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ASTA REGIA is the key
Continent Europe
Region Iberian Peninsula
Guadalquivir Valley
Location Mesas de Asta
Nearby cities Jerez de la Frontera
Administrative location
Spain
Andalusia
Cadiz
Jerez de la Frontera
History of the site
Type Roman city
Turdetan Culture
Roman
"We are talking about a city that already existed at least since 1,500 B.C. There is testimonial evidence that it was inhabited until the eighth or ninth century,"
Its archaeological remains are now buried under wheat fields in the rural district of Mesas de Asta in Jerez de la Frontera (Andalusia, Spain), in a vast area of 60 hectares. The city would have been occupied by Tartessians, Phoenicians, Turdetans, Romans and Islamics
There is evidence of human presence from the Neolithic to the Islamic period of the tenth century. According to historical scholars, in Roman times the city was more important than Baelo Claudia or Italica, hence its nickname Regia. It has recently been demonstrated that it had a mosque until the 10th century. Likewise, several plaques with inscriptions have been found in the area.9 The existence of suburbs and a necropolis also seems to have been demonstrated.
The site is currently privately owned, and there seems to be little interest on the part of public administrations in acquiring it for excavation and protection, despite the fact that new buried buildings have been identified.
State-of-the-art equipment is currently being used to perform non-invasive archaeology, 3D scanning the contents several meters deep into the ground. The research is being carried out with the support of producers from Jerez, the University of Cadiz, the Junta de Andalucía and the Jerez City Council. The results show several cities, at least Roman (large), Islamic and medieval.
In the meantime, finds continue to appear in the area
At the social level, a Citizens' Platform for the site18 has been created, which in 2019 was joined by all local political groups.
Roman mill
In the vicinity of La Corta, a Corinthian helmet dating back to 600 B.C. was found in 1938, a decontextualized finding that adds more mystery to a legendary river.
Asta Regia, the development and fall of a Turdetan kingdom
https://terraeantiqvae.com/m/group/d...Topic%3A118852
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