Archaeologists have uncovered in Spain a library that may be the oldest on the Iberian Peninsula

Archaeologists speculate that on the grounds of the Fuente-Alamo Roman villa in the Spanish town of Puente-Genil, the oldest known library on the Iberian Peninsula may have survived. The study results, conducted by researchers from the University of Córdoba and the University of Granada, are published in the Journal of Mediterranean Archaeology, according to Euronews.

It concerns Room No. 10 of the archaeological complex, which was previously considered a mithraeum—the sanctuary of the ancient Roman cult of the god Mithras, later incorporated into the Roman pantheon. However, new analysis shows that in the 4th century CE this room was likely rebuilt as a library.

The Fuente-Alamo complex has a long history. Initially, in the 1st century BCE, it was built as public baths. Later the complex was abandoned, and around the 3rd century it was transformed into a Roman villa. Researchers cannot determine exactly when the room began to be used as a library, but they note that the estate reached its peak prosperity in the following two centuries. In the 6th century the complex was rebuilt again.

To test the new hypothesis, archaeologists applied the shape grammar method, which allows analysis of the spatial arrangement of architectural elements of a building and a determination of its possible function.

The analysis showed that the layout of Room No. 10 corresponds to the typical structure of Roman libraries. The room features an apse, rectangular niches where shelves for scrolls could have been placed, semicircular niches, a dais, and adjacent rooms that could have been used as workspaces or storerooms.

According to the authors of the study, it is precisely the combination of these architectural features that makes the discovery exceptional.

“Fuente-Alamo architecture preserves a distinctive blend of features that allows us to go beyond mere speculation and push the research forward,” note the researchers.

If this hypothesis is confirmed, the library at Fuente-Alamo will become not only the oldest known on the Iberian Peninsula but also the westernmost in the entire Roman Empire. Moreover, it may turn out to be one of the best-preserved Roman libraries known to archaeologists.