The works of the new Cal Maiol school institute, in the former Can Batlló factory site in the La Bordeta neighborhood of the Sants-Montjuïc district, have uncovered a section of the Infanta canal, built between 1817 and 1820. This hydraulic infrastructure, originating in Molins de Rei, transported water from the Llogretat river to irrigate agricultural lands and was also used for industrial purposes in the Baix Llobregat area, L’Hospitalet, and the south of Barcelona. The canal, just over 17 kilometers long and financed with private capital, was inaugurated in 1819 by Infanta Luisa Carlota de Borbón.
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These are not the only findings in this archaeological excavation. Structures of industrial warehouses built in the mid-1960s have also appeared, according to the Archaeology Service of the City Council, dependent on the Institut de Cultura de Barcelona (ICUB). Additionally, remains of cultivation trenches from the earlier period in the factory have surfaced, which will be excavated and documented over the coming weeks.
Municipal sources add that according to the usual procedure when such recent remains appear, “they will be thoroughly documented and subsequently dismantled only in those parts incompatible with the planned construction project.”
The works of the new Cal Maiol school institute, currently operating on Sagunt street, began this summer. After an investment of about 13 million euros, the educational center will have 450 primary school places and 240 secondary school places. The project includes the construction of a building and the remodeling of warehouse 19, a former electrical transformation station. Both buildings will be used for educational purposes. The facility will have a total built area of 5,859 square meters and 2,083 square meters of outdoor spaces.
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The forecast is that the new school institute will be operational for the 2028-2029 academic year. The work is promoted by the Consorci d’Educació de Barcelona and the Departament d’Educació i Formació Professional de la Generalitat.
On this side of Barcelona, the latest archaeological excavations have been prolific. In 2022, archaeologists discovered a prehistoric site during the comprehensive rehabilitation of warehouse 4 of Can Batlló, home to various cooperatives. An exceptional find since a site from this era was unknown in this part of the city, unlike those documented in other areas, such as Ciutat Vella, in the Raval neighborhood and in Sant Pere, Santa Caterina i la Ribera, or in other districts, in Sant Andreu and Sant Martí.
Four years ago, during the reurbanization works in the former factory site, Roman-era skeletons were also unearthed, associated with a nearby Roman villa in La Campana. The bone remains would correspond to the period of the Roman High Empire, between the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, when this space was used as a funerary enclosure and burial area. Archaeological findings are expected to continue in Can Batlló, as another archaeological intervention is planned in the future due to the works of warehouse 8 to house the central archive of the Catalan capital.
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