Route of the Castles and Battles

Arjona is included in the Route of the Castles and Battles, an itinerary running through the province of Jaén and part of the provinces of Ciudad Real and Granada. Arjona once had one of the most complex fortification systems in Al-Ándalus, with a triple line of defensive walls which, combined with Arjona's own strategic position, made it an impregnable stronghold. The origin of its wall system is set within the protohistory of the Iberian Peninsula, having been used by the successive cultures that passed through it, all of which left their mark on its structure. Today, part of this vast defensive system survives, along with an Almohad-period cistern located at the heart of the Alcazaba. The Archaeology Room of the Arjona Museum holds remains of weapons used in the Islamic medieval period, notably including arrowheads of a type matching those used at the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa; also of note, inside the Sanctuary of the Sacred Relics, is a collection of drawings and plans based on the manuscripts of the 17th-century historian Martín Ximena Jurado, showing what Arjona's defensive system looked like at that time.

The visit ticket includes a guide and admission to all monuments, museums and churches, except the Sanctuary of the Sacred Relics; admission to the Sanctuary costs €1, payable at its entrance.