Archaelogical charter of Villafáfila

The lands associated with the natural environment, today known by the generic name of “Lagunas de Villafáfila”, have had an important echo at a historical level, at least since the 10th century, as reflected in the abundant documentation preserved to this day [ 1] , speaking of a close socioeconomic relationship with the exploitation of its famous salt mines.

However, these documentary data have lacked archaeological ratification in their entirety, despite the important discovery from the Visigoth era that took place in the 1920s [2] or specific allusions to vestiges from the Roman era [3] .

We have to wait until the seventies, so that through excavation work [4] and prospecting [5] . Very punctual, they begin to know testimonies from past times that confirm the occupation of these lands since prehistoric times.

The intensive prospecting work, begun a few years ago, shows a mosaic of settlements, perhaps expandable in the immediate future, whose quantitative and qualitative interest leads us to present it in these pages, based on a comment by the locations and the nature of their findings, which we intend to approach only culturally, leaving for future research the deepening of their study, partly already begun with emergency excavations in some of the sites, in 1982, 1986 [6 ] and in 1990. A preliminary study of the latter is published in this same issue.

For this reason, after making a brief allusion to the natural environment, the deposits are described individually, following an alphabetical criterion, to finish, capturing the entire set on a dispersion map accompanied by a list of them, with their affiliation. chronological-cultural.

The described materials are deposited in the Museum of Zamora and next to the name of each site is accompanied by the file number with which they appear in that one.

The municipal area of Villafáfila is located at the SW end. of the natural region of Tierra de Campos, in the province of Zamora, occupying an area of almost 7,000 hectares, between the coordinates 41" 53' 50" and 41" 46' 30" North latitude and 1 50' 18" and 1 59' 05” West longitude , according to the National Topographic Map 1:50,000, sheets 308 and 340.

The relief is made up of gentle hills between 680 m. and the 730 meters of altitude , dedicated to cereal and alfalfa cultivation, and by a depression occupied by the marshy areas that are part of the group of “Lagunas de Villafáfila ”, made up of three larger ones : “Laguna de Barillos”, “ Salina Grande” and —“Laguna de las Salinas”—, and by other smaller ones, which extend between Tapioles, Revellinos, Villafáfila, Otero de Sariegos and Villarrín de Campos. Their water is rich in salts, especially in chlorides and sulfates of sodium, calcium, magnesium and potassium, and they have been exploited as salt mines since ancient times.

The soils are formed, for the most part, by tertiary materials, based on sandy clays corresponding to the “Tierra de Campos” and, to a lesser extent, “Montamarta” facies. The depression occupied by the lagoons has been filled, during the Holocene period, with silt-clay alluvial materials, of which saline silts are a part. The end NO. of the term is formed by soils of clay and quartzite conglomerates that belong to the river terrace furthest from the Esla River [7] .

The current climate is of the Mediterranean type with the characteristics common to most of the Castilian-Leonese territory: long and cold winters, dry and moderately warm summers and short and irregular springs and autumns. If possible, the aridity is stronger than in other areas of the Plateau, since rainfall does not exceed 400 mm./year [8] which accentuates endorheism, which gives rise to the formation of lagoons.

Most of the term pours its waters towards those through the Riego and Pontones streams, and only, when they are filled, do they drain towards the Valderaduey through the Salado stream; the western part is a tributary of the Esla through the Prado del Valle stream .

The landscape is characteristic of Tierra de Campos: large extensions of cereal fields or fallow land, with no forest cover , except in the SE extremes. and NO., where some isolated holm oaks announce the nearby mountains of Castronuevo and Villaveza del Agua, and the few poplars around the town. In the surroundings of the flooded areas, a vegetation of halophilous and mesohalophilous plants appears that form meadows.

The fauna is very abundant. In addition to the steppe species — hare, partridge, bustard, etc. — waterfowl stand out: ducks, geese, cranes, etc. that form one of the richest and most varied ecosystems in the province of Zamora.

In the surroundings of the town the typical clay dovecotes appear, increasingly scarce and worse preserved and some "ovens" still persist, peculiar adobe constructions , topped with a dome, very abundant until the 50s, which were used to collect farm implements in the eras, and that suggested an oriental landscape to Gómez Moreno [9] .

About 2 km. to the NE. from Villafáfila, along the old Revellinos road, very close to the Riego stream, on a flat terrain, there is a gentle elevation that barely stands out from its surrounding environment . As a consequence of agricultural work, tiles, strips of slate, stones, fragments of circular mills, human bones and ceramics are found in the area. more concentrated at the top. but spread over half a hectare of surface, as well as two fragments of tegula that, due to their lack of representativeness, raise doubts about a occupation in Roman times .

Some of the ceramic fragments collected are made with a lathe on sedimentary pastes, with reductive firing; others are made of micaceous ceramics, made on a wheel with incomplete firing. identifying some pot edges _

On the eastern shore of the Salina Grande, adjacent to it , there is a small meadow, of about 2,000 m ² , barely protruding from the surrounding terrain . which until about twenty years ago was dedicated to cultivation, in which remains of handmade ceramics appear , some covered with lichens due to their prolonged exposure to the air . and to the water.

The ceramics (lum. I,1) are of two types: a first group is made with sedimentary pastes, with abundant intrusions of large quartz and limestone and abundant intrusions of vegetables: the firings are incomplete, without a definable finish and of Cracked and very rough exterior appearance . The fragments correspond to pots with an indented edge, curved lip and poorly developed neck with a baton or cord applied and digital impressions on it; A fragment of a flat bottom is also documented .

The second group is characterized by more decanted pastes, medium and small intrusions of quartz, limestone and mica, incomplete firing and reducers. with a finish that is difficult to define due to the roundness of the pieces, although it seems smooth. The shapes correspond to bowls with exvasive rims. curved lip and hemispherical walls, all of them smooth, jars and pots with a simple rim and a poorly developed neck: some fragments preserve the start of the handle that starts from the rim, and there are also flat bottoms with the beginning of the globular wall. Among the quite representative decorated pieces, a bowl with a simple rim and a lip with oblique incisions stands out, which presents a small cord applied in the shape of an arc on the body , with impressions made by a small reed; likewise, a vase with a slightly flared rim, simple lip and vertical walls, which shows an applied cord with fingerings framing the mouth and some galbo with an applied nipple .

Both due to its location and the materials it contains, it can be assigned a date corresponding to a Chalcolithic or Early Bronze Age, similar to that of the recently excavated site of “Santioste” in Otero de Sariegos, whose definitive study will serve to assess the chronology now proposed and of which a progress is given in this same Yearbook, so we do not believe it is necessary to insist on its parallels.

Just over 1 km. of the urban area of Villafáfila, on the very edge of the Salina Grande, to the North, in the most crowded part of it, there is an area similar in its layout and extension to the previous one, uncultivated for about twenty years, in which Ceramic fragments appear not very abundant, perhaps as a consequence of never having been subjected to deep plowing work. During winter access is difficult, as the surroundings remain flooded much of the time. Until a few years ago there was a spring nearby that is currently blocked.

As in other similar sites in the area, ceramics made by hand on sedimentary type pastes with predominantly incomplete firing are collected, being able to differentiate two groups: one is made with poorly decanted pastes, abundant medium and large quartz intrusions, and large quantity of plant imprints. They do not have perceptible finishes, and are characterized by their light weight and roughness. The shapes are not identifiable due to the fragmentation of the pieces, although we find simple, straight or slightly flared edges, with digital impressions on the lip, continuous or spaced; One of the edges shows transverse incisions on the lip of different depths.

A second group is made up of ceramics made with more careful pastes, with small and medium-sized intrusions of quartz and mica, smoothed on the outside, whose surfaces offer reddish and ocher tones, while the center appears gray-black, a consequence of its firing. incomplete. There are some simple or exvased smooth edges of small containers with a globular body, two decorated pieces corresponding to larger specimens with fingerings on the lip and a cord applied under the neck as a baton, as well as some fragments of galbus with cords applied and deep impressions.

The chronology of the site may correspond to the Chalcolithic-Early Bronze Age, being similar to those already mentioned at “El Barco” and “Santioste”.

About 400 m. From the previous one, very close to the Salina Grande, a small promontory stands out between the land of meadows and reed beds, dedicated to the cultivation of alfalfa, with an area of 1.5 hectares. The area is delimited by the “Salina”, the mouth of the “Arroyo del Riego” and the “Senda del Galgo”.

The materials are mainly ceramics made by lathe and lathe, from decanted sedimentary pastes, with a predominance of reducing firings. along with other incomplete and oxidizing ones.

The shapes are small pots with slightly indented edges and lips beveled on the outside, or simple lips, similar to those found in the excavation carried out in 1990 in the Prado de los Llamares [10], and jugs with a simple edge and indented neck , with ribbon handle.

Some pieces offer characteristic decorative motifs: incised grid, burnished vertical lines and grooves.

Within the set, a fragment of ceramic painted with wine-colored lines stands out on the border of the neck with the galbo, of an undetermined shape, with a design of thick lines and a grid below.

This site corresponds to an unpopulated area, not yet identified in written sources, whose endowment (11th-13th centuries) is supported by ceramic parallels found in the provinces of Zamora and León [11 ] .

1.5 km away. N. of Villafáfila. near an outcrop of sandstone rocks used as a quarry, on land dedicated to the cultivation of cereals, with gently undulating relief around 700 m. of altitude, they appear scattered over an area of more than 1 Ha. without forming a concentration, remains of hand-made ceramics, along with some core of flint and small pieces of quartzite (Plate I, 2), in addition to having news of an ax polished that appeared years ago.

The ceramics are made by hand on sedimentary pastes with intrusions of quartz and mica; some fragments have traces of abundant vegetable degreasers. The finish of the pieces is difficult to appreciate because they are very rounded, although sometimes it is noticeable on the outside. Reductive firings predominate, although incomplete and oxidizing firings are also recorded. Most of the fragments collected are smooth, corresponding to vessels with simple edges and vertical walls, in some cases with thickening due to the garlic lip; There is also a small pot with a flared edge and the beginning of a globular wall and two fragments of bottoms, one flat and the other slightly convex. The decorated pieces are scarce, highlighting a slightly flared edge with transversal incised lines on the lip,[12] .

The chronological ascription of the site is difficult to make from the materials collected. although it could be located between the Chalcolithic and Middle Bronze Age.

Within the urban area of Villafáfila. in the NW angle. Of the walled enclosure that now disappeared in the Middle Ages [13] , two promontories of land can still be seen in what must have corresponded to the old fortress of the town, semi-ruined already in the 15th century [14] , and currently included in the hamlet. In the year 1988 some ceramic fragments were collected that can guide about the antiquity of the occupation.

The ceramics are of two types: some made on micaceous pastes on a wheel or turner, with incomplete firing and barely identifiable shapes. Decorative motifs are only recognized in two fragments: in one, corresponding to the body, of globular development, a small molding is observed, while the second shows a cord applied with impressions. Another group is made with sedimentary pastes, quite decanted, made on a wheel; The shapes correspond to bowls with hemispherical walls, slightly indented edges, highlighting a jug with an indented edge, a marked fluted lip on the outside, and an insinuated neck. as well as some fluted decorations.

The chronology of the collected materials is located in the 12th-13th centuries [15] .

Less than 1 km. from Villafáfila, along the road that goes to La Tabla Station, on the E slope of a trespass that exceeds 700 m. high, there appear, scattered over an area of about 3 hectares, abundant fragments of handmade ceramics, some lithic pieces, pieces of adobe and animal bone remains, among which a fragment of deer antlers should be noted.

The ceramics collected (plate I, 3) seem to correspond to two groups differentiated in terms of their appearance, both made by hand. One made with sedimentary pastes and small quartz and mica intrusions, reducing firings and burnished surfaces. The decorations are not abundant: incisions on the lip or carinae, sometimes forming triangles from the edge, in some cases filled with incised lines; crossed incisions inside the bottom, digital impressions and angles forming parallel lines. Those corresponding to straight pieces and walls and horizontal lip with a slightly pointed edge, carinated pieces, annular and indicated feet and a flat bottom. The chronology, taking into account the formal and decorative similarities of the ceramic pieces with those from other sites in the area —Bretó, Castrogonzalo›. Revellinos, Abezames and Manganeses of La Polvorosa[16] — is located in the Iron I period.

A second group is made up of older-looking ceramics, perhaps ascribable to the Chalcolithic or the Bronze Age, made on coarse pastes with medium-sized quartz and mica instructions and complete firing. The decorations consist of impressions and incisions on the lip, sometimes forming a zig-zag, superficial anarchic impressions, comb incisions in geometric designs, spatula-point excisions and cords applied with fingering. The shapes correspond to glasses with straight walls and edges with a flat lip, others with flared edges and a horizontal lip with digital impressions. The presence of a polished ax and a black flint core could correspond to this supposedly older occupation.

To the SE. of the current river of Villafáfila, next to the small lagoons of “Caballos” and “La Carrerina”, on a mosaic of small plots dedicated to the cultivation of alfalfa, appear, dispersed over an area of about 2 hectares. and mixed with modern materials, fragments of circular granite mills, small slate daughters, tagulae and ceramic remains from different periods.

Among the ceramic fragments collected, a group of late Hispanic terra sigillata stands out , in which the usual decorative motifs are repeated —concentric circles, spikelets. etc.— in vases of late form 37: some fragments offer chiseled decoration and most correspond to smooth forms, including possible closed pieces, since they lack varnish on the internal surface.

Another set is that of micaceous ceramics made with a lathe, with oxidizing and reducing firing, belonging to large pots with turned edges and poorly developed necks, one of them with a cord with blunt-tipped incisions.

In view of these findings, the occupation of this settlement in late Roman and early medieval times seems evident, without it being possible to specify, for the moment, the existence or not of occupation in the Visigothic period.

It is located about 500 m. away from the last houses of Villafáfila, to the right of the road that goes to La Tabla Station; on the other side, separated by a deep cut of more than 2 m. of unevenness, through which the road runs, there is another site, that of “Cementerio Nuevo”.

The archaeological zone is located on flat land, with a slight slope towards the town, on an area of about 4 hectares. dedicated to cereal cultivation, where sandstone mill stones, adobes and poorly fired bricks of flat and irregular shape, some lithic objects and hand-made ceramics appear (Plate I, 4).

Among the materials collected is a set of flimsy ceramic pieces, perhaps underfired, made on sedimentary pastes with vegetable degreasers, reddish in color, light in weight and porous. On the outside of the walls and bottom, they present basketry imprints and thickened edges, sometimes folded, giving the impression that they had been made using a basket as a mold, inside which the clay is applied. reinforcing the edge above it.

Another group is made up of handmade ceramics, on sedimentary pastes, with medium and small quartz and mica intrusions, with predominantly reducing and incomplete firing, and, in some cases, oxidizing. Most have smoothed or spatulated surfaces and some have reddish slips. The shapes correspond to large hemispherical bowls with a simple rim and a rounded, sometimes beveled, lip; others have the edge exvasated, with the neck insinuated and, in some cases, almost horizontal edges can be recognized; the bodies are globular with flat bottoms

Although quantitatively the smooth pieces are the best represented, there are shapes decorated with grooves, perhaps made with fingers, brushes, parallel or wavy combs, spring impressions, others that seem to be made with a wheel and some with a sharp object; parallel incisions, sometimes forming horizontal friezes crossed by vertical lines, sometimes forming geometric designs of rhombuses or triangles filled with lines. as well as dotted filling of white dough in bands or triangles. Most of the decorated pieces correspond to small containers.

In addition to the materials described, it is worth highlighting a fragment of andiron, two axes on schist, a triangular blade and a possible double-edged knife, with a bifacial retouch.

The chronological assignment of this site can be made by the parallelism of these ceramics with others from “Las Pozas” in Casaseca de las Chanas [17] Fontanillas de Castro [18] and from “El Teso del Moral” in Cuelgamures [19] , for which can be framed in the Precampaniform Chalcolithic period.

Just over 1 km. from town. To the left of the Carrerina, between the “old Magdalena road” and a lagoon, in 1982, during the plowing work, some burials were discovered, framed by large slate slabs, on two superimposed levels. Currently, we can see tiles, stones, slate slabs and some ceramic remains corresponding to two types: some made with a lathe with reduction firing, which gives them a cementitious appearance, and smooth, or with incomplete firing and decorated with simple vertical burnished lines on the exterior, which could date back to the 11th century. Another group is made up of ceramics made on a high-speed wheel, with decoration of striations and more careful vertical burnished lines and some bottoms with an exterior slip, although given their scarcity and fragmentary state. It is not possible to define specific forms. being able to date around the s. XIII[20] .

On the other side of the lagoon, in a plot called “El Villar”, medieval ceramics also appear, some with an incised grid. They were probably part of the same settlement.

About 5 km. from Villafáfila, to the left of the old Vereda, from Benavente to Toro, there is a fountain built of ashlar, with a rectangular floor plan and covered with a barrel vault, which gives its name to the area [21], considered to be of Roman origin [ 22 ] .

The deposit occupies an area of about 4 hectares, to the NO. from the source, and is located on land dedicated to cereal cultivation, flat, but gently sloping towards it. with an altitude of about 700 m. There are many tegulae , some circular mills, slate slabs, bricks, fragments of stucco with red and black paint and abundant remains of ceramics.

In 1982, as a consequence of subsoiling the plot, some 200 m. From the source, tesserae appeared, which motivated an emergency excavation, after which several fragments of mosaic with a geometric design were extracted [23] , currently in the Zamora Museum.

About 400 m. To the N. of the fountain there are stone and slate slabs, tiles, bones and medieval ceramics that may have come from the depopulated area of “San Pedro del Yermo”, mentioned as such in 1708 and as the church of “San Pedro del Otero”, since in 1310.

Among the materials collected on the surface, ceramic remains predominate (plate I, 6): a fragment of a lantern decorated with plant motifs, thin-walled and common ceramics, both for kitchen and table use and for storage, as well as numerous fragments of terra sigillata Hispanic high-imperial, smooth—Drag-shaped. 15/17—or decorated with circles, palmettes. medallions—of Drag shapes. 29 and Drag. 37—some with graffiti. More abundant are the fragments of late Hispanic terra sigillataplain or decorated with the usual motifs, identifying bowls of late shapes 37, Ritt. 8 and Hispanic-shaped plates 4, as well as gray and orange ceramic imitation Paleochristian, with printed decoration of palmettes and circles. It is worth highlighting among them a fragment slipped in red and with printed leaves on the entire preserved surface.

Some pieces of glass, several coins, part of an arch fibula and a bronze stem of undetermined use have also been collected. Such findings are indicating an important Roman settlement, already occupied in the early imperial period, possibly a “villa”, which had its moment of splendor in the late period, judging by the mosaics and ceramic materials it has yielded.

Apart from the Roman remains, around the fountain and on both sides of the Path, there are handmade ceramics made with sedimentary pastes and predominantly reducing firings, some burnished on the outside. Most of them are smooth pieces with curved and turned edges, straight walls, in some cases with a soft ridge, and flat bottoms. Among the decorated pieces there are incisions on edges and edges, some hanging triangles, digital impressions and ungulations (lum. I, 5).

All of them are similar to those described in other sites in the province of Zamora, which correspond to the first Iron Age, already mentioned when commenting on the site of “El Cementerio Nuevo”. Among the handmade pieces, a handle with incised decoration stands out, with an older appearance.

About 2 km. from Villafáfila, to the left of the roads that go to Villarrín and Otero de Sariegos, about 400 m apart. From the Salina Grande, there is a lagoon of about 5 hectares. surface, very irregular, currently known as Laguna Salada, although in the 18th century it was called “Laguna de Cureses” so it is possible that, near it, the medieval town of Coreses was found, mentioned in the 10th centuries. and XI [24] .

On the shore of this lagoon there are testimonies, not very abundant, of ceramics between which two groups are clearly differentiated (Plate II, 1): one of handmade ceramics, with reducing and incomplete firing, on decanted pastes, with intrusions small quartz and mica; These are edges, some with simple lips and straight walls and others slightly exvasive with the lip marked on the outside. The scarcity of the pieces does not allow me to make chronological approximations to say that they belong to a protohistoric moment of occupation.

In the Zamora Museum there is a fragment of a pot, found by chance in the “La Laguna Salada” of Villafáfila, although it is not certain that it corresponds to the same place. It is made by hand, with an embossed edge. Curved lip and slightly insinuated neck, it has a handle that starts from the edge and rests on the beginning of the body. It presents as its only decoration deep circular impressions along the entire lip.

A second group is made up of pottery and wheel-turned ceramics. The former are made from micaceous pastes and you can recognize pot shapes with a turned edge, a triangular section, and the beginning of a notch. or with a thickened lip on the outside and a molded neck; It is worth noting a fragment of a jar with a horizontal edge. reinforced with a cord fingered on the outside that preserves the beginning of the neck, straight, with incised lines as a grid. very similar to pieces documented in Castrotorafe and Castroponce [25] . In addition to the aforementioned decorations. others appear based on incised lines forming waves and grooves with transversal incisions. Being able to date it between the 11th and 12th centuries [26] .

Other pieces are made on a wheel on decanted sedimentary pastes, with incomplete firing. The shapes are bowls with packed edges, horizontal lips highlighted on the outside and very open walls, as well as possible jugs with packed edges with the beginning of the neck indicated. The chronology is later than the previous ones, probably between the 13th and 14th centuries [27] .

In the NE angle. of the Salina Grande, framing the so-called “Laguna Honda”, on a plot that has recently been subjected to deep plowing work, which has damaged the deposit, appear. Scattered over an area of 1 ha, abundant remains of ceramics, some grinding mills and pieces of adobe.

Although fragments of medieval ceramics are scattered throughout the plot, the majority correspond to ceramics made by hand, some made on coarse pastes with abundant plant intrusions and incomplete firing. The pieces, not very representative, belong to straight-walled vessels with simple, curved or slightly flared section edges, without decoration, and a possible cover.

Another more abundant group, also of hand-made ceramics, is made on decanted pastes with incomplete and oxidizing firings. Formally they are identified with vessels with straight walls and simple edges, others with slightly flaring edges and a handle that starts from the lip, large and storage vessels with slightly flaring edges, a curved lip and a fairly developed neck; There are also pieces with a low carcass, as well as a fragment with a flat bottom with a globular development wall and a lid. As for the decorations, they are not abundant, documenting fingerings and impressions made with a blunt object on the lip and on applied cords.

This site presents great topographic and formal analogies with that of “Santioste” in Otero de Sariegos, so we assign it a chronology belonging to the Chalcolithic or early Bronze I.

About 5 km. from Villafáfila and almost at the same distance from Villaveza del Agua, on both sides of the line that separates both municipalities, near a holm oak forest, there are tegulae, fragments of thick quadrangular bricks with wavy marks on their surface, and other cylindrical , which could come from hypocaustum structures , for example. The ceramic remains, very scarce, correspond to common Roman ceramics with reddish pastes, with no traces of sigillata appearing on the surface, which would help to date the site more precisely.

2 km away. E. of Villafáfila, on a cultivated plot that stands out in an environment of meadows and streams. near the aforementioned site of "Fuentealdea-El Villar", around a spring, there are stones, pieces of tiles, slates and abundant ceramic remains.

Some pieces made with a screw on decanted pastes have been collected, with reduction firing that gives them a cementitious appearance, some decorated with an incised grid, similar to others in the area [28 ] . Among the smooth pieces, there is a jug with a flared rim and a section pointed outwards, the set being able to date to the middle of the s. XI.

Another group is made up of ceramics made on a wheel on less decanted pastes, with intrusions of quartz and mica and predominantly reducing and incomplete firings. The shapes are small pots with a raised edge and triangular section, jugs with a horizontal lip and a marked edge, some with a small molding to differentiate it from the neck, and bowls with a thickened horizontal lip on the outside and inside, marking the beginning of the body. The decorations that some pieces present are simple burnished vertical lines and grooves or grooves made with the advance of the lathe. They can be assigned to a chronology of the middle of the 12th century and the beginning of the 13th [29] .

This site appears in the Zamora Archaeological Inventory under the name “Los Llamares”, due to its proximity to the meadow of the same name. as reflected in the National Topographic Map, although that toponym must be reserved for the recently excavated site that is located in the middle of the “Prado de los Llamares”.

It is located about 200 m. from the previous one. It occupies two different areas, separated by an area that is flooded in winter. of about 100 m. wide, through which the Riego stream runs. We describe them together due to their proximity and the similarity of their materials, although they may perhaps be two different settlements, similar to the many that follow one another along the banks of the lagoons and streams that connect them.

The one on the left bank is located on a small promontory where, together with roof tiles and medieval pottery, abundant fragments of handmade pottery and some human bone remains were found with the plow. On the right bank, in a cultivated plot, there are somewhat scarcer testimonies of hand-made ceramics, around a spring that flows all year round, and remains of adobes, more abundant next to the stream.

The materials collected, with the exception of a fragment of an andiron, are the usual ceramics made by hand (Plate II, 2), some on coarse pastes with abundant plant intrusions and poor firing, among which a fragment with similar basketry impressions stands out. to those described in “El Fonsario”.

A more numerous group is made up of pieces made on sedimentary pastes with abundant intrusions of medium-sized quartz, mica and limestone; Many have concretions on the entire surface, which mask the finish, only noticeable in some. its cooking being reducing. incomplete and oxidizing. The shapes correspond to open pieces, with a simple or thickened and rounded lip, of the casserole type, or to glasses with a slightly flared edge. In addition, some flat bottoms and very low hulls and rounded inflections that coincide with the beginning of the bottom are recorded. Most of the fragments are smooth. but on some lips you can see fingerings. ungulations or impressions like oblique grooves; others have perforations under the edge. and galbos appear with mamelons and digital printing on them.

Another group of ceramics is defined by their more decanted pastes, in some cases micaceous, smoothed and spatulated. in smaller quantities, burnished. They correspond to pieces with straight walls and slightly curved edges with an incipient neck; The lips are flat, some with impressions made with the point of a spatula. thickenings and very careful incisions, sometimes oblique.

Two pieces stand out whose ornamentation is articulated in bands of vertical incised lines, oblique articulated and friezes with alternate points in a "chevron" scheme, which can be considered bell-shaped.

The chronology of the site is located in the Chalcolithic, and different phases can be differentiated according to the peculiarity of some elements such as the presence of the andiron (Pre-Beaker Chalcolithic) or the fragments with bell-shaped decoration (Ciempozuelos phase), insisting, however, on the similarity of some pieces with those already mentioned from “Santioste”.

About 700 m. from Otero de Sariegos, on the S. shore of the Salina Grande”, there is a platform of land, which goes into the lagoon, 250 m. for 250 m., surrounded by water on three sides. In 1978, various earthworks were carried out on it, in order to reinforce its edges, which is why abundant ceramic remains appear in the water and on the shore (Plate II, 3) which are revealed with the process of evaporation and summer desiccation.

The materials collected are fragments of ceramics made by hand, made on sedimentary clays, with predominantly oxidizing firing, although there are pieces made on micaceous pastes, and others characterized by abundant vegetable tempering agents.

The fragments correspond to bowls with a rounded lip and pots with a simple indented rim. Many are smooth, although there is no shortage of those decorated with fingering incisions on the edge and applied cords, as well as small mamelons on some galbo. It is worth highlighting a fragment with a flat bottom, with abundant vegetable degreasers, which presents deep digital impressions inside, perhaps related to the obtaining of salt.

The location of the site and the typology of the pieces remind us, once again, of those of the “Santioste” site. so they can be assigned, accordingly. to the Chalcolithic-Early Bronze Age.

In the central zone of the platform there is an area with ceramic materials made on a lathe, on sedimentary pastes and oxidizing and incomplete firings. The shapes correspond to little pots with almond-shaped edges and pitchers or jugs, decorated with incised and fluted lines, typical of a period in the Middle Ages1.

The information on the existence of this site comes from the Archaeological Inventory of Zamora and the materials were deposited in the Museum, coming from the discovery located in 1985.

It is located about 3.50 km. to the E. of the town on a hilly terrain (690-695 m. altitude) dedicated to cereal cultivation.

Materials are scarce and widely scattered. There are reports of the appearance of a polished stone ax and a mill, but most of the materials are handmade ceramics: some on sedimentary pastes with abundant vegetable tempering agents and incomplete firing, among which a straight edge with a rounded lip stands out. decorated with incisions; others are made with pastes with abundant quartz and small mica and predominantly reducing firings; These are vertical edges with a rounded lip, smoothed on the outside, difficult to formally describe.

In the survey carried out in 1990, a fragment of a small vessel corresponding to a simple and straight edge was found; It is decorated with incised triangles filled with dots, without traces of inlay paste, similar to others from “Las Pozas” [30] and from the “Teso del Moral” from Cuelgamures [31] , which. in the absence of more precise information, it would serve to date the site to the Pre-Beaker Chalcolithic.

About .3 km. to the E. of Villafáfila, in a treasury of 690 m. altitude dedicated to cereal cultivation, there are ceramic remains, scarce and scattered over an area of half a Ha. on the southern and eastern slopes.

The reference to this site is due to the discovery a few years ago of a polished hatchet by a resident of the town and it already appeared in the Archaeological Inventory of Zamora prior to 1988.

The materials collected are predominantly handmade ceramics on coarse pastes, with abundant mineral and vegetable intrusions, and oxidizing and reducing firings. Some pieces have a reddish color envelope and in others, although they are heavily rolled, the smoothed exterior can be seen. The shapes correspond to glasses or bowls with raised or turned edges and with a pointed lip. Most are smooth, but some galbos have cords applied with fingering.

In addition to the ceramics, there are some mill pieces corresponding to grinders.

The scarcity, poor conservation and low representativeness of the finds do not allow us a chronological precision, although, due to the similarity with some materials from “La Pila” and other sites in the area, we dare to provisionally include them in Chalcolithic or Chalcolithic contexts. the Bronze Age.

1 km away. SO. from Villafáfila, on about 3 hectares. of land dedicated to cereal cultivation, some stones, fragments of tiles and relatively abundant remains of ceramics are found on the surface. The relief is flat, around 690 m. of altitude and with a gentle slope towards the E, pouring towards the “Salina Grande”, whose shore is 1 km away.

Among the materials collected in prospecting we found a group of ceramic pieces made with a lathe, with sedimentary pastes and reducing firings. Formally, they correspond to small pots with slightly curved and thickened edges, with a triangular section on the outside; There are also fragments belonging to the body, decorated with an incised grid similar to those found in other medieval sites in the area, which can be dated to the end of the 19th century. XI [32] .

Other pieces are made on a wheel, on sedimentary pastes with oxidizing firing: these are pots, some decorated with grooves or a small band of transverse incisions. Chronologically they correspond to the s. XII-XIII [33] .

In addition, a basin or basin edge has been collected, glazed in green on the inside, of a more modern chronology, and several tokens cut out of tile with a central recess, on both sides, that has not penetrated them.

In September 1989, the works carried out in the “Las Lagunas de Villafáfila” National Reserve and its subsequent earthworks revealed the presence of human bone remains, as well as abundant ceramic materials (fig. 2), in one of the meadows. communal. After learning about it, the Territorial Culture Service proposed an emergency excavation that was carried out in July 1990, directed by Javier Sanz and Ana Viñé; Their results are published in this Yearbook and have allowed us to date the settlement between the mid-19th century. XI and beginning of the century. XIII.

On the NE shore. From the “Salina Grande”, between it and the so-called “Laguna Honda”, a strip of land of about 250 m extends. for 50 m. which barely stands out from its current level by half a meter. It is uncultivated and, both at the edge of the water and inside the plot, there are remains of handmade ceramics. Two types of production can be distinguished: some pieces are made with coarse, lightweight pasta, with traces of abundant vegetable degreasers, medium-sized pieces of quartz and incomplete firing. The shapes correspond to vessels with straight walls and simple edges, sometimes with fingering on the lip and with basketwork impressions on the body and bottom.

The second type is characterized by offering more decanted pastes, with small and medium-sized quartz and mica intrusions and smoothed external surfaces. His pieces formally belong to glasses with straight walls and simple or slightly curved edges, with horizontal or curved lips; In some cases they present mamelons, on the edge or on the body, isolated or double; some lips are decorated with digital impressions and one fragment has a smooth cord framing the mouth.

The site is similar to the often mentioned “Santioste” site, so we assign it a chronology from the Chalcolithic or Early Bronze Age.

About 8 km. of Villafáfila, on the border with the municipality of San Martín de Valderaduey, near where the depopulated area of “San Isidro” could have been located, according to oral tradition, some fragments of hand-made ceramics appear, smooth and very rounded, of very difficult cultural affiliation, as well as two quartzite grinding stones.

About 3 km. In Villafáfila, very close to the “Salina de Barillos”, is the “El Sobradillo” payment. The presence of archaeological remains in the area has long been known and, in fact, it appears in the Archaeological Inventory of Zamora, being assigned a medieval chronology.

In the latest surveys carried out, the presence of ceramics has been confirmed in two other areas close to the previously known one, which is about 250 m away. Therefore, they have been assigned the same toponym, although individualizing them as different sites.

It is located on a small elevation of land. of about 680 m. of altitude, which stands out over the “Salina de Barillos” and the “Laguna del Rual”. The land is subjected to intensive agricultural work that is destroying the site.

Scattered over an area of about 2 hectares. remains of tiles, stones and ceramics appear. During the last plowing, in the area near “La Laguna del Rual”, the presence of large slabs of sandstone and slate has been revealed, as well as abundant human bone remains that may correspond to the medieval necropolis of the ancient town of “ Sobradillo”, whose church is cited in 1310 [34] , although the first reference is from the year 937 [35] .

Among the ceramic remains collected are some pieces made by turning with reducing firing. These are small pots with raised and thickened edges, decorated with an incised grid or grooves. Others are made on a wheel with incomplete and oxidizing firing and correspond to small pots and jugs, some decorated with a narrow band of incisions or a comb with development of waves. The chronology of the pieces goes from the s. XI to XIII [36] .

In addition to the above, two tegulae , insufficient in our opinion , have been found during prospecting to deduce a previous Roman occupation, since they could have come from one of the nearby sites (“La Vega”, “Tierra de Barillos”).

At about 250 m. SO. of the previous one, between the Vereda and the old bed of the stream that served as an overflow for the “Salina de Barillos”, today incorporated into the arable land, there is an area of about 2,500 m 2 in which remains ^of ceramics made by hand on clay appear. sedimentary, with predominantly reducing and incomplete firing. The shapes correspond to pots with indented edges, thick walls, and cords applied to the neck, some smooth and others with digital prints, highlighting a thick piece with mamelons on the galbo; some of the edges have incisions on the lip. Next to them there are smooth bowls, some of them carinated.

The site resembles others close to the lagoons, whose materials recall the often cited “Santioste” site in Otero de Sariegos. The proposed chronology, in principle, is Chalcolithic-Early Bronze Age.

With this name we call a site that is located about 250 m away. of “Sobradillo I”, forming an irregular peninsula, which barely stands out half a meter from the current level of the “Salina de Barillos”, with an area of close to 1 ha. The lands, dedicated to agricultural work, become easily waterlogged in the winter period.

The materials that appear are very rough and some are subject to corrosion due to the saltwater in the water. These are ceramics made by hand (Plate II, 4), some very rough. with abundant vegetable tempering agents, incomplete and oxidizing cooking, corresponding to smooth shapes, with straight walls and simple lips or. in some cases, returned. Other pieces are made on sedimentary pastes, with abundant mineral intrusions and a predominance of incomplete and reducing firings. The shapes are bowls, globular or carinated, without decoration. Other specimens are decorated: they are possible little pots with fingerings on the edge, applied laces, and a galbo with mamelons scattered on its surface, on which there is a digital print, similar to others from the Chalcolithic site of Cuelgamures [37] .. A small fragment has decoration that suggests the imprint of a wicker basket.

The presence of slag is also confirmed, although its archaeological nature is doubtful, since it could have been added with fertilizers. The chronology of these remains is difficult to determine, although they are similar to some pieces from "Santioste", whose location is also similar, so they can be included in the Chalcolithic-Early Bronze Age.

About 500 m. of Otero de Sariegos, in some cultivated plots to the S. of the “Salina Grande”, which stand out slightly on a terrain of meadows flooded in winter, there are stones, some tiles and remains of ceramics. It is possible that they can be related to the neighboring site of “El Teso de los Plateros”, but the distance of 400 m. seems reason enough to describe them separately.

The ceramic pieces are made on a lathe and on a lathe, some on sedimentary pastes and others on micaceous pastes. The shapes corresponding to pots, storage pieces and a lid. The cooking is reducing and incomplete. Some pieces are decorated with an incised grid, vertical burnished lines, cords applied with prints and comb decoration.

About 5 km. from Villafáfila and about 700 m. of the NO. From the “Fuente de San Pedro” there is a 7.12 m hill. high, from which you can widely dominate the entire valley of the Salinas de Villafáfila and several surrounding towns. At the top of the mountain, located to the SW. of the Vereda, large patches of black earth and ashes appear with abundant remains of ceramics, pieces of poorly baked adobes or bricks, animal bones and some human bones. The land has been dedicated to vineyards until about fifteen years ago: since then, increasingly deeper plowing has been carried out, which has deteriorated the site.

The ceramics collected are made by hand on sedimentary-type pastes, decanted, with small intrusions of quartz and mica, with predominantly reducing and some oxidizing firings.

Most of them are smooth pieces corresponding to pots with a slightly raised edge and a simple lip. vessels with vertical walls. a hemispherical bowl and a tall glass. A small container with a pointed edge and very thin walls stands out. The decorated pieces are scarce: parallel incised lines, others irregularly wavy, and a fragment with buttons applied in a line, similar to another from “El Canchal” by Peleas de Abajo [39 ] . Remains of mud also appear that could serve as silo linings.

Apart from the ceramics, it is worth noting the presence of an arrowhead on schist, with fins and a barely marked peduncle (Plate II, 5).

In front of the Teso del Marqués, on the other side of the Vereda, about 200 m. On the S. and E. slopes of a hill symmetrical to the previous one, lithic pieces, some boat-shaped mills, human bone remains and handmade ceramics appear in a scattered manner (Plate II, 6).

Due to the proximity we give it the same name and order number, although, if there is any doubt that it could be the same site, we prefer to describe them individually.

In ceramics we can distinguish two groups: the first of them is made up of large pieces, with turned edges, almost horizontal or slightly curved, flat bottoms with straight walls and galbos of different thicknesses, some with perforations, all of them smooth. Others are decorated and correspond to small glasses with grooves, printed dots, pinches and rope impressions. It is worth highlighting two fragments of a large vessel made of micaceous paste and reducing firing, with a slightly exvased and curved edge, with a cord applied with transverse incisions, a wall of globular development and a bottom highlighted on the outside, which appeared together with human bone remains.

This group may correspond to the Chalcolithic-Early Bronze Age, given its similarity to materials from Fontanillas de Castro [40] . The second group of ceramics is made up of three fragments decorated with oblique incised grid bands. One of them is a small glass with decoration on the inside of the rim. Another fragment presents parallel zig-zag incisions.

The chronology that can be assigned to these pieces is from the Late Bronze - Cogotas I.

Apart from the ceramics, two lithic pieces appear, one is a knife on black flint, with denticulation on one side, and the other is a fragment of polished shale, with thinned but blunt edges, of indeterminate use.

In the Zamora Archaeological Inventory, this site is called "San Pedro I Fountain", so we assume that the Chalcolithic settlement cited by G. Delibes and J. del Val in the First Congress on the History of Zamora may correspond to this deposit [41] .

It is located 2 km. of Villafáfila, on a small elevation of the land between the reed beds and meadows that surround the “Salina Grande”, on whose SW shore. It is located a few meters from it, with the remains scattered over about 3 hectares. Of surface. We have reference to the appearance, a few years ago, during the last plowing, of a possible necropolis whose tombs were separated by stone slabs or slates.

In this area, in the 10th century, the Sahagún Monastery acquired properties and pauses , still preserving the toponym of “Prado de San Fagunde” in a nearby meadow [42] .

Among the ceramics found there are two types of pastes, some micaceous with incomplete firing and others sedimentary with reducing and incomplete firing. The workmanship is turned and some finishes have a reddish slip. The shapes correspond to small pots with an exvased edge and beveled on the outside; others, with a simple edge without a neck, preserve the beginning of the globular wall; There is also a fragment of a jar. The decorations are burnished vertical lines, small moldings, grooves and incisions, shaped like a herringbone on a handle.

About 400 m. to SW. from Salina Grande and just over 1.5 km. From the town is this treasure, which reaches almost 700 m. altitude, about 25 m. above the level of the “Salina”. The land is subject to labor year and time. On the E., N. and especially S. slopes, there are, on the surface, remains of hand-made ceramics, fragments of granite boat mills and some pieces of slate, occupying about 3 hectares. of dispersion, leaving the top of the material free of materials.

In the Zamora Museum, various ceramic pieces are preserved from a survey in 1985, to which others obtained in more recent work have been added.

The most abundant materials are ceramics made by hand (Plate III, 1) on sedimentary-type pastes, with incomplete and reducing firing. The finishes are not clearly distinguishable due to the roughness of many pieces, although some are burnished and others have traces of brushing on the inside. Most of the ceramics are smooth, corresponding to large pots, straight-walled vessels that have their edges reinforced with thick batons, plates with curved edges, as well as several annular feet. Decorated pieces are not uncommon, with incisions with varied geometric designs predominating: triangles filled with incised lines, oblique grids and friezes of horizontal spikes, which appear both on the edge and on the body. There are also ungulations and digital impressions, sometimes associated with incisions on the edge. Its parallelism with other sites in the N. of the province, already mentioned (yac. n. 7), seem to define an occupation in Iron I.

However, it is worth highlighting a fragment of ceramic decorated with a "boquique", which preserves traces of white paste, with the characteristic garland design of the productions that fall under the Cogotas I-Final Bronze phase. Worthy of mention is another piece corresponding to a simple-rimmed glass with incisions on the lip and straight walls. smoothed on the inside, which presents marks of rope or basketry on the outside, with an older appearance.

Other notable materials are two ceramic tokens, with central wear on both sides that does not pierce them. as well as half a slate disc with a central hole. Also collected have been a polished ax on quartzite and a fragment of a semi-ovoid mold, made on limestone, inside which a rectangular-shaped recess appears, corresponding to a metal element - an ax or, perhaps, a chisel - (Plate III , 2).

The settlement occupies a strip of land of about 200 m. wide, which surrounds a small lagoon on the S. and on the N. it limits with the “Salina de Barillos”. The land rises between 0.50 and 1.50 m. above the current maximum water level and this dedicated to the cultivation of cereals.

The materials appear in two areas: one (“Tierra de Barillos I”), next to the shore of the Salina, offers, above all, hand-made pottery fragments, and the other, some 250 m away. (“Tierras de Barillos II”), provides remains of tiles - some tegulae -, stones and slate.

The materials found constitute a set of ceramics made by hand with sedimentary pastes, incomplete firing and with a very rough appearance. They correspond to rims of smooth bowls, some with a marked neck, and a larger piece with a slightly flared rim and a lug handle. Decorated sherds include imprinted edges, usually digital—although the deep imprinted dots on the lip of a piece are mentionable—and galbos with appliqué laces and fingerings.

Some coarser fragments have been collected, with abundant vegetable tempers, among which a simple rim can be identified, with digital impressions on the lip and a galbo with a cord and impressions. Both the characteristics of the pieces and the location of the site are similar to that of "Santioste" by Otero de Sariegos, so its chronological setting can be placed in the Chalcolithic - Early Bronze Age.

Along with remains of construction materials (stones, curved and flat tiles), ceramic fragments of early imperial Hispanic terra sigillata appear , among which a galbo decorated with concentric circles stands out.

The remaining materials are from medieval chronology. These are ceramics made on a lathe with sedimentary pastes and incomplete firing, corresponding to small pots with an exvased edge, for culinary use; In other fragments, a jug with a three-lobed mouth can be recognized, possible jugs or pitchers, and bowls with an exvasive rim with external thickening, some decorated with fingerings. Other fragments have vertical and wavy burnished lines, striations and grooves, and a small cord with impressions. All of them can be attributed to productions from the 19th century. XIII [44] .

In the Provincial Archaeological Inventory there is a site with the name of “Las Almenas”, which we believe to identify with the one we describe below, called “El Torrejón”, a place name that corresponds more precisely to its location.

It is located about 4 km. from the town, to the left of the road that goes to La Tabla. It occupies the S. slope, towards the middle of the slope, of hilly terrain that reaches 720 m. With the plowing, increasingly deeper, stains of black earth and ashes are revealed, among which ceramics and remains of adobe appear, over an area of about 2 hectares. dispersion. About 250 m. To the N., at the top of the hill, fragments appear. scarce and scattered, of highly rolled hand-made ceramics and abundant remains of quartzite. some with retouches, which could correspond to Mousterian scrapers.

The ceramics are made by hand (fig. 3) on sedimentary pastes with medium-sized quartz intrusions and abundant mica. Observing its workmanship, one can distinguish a group of poorly fired clay pieces, reddish in color, some with traces of contact with fire, without defined shapes; They have wicker basketwork imprints and some have a beveled edge. They are very similar to those found in “El Fonsario”, already described.

A second group includes fragments corresponding to small hemispherical bowls, small vessels with vertical walls and simple edges, pots with an indented edge with a slightly pronounced neck and globular body, some large pots with a straight edge, and a possible lid. Most of the pieces are smooth, but there are some fragments decorated with single, parallel or zig-zag incised lines, grooves, incised triangles filled with dots, bands of dotted filling filled with white paste, and comb-like waves. All of them are similar to others in “Las Pozas” in Casaseca de Las Chanas [45] .

The chronology of the site, due to the formal parallelism with the materials from the aforementioned “Las Pozas”. It may correspond to the Precampaniform Chalcolithic.

In an extensive area of about 800 m. in the N/S direction and about 500 meters in the E/W direction, on both sides of the “Camino Viejo” from Villafáfila to San Agustín del Pozo and halfway between them. Ceramic and construction fragments are scattered. The land is a hilly surface, dedicated to cereal and alfalfa cultivation, sloping towards the S. and towards the E.; where, about 700 m. The Riego stream runs.

The news of settlement in the Zone, apart from the oral tradition that locates the exact place of the so-called "Torrica de Valorio" (last remnant of a possible village), date from 1708. when the depopulated area of "San Clemente de Valorio” [46] , which may correspond to the church of “San Clemente de Fortiñuela”, a nearby place name documented as early as 1155 [47] .

After a thorough reconnaissance of the place we have been able to establish three areas with finds:

a) South Zone, where there are not very abundant remains of micaceous ceramics, possibly Visigothic, on black earth and ashes, few construction materials, some stones and tiles.

b) Central Zone, from the road in an E direction, over an area of 6 hectares, in which Roman material predominates: abundant tegulae , bricks, remains of opus signinum type pavement , abundant common ceramics and terra sigillata hispanica appear. .

c) The area occupied by the northern part, which includes the location of “La Torrica”, where stones, slates, tiles, bones and remains of medieval ceramics appear.

However, we are not going to comment on the finds in each area, but rather we present the materials (Plate III, 6) in a chronological sequence, starting with some that are described in the Provincial Archaeological Inventory. These are ceramics made by hand, smooth or decorated with some spikelet and mouth incisions, ascribable to a chronology of Cogotas I - Late Bronze [48] .

Most of the materials collected, for our part, belong to the Roman period. We found terra sigillata hispanica altoimperial , some smooth fragments, corresponding to Drag forms. 15/17 or Drag. 35, and others decorated with metopes, circles, medallions and rhombuses, which belonged to Drag-shaped vessels. 37; Some backgrounds have graffiti and in one you can see the beginning of a stamp; Two gray ceramic fragments, with thin walls and burnished decoration, correspond to this period.

Late Hispanic terra sigillata materials abound , already ornamented with carving or molded decorations with the usual circles, semicircles, rosettes..., in late-shaped vessels. Common Roman pottery is also abundant, either for storage or for culinary use, and late gray pottery is less common.

It is worth highlighting the discovery of an interesting metal piece, a suspension element of a chariot - identifiable with the well-known "passarrendas" - with a horse figure, made of bronze (plate III, 5), which appeared together with trapezoidal bricks in 1988. Since it has been the object of deserved attention (García Rozas / Abasolo, 1990, ep; Catalog of Roman Bronzes, p. 319), we do not dwell on its description, even a brief one, which undoubtedly surpasses its eloquent image.

Likewise, two stamped tegulae fragments have been collected , one with the [C]EPALI mark. O[F] / [VA]LERI TAVRI, present in other sites in the province of Zamora [49] .

The micaceous ceramics that appear in the S. part are made with a lathe, with reducing and incomplete firing; very rough, some are smooth and others are predominantly decorated with a comb, forming waves, parallel lines and grids; sometimes comb more incisions or single incisions, and sometimes online digital impressions. The shapes correspond to jar rims (one with a notch), bowl rims, and pots of various types. The chronology of these pieces, due to their parallelism with others from S. Miguel de Escalada, can be carried back to the Visigothic period [50] .

Among the medieval ceramics, some are made with a turner, with reducing firing and correspond to small pots or jugs, decorated with an incised grid. There are also others on a wheel, with oxidizing firing, belonging to thin-walled bowls, jugs, bottles and jars, either smooth or with fluted decoration. The chronology of these ceramics can be placed between the middle of the 19th century. XI and s. XIII [51] .

About 4 km. E. of Villafáfila and less than 1 km. From the “Laguna de Barillos”, in an area of grasslands and near a small lagoon, the “Pocico de la Vega” was located, today closed. Around the aforementioned well and on a nearby hill, dedicated to cereal cultivation, a large number of flat tiles, many of them piled up on the shore, pieces of stucco, with paint appear mixed with remains of the current fertilizer (plastic, glass, etc.). black, white and red, stones and ceramic remains.

According to information collected directly, this was the site excavated in the seventies by archaeologists from Salamanca [52] and not that of “Los Llamares” [53] .

Several of the tegulae collected have a seal with the LD FVS mark (plate III, 4)—six fragments in the Zamora Museum and three others cited in the aforementioned publication—and the office of Valerius Taurus is also documented in the MATVGENI FI mark. /VALERI TAVRI.OF.

The pottery collected (1am. III, 3) is abundant: common Roman workmanship and tableware, some fragments are smooth and others are Drag shapes. 29 and 37, are decorated with garlands, metopes, friezes of rosettes and circles; Some legible graffiti is recognized - AIVS/ASTVR -, and the lack of late materials from the late imperial period on the surface should be noted.

The church of San Martín, located in the center of the town, was partially demolished in 1955 and its main brick façade, Mudejar style, was preserved until 1989. It appears cited in 1250 [54] and in it, according to popular tradition, the capitulations between Fernando el Católico and Felipe el Hermoso on the succession of Castile in the year 1506 were signed.

During the excavation of the foundations of the building built on its site —for the headquarters of the then Caja de Zamora— a 2 m layer was seen in the profile. approximately black earth, on virgin reddish clay, as well as abundant bone remains from church burials. In some areas, on the boundary between both layers, some 1.2 m silos appeared, sectioned. by 0.75 m. approximately. dug out of the clay and filled with ashes. Unfortunately, it has not been able to be scientifically documented due to the lack of notification to the competent body.

From the deepest part of the black layer, some ceramic fragments were extracted that could indicate an ancient occupation. These are pieces made by hand in sedimentary pastes, with abundant intrusions of mica and quartz, and reducing firings. The outer surface is smoothed and, in some cases, burnished. The shapes correspond to large vessels with a slightly indented edge and vertical walls, all smooth except for a galbo with a thickening or smooth cord, and ascribable to Iron I.

About 2 km. To the E. of Villafáfila, near the “Salina Grande” and on the edge of the Vereda de Benavente a Toro, you can still see a pile of stones and slates where the Villarigo hermitage was located until the 19th century, when it was dismantled. as recorded in the Factory Book of the church of Santa María, Villafáfila. Around it are collected remains of tiles and some fragments of pottery made on a wheel, being able to differentiate some on micaceous pastes, with oxidizing and incomplete firing, and decorations of striations and incisions, and others on sedimentary pastes, with incomplete firing. among which it is worth noting a possible plate lamp and two backs with a defect in starting the lathe. The chronology of these pieces may correspond to the 13th century [55] .

The documentary references of the toponym are several, the first is from 1155 [56] and still in 1310 it is mentioned with church [57] .

About 750 m. There is the bridge of the same name and remains of two possible roads that have been considered from the Roman period [58] .

From all of the above, a series of aspects can be derived that are worth pointing out and which we comment on in the following points:

Until 1988, in the Zamora Archaeological Inventory. There were eight prospected deposits in the municipality of Villafáfila: in this work we describe thirty-six. which gives a concentration of more than five deposits every 10 km ² . Its knowledge has been the result of intensive prospecting, focused mainly on some areas, so it is presumable that other new deposits can still be documented.

Their distribution is not homogeneous throughout the term. Although it is true that they are found in various terrains and ecosystems, from the last river terrace of the Esla to the typical countryside of Tierra de Campos, it is in the environment of "Las Lagunas de Villafáfila" and the streams that communicate with each other. , where the concentration of deposits is greater. Thus, less than 500 m. of the swamp tasks, there are more than half of the settlements now published.

This same phenomenon. of abundance and concentration, occurs in the rest of the municipalities that make up the set of "Las Salinas" (Provincial Archaeological Inventory), and it is expected that an exhaustive survey of them will reveal many other deposits, in addition to the known .

The concentration of human settlements near watercourses and wetlands is a universal phenomenon. In this case, the factors that can help explain it would be the abundance of hunting and fishing in past times, the presence of pastures and abundant water and, above all, the extraction of salt from the waters of the lagoons.

There are several indications of the presence of Paleolithic stations in the area. Thus the worked quartzites found in “El Torrejón-Las Almenas” seem to correspond to Mousterian scrapers. Nearby it is worth mentioning Acheulean industry in Otero de Sariegos and an isolated finding of Mousterian chronology in Revellinos [59] .

Until now, it has not been possible to identify or locate Neolithic settlements, a period that may be present in some of the sites classified, in principle, as Chalcolithic, and to which some of the rougher or more primitive-looking ceramics would correspond (those with vegetable tempering or those of basketry impressions).

The Chalcolithic - Early Bronze Age is one of the best represented periods, for which reason a separate assessment is made in point 3.

The phase of Cogotas I and Final Bronze is not well represented quantitatively, being documented in settlements with a clearer previous or later occupation, as is the case of the "Teso del Marqués II" or "Teso de Santa Catalina".

The first Iron Age is present in four sites, some close to the Salinas, such as “Teso de Santa Catalina”, and others further away. If this chronology is confirmed for the ceramics from the subsoil of the “ex-church of San Martín”, it would be the oldest occupation in the current urban area.

The second Iron Age has not yet been located within the municipality of Villafáfila, but it is present in the nearby site of the “Fuente de Salinas”, in Revellinos [60] .

The Roman presence is confirmed in six settlements, of which only one is on the shore of the Salinas, that of “Tierra de Barillos”. which presents a scarcity of early imperial chronology materials; Two others are near small lagoons: “Pocico de la Vega”, of early imperial occupation, and “El Escambron”, with late sigillata ceramics. The two most representative, “Fuente de San Pedro” and “Valorio”, are located in cereal fields and are the ones that could best be identified as “villages”, with occupation in both the High Imperial and Low Imperial periods. Finally, “La Mata” is located on land near a hill of oaks and its age cannot be determined due to the absence of characteristic finds, despite the existence of Roman construction remains.

The Visigoth occupation has also been identified. Known was the discovery in the 1920s of the so-called “Tesorillo de Villafáfila”, an important set of three gold leaf crosses and three other bronze and brass pieces, which appeared on the outskirts of the town, in a payment near the old parish. of Santa Marta, where an emergency excavation was carried out in 1986, which did not reveal an archaeological context consistent with the pieces [61] . However, in “Valorio”, the remains identified as being from the Visigoth period – a set of micaceous ceramics, with decoration of comb incisions, waves, etc. – are found next to late Roman remains, which would indicate a late Roman continuity. -Visigoth.

The medieval settlements form the largest group of those that have appeared so far, so we will make a detailed reference to them in section 4.

Although almost all cultural phases are documented in the entire term, population continuity is only perceptible in some specific areas such as “La Fuente de San Pedro”, “Valorio” and, perhaps, the current urban environment of Villafáfila since the Chalcolithic, Late Bronze Age, Iron I respectively, up to Medieval Times.

We can also highlight the reoccupation of certain habitats, such as the margins of the Lagoons, densely populated in the Chalcolithic-Early Bronze Age and which in the Middle Ages were once again a focus of human attraction, with an interval of apparent vacancy.

3. INTENSIVE OCCUPATION OF THE ENVIRONMENT IN THE CHALCOLITIC - EARLY BRONZE

In the absence of better chronological precision derived from the definitive study of the excavation of the “Santioste” site, in Otero de Sariegos [62] , we have assigned the Chalcolithic chronology to a series of sites, similar in terms of their layout and typology. -Initial Bronze.

They are characterized by being located on the very edge of the salt flats or the streams that connect them, occupying a small terrace that, today, is almost at the same level as the water, and by providing similar materials: large hemispherical vessels. or globular, smooth or with little decoration, based on incisions on the lip, digital impressions, applied cords and mamelons and perforations, as well as very rough ceramics with abundant vegetable degreasers.

Its arrangement, so close to the water, indicates a dependence on or attraction to the humid environment that may be due to the abundance of hunting and fishing, pastures and water for livestock, and possibly the use of brackish water to obtain salt. , as suggested by the presence of a flat ceramic bottom with deep fingerings, which could favor the deposit of salt by evaporation.

The proximity of these settlements to each other and their proliferation may indicate temporary or periodic occupation.

In the municipality of Villafáfila, eleven stations with these characteristics have been located, which, together with those existing in Otero de Sariegos (at least four), Revellinos, San Agustín del Pozo and Villarrín de Campos, and those that may reach Known with an exhaustive survey of the area of lagoons and wetlands in these towns, they can form the largest concentration of deposits from this time in the entire province of Zamora.

In addition to the eleven mentioned, there are other settlements, further away from the lagoons, classified surely or probably as Chalcolithic, which would bring a total of close to twenty. Thus, four —“El Fonsario”, “La Pila”, “El Teso del Marqués” and “El Torrejón-Las Almenas”—, due to the pieces they contain, can be considered bell-beakers. Another three —“Raya de San Martín”, “La Pinilla” and “La cantera”—, due to the scarcity of materials, raise doubts about their chronological affiliation, but it is possible that they belong to that period. All of them are characterized by being located on gentle hills of countryside occupying their sunny slopes and by presenting remains of granite barquiform mills that indicate an agricultural activity.

4. RELATIONSHIP OF MEDIEVAL SETTLEMENTS WITH THE EXPLOITATION OF THE SALT MILLS

The total number of sites in which medieval pottery appears is nineteen, of which twelve are less than 500 m away. of the lagoons, which confirms two facts that can be deduced from medieval documentation: the exploitation of the Salt Flats, from the 10th century, at least, until the 16th, and the abundance of references to human settlements, whether villages, hamlets isolated or simple salt exploitations. known as pausetas or cabins.

There is a coincidence in terms of places of occupation between the two best represented periods: the Chalcolithic and the Middle Ages. Thus, in “Laguna Salada”, “Papahuevos”, “Madornil”, “Cabañica”, “Molino Sanchón”, “Sobradillo” and “Tierras de Barillos”, the medieval and prehistoric materials appear very close or superimposed, which shows manifest a reuse or reoccupation of the same habitats, which may be indicating an economic activity that revolves around the “Salinas”.

With the study of medieval documentation, a correspondence can be found between the toponymy of the Middle Ages and the settlements with remains from this same era.

Thus, limiting ourselves to the municipal area of Villafáfila, we can make the following classification, suppressing the scheme on depopulated areas established in other areas [63] :

A) Place names recorded in documentary sources and located on the land that present archaeological remains: “Coreses”, “Madorni1” [ 64] , “San Clemente de Fortiñuela”, “San Pedro del Otero”, “Sobradillo” and “Villarigo” [65] .

B) Medieval archaeological vestiges not documented in the sources or not identified with those cited in them:

“Los Arrotos”, “Cabañica II”, “Fuentealdea-El Villar”, “Papahuevos”. “El Pradico”, “Prado de los Llamares”, “Sur de la Salina Grande”, and “Tierras de Barillos”.

C) Toponyms recorded in sources not located on the land or of doubtful location, but included within the term of Villafáfila:

1. Cited as villages or churches: “Terrones”, “San Martín”, “Prado”, “Pobladura” [66] , “Requejo” [67] , “San Feliz” [68] , “San Juan de Muélledes” [ 69] and “Santa Cruz” [70] .

2. Cited as pausetas or salt flats: “Abrollar”, “Laroia”, “Santa Elena”, “Monago” [71] “Rodezno” [72] and “Santa Marina” [73] .

It is expected that an exhaustive study of the documentary sources will make it possible to identify sections B) and C) and locate all the medieval settlements in the area with more precision.

Elias Rodríguez Rodríguez, Hortensia Larrén Izquierdo, Rosario García Rozas. Archaeological chart of Villafáfila. Yearbook of the Florián de Ocampo Institute of Zamorano Studies, ISSN 0213-8212, No. 7, 1990 , p. 33-77. https://dialnet.unirioja.es/descarga/articulo/8283009.pdf

Photography: Elías Rodríguez Rodríguez, Hortensia Larrén Izquierdo, Rosario García Rozas.

Transcription and editing: José Luis Domínguez Martínez.

All text, photographs, transcription and montage, the rights belong to their authors, any type of use is prohibited without authorization.

All text and photographs have been authorized for storage, treatment, work, transcription and assembly by José Luis Domínguez Martínez, their dissemination on villafafila.net, and any media deemed authorized.

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[1] Martínez Sopena, l985: Cabero, 1987.

[2] Fernández, 1190.

[3] Wattenberg, 1959, p. 171.

[4] Rodríguez Hernández, 1978.

[5] Martín Valls / Delibes de Castro, 1977, pp. 311-313: Sevillano Carbajal, 1978, p. 311.

[6] Fernández / Larren, 1990, p. 135.

[7] GeologicalMapofSpain,sheets308and340.

[8] Calonge Cano, 1987.

[9] Gómez Moreno, 1927, p. 314.

[10] Sanz/Viñe, 1990.

[11] Larren, 1989pp. 274-275; Gutiérrez, Benéitez, l989, pp. 233-234.

[12] Fernández Manzano, 198l; González-Tables, 1984-85.

[13] Gutiérrez, 1989, pp. 701-705.

[14] General Archive of Simancas. Miscellaneous from Castile, cat. I. leg. 453.

[15] Gutiérrez / Bohigas, 1989.

[16] Martín Valls / Delibes de Castro, 1976, pp. 413-414; 1977, p. 303-305; l978, p. 321-325; l981, p. 172-176.

[17] Martín Valls / Delibes de Castro, l975 p. 449-453.

[18] López Plaza / Piñel, 1978.

[19] López Plaza, 1987.

[20] Gutierrez/Bohigas. 1989.

[21] MARTÍN VALLS / DELIBES DE CASTRO, 1977, pp. 311-313.

[22] RODRÍGUEZ HERNANDEZ, 1978.

[23] REGUERAS, 1985.

[24] Minguez, 1976, doc. 196 and Herrero. 1988, doc. 534.

[25] Larrén, l989. p. 252. fig. III-I Gutiérrez / Benéitez. 1989, p. 260, fig. XVII, 1.

[26] Bohigas / Gutierrez. 1959.

[27] Larrén, 1989, p. 283, fig. IV.

[28] Larrén, 1989, p. 283, fig. IV, 1.

[29] Bohigas / Gutiérrez, 1989, p. 303-309.

[30] Martín Valls / Delibes de Castro, 1975. p. 450, fig. 4.

[31] López Plaza. 1979. p. 90, fig. 10.

[32] Larrén. 1990. p. 283, fig. IV, 1.

[33] Larren. 1990. p. 231. fig. IX, 7 and 8.

[34] Cabero. 1987. p. 80.

[35] Sáez, 1987, doc. 1l8.

[36] Larren,1989.

[37] López Plaza, 1979, fig. 10.4.

[38] Gutiérrez / Bohigas, 1981.

[39] Martin Valls / Delibes. 1976. p. 432, fig. eleven.

[40] López Plaza / Piñel, 1978.

[41] 1990, p. 64.

[42] Mínguez, 1976, docs. 36, 60, 62, 63.

[43] Gutiérrez / Bohigas, 1989.

[44] Gutiérrez / Bohigas, 1989.

[45] Martín Valls / Delibes, 1975.

[46] Diocesan Archive of Astorga, Sec. Processes , cat. I leg. 2305-8.

[47] Cabero, 1987, p. 61.

[48] Delibes / Val, 1990, p. 86.

[49] Martín Valls / Delibes de Castro, 1979, pp. 142-147.

[50] Larrén, 1990, p. 230, fig. 8. 6-10.

[51] Gutiérrez / Bohigas, 1989.

[52] Rodríguez Hernández. 1976.

[53] Martín Valls / Delibes de Castro, 1979, p. 144.

[54] Quintana Prieto, 1987, doc. 612.

[55] Larren. 1989, p. 282, fig. III.

[56] Vignau, 1885, doc. 87.

[57] Cabero, 1977, p. 80.

[58] Martín Valls / Delibes, 1977, pp. 311-313.

[59] Provincial Archaeological Inventory.

[60] Martín Valls / Delibes, 1977, p. 303.

[61] Fernández, 1990, pp. 197-198.

[62] VIÑE et alii .

[63] Larrén, 1985.

[64] Mínguez, 1976, docs. 196 and 223.

[65] Cabero, 1987, pp. 60 and 80; Martínez Sopena. 1985. pp. 66-67.

[66] Martínez Sopena, 1985, pp. 62, 622 and 819.

[67] Vignau, 1885, doc. 79.

[68] CABERO, 1987, p. 80.

[69] Diocesan Archive of León. fund of San Marcos, leg. 4th, no. 30.

[70] Diocesan Archive of León. Gradefes, no. 131.

[71] Vignau, 1885, doc. 87, 97, 105 and 122.

[72] Cabero, 1987, p. 71.

[73] Martínez Sopena, 1985, p. 819.