El Rebollar Site in El Boalo
Located southwest of the town of El Boalo, at the foot of the Sierra de Guadarrama, El Rebollar constitutes one of the few vestiges of the Visigoth era in the Madrid region, whose permanence as a center of worship in its place of origin since the 7th century until the 18th century, it has been preserved in excellent condition to this day.
The Visigothic rural church exhibits an undisturbed and perfectly recorded stratigraphy of occupation of the nave, allowing for the dating of the building's original phase and subsequent renovations. The associated necropolis is providing valuable data for the study of Late Antiquity population in the area. Furthermore, its importance as a site where religious significance persists is supported by archival documentation.
Historic context
The Visigoth presence in the territory of the current Community of Madrid was evident from the first invasions, due to its condition as an important communications center in late antiquity. In the lower reaches of the Jarama, Henares, and Manzanares rivers, as well as on the banks of the Tajo and Tajuña, nuclei of agricultural and livestock exploitation linked to the ruralization of the territory were established, while in the mountain areas linked settlements were established. to livestock exploitation and control of the passes that connected the two plateaus.
The research carried out has allowed the identification and study of important necropolises from the Visigoth period, as well as numerous habitat nuclei from this chronology.
Three buildings and a Visigothic necropolis
So far, the five archaeological excavation campaigns carried out (2018-2022) have made it possible to locate three buildings, which are associated with a set of tombs that are spread throughout the hill of El Rebollar.
An excavation model: community archeology
The Community of Madrid, with a multidisciplinary team in which the Complutense and Autonomous Universities have participated, has developed successive archaeological excavation campaigns in El Rebollar since 2018. In addition, this site has the particularity of having applied a social archeology model , involving the inhabitants of the municipality's population centers (El Boalo, Cerceda and Mataelpino) in the work with the determined support of its town council.
The proposal does not compromise the scientific nature in any way, since the management and professional team of archaeologists carries out intense didactic and training work with the participants. Research has thus merged with society, bringing residents closer to their heritage and their past.
Between archaeologists, conservators, historians, students and volunteers, up to 40 people have worked on the excavations in a single day.
