About 15 kilometres from the city, in the foothills of the Sierra Morena, is the Desierto de Nuestra Señora de Belén, the site of the complex of Las Ermitas. Founded in the 18th century by Brother Francisco de Jesús, this was a place of hermit retreat since the Middle Ages. The first building was erected in 1703. The complex is made up of thirteen cells or hermitages which have been run by the Discalced Carmelites since 1957. Inside the enclosure is a magnificent viewpoint presided over by the monument to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, built in 1929 by Lorenzo Coullaut Valera. From here there is a marvellous view of Cordoba and part of the Vega del Guadalquivir.
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