The origins of Serrato are back in the Neolithic, when small farming communities settled there because of the fertile land rich in water. Romans and Arabs left more traces in this area than any other civilization. In particular, Roman villa Serrato, placed close to the village, and Arab ruins of Ortegîcar Castle.

We will mention two sculptures that were found in Serrato and give a lot of data about Roman past: the Shepherd from Serrato and the Bronze Head of Dionysus.

The Shepherd from Serrato

This unique sculpture appeared on the ranch El Cortijo de los Villares in 1954 while people were farming. Although, there are no proofs, it seems that it was an ornament of a rustic villa, considering the statue iconography, and numerous discoveries at this place. The most prominent were different architectural elements, plenty of ceramic fragments, and, above all, pieces of a bronze sculpture. Shortly after it had been discovered, the sculpture was moved to Ronda’s Town Hall, where it can be seen today. This piece is carved in white not very polished marble, which probably comes from a provincial quarry. The head is missing, although there is still a hole for it.

It seems that these sculptures purpose was to decorate gardens, together with other sculptural pieces about mythology. Small sculptures, such as the bronze pieces, could have been used for decoration of some containers.
As for the time when the sculpture was made, it is likely to have been made at the end of the 2nd century AD.

Bronze Head of Dionysus

This magnificent bronze head piece of art was discovered before 1946 on the farm El Cortijo de los Villares, a place where the shepherd sculpture was discovered a bit later. Some other parts of the statue, such as pieces of legs, chest, shoulder and back were found as well.

The only piece that is kept today is broken. The left cheek, mouth and the chin are missing, and there are tiny cracks. It has been kept in the Archeological Museum of the Province of Málaga for a long time.

As for the modern history of Serrato, there is to say that this municipality has been an autonomous entity from May 11th 1999, after it was approved independent from Ronda in a popular referendum on 27th August 1994. Before that it had been a part of Cuevas del Becerro and the Town of Ronda. Serrato started to work on its definitive separation documents in May 2011, the same as Montecorto. On 13th November 2014, the Advisory Council of the Andalusian Government approved its independence.

Serrato stands at the entrance to the Ronda Mountains (Serranîa de Ronda). The area of Guadalteba is in the north of it, and the Sierra de las Nieves in the southeast. It is 30 km away from Ronda, 8 km from Cuevas del Bercerro, 18 km from El Burgo, 12 km from Cañete la Real and 90 km away from Málaga.

This is the zone of rough mountainsides with high slopes, which contrast with smooth slopes of its hills such as Colorado, Juan Pêrez and Ortegicar Mountains, where gradients are lower than 8%.

On the nearby territory, there are aquiferous of Cañamero, where the Guadalteba River is formed as well as the stream of Barranco. These two rivers go around the Village of Serrato.

Undoubtedly, the main source of water for the Guadalteba Reservoir is Cañamero spring.