La Torrecilla archaeological site
A rural settlement from Roman times on the banks of the Manzanares River
La Torrecilla archaeological site
The archaeological site of La Torrecilla is located on the right bank of the Manzanares river, about 300 meters south of the village of La Torrecilla, to the left of the M-301 road. Administratively, it is attached to the Perales del Río district (Getafe).
Several archaeological finds of different nature and chronology have been made in this place. The natural resources that the area offered favored the settlement of different human groups over time. Lithic materials from the Lower and Middle Paleolithic have been documented, as well as small silos filled with bone and ceramic remains from the Bronze Age. Mainly ceramic remains and vessels from a possible incineration necropolis have been documented from the Iron Age, and there is hardly any data. From the Visigothic era, the necropolis of El Jardinillo stands out, discovered in 1975 and partially excavated.
Archaeological performance
The first archaeological campaigns carried out in 1980 and 1987, brought to light the remains of a rural Roman-era villa with a rectangular floor plan, surrounded by a porticoed gallery or ambulacrum that gave access to different rooms: a reception room, four bedrooms, kitchen and pantry.
In the 2016 campaign, the work focused on completing the knowledge on the extent and potential of the site, thus continuing with the work carried out in previous campaigns. The geomagnetic survey revealed the existence of rooms and structures that increase the known extension of the town from 1.300 to 4.200 m.2.
Based on this prospecting, three manual soundings were carried out, which revealed new archaeological findings: several structures (one of them gave access to the town) with walls made of masonry interlocked with lime and sand mortar, a polychrome mosaic and floors made with opus signinum (pavements formed by a mixture of ceramic, lime and sand fragments that were tamped and sometimes decorated with tesserae or opus tessellatum. These two types of soil were used in noble areas of greater relevance).
Three construction phases of the villa have been identified:
- Phase I corresponds to the original plan of the villa, which encompasses the entire structure with a central courtyard, peristyle and a ambulacrum access to the different rooms.
- Phase II would encompass the modification of various spaces by creating new structures, such as a small semicircular building or building, generating a change in the routes and uses of the rooms in the villa.
- Phase III would correspond to the modification of the edicule built in Phase II, which was demolished, and another one was built in its place of a square plan.
The chronology of the beginning of construction of this Roman enclave is not known, but it is known that the abandonment of Phase I of the town occurred during the third century after Christ. The beginning of Phase II is set from the fourth century AD. C., lasting until the end of the V century d. Lastly, phase III would correspond to the XNUMXth and XNUMXth centuries AD, after the breakdown of the Roman latifundist system and the stately residence having been abandoned.
During the Middle Ages the area remained inhabited, since there are references from the XNUMXth century, which mention it as a place linked to livestock and transhumance thanks to the proximity of the Cañada Real Galiana.
