Cueva de Chinguaro
You’re at the Cave-Shrine of Chinguaro—Cueva de Chinguaro in Spanish—an archaeological site in Güímar on Tenerife that’s protected as a Bien de Interés Cultural. Long before the church appeared, this cave was the traditional sacred space of the Guanches: it served as the traditional palace of Acaimo, the Guanche king of the Menceyato de Güímar. Inside, indigenous worship centered on the goddess Chaxiraxi, a figure connected with Berber traditions from North Africa. After the Spanish conquest, Spanish clergy reinterpreted that veneration through Catholic devotion to the Virgin Mary, and later built a church shrine here. One fascinating twist: the icon was moved to the Cave of Achbinico in Candelaria, where this devotion helped form what became the first shrine devoted to the Virgin of Candelaria. …
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