De la acuicultura en «Baetica». A propósito de la posible «piscina»-vivero del yacimiento haliéutico del Cabo Trafalgar (Cádiz)

Abstract

The present paper presents a structure of Roman date, cut into bedrock, and possibly used for fish farming purposes. So far, this sort of evidence, which is well attested in Italian villae maritimae dating to the Late Republic and the Early Empire, had only been found in the Iberian Peninsula in the southern Tarraconense (coast of Alicante). The above mentioned structure is, therefore, the first of its kind found in the Baetica. Interpretation must combine archaeological evidence for Roman fish farming in Andalusia (ostrearum vivaria at Traducta, current Algeciras) and geoarchaeological features; the structure is located in the intertidal zone and enjoys fresh water supply from the nearby halieutic site of Trafalgar Cape (Barbate, Cádiz). This paper aims at the re-interpretation of this coastal site, previously interpreted as a salted products factory, or cetaria, but the topographical and architectural features of which (vats with inner steps, cisterns, terraced structures, etc.) are rather suggestive of a villa maritima or a complex centre for the exploitation of marine resources.