In an open room and under a glass floor inside a luxury hotel in the heart of the Las Letras neighborhood, one more jewel of the city’s abundant heritage is hidden. The remains of an ancient water voyage, belonging to the Castellana and dating back to the 17th and 18th centuries, await the arrival of both Madrid residents and tourists seeking to soak up the history of the town.
Through these conduits, the aim was to guarantee the supply of water resources to an urban area in the process of growth, since at that time there was no technique similar to the current one or reservoirs. Despite being located in the vicinity of Manzanaresthis was not its main source of water, since the population center was at a high altitude with respect to the river. Furthermore, they were not suitable for consumption. For this reason, the work of municipal and royal plumbers was essential in the work of creating this network, which remained in operation until the Canal de Isabel II began to operate.
Until that moment, dozens of these trips coexisted as a system for collecting and distributing groundwater. In the current M-30, there was one of these conduits, the Abroñigal Bajo; The Cibeles fountain was fed by another water journey located under the monument; also the security system for the safe deposit boxes of the Bank of Spain and the one intended to supply the Royal Palacethe so-called water journey of Amaniel.
The remains located under the foundations of the current NH Collection, which was the palace ordered to be built by the first Count of Tepa, drank from a stream in the north of the capital that was used to feed the entire Las Letras neighborhoodthe original Madrid.
Among the elements that can be distinguished in this water journey are a cistern, a granite basin, some galleries and a well. However, the most striking thing about the exhibition is perhaps a fountain that was part of the site of the Fonda de San Sebastián before the palace was ordered to be built at the beginning of the 17th century. «La Fonda was representative because it housed one of the first literary gatherings in Madrid“, the coffee of San Sebastián,” says Juan José González, guest relations manager at the NH Collection Palacio de Tepa.
The building was built upon the return of this count, Francisco Leandro de Viana, after his work overseas and his important role in the viceroyalty of Spain in Mexico. However, like the rest of the residences of the Madrid aristocracy, it was sold in the mid-20th century to create homes and commercial premises.
A little over twenty years ago, this hotel firm took over the complex, discovering during its transformation work the remains of this heritage jewel of the city.
City treasures
“This discovery generated a pause in the hotel’s work until the remains were cataloged and it was decided what to do with them,” González told this newspaper. Today, these witnesses to the journey of water are presented in a room with dark walls and a glass floor so that both guests and anyone who wants to come to the place can discover them.
In the rest of the building the works were also long, precisely due to the existence of these underground conduits. This visit is also part of the cultural proposals of the Madrid Hotel Weekwhich in this edition – which takes place from November 8 to 17 – will pay tribute to the World Heritage treasures that the city houses, along with flamenco and the Mediterranean diet.
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