The exciting secrets that the house of Rosas kept for centuries in the heart of Buenos Aires

It all started when on 500 Moreno Street, in the historic center of Buenos Aires, demolition tasks were carried out for the construction of a 14-story building with two basements. Excavations for the foundations uncovered what archaeologists describe as a “historical monster”: a massive 8.30 meter external diameter cistern, about three meters high, lined with half-meter thick brick walls. . Its function: to store water, a precious commodity in the city.

Archaeologists maintain that it was built between 1860 and 1870, when the house had ceased to be a private residence to become a seat of government after the fall of Juan Manuel de Rosas and of post and telegraphs between 1886 and 1900.

And although important vestiges of our past were found there, the true treasure would be provided by the four bucket wells (to extract water from the pools); the two cisterns (that stored rainwater); the five blind wells; three garbage pits, a latrine and a disposal pot, built when the house was built, it is estimated that at the end of the 18th century.

They were depositories, for centuries, of testimonies of the urban and social history of colonial Buenos Aires.

That land, located in the block between Belgrano, Peru, Moreno and Alsina, at that time the most affluent sector of the city, had been bought by Juan Ignacio Ezcurra, the future father-in-law of Juan Manuel de Rosas. The almighty governor lived there with his family and it would even be his official office until 1838, since the Fort (where the Casa Rosada currently stands) it was a very run-down building, damp and riddled with rodents. He only used it for official acts. After 1838, Rosas would move to the mansion he had ordered built in Palermo.

The doctor Ana Igareta, associate researcher at Conicet and HiTePAC (Institute of History, Theory and Praxis of Architecture and the City), belonging to the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism of the National University of La Plata, led a team of rescue archaeologists, architects and historians of the site. When the work began, he remarked to Infobae, had to request the help of more professionals, due to the magnitude of the work, which involved the exploration of 1500 square meters.

Another difficulty was the lack of original plans of the house and the team had to resort to the aid of various descriptions.

Suffice it to say that 14 trucks were filled with the earth extracted from the cistern. It took two and a half months to empty it, pick and shovel. And only half that remained standing was excavated, since the rest had been destroyed by the construction that had begun and that justice managed to stop.

The real treasure was found in the other wells. They contained everyday objects discarded by both homeowners and domestic employees for several decades. Swith thousands of registered objects, among which are hundreds of bottles and jars found whole and thousands of pieces of English and French slab, very fashionable among the upper classes. Even archaeologists were surprised to come across up to eight whole dishes, which were discarded in this way, probably to buy others.

Likewise, the discovery of poison jars and small bottles of holy water with shapes of the Virgin or the Vatican was also striking. There were also plates with the legend “Federation or Death”, typical of the rosista era. The valuable heritage includes clothes, shoes, coins, toys, tools, animal bones.

“Everything that has been found is a magnificent possibility to show the past and that people can connect directly to it,” said Igareta.

Slave labor

The question archaeologists faced was who made those wells, 15 meters deep and one rod (0.86 cm) wide. They were difficult to dig and cover them in brick. Not all homes had them, although they could be seen in public places. For this they would have used slaves who would distinguish themselves as wells. This trade was disappearing with the abolition of slavery after 1853. Another exciting aspect of the study that is being opened is about the change in applied technology from a change in the labor system.

With the fall of Rosas, the house was enlarged and for a decade, when it functioned as the seat of government, the monumental cistern was built, which “has nothing to do with Rosas,” clarified the doctor. Igareta.

The surprising thing was that the archaeologists found vestiges left by the masons who built the original house, finding many elements in the ancient foundations related to the Afro-American and Guaraní culture. It is suspected that indigenous people and slaves participated in this work, which the Jesuits – who inhabited what is now the Manzana de las Luces – temporarily gave them up in exchange for money for certain jobs.

After serving as the post office, in the early 1900s the house was bought by the Raggio brothers, demolished in its entirety and in its place a two-story building was built to function as a tenancy. Two internal walls were raised to the gigantic cistern to support – it is presumed – the structure that was built on it.

The team of professionals left for the last thing to excavate the decanter, a well located in the middle of the cistern. The eight bottles, a kettle and some other items found there were an extra prize that contributes to unraveling a rich past that still exists and that rests under our feet.