The archaeological site of Los Hitos and the rural landscape of Toledo (Spain) in Late Antiquity (6th -8th c.)

Talk by Isabel Sanchez (2016-2017 Paris IAS fellow) within the framework of the 23rd Annual Meeting of the European Association of Archaeologists (August 30th – September 2nd, 2017) : "Building Bridges"

Abstract

This work aims to present the current state of the art of fieldworks and the excavation carried out during the last three years in a large late antique both residencial and funerary building located at Los Hitos (Orgaz, Toledo, Spain). The goal is also to communicate the new results from recent archaeological digs that are developed in the summer of 2016 and the next works during 2017. The site of Los Hitos is a relevant rural and sacred complex related to the local elites of the Visigoth capital of Toledo. The Regnum Gothorum in the Iberian Peninsula was consolidated since the middle second half of the 6^th c. An ambitious cultural and legislative programme, perfectly elaborated, was set into action in order to reach the new unification of ancient Roman Hispania. The complex of Los Hitos is one of the best rural case studies in the Iberian Peninsula about changes of cultural landscapes. The site had undergone many transformations regarding functions and architectural spaces from his foundation as rural privileged residence, mausoleum, ecclesiastical complex, and it continued being occupied during the Umayyad period.