Following Odysseus Not the end of the world Amarna city of light ...

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Travela prehistoric dolmen constructedaround 3000 BC was discovered.On the mound above this ancienttomb Fávila erected his church.Today, a modern chapel stands onthis patch of ground that is steepedin history. The foundation stone ofthe original church is immured ina wall and visitors can glimpse theprehistoric tomb through a hole inthe floor.To return to the Romans, despitetheir success in 26 BC they did notsucceed in subduing all the mountainpeople of this region. Thishappened only after Augustus hadreturned to Rome. Officially ittook until 19 BC to break the lastresistance movement and northernSpain did not see peace until 14 BC.They chose Mons Medullinus inthe heart of the country that, today,some scholars believe to be near tothe region of Las Médulas.This is one of the places you mustsee if travelling through northernSpain. Designated a UNESCOWorld Heritage Site in 1977, it is avast area of gold mines in the hinterlandof Ponferrada. Las Médulaswas the reason for Rome’s interestin this part of northern Spain – theempire struck its aurei from goldmined here. According to Pliny theElder (Naturalis Historia XXXIII,78), these gold mines were believedto yield 20,000 Roman pounds(approximately 6.5 tons) per year– enough to mint 1.2 million aurei.Today in Las Médulas theSpanish government has developedan archaeological park in which65you can enjoy walks lasting for severalhours. Extensive charts explainhow the mining was carried out – toobtain the gold-bearing rock wholemountains were cracked open.Pliny’s description (NaturalisHistoria, XXXIII, 70) is probablyquite precise, since he took theopportunity of visiting the placepersonally when he was procuratorof Hispania Tarraconensis in AD 74:‘The third way of mining gold isfar beyond the work of giants. Themountains are bored with corridorsand galleries made by lamplightwith a duration that is used tomeasure the shifts. For months, theminers cannot see the sunlight andmany of them die inside the tunnels.This type of mine has been giventhe name of arrugiae; often theysuddenly collapse burying thus theworkers. It would seem less audaciousto find pearls at the bottomof the sea than make these scars inthe rock.’Actually the impressive, raggedorange-red-coloured rock you seetoday are the remains of the mountainsthat were, in part, brokendown. Long paths, rather ambiguouslysignposted lead through thearea and even with a map from thetourist office you can easily get lost.The sweet chestnut trees growing inthis valley are evidence of the factthat the gold-mining had to be donecost-efficiently. These trees wereimported and planted to providesweet chestnuts as cheap nourishmentfor the slaves who worked inthe gold mines.Lugo, the administrative centre ofLas Médulas, named by the RomansLucus Augusti, was founded in 13BC on a Celtic settlement conqueredby Paulus Fabius Maximus. TheTrees were imported and planted to providesweet chestnuts as cheap nourishment for theslaves who worked in the gold mines5. The impressive Picode Europa where thereare lots of trails forwalkers and hikers.6. A bronze statueof Spain’s first kingPelagius (Pelayo), sonof Favila, stands inCovadonga on the siteof his victorious battleagainst the Moors.7. A carving on the12th-century portal ofthe monastery of StPedro de Villanuevashows Favila beingkilled during a bearhunt.Brown bearsare still found in themountains in this area.7town came into life in the course ofAugustus’ extensive administrativereforms between 16 BC and 13 BC.Then northern Spain became a partof the province Hispania Citerior,later known also under the name ofHispania Tarraconensis, taken fromthe governor’s residence in Tarraco,(modern Tarragona). In such a hugeprovince there were also smalleradministration units with their localcentres and one of these was Lugo,place of a conventus, which offeredthe population the possibility ofconsulting a Roman court while notbeing constrained to undertake atrip to Tarraco.Lugo was made a UNESCO WorldHeritage Site in 2000 because of itsthick, well-preserved Roman citywall. The awesome construction is48
Travel112.17 kilometres long, has an averageheight of 11 metres and is 3 to 4.5metres thick. Subdivided by sevengates and 85 semi-towers, it wasextensively repaired in the MiddleAges. The walk along this wall isa delight and, understandably, thecitizens of Lugo have integrated it88. Statue of Breogan,the mythical founderof Coruna, with theTower of Hercules, amuch-restored Romanlighthouse in thebackground.9. and 10. one of thereconstructed housesat the site of SantaTegra which was oncea vast Celtiberiantown with around1,000 dwellings, datingfrom 50 BC-AD 450.11. Sweet chestnutsfrom trees importedby the Romans – toprovide food for theworkers in the goldmines – still litter theground in Las Médulas.910into their daily life. This is wherethey go for a morning jog, take theirdogs for a walk or enjoy a romanticrendezvous in the evening. Lugo isnot the only town in Spain with aRoman city wall; there are around50 examples – we saw very impressiveremains at Leon and Astorga.Castro Viladonga, an archaeologicalsite nearby, shows how theconquered people lived. There weremany of these small, fortified settlementsin Roman Spain whosecollective cultures are known asCastro culture.Archaeologists believe that CastroViladonga originated around 50 BCand was occupied until around themiddle of the 5th century AD. Thisis further corroborated by coinsfound there dating from the fourthand fifth centuries. The settlementconsisted of thatched and brickcoveredcircular houses enclosed bya high earthen wall.A small but attractive museumexhibits local archaeological findsand gives a very clear impressionof how the indigenous inhabitantslived under Roman rule.There were, of course, biggersettlements, such as Santa Tegra,a vast Celtiberian town with theremains of around 1,000 houses situatedon the border with Portugal.Today it has become a touristattraction and its two reconstructedhouses impress visitors holidayingalong the coast between Baionaand A Garda. There is also a smallmuseum showing objects excavatedat the settlement.Moving on we arrive in LaCoruna founded, according to thelegend, by the Galician Celtic kingBreogan. At Ardobicom Corunium,as it was renamed by the Romans,stands their only remaining lighthouse,which was known as theFarum Brigantium until the 20thcentury. Now called the Tower ofHercules (made a UNESCO WorldHeritage Site in 2009) it acted as alight, a signal, and a landmark andwas also, probably, used for storageand as a military safe haven.The exact date when it was builtis still open to debate. It may havebeen erected immediately after theRoman conquest of the region, orlater under Trajan, a theory corroboratedby an inscription that hasbeen cited ever since.The original tower would, ofcourse, have looked very differentto how it does today, since, between1788-91, the Roman core was cladin stone in a Neoclassical style.Images on coins show that it probablyhad a flat platform on top wherethe beacon was lit. The firewoodneeded for that purpose was carriedvia broad ramps which spiralledaround the outside of the tower.With our arrival in La Coruna wehad finally crossed Green Spain; forour return, we chose to travel alongthe Way of St James, wearing ourscallop shells as is the custom. nMinerva November/December 201249
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