Heartless thieves steal carved stone from La Montaña del Sombrero site

**Cultural Heritage of the Cabildo denounces a looting that constitutes a criminal

The Cabildo of Fuerteventura, through its Cultural Heritage Service, has confirmed a looting at the rock‑engraving station of La Montaña del Sombrero, located in the municipality of Antigua. The case will be reported to the competent authorities and is considered a criminal offence.

After receiving a tip from a citizen, the Cultural Heritage Service inspection team, accompanied by Environmental agents, went to the site. Upon arrival they verified that part of the engraved rock had been removed, an act that constitutes a crime against historical and cultural heritage because it damages a protected archaeological asset of great value.

The citizen who raised the alarm handed over to the Cabildo five fragments that had broken off from the panel. These pieces have been recovered and placed in the custody of the Cultural Heritage Service for preservation, conservation, and analysis. Thanks to this collaboration, part of the looted material has been saved, facilitating its study and eventual restoration.

The rock engravings of La Montaña del Sombrero, declared a Bien de Interés Cultural (BIC), are among the most important archaeological legacies of Fuerteventura. The site contains inscriptions in Libyco‑Berber and Latin‑Canarian scripts, alongside geometric and symbolic motifs that reflect the deep cultural imprint of the island’s ancient inhabitants and its exceptional value as a historical and ethnographic testimony.

The Cultural Heritage Department, headed by Rayco León, stresses that preserving Fuerteventura’s cultural heritage is essential. Any unauthorized intervention on protected assets is a criminal offence.

The Cabildo also thanks the citizen’s cooperation, which made the partial recovery of the panel possible, urges the public to immediately report any further fragments or alterations they may find at the site to the competent authorities or the Cultural Heritage Service (phone 928 86 23 00, ext 664).

The Cabildo of Fuerteventura assures that this crime will not go unpunished and that all actions endangering the island’s cultural heritage will be prosecuted.