MORENA, SIERRA

mountain range, central Spain, forming the southern edge of the Meseta Central and stretching for about 200 mi (320 km) from the Sierra de Alcaraz (5,896 feet ) in the east to the Portuguese border in the west. It includes many minor ranges that run transversely: e.g., the Sierras Madrona, Sur de Alcudia, and de Aracena. The Sierra Morena forms the main watershed between the Guadiana and Guadalquivir rivers and is mostly wild, desolate country thickly covered with dense evergreen bushes and shrubs. Its great breadth has long made it a formidable barrier in the history of Spain. Silver, lead, and copper are mined in the Linares region, mercury at Almadn, and copper at Rotinto and at Tharsis in the Sierra de Aracena. The chief communication route between Madrid and Seville runs through Crdoba, the Despeaperros Pass, and La Mancha.