13 of July of 2026
The hot wind blew hard at the top of the Castle Hill while, on the horizon, the column of smoke from the Guimerà fires recalled the harshness of a summer afternoon. Despite the heat, close to 300 people went up to the site this Thursday to get a closer look at the results of the fifth archaeological work site in Cervera, a particularly symbolic edition to coincide with the commemoration of the Millennium of the city's population charter.
The visitors, distributed in small groups of about five people, they toured the four intervention spaces guided by the same young people who, for fifteen days, have participated in the excavation. After a historical and geographical introduction by the heritage interpreter, Montserrat Perez, the participants explained in first person what they had discovered and how an archaeological intervention is carried out.
At the entrance of the Castell, this year's intervention has had the character of an archaeological check. The objective was to verify if it contains preserved stratigraphy that can be excavated., given that this space had already been the subject of an archaeological intervention at the beginning of the years 2000. The work has confirmed the preservation of some archaeological levels, a fact that opens the door to future interventions aimed at deepening the knowledge of this sector of the site.
The second space was in the central area of the Castle, where the work has focused on the surface cleaning of the land. This action has made it possible to locate new walls that help to better understand the internal distribution of the old fortification.
To the west area, the archaeologists have completed an excavation started in previous campaigns until reaching the mother rock, the natural geological level. “Here we know that there is nothing more to dig”, they explained during the visit, a point that ends stratigraphic research in this sector.
The itinerary ends around the tower, one of the most emblematic spaces of the site, where the work continues to provide information on the different phases of occupation of the hill.
Beyond material findings, the aim of the intervention is to understand the dynamics of the population and the historical evolution of the Castle, origin of the medieval town of Cervera. During the explanations, interpreter Montserrat Pérez summed up the essence of the discipline with a sentence that captured the attention of the attendees: “Archaeologists destroy. We peel back layers so we can discover and understand the story”.
the project
The fifth edition of the archaeological work field has been developed from 28 from June to 12 of July with the participation of 33 young people among 14 i 17 years: 18 Cervera, within the local work field, i 15 coming from different parts of the State, in the framework of the national camp. In addition to the stratigraphic excavation, participants have carried out laboratory tasks such as cleaning, classification, identification, registration and conservation of recovered materials.
Coinciding with the Millennium year (1026-2026), this fifth edition reinforces the value of archaeological research in the Castle, a project that, after five years, has been established as a key initiative to preserve, study and spread the historical heritage of Cervera among the new generations.
The work camp is organized by the General Directorate of Youth of the Generalitat de Catalunya and the Paeria de Cervera, with the management of the participants in charge of the leisure cooperative Qualia and the technical advice and archaeological coordination of La Nova.