Berja, Granada, Spain
The town of Berja is a little way down (south), of the mountains, from Picena. I have some (new found) friends, also from England, who now reside there full time. They were kind enough to take me to an old Roman town, situated on the outer edges of Berja.
All that remain are vague ruins. Sadly, Spain doesn’t have the financial infrastructure (or possibly the desire), to renovate, preserve or archaeologically investigate many of her Roman, Moorish or Visigoth legacies. UNESCO is so under-funded, that I doubt they would protect or preserve many of Spain’s archaeological interests either. From this standpoint, it would be best to just cover everything in soil and rock, until another generation or culture is prepared to put in the physical and financial ‘leg work’. I say this, because everywhere on this site, one can find millions of shards of (possibly) Roman pottery.
As a potter, and an avid fan of ancient pottery, my opinion was greatly sourced. Though I’m no archaeologist or an expert in this field. However, I can say this: pretty poor clay bodies, very low firing conditions (kilns were probably still in their ‘nappies’, at this periodical juncture), and no glaze application (either not needed, or the technology wasn’t there). Yet I did find a semi-glazed shard, though further investigation would yield a precise date. I was actively encouraged to take pottery shards home with me, an act I found both an act of vandalism, as well as temptation ( - who else is looking out for the archaeological interests!?).
It is also thought, that nearby, the Romans used the hills for the mining of lead. Evidence of the material is still in relative small pockets. However, I saw no evidence of mines, or the technologies used to extract (smelt) the lead material…
