The book has been presented in Tudela, within the activities organized on the occasion of the European Heritage Days, by the two authors and the General Director of Culture, Ignacio Apezteguía, in October 2020.
The publication describes the work carried out between 2002 and 2006 in the archaeological excavation carried out in the Cathedral of Tudela during the restoration works of the temple.
The restoration works were promoted by the General Directorate of Culture – Prince of Viana Institution and the Foundation for the Conservation of the Historical Heritage of Navarra, and directed by the technicians of the Historical Heritage Service, in charge of the archaeological work Jesús Sesma and Mª Inés Tabar, who signed the paper edition.
La obra relata la memoria de la excavación, en la que se recogen aspectos clave de la historia del edificio y del núcleo de la ciudad medieval. It begins by addressing the remains of the aljama mosque (main mosque), which has been fixed in its dimensions and evolution after the conquest of the city.
Continúa con la lectura en el subsuelo de las evidencias que los maestros medievales dejaron en sus cimientos, canteras, hornos, suelos, aljibe, etc. An important part is dedicated to the evolution of funerary uses, since that of Santa María was the main cemetery of the city between the 13th and 19th centuries, highlighting an exceptional set of graves of knights of the medieval nobility of Tudela.
The book has 401 pages in five chapters. Se ilustra en color con más de 200 planos, fotografías y dibujos. It is illustrated in color with more than 200 plans, photographs and drawings. Its cover is illustrated with the detail of the wheel of a golden spur from the burial of a medieval knight.
As a novelty, the publication includes the online edition of 12 annexes that are available for free on the website of the General Directorate of Culture – Príncipe de Viana Institution, with data from the excavation by areas, historical study, stonework marks , Islamic modillions integrated into the temple, tombstones, numismatics, restoration, anthropology, kiln residues, anthracology and lithology, signed by 17 researchers from the aforementioned fields.
El libro “Santa María de Tudela: de mezquita a catedral. Doce siglos en la historia de la ciudad a través de la arqueología” se puede adquirir en librerías y en fondo de publicaciones del Gobierno de Navarra, de la calle Navas de Tolosa, 21 de Pamplona, al precio de 20 euros.
