And as my updating moods continues in this critical period in the world, I bring you back to my beloved Spain. In my road warrior state of mind I was driving around what is the Province of Cuenca in the Autonomous region of Castilla La Mancha and heard on brochures of this place. Loving architecture and history so much, of course, we went there and glad we did! So let me tell you about Segobriga!!!
In my travels we swing by many areas as we love the road and the car, it gives you a much greater flexibity to see things anywhere. I have many tales of driving in Spain in my blog, however, passing north to south on the A40 Autovia de Castilla La Mancha and came in to this archeological site. This is at Saelices and the site is Segobriga and the site remotely old ,its very interesting for a stop if you are into history and architecture as I am. I imagine families should be with older children like teens to fully get the time’s worth here. The archaeological park of Segóbriga is the most important archaeological complex of the Spanish Meseta. From the 1C onwards, the city developed as it became an important communication node, an agricultural center ,and the administrative capital of a large territory, until its abandonment after the Muslim conquest of the Iberian Peninsula. The name Segobriga derives from the words sego meaning victory and briga meaning city fortress so it is assume the name would be The City of Victory.
A bit of history I like
From a few texts from the 3C BC to the 2C BC, the inhabitants of this area up to the Serranía of Cuenca (my base) were called Olcades, to the Alcarria and to the Guadalajara are the Lusones, and to Toledo are the Carpétans. Therefore, it is probable to think that the inhabitants of the area of this ancient city were either Olcades or Carpétans. After the Roman conquest in the early 2C B.C. during the Celtiberians Wars, Segóbriga became a city. After the Sertorienne war, between 80 and 72 B.C., the city became the center of all this part of the Meseta with the control of a vast territory. At the time of the Visigothic, from the 5C onwards, Segóbriga was still a great city, with the presence of vestiges from several basilicas and a large necropolis . The bishops of the city went to various councils of Toledo, specifically the Third Council of Toledo in 589 and the Sixteenth Council of Toledo in 693. The beginning of its final exodus begins after the Muslim invasion of the Iberian Peninsula, where bishops and ruling elites fled to the north of Spain, seeking protection from the Christian kingdoms, as was also the case for the neighbouring city of Ercavica, now Cañaveruelas in the province of Cuenca. After the Reconquest, the population of the surrounding area was moved to the present town of Saelices, located 3 km further north, near the source which fed the aqueduct and which provided the ancient city of Segóbriga with water. It was at this moment that a slow abandonment of the city began until there was only a small hermitage built on the ancient baths, the ultimate testimony of the ancient city preserved until today.
Some of the things you can see here are
From the Celtiberian period you have the Necropolis (outside the walls). From the Roman era: The wall and the North gate; the amphitheater, was built in front of the theater. The elliptical shape of the latter and its 75 meters in length make it the largest monument of the archaeological complex, with a capacity of about 5 500 spectators. The theater’s construction began at the time of Tiberius and probably ended during the reign of Vespasian, circa 79AD. The well-preserved bleachers were divided into three parts, separating the different social classes from the public. The monumental baths; the gymnasium and the baths of the theater; the Forum; the Acropolis; the Rock Sanctuary of Diane (outside the walls); the Aqueduct (outside the walls), the quarries (outside the walls), the Circus (outside the walls). The most recent research has shown that this construction was carried out on a necropolis, but the building was never completed. From the Wisighote period is the Basilica Cabeza de Griego (Outside the walls) or the Greek’s head Basilica.
At present, the ancient city is part of an archaeological complex, and the visit is subject to the payment of an entrance ticket. At the entrance to the park, a small museum was built to preserve the many parts that could degrade, such as some statues and mosaics, which, if exposed to the weather, can quickly deteriorate.
You have plenty on the webpages below but mostly in Spanish so the contacts ,address, direction is here: Carretera Carrascosa de Campo a Villamayor de Santiago, s/n 16430 Saelices, Cuenca (Castilla-La Mancha) the highway A3 Madrid-Valencia taking highway A40 (Autovia de Castilla La Mancha) at Tarancon and then exit 254 on the road CM310 to Segobriga. There is a small museum or interpretation center with a reception lobby, permanent exposition and audiovisual room tel +34 91 629 75 22 57 or email: segobriga@dipucuenca.es
The official webpage on the site of Segobriga: http://www.segobriga.org/inicio.html
The Castilla La Mancha region on Segobriga: http://en.www.turismocastillalamancha.es/patrimonio/parque-arqueologico-de-segobriga-763/descripcion/
The informative webpage of roman aqueducts on the site of Segobriga: http://www.romanaqueducts.info/aquasite/segobriga/index.html
And there you go , another wonderful spot in my beloved Spain, and dream lands of Castilla la Mancha. This is wonderful country, and a nice spot to visit at Segobriga. Hope you enjoy it as I.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all!!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 