The scenery is spectacular in this corner of the Ribera. Leaving behind the village of Sartaguda, the Ebro River draws large meanders to our right. A dense network of canals provides extensive irrigated shrubs—irrigated horticultural plantations of Islamic origin—covering the surrounding plains: plantations of fruit trees, greenhouses, and stonemasons to the point where the eye is lost. A line of trees marks where the river goes; on the other side, as they say here, Castile. On our left, on the other hand, a gigantic cliff of red-grey plaster watches over the road in constant change under the erosion caused by wind and water.

Between the abyss and the plain, a small hill gives attention. Facing south, it has an excellent view over the whole area and is protected by the abyss on the back. For a long time only shepherds and hunters have visited the site but, since 2018, the displacement has increased significantly: citizens, university students and archaeologists of the Aranzadi Science Society can often be seen working there, cleaning the remains of old walls among the dust. We are located in the archaeological site of Resa.

Stones, bones and wine

The name Resa is not a stranger in Andosilla and the surrounding villages. The surnames Resa and Resano are very common in the region. In addition, it is also very present in the toponymy of the Ebro area: the riverbanks are called Soto de Resa, while the pastures located above the ravines are called Val de Resa. Thus, it has been a well-known fact among the residents that there was a missing village in the area, despite the fact that its exact location, size and character were a mystery.

In order to recover this memory, the Andosilla City Council and Aranzadi launched archaeological explorations in 2018 under the direction of Juantxo Agirre Mauleon. Without delay, they brought to light a more complex story than they had imagined: The remains of the Iron Age, the ruins of a rich Roman villa, the signs of a climate crisis that occurred in the 3rd century... but undoubtedly the most representative remains that Resa has provided so far are those of the Middle Ages.

In the center of the site there are traces of a church of great dimensions. It is made of gypsum and has been strongly affected by erosion, but it is still evident that in its time it was a monumental building designed to be seen from afar. The style of construction clearly shows that it dates back to before the Romanesque expansion in Navarre. It has a rectangular plant with the main entrance to the south. Under the fallen wall fragments, dobels of several columns and arches have appeared, indicating that the interior was divided into longitudinal naves. In addition, traces of a presbytery, the apse and the altar have also appeared in the eastern part. This shows us that the Mozarabic rite was practiced in the Church –XI. The prelude to the Roman rite was extended in the twentieth century by the strengthening of the authority of the popes – which is in accordance with the dates obtained by radiocarbon: the building X.-XI. It was mainly used for centuries.

Where the church is located, there is usually a cemetery, and Resa is no exception: two stone boxes have appeared on top of each other against the north wall. On the bottom were the remains of a two- or three-year-old baby, while on the top were those of an adult woman. At the moment, it is a mystery if there was a family relationship between them.

But the necropolis of Resa covered a much wider area and, until now, more than 40 tombs have been identified and 13 have been excavated; all of them were buried according to the Christian rite. The dates made have come as a surprise: the most modern dates date back to the 12th century – similar to the church period – but the oldest dates go back to the 6th century, and archaeological data from that period are very scarce in Navarre. It is therefore an important discovery to begin to get to know the societies of the Upper Middle Ages better.

A few meters from the church there have also been traces of a wine cellar. It has two large troughs to crush the grapes, from which a tube runs to carry the must to a reservoir. Although it may seem surprising from the present point of view, it was common in the Middle Ages for such people to be around the churches. The building could be in the hands of a private owner, which gave him the right to take possession of goods of different kinds (fields, vineyards, mills...), of course, also to make an economic profit.

A post-conquest landscape

Thanks to the excavation we know that, a thousand years ago, the location of Resa in Andosilla was important. That these centuries were a period of expansion for the Kingdom of Pamplona, which conquered several territories around the Ebro to the Muslims. The name Resa itself appears for the first time in this period, among the conquests of King Sancho I in 908. In subsequent years, this town would become a strategic frontier fortress – it was the seat of a tenancy with a castle – at least until the conquest of 1045.ean Calahorra and Tudela in 1119. Therefore, the results of archaeological research are very valuable for the study of the reorganization of the territory by the kings of Pamplona in the post-conquest period.

Thanks to the old documents we know that the kings of Pamplona had economic interests in Resa that were articulated around the churches. We find the Kings Sancho IV and Placencia, owners of a church dedicated to Santa María, located “on the banks of the Ebro River, at the exit of the fortified village of Resa”, a church that was abandoned in 1071 to the monks of Donemiliaga and with it several vineyards and orchards, among other possessions.

Probably the church mentioned in that document is the one that has been excavated by archaeologists. But, seeing that the necropolis is much older, it is possible that this church has not been built from scratch. In fact, if there had been a temple in this location before, it is possible that after the conquest of 908 the kings of Pamplona promoted its reconstruction as a symbol of the new power. And it would not be surprising if the new building were transferred to the property of the monarchy to take control of the economic goods in the conquered territory, that is, the vineyards and orchards to which the text refers, and to manage their profits.

Two kingdoms, one border

Resa's story isn't, but, uh, she's exhausted there. King Sancho IV was assassinated a few years after his donation, in the abyss of Peñalén, as a result of a plot by the nobility of the kingdom. Immediately afterwards, the Spanish and Aragonese armies invaded and divided the kingdom of Pamplona, which did not regain its autonomy until 1134. Since then, Resa stopped at the border between the kingdoms of Pamplona and Castile and was transferred again and again; in 1221 it finally stopped at the hands of Navarre, with the border stabilized at Ebro.

In 1246, the monks of Donemiliaga entrusted the church of Santa María with all its properties to the cathedral of Calahorra. By then, it seems that Resa was already in decline, losing its old border function. By 1350, only the château was living there; and soon after, the citizens of Andosilla and Cárcar signed an agreement to distribute the land of the town and use it as a pasture.

The site of Resa, therefore, can provide more surprises in the future. Archaeologists plan to continue their work because many questions remain unanswered. Where was the medieval village located? What qualities did he have? How did the locals live? What was the castle like and what was its dependent territory? Has the trajectory of the Ebro changed over time? What effects has this had on the preservation of the archaeological record? Only research will provide the answers to these questions. And on the way, it will also raise new questions.