Preserving Madrid's ancient watering holes

Long before the waterworks company Canal Isabel II was established in 1858, madrileños got their water from a network of subterranean galleries burrowed through the city’s rolling hills. They became to be known as the “viajes de agua” or water passages, and were first built in the 9^th century. The entire network was about 125-kilometres long and Madrid residents were able to draw water at certain points along the route. Preserved remnants  of these qanats -– as they are known by the Arabic –- can still be seen, the most famous being the Fuente del Berro Park, one of Madrid’s oldest springs located in Las Ventas and tapped by Philip V, and Ocaña, which is still being used today by farmers and ranchers.

Unfortunately one is in a state of despair. The Amaniel qanat –- beautifully restored a few years back as the centerpiece of a hilly but dusty park on the Paseo Juan XXIII in Tetuán -- has fallen victim to graffiti and vandalism.

 

It was discovered in 2005 during work on a nearby development. Archaeologists from the Madrid regional community began to study the deep ancient brick-lined passages, uniquely preserved and hidden underneath the modern-day asphalt squeeze. But six years later it appears abandoned. Lack of both maintenance and security has encouraged the homeless to find shelter there at night.   Weeds and overgrowing shrubbery cover its façade, and the small creek, where water from the Cañogordo springs still trickles as it has for centuries, is contaminated with trash, plastic soda bottles and other debris.

El Amaniel is said to have been constructed sometime between 1614-1616 during, the reign of Philip III to bring water to his royal palace. Researchers from the University of Alcalá and Madrid Water Supply Organization of Canal Isabel II have written an excellent paper about the city’s qanats in English.

On a recent visit to the park, which is located right behind the back fence of Jefatura de Policia (National Police headquarters), I was disappointed to see how the condition of this fine historical site has worsened in such a short period.

The metal markers that tell the story of the viajes de agua and how the Amaniel qanat was used are ineligible, defaced by vandals using spray paint.The entrance to the main-arched gallery is also stained with graffiti. An old dirty bed mattress, apparently used by a homeless person, was nearby.

There is a children’s playground right in front of the site, but that hasn’t stopped the vandals from destroying this important piece of Madrid history. Historical preservation in the Spanish capital is one of the most impressive ongoing projects undertaken by Madrid officials. But it is perplexing that a recently discovered treasure, such as the Amaniel qanat, has been left to decay -– not by nature -– but by people, whose ancestors, perhaps, once relied on that well.

 

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[Publicado por: testmyspeed.onl/]

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