Archaeology at Casa de Velázquez

Daily life in a frontier settlement, ^10th-12th centuries
Sophie Gilotte (CNRS / UMR 5648 CIHAM, Lyon)

At Albalat, research is focusing on the organization and operation of a small medieval frontier settlement. Excavations are focusing on its strategic role, the methods of its occupation and the reasons for its abrupt abandonment, while incorporating revisions likely to emerge from as yet unexplored areas.

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Construction techniques and network management
Laetitia Borau (CNRS / UMR 5607, Ausonius, Bordeaux)

Dedicated to the hydraulic networks of Baelo Claudia, the program proposes a systematic study of aqueducts and water-related equipment. It combines cartography, analysis of techniques and materials, establishment of a chronology and targeted surveys, while mobilizing innovative methods to reconstruct the uses and transformations of water in the ancient city.

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Archaeological survey of the early Almohad Empire in Morocco
Jean-Pierre Van Staëvel (Université Paris 4), Abdallah Fili (Université d'El Jadida), Ahmad S. Ettahiri (INSAP, Rabat)

2015 Simone and Cino del Duca Foundation Archaeology Prize

The program dedicated to Îgîlîz focuses on the beginnings of the Almohad Empire through the study of a major mountain site. Combining field data, environmental analysis and textual sources, it examines settlement patterns, the rural economy, religious practices and the formation of tribal power in the ^12th century.

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Salt mining since the Neolithic period
Olivier Weller (CNRS, UMR Trajectoires), Alberto Plata Montero (Fundación Valle Salado de Añana)

At Añana, attention is focused on the earliest salt production in Western Europe through the study of exceptional Neolithic levels. Research examines the techniques used, resource management and socio-economic impacts, while documenting the structuring role of salt springs in sedentarization and trade networks in the^5th millennium.

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An ancient and medieval town on the Gharb plain
Elsa Rocca (Université Paul Valéry Montpellier), Charlotte Carrato (UMR 5140, ASM, Lattes), Mohamed Kbiri Alaoui (INSAP, Rabat), Abdelfattah Ichkhakh (Délégation de la Culture d'Essaouira)

The Rirha program offers a diachronic reading of a settlement occupied from the 6th century BC to the ^14th century. By combining an overall analysis of the site with an in-depth study of key sectors, the excavations highlight the continuities, urban transformations and cultural recompositions of the Gharb settlement.

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Archaeological excavations at Alquézar and Las Sillas (Aragon, Spain)
Sébastien Gasc (IRAMAT, UMR 7065), Jérôme Ros (ISEM, UMR 5554) and Julián Ortega Ortega (Gobierno de Aragón)

The project, dedicated to the rural economic systems of northern al-Andalus in the ^10th-11th centuries, is based on targeted excavations, surveys and bioarchaeological analyses. The joint study of the Alquézar and Las Sillas sites will document production, trade and resource management, offering a detailed reading of rural dynamics prior to the Aragonese conquests.

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An ancient tin production site
Emmanuelle Meunier (CRBC-Université de Bretagne Occidentale / CReAAH-Université de Rennes 1)

At As Muradellas, the study of a mine and cassiterite processing workshop sheds light on tin mining and metallurgy techniques between the Roman period and the Middle Ages. Excavations and analyses aim to clarify the phasing of the site and better understand the organization of a production essential to the bronze networks.

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Surveys around Guzmán Castle
Leticia Tobalina-Pulido (Universidad de Cantabria)

The Guzmán project explores the organization of a medieval complex combining church, necropolis and production area. Surveys and test pits place this complex in the context of the evolution of regional fortified structures, while the study of the Las Casas castle integrates an enhancement and participatory archaeology dimension.

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A Turdule oppidum from the Republican era
Pierre Moret (CNRS, UMR TRACES)

At Las Herrizas, the survey begins with a non-invasive exploration of a singular republican oppidum. Surveys, 3D surveys and analysis of semirupestrian buildings aim to clarify its links with Bailo, test the hypothesis of a settlement network and shed light on its potential role in the Turris Lascutana.

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