In addition to visiting the ruins of the circus, where the passions of the ancient Emeritenses were unleashed, this walk will impress us for two reasons: first, because we will discover that the Roman... (plus +)

In addition to visiting the ruins of the circus, where the passions of the ancient Emeritenses were unleashed, this walk will impress us for two reasons: first, because we will discover that the Romans combined engineering with monumental beauty, and second, because by following this route we can obtain a clear idea of the importance that Mérida had during the dawn of Christianity on the peninsula and the significance that the Martyr Eulalia has always had for the Emeritenses. The route covers a distance of 2.69 km. The route begins on Avenida Juan Carlos I visiting the ROMAN CIRCUS, one of the best-preserved circuses of the Empire and also one of the most grandiose. Its dimensions certify it, four hundred three meters long by ninety-six and a half meters wide. There you can visit the Interpretation Center of the Circus, which has a viewpoint on the upper part that allows you to see the entire layout of the circus. In addition, in its exhibition hall, visitors are offered different aspects related to Roman circuses through various educational resources: panels, a model, and audiovisual material. A few meters away, right in front of the Circus, are the AQUEDUCT AND THE SAN LÁZARO/RABO DE BUEY THERMAL BATHS. This aqueduct was the one that allowed crossing the Albarregas valley to a network of water conduits that, coming from springs and underground streams located to the north of the city, are still intact in much of their sections. Under the imposing arches that are preserved from this aqueduct, the road passed, which later bifurcated either towards Córdoba, or towards Toledo and Zaragoza. In the 16th century, the Roman aqueduct was unusable. Instead of restoring it, the city council preferred to build a new one, which is still completely preserved. A few meters from this aqueduct, you can see the remains of Roman baths. Crossing one of the pedestrian arches of the aqueduct, we enter the Santa Catalina neighborhood where at its western end is the XENODOCHIUM, where the remains of a Visigothic period hospital are located. What is preserved shows us a central building, oriented from east to west, with a rectangular plan topped with an apse. This apse is flanked by two rooms whose walls have buttresses. To reach the next destination, you have to cross the underground passage of the train tracks and we find an extensive plot of land where, until recently, the Artillery Barracks "Hernán Cortés" stood. The archaeological excavations that have been carried out here for several years have revealed a large concentration of Roman period tombs alternating with remains of some suburban mansions. Nearby and in the shadow of a contemporary residential block, we find some ROMAN BATHS AND AN ICE PIT, a complex from the Roman period to which scientists, since its discovery in 1920, have assigned different uses: baths, baptistery, headquarters of some mystery religion, glass factory, and even a complex for the storage and distribution of water. Today, all the work seems to point to the existence of a pit to store snow in the lower circular chamber, from the early imperial period, while the rooms on the upper floor, from the 3rd or 4th century AD, could have had a thermal use. The truth is that, between the 17th and 19th centuries, it is known from various sources that these structures served to house the snow pit of Mérida. If we approach our next destination through the Rambla de Santa Eulalia, we will reach a secluded corner that connects the López de Ayala and Rambla Parks. In this place stands the obelisk that the Emeritenses of the 17th century erected to Santa Eulalia with exceptional pieces from the Temple to the Concord of Augustus. Going up Avenida de Extremadura, we reach the area that houses the HORNITO AND THE BASILICA OF SANTA EULALIA. At the entrance to the atrium of the Basilica of Santa Eulalia, we see a small building that is an oratory dedicated to Eulalia, popularly known as "El Hornito". Its portico is made with marble pieces extracted in the early 17th century from an undetermined place in the city. All of them belonged to the Temple that the Roman colony dedicated to the God Mars. Inside the basilica, you can see a sample of tombs from very different periods. Thus, late Roman mausoleums of considerable dimensions, such as the one that is redecorated with 16th-century paintings representing stations of the Calvary, Saint John, Saint Anne, and Saint Martin. Or the tomb sealed by a mosaic in which the deceased was represented standing between curtains. Visigothic period tombs sealed with a marble burial slab, such as that of the illustrious man Gregorio, later reused to bury Eleuterio and Perpetua. Funerary crypts such as those of the bishops, to reach tombs of distinguished local families from the 16th and 17th centuries, such as the Moscoso or the Mejía. Before leaving this archaeological and monumental complex, we can see that, attached to the medieval church, there is a building with a Renaissance taste on the second floor, all made of rammed earth and brick, while the first floor is in Gothic style and is built with granite stonework. This is the Convent of the Freylas de Santiago, founded in the 16th century. At the end of Marquesa de Pinares street is the AQUEDUCT OF LOS MILAGROS, a colossal aqueduct that is part of a hydraulic conduit that brought water from the Proserpina reservoir. It is popularly known as "Los Milagros" because of the admiration it caused in locals and outsiders for its state of preservation despite the vicissitudes of time. And it is not for nothing, as more than eight hundred meters of this aqueduct are preserved, some of whose granite and brick piers rise twenty-seven meters above the ground. In the northern end, at the beginning of the small valley of the Albarregas Stream, the conduit had a pool to purify the waters, the Limaria Pool, which also served as a fountain. Following the course of the Albarregas, you can see the ROMAN BRIDGE OVER THE ALBARREGAS. This bridge was the confluence of both the main road that divided the city from east to west, the cardo maximo, and some other peripheral roads that surrounded the city from the west. From it, the road that led to Astorga and is known as the Vía de la Plata, a road that is partially preserved in some sections about three kilometers north of the city, running almost parallel to National Highway 630. As the end of the route, we can see the CASTELLUM AQUAE, which is located at the highest point of Cerro del Calvario. Until the mid-seventies, it was part of the structure of the hermitage of Calvario, where the oldest Penitential Brotherhood of the city had its headquarters. The demolition of this building revealed what was probably the tower from which the waters from the hydraulic conduit of Proserpina were distributed throughout the northern area of Augusta Emerita.
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