The l'Abiar washing place in Poble Nou de Benitatxell is in the recovery phase after being buried when the road was built in the 70s. The important symbol of the local heritage of the municipality is being uncovered with the coordination and joint work of archaeologists , architect, quantity surveyor, head of municipal services and workers of the brigade. The entire team began the work on channeling the water and cleaning the archaeological zone last week.
Last February, after an excavation campaign, its discovery and its good state of conservation were confirmed. However, the groundwater table constantly flooded the excavation area, filling it with mud and standing water.
The problem, as the team of experts points out, is that "the current ditch was built one meter above the old ditch, so now the water tries to rise, but since there is a good difference in level, it cannot and flood everything." After studying the best solution to channel the water, it was decided to open a ditch parallel to the current channeling, lay new pipes and connect them with the old ditch.
In addition, after channeling the water, the archaeologists from Arqueo Inventario, who are in charge of the local Heritage and Archeology Office, will also proceed to clean the area thoroughly by hand. The objective is to leave the area completely clean, to identify the currently uncovered laundry wall with the pavement and all the materials, and, finally, to make the area accessible so that people can visit it and even go down to see it in situ. Likewise, the area of the picnic area of l'Abiar will also recover the state prior to the excavation.
These are the most immediate steps, but the intention in the near future is to completely excavate and open the laundry to restore it, recover this treasure of local heritage and put it into museums so that residents and visitors can enjoy it as before.
