The subterranean world of Perillos

 

Perillos sits, as most of the Mediterranean basin, in a limestone environment, resulting in several caves and underground rivers. This is the norm, rather than the exception, and Perillos is no exception to this rule. We have previously noted that the church of St Michael of Perillos sits on top of a fault-line. It is obvious that we have not entered this cavity, though we have taken infrared photography and several others have confirmed the presence of this chasm through other scientific means. Finally, there are historical references to the existence of this crypt.
In the overview that we are presenting, we should note that at no point have we done archaeological excavations. In fact, in several instances, merely going in the caves themselves was done with people who had prior archaeological experience… merely so that we would not inadvertently damage something that could be of potential interest. Unfortunately, this precaution was not really required, but under the motto “better safe than sorry”, it is best to do as such.
Under that same motto, we will not identify the locations of these sites, as otherwise they would fall foul of destruction, which is so often the case. Of course, some sites are well-known (La Caune) and it are such examples upon which have based our precaution of not revealing the location of lesser or unknown caves in the area.
Indeed, some of these caves are largely unknown, and some forgotten. Sometimes, the local population knows of a story, but does not know its location, and sometimes vice versa. Sometimes, it is hence a difficult task to match stories to locations, and judge whether they overlap or not.

All the evidence suggests that these caves were, at one point in time, i.e. our distant past, occupied by our forefathers. Some of them (or parts of them) were used as a necropolis, others were used for living, some no doubt for both.
Not all of these caves have been inventoried, though most of which we present here, are. The fact that a cave is unknown or not inventoried is nothing new. A fine example is the famous “Caune d’Arago”, on the territory of Tautavel. For centuries, no-one suspected that that such an important discovery would be made in that location. But then, in 1972, a skull was discovered, a discovery that would completely turn the scientific community on its head. Today, the site is no less than 190 skeletons rich. And no-one doubts the fact that other caves in the area must have similar necropolises… it is merely a matter of first excavating the Arago cave before setting sight on others. The “zone” for such a site is normally 40 kilometres: i.e. within a distance of 40 kilometres, similar or related discoveries are expected to be made. Perillos is within this zone of 40 kilometres. Furthermore, though the initial discovery is made at Tautavel, that does not mean Tautavel is the central site. That could be Perillos, or Salses, Opoul, etc. Let us note that this is not our opinion, but the opinion of the specialists of the museum of Tautavel.

We need to add another aspect to this: from the information we have available, it appears that our forefathers were specifically interested in caves. The best example is the Palaeolithic caves of e.g. Lascaux, Chauvet, etc., each of which contains artwork at almost impossible distances from the cave’s entrance. We note that in megalithic times, the subterranean world remained important and was on numerous occasions recreated, in e.g. Newgrange… and dolmen elsewhere. At this moment, we should note that near the chapel of St Barbara, there is evidence of the presence of a dolmen. For the Greeks and the Romans, there were numerous stories and sanctuaries in which a descent into the Underworld was experienced. In medieval times, the noble dead were buried in a crypt: underground. At that same time, we note Ramon de Perillos’ pilgrimage to Ireland, another underground sanctuary. And it is at that moment in time, upon his return, that he states that his lands have an entrance to another world… no doubt underground? If this was indeed linked with a cave, then it is indeed unfortunate that Perillos has so many, for if there was only one, even if not inventoried to date, it would have been easier to find… and no doubt one of the reasons why “The Tomb of Christ” was not found for several centuries.

A word of caution

This overview will be extended as and when further discoveries are made. We should add that at no point do we indicate the precise location of these caves, nor do we respond to questions about them. Of course, if everyone is aware of a particular cave’s location, we will provide this information. Some of these caves were specifically sealed off several decades ago by archaeological teams, hoping to safeguard these sites. However, most of these sites are known to the local population and as such, doors etc. have long since been removed and the site is “open”. Indeed, all sites are “open” and can be visited by anyone, but to make sure that we are not accused of having instigated a surge in desecration of these sites, we will not reveal some locations.

The cave category

The cave "of the flies"

- La Caune. The famous cave of “La Caune” is a large cave, about which we have written specifically already. The site is easily accessible and considered a “must” for any visitor to Perillos.

- The cave “of the flies”. This cave is not far from La Caune. It is a site that has no doubt been forgotten for a long time. Its discovery was completely by accident. We find similar “crosses” here than those that were found within La Caune. The site has remained intact, unlike others, largely because of the presence of giant flies and wasps, discouraging anyone to go deep inside. This site is one of two possible locations that could qualify as the location of the cave “Oursu”, about which accounts from some centuries ago speak of.

- Oursu. The cave “Oursv” or “Orsu” must be accessible, as the local priest held a regular procession to the site. Still, we have been unable to locate this site, but its existence is not in doubt.

- The cave “of the deserter”. This cave has received its name as a place of refuge for a deserter during World War I. One side of the inside is carefully walled and there are signs of occupation through various times (a rudimentary chimney, and a sort of table in stones). The entrance is invisible and very low, and it is largely impossible to locate if you do not know its location. The road to arrive to this site is very long, hard and sometimes difficult (depending on the weather conditions). The site is at a high elevation and thus has a wide view. Indeed the story is that the deserter was hiding from the Germans, who followed his mother on horseback, while she brought her son provisions. He could watch his mother and the soldiers arrive, though the soldiers always lost sight of the mother and were never able to locate him.

- We have located a cave with a big doorway on the side of the hill that leads towards the radar station. Even though the site itself is not of any exceptional nature, its name is: “the cave of the Spirit”, or “(Holy) Ghost” (the two English words are just one, “L’esprit”, in French). This is the second candidate for the Oursu cave.

- A cave near the first glass oven. It has two remarkable aspects. The first is that there is an old gate, which once fenced off the site. The gate could be explained as the cave itself could have been used to lodge animals overnight. But the size of the cave inside speaks against this suggestion as not too many animals would find safety there. Furthermore, access to this site is not the easiest of climbs and it is hard to imagine why anyone would lead animals to this location, which is also quite far from a water point. The second aspect is a small shelter inside the wall of the rock face nearby. This site becomes of interest solely when we note that it contains certain engravings which appear to be extremely old – and which could be natural, though if so, they would possibly have been identified as of interest to our forefathers, because they appear so man-made. It could indeed be a mixture of both: a natural design in the rock which was then accentuated by man-made additions to the design, giving it the overall shape of an animal. The shelter is very small and allows only access to one person, who furthermore needs to move and roll about.

- a cave relatively close to the road from Opoul to Perillos. This was closed off by a door installed by archaeologists, but long since removed. It is a small opening, which descends quite steeply, similar to the La Caune, into a small pre-chamber. We, and our ancient forefathers, would have required some form of lightning, evidence of which can be seen on the ceiling. The end of the first room leads via a narrow descent into a second room, into which there is a deep hole. There are a series of candles, which suggests that the site is frequently visited.

The hole category

The field of death

- The hole that sits underneath the church of St Michael in Perillos. The site is currently not accessible.

- Three holes without a name in the vicinity of the village. One of these is still filled with the remains of animals, no doubt thrown in there so that no contamination could occur. It appears that these openings were only used as waste-bins… though very old waste-bins.

- A hole has recently been discovered near the area known as “La Mourtre”. In fact, this is a small complex, which involves an “oppidum”. The area is known as “the Field of the Tombs” or “The field of death” or “of the dead”. The entrance is situated on top of the hill and is a small hole which soon opens up after the entrance. At first sight, the site could have been used as a necropolis. It could, for example, have been a site where funerary rituals were held, after which the human remains were lowered and then added to a subterranean network, like an ancient crypt.
One legend states that in this small valley, there was once a horrible battle with numerous victims on both sides. The latter were buried together in the same hole, without any distinction of who belonged to what side; in death, they had become united.

The "other holes" category

There are several holes in this sector, too many to list them all. Several of these serve as watering points, and continue to do so. We note that this is an important fact to point out, for the story goes that the village became abandoned as there was no water “anywhere”. Indeed, one “hole” very close to the village has never run dry, is not dry today and has in fact not one, but three holes within its perimeter!

- In the ruins of the village, right next to the road, sits a “blow hole”. It is a small “well”, at the bottom of which, no matter what the weather, there was a constant air flow, always coming from the same direction, which was able to extinguish a flame. As such, it was well-known by the local youth (at the time) and as such, it has lived on in popular memory. In recent years, “restoration work” has stopped this phenomenon from occurring.

- another water point, located down from the village, is one that has the reputation of never having run dry. It is located on private property and has as name “the Hole of France”. The water is cold and even in summer, abundant. The entire structure is closed off and is now surrounded by impressive shrubbery. There is a resurgence of this water point further below, showing the impressive nature of this single water point.

- Near the road of Perillos, on the plateau of the castle, there is a hole under a rock. The hole is known as the “Hole of the Duke”. It is profound and well constructed. Its water level is constant, its temperature cold and drinkable.

- A similar hole (similar in construction) sits less than one hundred metres from the cave of the Caune, in the direction of Perillos.

The cistern category

- in the ruins of the village of Perillos, there is a subterranean cistern of the castle, as well as another, for use by the local population. These “reserves” are forgotten and few people seem to be aware of its location. One of these is in a perfect state of preservation, even having the stone that commemorates its last cleaning and restoration. It is even possible that the cistern of the castle had a small “refrigerator”, which would have been an exceptional construction for this region – if not totally unique.
Note: we should also mention the cistern that sits next to “Les Lezards”, which is filled by the water coming from the roof of the building.

- the cisterns of the plateau of “Salveterra”. They are within the perimeter of the castle and on the northern edge of the plateau. The latter are very dangerous and not indicated by any panels. They are deep, as well as inhabited by numerous dangerous reptiles. As the municipality does not point out its dangers, we recommend that anyone does not venture near at all, and definitely not in the company of children and animals.