Although there are indications that the San Adrián tunnel linking Gipuzkoa and Álava was an important passage in the past, no in-depth studies have been carried out to date. As a tunnel of time, we have visited what was once a place of residence 4,000 years ago, a medieval fortress or a resting place on roads 500 years ago, using the latest technology.
Zarata mediatikoz beteriko garai nahasiotan, merkatu logiketatik urrun eta irakurleengandik gertu dagoen kazetaritza beharrezkoa dela uste baduzu, ARGIA bultzatzera animatu nahi zaitugu. Geroz eta gehiago gara, jarrai dezagun txikitik eragiten.
Zegama is about 50 km from San Sebastian. From there, you can go almost 8 kilometers further up the winding Port of Otzaurte and, taking the track opposite Benta, you can do another five or six kilometers by car. If you leave the car and walk up the forest road, walking a bit lightly, in half an hour you will have the passage of San Adrián or Lizarrat, a natural karstic cave at 1,000 meters above sea level, which is about 70 meters long, and artificially extended, adapted. Who would say that the area lost in the mountain was for centuries a transit of great importance? Well, this is what the multidisciplinary research that the Aranzadi Science Society has been carrying out for the last three years, within the framework of the project promoted by the Department of Rural and Development and Culture and Basque of the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa.
There were signs of the importance of St. Adrian before. For many centuries it has been considered a crucial point on the road between Castile and France. In the words of Alfredo Moraza, a member of Aranzadi who informed us about the progress of the investigation, “it has always been a mythical place, very special, many things have been said about it, but never a thorough investigation was carried out. We didn't really know what he was in and what state he was in. That’s why I wanted to get an x-ray.” Thus, 30 scientists from different fields began to investigate the geological, historical, ethnographic and archaeological remains of the tunnel.
The archaeologist from Aranzadi says that the results of the excavations carried out so far are very positive: “We have taken a good surprise because almost all the structures are complete. The sequence of 4,000 years since the Bronze Age has been preserved almost completely.”
4,000 years, four photos
The first stop on this 4,000 year path is the Bronze Age. Traces of four millennia ago have been found and it is concluded that at that time there were several cabins and barns in the cave. “This indicates that it has always been used as a home,” says Moraza. These traces have been found at a depth of three meters. With the passage of time, the earth has been settling down and this means that in prehistoric times the floor of the tunnel was much lower, the cave was much larger.
The golden age of the tunnel came in the Middle Ages. “It seems much more logical to use the ports of Etxegarate or Otzaurte, which are 500 meters lower and that is a big difference in winter. But this meant oppressing the Kingdom of Navarre, which consisted of paying taxes and constant conflicts. That is why, at the beginning of the 13th century, we believe that the Kingdom of Castile promoted the alternative route of Lizarrat.” They built the driveway and fortified the area. One of the main links between Castile and France was protected by a castle and the interior of the cave was full of buildings: fireworks, stables, cemetery... In
the 16th century the castle and thus the military function of the passage disappeared. With the conquest of the Kingdom of Navarre, it no longer made sense. The remains of the fortress were used as quarries to make other buildings, lodges. “For people to understand, it was a kind of rest area on today’s roads,” says Aranzadi. “As you can find gasoline today, at that time there was straw, a place to sleep, the possibility of meals, it was also a security zone... Between Zegama and Zalduondo there was nothing, only thieves, mountains and animals, and that was the royal road between Castile and France.” The fourth and last period of occupation of the
San Adrián Tunnel dates back to the 19th century. In the 18th century, another route took off, the one that passes through the port of Leintz-Salinas. Because it was much longer, it was easier that way, even cheaper to maintain. The ice and snowfall of the winter of Lizarrate made the repairs of the road very expensive. Thus, San Adrian was marginalized, but was not completely abandoned. Mikeleteen’s house kept him there to guard the area and collect the toll until it was caught in the fire in 1911.
The past through the technologies of the future
The aim of the project was to produce a complete x-ray of the tunnel. As Alfredo Moraza points out, “this means that if the cave collapsed at this time, we would have to be able to reconstruct it accurately and completely.” Therefore, the total area of the cave has been measured by photogrammetry, from millimeter to millimeter, by the members of the Inertek company. Researchers have a detailed three-dimensional model to work on.
Based on this model and taking into account the four main periods described above, the three-dimensional virtual cave has been added with period elements and the video has been completed. The viewer enters the San Adrian Tunnel four times and sees the appearance of the cave at each time. The historical reconstruction can be seen by anyone on the Internet.
This tool is of great value to researchers because it “helps us to better understand the functioning of the cave and its historical evolution and will also help us to guide the tasks to be carried out in the future”. But the video is especially aimed at those who are not experts in the scientific fields involved in the study of the San Adrián transit, who are not able to understand the data of the study. The objective of the project is not only to carry out the research itself, but also to socialize the results.
Opening the tunnel to society
The archaeologist, when he finds a foundation, is able to imagine the whole structure that was on it. But the pedestrian who enters Lizarrat will only see the naked walls of the cave. The video allows you to travel through time in some way to see with your eyes what the expert understands. But this is not the only way to bring the research of San Adrian closer to the population.
In addition, during the execution of the excavation campaigns, citizens have had the opportunity to participate in them, either cleaning the roads or working in the excavation itself. And even those who have not wanted to work, have had the opportunity to do guided tours. “We didn’t just want to do research,” says Moraza, “San Adrian awakens people’s curiosity, wants to understand what was there, and to satisfy that curiosity, we also wanted to make an effort to socialize the initiative.” They are happy with the response to this effort, with the crowd approaching on weekends.
Another objective of the project is the adaptation of the road and its reuse by the population. “They did an excellent engineering job at the time, but no repair work has been done in the last 100 years.” Some parts are already adapted. In addition to being a reference for those who do not know the area, if most mountaineers walk the same route, the effects of erosion are greatly reduced.
Peak of the Iceberg
Numerous tools (historical documentation, archaeology, analysis of geological processes, etc.) have been used to collect as much information as possible and gradually complete the complex puzzle of the San Adrián tunnel. But as far as the excavations are concerned, there is still much to be done. In a way, they have done the work of probing and cleaning, “but the site is huge and we have excavated only a very small part of it; to throw a data, much less than 5% of the site is excavated,” says Moraza. “We cannot limit research to the inside of the tunnel. The surrounding areas should also be explored. We know, for example, that the castle extended out of the cave or that the nearby caves were shelters of the Maki.”
Its use has been varied over a very long period of time. And so, with the revelation of a prosperous past, there is also a future for the passage of San Adrian that, although it is at the top of the mountain, is closer to us now.
“San Adriango mendi hau munduko gorenetakoa da”
Mendetan pasabide garrantzitsua izaki, garai eta toki askotako bidaiariek idatzi dute San Adriango tunelari buruz. Eta Xabier Azurmendik horiek bildu zituen San Adrian eta inguruen kondaira (1997) liburuan. Hona hemen testigantza horien zenbait aipu.
Arnald von Harff 1499an pasa zen bertatik: “Galarretatik San Adriana legoa bateko bidea, guztia aldapan gora. Mendiaren gainean ermita bat dago eta haitzean zulatu duten zulo bat. Pasabidearen zaintzaileak bertan bizi dira. Hemen bukatzen da Espainia eta bere hizkuntza, eta euskaldunen lurra eta hizkuntza hasten dira bertan; andreek eta gizonek ere janzkerak aldatzen dituzte, legoa-neurria ere ezberdina da”.
1502an Felipe eta Joana Gaztelako printzeek igaro zuten tunela, eta haiekin batera Antoine de Lalaing, Montignyko jaunak ere bai. Azken horren egunkariak hala dio: “Jende askoren beharrik ez legoke pasabide hau gordetzeko; lekua oso berezia, babes eta giltza da gaskoien aurka”.
Andrea Navagiero veneziarrak 1528an idatzi zuenez, “mendiaren gailurreraino ez dago zertan igorik, alderik alde tunel batetik dauka pasabidea, zulo honek balezta tiro baten luzeera edukiko du”.
Federiko II.a eta emaztea hainbatetan igaro ziren handik eta 1538an, Hubertus Thomas Leodiusek jaso zuenez, zailtasun handiak izan zituzten tunelera iristeko. “Printzea eta emaztea neke handiz elurretatik atera eta haitzulora eraman zituztenean, ardo pixka bat beste jan-edatekorik ez zuten aurkitu (...). Ondo nekien nik tuneleko jendeak zer janik ez zeukala, diru mordo ederra eman nien sei nekazari arabarrei, pitxar batzuk ardo eta hogei ogi tunelekoei eraman ziezazkieten”.
Georgius Braun eta Franciscus Hogenbergiusek Napolitik gertu dagoen Pausalipo haitzuloarekin alderatu zuten Lizarrate. Eta ez zuten Federiko II.ari egokitu zitzaion jaki eskasiarik topatu: “Tunelean aterpe eskergarria dago eta poltsa ona dakarren pelegrinoarentzat janari ugari ere bai”. 1567an izan zen hori.
Bost urte geroago Giovanni Bautista Venturinok tunelaren alderdi zerutiarragoa izan zuen hizpide: “San Adrianen ermita bat dago, santu honen izena darama mendiak. Frantziatik Espainiara zetorrela, santuak mirariz zulatu omen zuen lehen hurbilgaitz eta sarrezina zen harkaitza”.
1655ean argitaratutako lanean Antoine de Brunelek beste azalpen bat eman zuen (inolako beharrik gabe, haitzulo naturala baita): “Badirudi izadiak han ipini zuela Bizkaia eta Gaztela Zaharraren arteko bereizketa sendo eta gaindiezina. Nahitaezkoa izan da tunel bat minaz, mailuz eta zizelez zabaltzea”.
Jean Muretek 1666an idatzitako gutun batean hala deskribatzen zuen tunela: “Gailurrean, haitzulo batean sartu ginen; zure etxetik Zelestinoen komenturainoko luzerakoa gutxi gorabehera. Leku ilun batean zehar irtetzen da zulo honetatik. Egia diotsut, jauna, inoiz ez dut hain gauza beldurgarririk ikusi”. Albert Jouvinen arabera (1672), ordea, izua haitzulotik kanpo zegoen: “Aro guztietan jendeak bide honi beldur dio, mendietan banaturik dabiltzan lapurrek, bidaztiak ikustean, horiei ekiten baitiete”. Hamarkada horren amaieran, Maria Katherine le Jumel de Baneville, Aulnoyko kondesak beste erabilera bat proposatu zuen inguru horrentzat: “Harkaitz eta amildegiak bakarrik daude bertan, maitale itxaropen gabe batek bizia galtzeko leku aproposak, hartarako beharrik izanez gero”.
Ia lekuko guztiek bidearen gogorra izan zuten hizpide eta bateren batek puztu ere egin zuen San Adrian; Guillaume Manierren esanetan (1726), “San Adriango mendi hau munduko gorenetakoa da”.
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