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The fourth consecutive annual archaeological dig is currently beginning on the islet of Isla del Fraile, just a few metres offshore to the east of the town centre of Águilas, under the direction of specialists from the Museo Arqueológico de Águilas and the Universidad Complutense de Madrid and financed by the Town Hall of Águilas.
(Various private concerns are also providing funding, including Viñas Familia Gil, Panaderías Clendy, Fundación Cajamurcia, Muebles Montalbán, Pozo Sur and Transportes Cucaleras).
For the 2023 dig it has been possible to increase the budget as the council remains committed to valuing this treasured feature of the Águilas coastline, which is enriched by the archaeological discoveries already made there in previous campaigns. This year the participants include students from the universities of Murcia, Navarra, Jaén, Granada, Sevilla, Córdoba, Barcelona, Complutense and even Oxford, and joining them are specialists in underwater fauna and flora from Spain’s Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, their objective being to learn more about the ingredients of the prized “garum” fish sauce which was produced along the Murcia coastline by the Romans 2,000 years ago.
Among the installations already uncovered on the Isla del Fraile is a former garum production centre.
Another aim this year is to gained a better understanding of the water supply systems which were used on the Isla del Fraile and of how fresh water was stored, and the hope is that more objects will be discovered like the amphora which has been named “Isla del Fraile I” by the Archivo Español de Arqueología.
Little by little the archaeological world is becoming more interested in the Isla del Fraile, with new publications appearing. One of the most important so far is the conference given by the project directors Alejandro Quevedo and Juan de Dios Hernández García (at the national archaeology in Madrid in January, which can be seen here on YouTube.
Among the discoveries already made is the 5th century fish salting tank and graves from the time when the Moors ruled southern Spain in the 12th and 13th centuries.
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