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Inside El Borge's new museum SUR
One of the region's most notorious bandits 'comes home' to the Axarquía

One of the region's most notorious bandits 'comes home' to the Axarquía

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The El Borge museum now houses one of the largest collections in existence on the history of banditry in the world

Friday, 24 February 2023, 17:54

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When Ronda's Museo del Bandolero closed in 2020 it handed over a collection of 1,500 artefacts connected to bandits in Andalucía to El Borge town hall. It was fitting as the small Axarquía village was once home to one of the region's most notorious 19th century bandits; El Bizco de El Borge.

The new space, La Galería del Bandolero, officially opened in El Borge on Thursday 23 February and displays the items from Ronda as well as objects already belonging to the Axarquía village.

EL Borge is already home to the Hotel Posada Del Bandolero. which has its own small collection of artefacts and is said to have been frequented by El Bizco and his contemporaries.

The new collection includes books, weapons, engravings, lithographs, stamps, newspapers, photographs, oil paintings, watercolours, comics, stickers, films and more.

One of the largest collections in the world

Malaga's provincial authority, La Diputación, has invested 185,000 euros in the museum which is located in an old warehouse which once belonged to the local olive cooperative.

El Borge now houses one of the largest collections in existence on the history of banditry in the world. «What better place than El Borge, birthplace of one of the most feared bandits of his time, Luis Muñoz, known as 'El Bizco Arboge', to host this ambitious cultural facility,» said president of the Diputación, Francisco Salado.

As well as the collection of banditry artefacts, the 500 square-metre cultural space has a capacity for 120 people and one of the largest vertical gardens in the province, with nearly 3,000 plants.

Heroes and villains

The museum is not a tribute to the bandits and smugglers, but weaves together the rich history of 18th and 19th Andalucía, with stories from travellers and the Guardia Civil as well as «heroes or villains, brave men or thieves, between myth and legend,» described Jesús Almazán, founder of the collection during Thursday's opening.

He added, «Banditry returns to El Borge as a way of recovering the history of an era that attracted half of Europe to our lands in search of adventure and Andalusian character.»

Images from Thursday's opening SUR
Imagen principal - Images from Thursday's opening
Imagen secundaria 1 - Images from Thursday's opening
Imagen secundaria 2 - Images from Thursday's opening

The museum is open from Tuesday to Saturday, from 10am to 2pm and 4.30 to 6.30pm and Sunday from 10am to 3pm from October to March. From April to September it will be open Tuesday to Saturday from 10am to 2pm and 6 to 8pm and Sundays from 10am to 3pm. The entrance fee is three euros, two euros for groups of more than four people and one euro for over 65s and students. www.museobandolero.com

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