Barcelona continues to dust off its history. The intense archaeological activity in the Catalan capital with more than thirty ongoing interventions allows us to discover new aspects of the city’s past and expand its knowledge beyond the old town. After the stoppage of the pandemic, the works, both public and private, have been activated and in some cases have intensified before the municipal elections, which has also led to more work and continued over time by the Municipal Archeology Service.

During the first quarter of this year, the department has drawn up 74 impact reports on the archaeological heritage associated with any action in the city of Barcelona that may contain historical remains. In some of these reports, the executive project is still pending, so the excavation has not yet begun. The 2002 regulation for the protection of the archaeological and paleontological heritage of the Generalitat regulates interventions in this area. In Barcelona, ​​when there is a building permit, either from the central urban planning services of Glòries or from the districts, they contact the Archeology Service.

If the promoter is private, he has to provide an item to pay for the work of the archaeologist and its impact on the execution times. “We do preventative archaeology. All this must be included in the planning of the work. Obviously, if the work is larger, the gap that may occur is less, since while the archaeologists work the work can continue in another place”, comments Josep Pujades, head of the Archeology Service.

The latest actions have allowed different vestiges to emerge that range from prehistory and Roman times to the modern period. Although archaeologists sometimes anticipate what will emerge from old maps or knowledge from previous excavations, there are often surprises. “We never know what we can find, we can assume it”, Pujades qualifies. For example, in the remodeling work on Via Laietana, few expected that after excavating several layers, tombs would appear with two skeletons from the late Roman period. Subsequently, this area became Pont de la Parra street, which disappeared with the opening of Via Laietana in the first half of the 20th century, as can be seen in the so-called Quarterons Garriga i Roca, a series of handwritten plot plans drawn up by the architect Miquel Garriga i Roca between 1858 and 1860. Archaeological work continues in this area and it is not ruled out that more skeletal remains may appear. The Santa Marta church was located in this area and burial tombs arose years ago when the subway works were carried out.

As for more future findings, the archaeologists hope to discover more pieces of the medieval and modern wall in a new phase of the reform of the Rambla in the lower part. Not long ago, near the Columbus monument, a wide variety of vestiges from different historical periods appeared on this emblematic promenade, from the 16th century Drassanes bastion to what remains of the old parade ground of the Drassanes barracks, built in 1792. after the Spanish Succession War to house the soldiers of the Bourbon army.

What has been surprising has been what was found in Can Batlló, in the La Bordeta neighborhood. In the works of Nau 4, which will house a large cooperative incubator, a set of graves related to a Neolithic occupation, hitherto unknown in this area of ​​Barcelona, ​​emerged. The urbanization of the park has also made it possible to discover vineyard ditches from different chronologies and a much-destroyed stone structure from prehistoric times. Currently, the children’s play area is being excavated and structures from a tannery prior to the Can Batlló factory have been detected next to it: Can Gatius.

“The wreckage at Can Batlló greatly increases expectations. Three decades ago, prehistory in Barcelona was Sant Pau del Camp and since then we have been excavating and Neolithic remains have emerged in Santa Caterina, a Neolithic silo appeared on Beates street and also prehistory in the Sagrera area. To the extent that you expand the spaces and the archaeological excavations are carried out systematically, these results are obtained”, highlights Pujades.

Not only prehistoric, Roman or medieval remains are documented, but also contemporary ones. One of those that emerge from time to time and allow us to advance our knowledge are the anti-aircraft shelters built to defend the population during the bombings of the Civil War. It is estimated that more than two thousand are hidden underground in Barcelona. Now, one of these structures located behind a door of an electrical substation in the old Mercat del Peix is ​​being investigated, where a research and innovation complex will be built within the Ciutadella del Coneixement. Outstanding archaeological sites are hidden on private land. Thus, in the upper area of ​​Barcelona, ​​just in front of Antoni Gaudí’s Torre Bellesguard, the medieval remains linked to the palace of King Martí l’Humà have been unearthed. This discovery has been made as a result of urbanization works within the framework of a special urban and urban improvement plan to build the new postgraduate building and car park for the Abat Oliba University.

If the vestiges become visible, are dismantled or covered so that the urban tasks continue, it is assessed on a case-by-case basis and the decision is made by the Municipal Archeology Service and the Generalitat. In this sense, during the execution of the green axes of the Eixample, structures of a 16th century farmhouse came to light which, after documenting them, have been buried again. To facilitate their detection and protect them, they are usually wrapped with a plastic cloth and a layer of coarse sand. In this site, some unusual fragments of Chinese porcelain were found that would correspond to the time of the reign of Emperor Wanli of the Ming dynasty, around 1570 to 1620. These pieces have been taken to the collection center of the Barcelona History Museum (Muhba ) like those of an ornamental fountain from the 15th century with a paving of glazed tiles with floral motifs located with the remodeling in the lower part of the Rambla.

The work continues in these municipal offices where the samples are dated, restored and a historical study is carried out. At this moment, the conservators are working with material found in interventions in the Pedralbes monastery or in the Torre de la Sagrera air raid shelter, where there is a project to make it visitable in the near future. Regarding the destination of these pieces, depending on their characteristics, the Muhba decides if they are transferred to the collection, to the reserve or directly to the boxes of the archaeological archive.

New finds that shed light on the city’s past. The “fossilization” of the city, as Pujades calls it: “We have the entire territory as an archaeological objective to help interpret and put together the pieces of this great historical puzzle that is Barcelona”.