The finding of a water tank in the castro of Viladonga change the history of settlement

Until now it was thought that it had been founded by the romans in the s. II but it is now believed that it was earlier

‘recipe’ from the romans for a concrete super-strong

it Had a capacity to store 150,000 litres of water and was built by the inhabitants of the territory that is today Galicia for more than two millennia. It is a large reservoir of water whose remains have recently come to light in the castro of Viladonga, which is 23 kilometres to the north of Lugo.

According to archaeologist Miguel Angel Lopez Marcos, director of the excavation of this archaeological site located in the municipality of lugo Castro de Rei, the discovery of a reservoir completely changed the history of the castro.

Until now, it was thought that the settlement was of roman origin and had been founded around the second century, with some occupation occasional previous. However, the presence of this structure excavated in the rock suggests that it was already inhabited in a stable manner before the arrival of the romans. “It is a public work of monumental character that has nothing to do with settlements, occasional”, says López Marcos. After the occupation, the city was romanized, like so many others in the northwest of the peninsula.

The supply system devised by this community galaica not have much to envy to the ingenious roman structures to stock up on water. “It is a great continent of water that takes advantage of a spring old and leaks out of the rock matrix, accompanied by a great cyclopean construction, [large stones] to store the rain water and flowed through the area. Of course, it has a roof and stairs of access for cleaning and maintenance,” he explains.

Detail of the reservoir TERRA-COUNTS

The archaeologist believed that the cistern was built as a large infrastructure, as “was excavated in the living rock of slate and quartzite”, to cater to a large population that would have fluctuated according to the season, but according to estimates, would be between 300 and 500 people. The presence of the spring water probably was the cause for which the enclave was built at this point. “With the tank could supply the population in times of peace and when there was the occupation, to withstand long periods in case of a siege of the romans,” says

This type of findings, ensures López Marcos, are not common. “Sometimes you will find water tanks outside the village, but this is the first time that is located within the main campus”.

With time, the tank collapsed and subsequently built the wall above. After the reservoir was rehabilitated with another way. Therefore, Lopez says, the infrastructure was used for a long time in different periods: “Before the construction of the wall, was used by a village original, now lost. And then, in the village castreño that you can see today.”

Have been necessary two months campaign, during which they extracted more than 340 cubic yards of soil and 120 tons of stone, to uncover the underground structure excavated into the subsoil to find the spring from which they obtained some of the water with which it is supplied. Although “still has not been excavated in its entirety because the process is too long”, it would have been able to estimate the measures that had: about 70 meters square and four meters deep.

damaged Structure

The poor condition of the structure, damaged by the passage of time, the action of the man and landslides, have complicated the excavation, funded by the ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Xunta de Galicia through the Operational programme ERDF. One of the corners of the reservoir, recalls López, was excavated in the 80’s but never identified as a reservoir of water.

with regard to the amount of water available two millennia ago, “the existing data reveal that groundwater levels were higher. Today, the spring that gave life to the tank is lost, but even so, it is able to continue collecting rain water”.

During the excavation of the well, the archaeologists have also found pieces of common pottery and of luxury as the terra sigillata [bright red], utensils of iron, such as nails and sickles, and some of bronze, as fragments of cauldron. Although at sites in the gallegos it is rare to find organic material due to the acidity of the ground, yes you have picked up bones of pigs (the family of mammals among which the wild boars and pigs) and ovicaprinos. Analyzing all these remains, archaeologists hope to know more about the type of diet followed by the population of this enclave galaico.

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