Important historical discoveries uncover graffiti on mediaeval Murcia palace

Date Published: 14/02/2024

Archaeologists have also discovered remnants of pots and decorated plasterwork in the ancient Murcia building

Important historical discoveries uncover graffiti on mediaeval Murcia palace

The restoration and conservation work being carried out on the lower enclosure of the Castillejo de Monteagudo in Murcia has revealed an archaeological and historical treasure as the original floor is uncovered, along with several other important discoveries such as mediaeval-era graffiti etched into the stonework.

Work is now 50% complete, ten months after it started in March 2023, according to sources from Murcia city hall.

Thanks to this work “an important part of the history of the Palacio Mardanisí is being discovered,” as pointed out by the Councillor for Districts and Structure of the Territory of Murcia, Marco Antonio Fernández.

All of the work being carried out to restore the complex is part of the strategic project ‘Las Fortalezas del Rey Lobo’ to recover the heritage of the Historical Site of Monteagudo-Cabezo de Torres, highlighting the Monteagudo Castle, El Castillejo, Larache Castle and of Cabezo de Torres.

The Castillejo is a large fortified recreational palace of Andalusian origin, associated with the figure of the emir Ibn Mardanis, commonly known as the ‘Wolf King’. Rectangular in plan, with slightly protruding towers very close to each other and double reentrant towers in the corners, the building is organised into two enclosures: the Upper Enclosure and the Lower Enclosure. The upper main core is dominated by a large patio from which the rooms that articulate the building open.

The professionals working on the restoration project have discovered that when the palace was first built, earth was brought up from outside expressly to improve the land and agricultural production. They have also found many fragments of ceramic materials of mainly Iberian, Roman and Moorish origin buried in the wall, which seem to come from mediaeval vases and jugs.

They have also unearthed fragments of original plasterwork etched and decorated with pictures of plants.

In addition, they have even found some very old graffiti written in Arabic cursive writing next to the drawing of a star, while more graffiti with the image of a castle has also been found on one of the towers.

“All of this is being studied in detail by the team of archaeologists, to identify the pieces to which they correspond,” said a Council press release.