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The Canary Islands at ground level - The Guanches

By the time the Spanish colonised the Canary Islands in the 15th century, the islands had already been inhabited for more than 2,000 years.

Referred to collectively as Guanches, each island was home to a separate native group, all thought to have originated from North African Berber people who arrived in the Canary Islands in around 1000 BC.

Isolated from the rest of the world, the Guanches developed a unique culture that is evidenced in petroglyphs – rock carvings or paintings - that can be found in caves on many of the islands.

Living in such a spectacular yet volatile landscape inspired myths and beliefs in the Guanches culture, which they used to explain the volcanic activity of their homeland.

Mount Tiede, the largest volcano in the Canaries, was sacred to the Guanches, who told stories about the gods and evil spirits who lived inside.

Archaeological evidence has found remnants of stone tools and pottery within the caves surrounding Tiede, which are thought to have been left behind after rituals to ward off the influences of evil spirits and the devil, Guayota.

According to legend, Guayota trapped Magec, the god of light and the Sun, inside the volcano until the Guanches implored the supreme god Achamán to help.

Achamán fought Guayota and freed Magec, locking Guayota inside the volcano; whenever Tiede erupted, the Guanches would light bonfires to scare Guayota away.

However, the Guanches were not able to scare away the Spanish who colonised the Canaries in the 15th century, though they did put up great resistance.

The Guanches with their local stone weapons sustained two decades of war against the Spanish military, but eventually exotic disease brought by the Spanish wiped out the remaining native population.