Palace of Emperor Maximian (Cercadilla)
The first rests were found in 1922 when Joaquín María de Navascues was restoring the railway: he made a 18 meters hole and discovered the Criptus porch and
one of the building.
Later in 1955 Samuel de los Santos Gener found a serie of structure near the Hosing La Colonia de la Paz and the ancient petrol station Campsa.
But we have to wait till 1991, during the building of the new railway, to discover the rest of the Palace. Following the withdrawal, there is a series of excavation campaigns that highlight the spectacular monument but did not prevent the
achievement of the works.
Nowadays only one third of the complex is discovered because of the lack of cordoban archaeological protectionist policy.
This palace was built between the end of the III century A.D. and the beginning of the IV Century A.C. It could be an Imperial Palace or an Episcopal Centre run by Osio. Its works were run by Maximiano Herculeo between 296 and 297 A.D., in his campaign for peace in Southern Spain and
North Africa. This place will be the palace and residence of Emperor Maximian. It was built outside the city, 600 meters away from the walls of the city. Inside it there was a suburban city of the Imperial Period.
The complex is 400 meters long and 200 meters wide and it is organized around a criptus porch with half circular plan. A serie of skylight permitted the light to enter inside it.
The rest of the buildings around the same, to which access is made through a postica hall of columns. In the
header of the crypt door and its axial shaft is located the main building, the classroom center, with basilical plan and topped with an apse. It was the place for imperial audiences. North of the central room were the baths, a private aside to the emperor and his closest allies, which have been excavated and identified many of their stays.
On both sides of the main building, and arranged around a semicircular arches, two buildings were constructed of the same morphological characteristics. The best
preserved in the north, preserves some of its floors, made with vegetable and geometrical mosaics. Because of its proximity to the central room could serve as building audience for senior management or the imperial court itself.
Similarly, in the north and south of the crypt door, two buildings were situated North and South Trichora respectively. Its plant consists of two parallel walls that define three longitudinal naves, and appearance poliabsidiado (three at
the bottom and two on the side). The north trichora was reused in late season as a center of christian worship, interpreted as the Martyrdom Basilic of Saint Acisclus.
Finally, the complex is completed with a series of units located further away from the political center of the Palatium and they have been interpreted as the private homes of the emperor.
Much of the complex, is reused in visigothic times as a center of christian worship, and later in the Islamic period the land was occupied by one of the northwest suburbs of Qurtuba.
Text: Fran Peña.
Traslated by Sara Moretti
Art, Culture and Tourism in Cordoba