The 15th Excavation Campaign in the Medieval Town of Ifach in Calp, promoted by the MARQwill conclude on 31 August with confirmation of the discovery of the West gateway to the city. This was confirmed in situ yesterday by the president of the Diputación de Alicante, Carlos MazónThe visit to the site took place together with the vice-president of the provincial institution and deputy for Culture, Julia Parraand the local mayoress, Ana Sala.
The work, which began in early July, has yielded important new discoveries. Under the direction of archaeologist José Luis Menéndeza team composed of 32 students from different Spanish and European universities has been able to report the first conclusions of the research with important contributions to the study of this exceptional medieval enclave.
Mazón and Parra toured the work area that has been taken up again in this campaign, a space that last year led to the discovery of a great defensive bulwark which appears in the famous engraving of the Peñon de Ifach carried out by Alexandre de Laborde in 1809. Next to the fortification, a gate almost two metres wide was also found, which was initially thought to be part of a building. However, recent research has confirmed that it is not a building but the West Gate, a second access to the interior of the city.
This completes a system of bends, completely covered, which allowed access to the enclosure at a higher point than the main gate, located at the northwest end.
The discovery of this second entrance adds to the discoveries made in previous editions, including the Domus Llúria, the medieval church of Ifach and the necropolis, where remains of the first settlers have been found. Ifach preserves the layout of a medieval conquest village and was the seed of the current municipalities of Calp, Benissa, Senija and Teulada.
The president stressed that "the Provincial Council is proud to promote this project, now in its fifteenth year, which aims to study, recover and enhance the value of a site that is a current reference point for medieval archaeology in the province and the Valencian Community. It is an excellent opportunity to study the territorial, social, economic and productive model of an era that was the origin of our roots as a people," Mazón pointed out.
For her part, the vice-president and deputy for Culture highlighted the "important role played by the archaeologist José Luis Menéndez, a MARQ technician and one of the leading specialists in Medieval Archaeology in our country, who is in charge of the Ifach excavations project". Julia Parra recalled that since work began at the site in 2005, "more than 400 archaeology students from universities all over Europe have taken part in the excavation and research work at the site".
This year's edition, which began on 1 July, will be completed on 31 August, with the collaboration of the Calp Town Hall and the Penyal d'Ifac Natural Park.
Finally, Parra insisted that "the excavation campaign of the Diputación de Alicante, through its team of MARQ archaeologists, is a continuous action in defence of our heritage and an unprecedented work in the Valencian Community for more than 15 years".
As he explained, "in this edition, the work is being carried out at various reference sites throughout the province, which demonstrates the commitment of the Diputación and its Culture Department to our territory, our towns and our people".
Preventive Conservation Programme
The Diputación de Alicante is also continuing with preventive conservation work at the site, directed by the director of the Architecture Department, Rafael PérezThe programme has focused mainly on the consolidation of a small section of the walled enclosure. This programme will allow the forthcoming drafting of the Pobla de Ifach Master Plan to undertake the enhancement and museumisation of the site.
Likewise, as the first vice-president of the Provincial Council has advanced, the creation of the Interpretation Centre of the Medieval town of IfachThe negotiations have been initiated by the Diputación de Alicante through the MARQ; the Junta Rectora del Parque Natural del Penyal d'Ifac of the Conselleria de Agriculture, Environment, Climate Change and Rural Development of the Generalitat Valenciana and the Fundación de la Comunidad Valenciana MARQ.
