Archaeological excavation in calle Santiago nº 5
Example of historical ceramics from Madrid
Archaeological site of the Calle Santiago lot, 5
In the excavation of the site on Calle de Santiago No. 5, located between the Plaza Mayor and Plaza de Oriente, in the heart of Madrid de los Austrias, some brick structures and a series of wells dug in the natural terrain were documented. that contributed abundant ceramic material assignable to different chronological periods between the XNUMXth and XNUMXth centuries.
Both the wells and the galleries that connected them served for the water supply. Once their useful life ended, they were amortized as garbage dumps. The oldest of the wells contributed a set of ceramics of Islamic chronology, from the 852th and 886th centuries, with a wide repertoire of shapes, among which the spout lamps, the globular vessels, some pitchers, ataifores, lids, bowls, stand out. jugs and flasks. At that time, the plot of Calle de Santiago was located in one of the suburbs of the first fortified enclosure that the city of Madrid had in the time of Muhammad I (XNUMX-XNUMX).
In the XNUMXth century, at the time of King Alfonso VII and due to the demographic growth of the city, the original walled enclosure was enlarged, raising one with a larger perimeter, known as the Christian wall of Madrid. The site in question was already within this second enclosure and very close to the Puerta de Guadalajara.
Other wells and one of the documented galleries provided interesting materials from the XNUMXth and XNUMXth centuries. In addition to the basins, plates, bowls and bowls, a unique collection of more than twenty "armhole" bowls stands out, with the M de Madrid seal framed in a circle and with a dot on it. The Sisa was a tax applicable to basic necessity products that consisted of delivering to the buyer a quantity of goods less than what was paid, to face the seller's payment of taxes or local expenses to the collectors.
During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries the plane of Madrid underwent great changes. It is the moment in which the Cavas (moats of the walls) are occupied and urbanized, disappearing what until then had been suburbs.
Given the growth of the city, in 1566 Felipe II ordered the construction of a new fence for fiscal and sanitary control. Then the opening of new streets occurs, such as the nearby Costanilla de Santiago and the demolition of the medieval gates, including one of the most important, that of Guadalajara, demolished in 1582, after suffering a fire caused during the celebration of victory. military over Portugal.
During the eighteenth century the area maintains the same urban configuration and it is from the nineteenth century when the neighborhood undergoes a major renovation, configuring itself as it is known today.
From the XNUMXth century, only a well built with brick has been documented, which contributed materials from the central stage of that century.
Image gallery
Archaeological performance
Calle de Santiago is located within the area called "Historic Site of the Villa de Madrid", declared a Site of Cultural Interest on May 20, 1993, with the category of Archaeological Zone.