajar also has a small municipal museum, dedicated to its agricultural heritage and local customs.
The Barrio del Coso area is a lovely place to wander around, its maze of narrow lanes meander around attractive, whitewashed houses. From the main square, the Plaza Nueva, wonderful views of the surrounding countryside can be seen. It is also worth seeking out the small barrio of cave dwellings known as El Caganchuelo.
The Lake
The town of Iznajar was transformed some years ago by the creation of a
reservoir across the River Genil
valley. Today Iznajar now has a waterfront, overlooking an inland sea some thirty kilometres long, and containing an estimated 900 million cubic
metres of water.
The reservoir provides an excellent place for fishing, birdwatching and all kinds of watersports. It is 30 km long but Iznajar is the only town/village on its edge. There is a pretty sandy 'beach' just outside the town backed by a couple of bar/restaurants.
The Areas History
The village was originally a prehistoric Iberian settlement, but flourished in the eighth century when
is was settled by Arabs. In 711AD Tariq ibn Zayid built a castle called it 'Hins Ashar'
which has given the town its modern name. In 1431, in the reign of Catholic monarch Juan II, it was taken back by the Christian rulers, some sixty years before Granada was to fall in 1492. Iznajar gained brief notoriety in 1861 when the town supported an uprising against the monarchy, led by Rafael Perez del Alamo, with grimly predictable consequences.
The ruined Moorish castle can still be seen, as can parts of the old fortified town wall and the 15th century church of Santiago.
Festivities in Iznájar include Semana Santa (Easter), when the locals play out a religious epic in a theatrical production featuring scenes from the bible. On April 25th, San Marcos is honoured by the inhabitants by a communal picnic that is held in the countryside near the town. Iznajar's annual September feria usually takes place from September 7-10.