How they built their houses, what their way of life was, what utensils they had to get water, cook or weave their clothes, and even how the Almeria ancestors entertained themselves who, over the centuries XI al XIII, occupied the skirts of the Alcazaba is part of the knowledge offered by the doors, now open to the public, of the Gypsy Inn and the Andalusian neighborhood, unique in Spainwhich has been inaugurated after practically a decade of archaeological investigations and enhancement. A memorable day for the city, which has become a great tourist attraction, the perfect complement to the citadel.
“We don’t know their name, we don’t know how they thought, but we share with the people who lived here nine centuries ago the same love for Almería, the same sun, the same wind and the same sea”, said a satisfied alcaldesa in it opening ceremonyn of the baptized as Archaeological site of the Andalusian neighborhoodwhich replaces the popular name of Mesón Gitano in order to avoid confusion, especially for the thousands of tourists who are expected to visit this new center steeped in history, a cultural and tourist reference of national dimension and an engine of development for the entire world. environment of the historic center”, has valued Maria Vazquez.
In the presence of the members of the Corporation, the territorial delegate for Culture, José Vélez, among other authorities and neighborhood representatives, the mayoress has reviewed since that quaint hotel what in 1965opened its doors taking advantage of the network of caves on the slopes of the Alcazaba, where personalities such as MAnuel Fraga, Pío Cabanillas, Sean Connery, Charlton Heston, Yul Brinner or Brigitte Bardó–, until genesis why is Deposit, which can already be visited for free.
It all began when the Almería City Council, after rescuing the Mesón Gitano concession, set out to transform the network of caves into a psmall souk with catering business and build un building for cultural and neighborhood use. Obtained the European funds from the Urban Plan, in June 2014 the works began with the first survey in Fernández street. “We all expected to find archaeological remains”, although the “surprise”, as he recounted german nativity sceneresponsible for the investigations, was huge, since the team came across “numerous structures”, a real archaeological minewhich led to 42 soundings and more of 100,000 square meters of excavated area and analyzed to the millimeter until unearthing a “whole neighborhood”, with an extension 900 square metersdated between the 11th and 13th century.
It is, as the archaeologist explained, “a working class neighborhood” composed by 17 houses, that provides knowledge about what the daily life of these Almerian ancestors was like outside the walls of the Alcazaba and whose peculiarity lies in the fact that they are the first casas discoveries related to the use of caves of that time. It also preserves part of the roads and water extraction and evacuation systems.
It is the great attraction of the new Mesón Gitano building (the project was redefined to focus on this site – in fact, the opening of the souk is still postponed), where they have returned 118 pieces representative that complete the recreation of the domestic architecture of this period. They had needles, they played chess, they played the drum and they had water pipes with pipes carved into the rock and also made with ceramics (atanors).
The museographic collection, conceived as permanent, combines this material sample with a interactive, videographic and didactic proposal.
The vision that the visitor may have of the archaeological site is completed with an explanation through graphic panels and touch screens, anchored to the glass railing, to which is added exhibition cabinets and audiovisual productions, video mapping on a model, texts, graphic material, infographics, which recreate the scenes of daily life in each of the domestic environments of the Andalusian neighborhood. All panels include a QR code that allows viewing the infographic reconstruction on a smartphone.
The ‘treasure’, exhibitions and workshops: more reasons to visit the museum and social center
In addition to the archaeological site of the Barrio Andalusí and its rescued pieces, there are two more powerful reasons to visit the new Mesón Gitano building. Among its first showcases in the exhibition area, one can admire the so-called Almoravid “treasure”, made up of a set of 33 gold coins (dinars), found in May 1941 during excavations carried out in the second enclosure of La Alcazaba and kept in the Town Hall.
“Historians say that perhaps the coins were buried by a Christian soldier in the Alcazaba, hoping to be able to return to collect them, but he never returned, leaving them as a legacy of the history of our city,” said the mayoress of Almería, who also encouraged Almeria residents and tourists to visit the Mesón Gitano and the first exhibition it houses.
It is a photographic exhibition by Carlos de Paz from Almeria, who has compiled some 40 images that illustrate the archaeological excavation work carried out in the area during the years 2014 and 2015.
Starting this Thursday, you can visit these facilities, which have already received the first requests to visit as a group, with several schools in Almería participating in them. With free access, the site will remain open to the public from Tuesday to Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and on Sundays, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., in winter; and from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., from Tuesday to Saturday, and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., on Sundays, in summer. The maximum capacity of the center is 300 people. Audiovisuals and texts from speakers and panels can be followed in Spanish and English.
Emphasizing the importance of collaboration between administrations, the regional delegate for Culture of the Junta de Andalucía, José Vélez, highlighted the role that the Mesón Gitano will have in promoting the city from a cultural, tourist and heritage point of view. . “Many of the 200,000 visitors that the Alcazaba receives each year will undoubtedly pass through this new space, and it is very important that they also know and know how to interpret what was happening outside its walls. And we have to be thankful that this building was built to find what we know here today and that, surely, we are going to enjoy”, added the delegate in reference to the controversies that have accompanied the construction of the building at the foot of the fortified
It consists of two floors and inside there are other services that can be developed both in the assembly hall and in the multipurpose room, existing spaces that will contribute to strengthening the museographic collection, while offering a place in the that neighborhood associations or other social and cultural groups can develop their activities.
These spaces can be held from meetings, talks, colloquiums, conferences, or temporary exhibitions, with themes related to archeology, or the Andalusian world, or Almerian authors such as Carlos de Paz.
