MONTERA

capital of Crdoba department, northwestern Colombia, and an inland port on the Ro Sin. In 1744 a Spanish conquistador, Juan de Torrezar Daz Pimienta, claimed a Zene Indian village, which he called San Jernimo de Buenavista. Used as a hunter's rendezvous, the settlement came to be known as San Jernimo de Montera, or simply Montera (hunting). In 1784 Antonio de La Torre y Miranda established a municipality, but shortly thereafter, its buildings were burned by the Zenes. The Spanish governor chose Pedro Pardo, a Franciscan friar, to supervise restoration; because of his work, Montera was made a diocesan see. Local activities include stock raising, lumbering, placer mining, and the production of quinine and tagua nuts (vegetable ivory). The city is the seat of the University of Crdoba (1966). Pop. (1982 est.) 226,000.