© Visit Sant Antoni
© Ibiza Travel
Ses Fontanelles Cave Paintings, San Antonio
Pre-historic paintings inside a small cave on the western coast
The cave of Ses Fontanelles is situated in an area of beautiful rocky cliffs between Santa Agnes and San Antonio. Inside, there are pre-historic paintings.
Also called Cova del Vi (Wine Cave) because it was used to store wine, this cave stands out because of the beautiful views over Cala Salada, San Antonio bay and the western islets of Ibiza.
The paintings were discovered in 1917 by the French archaeologist Henri Breuil. He dated them to the Bronze Age, in the year 1000 BC, but recent studies have located them in the Punic era (6th-4th centuries BC).
The cave is currently protected with a fence but there are replicas made in synthetic resin on site which can be seen from the outside.
Directions
The best way to reach the cave is to walk from Cala Salada, it takes about an hour to get there, and another hour to come back. Bear in mind that access can be hard.
If you want to arrive by car, take into consideration that the road is full of potholes, so better to bring a 4x4. On the road to Cala Salada, take the dirt road to the right just before the beach. After passing two houses, on the fork, take the right trail, and then the left on the next one. You can park near the cliffs, and walk the path that starts on the right. The cave is about 500 metres away.
