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It is located on an elevated promontory over the river Cabalos, close to the village of Castro, in the council of Grandas de Salime. Chronological history tells us that the origin of the fortified settlement dates back to the end of the Bronze Age, 9th-8th century BC. From that period are the first defences, a moat and a large communal hut built next to a large rock and guarded by it, may well have been a sacred enclosure to which the palisade that surrounded it, along with the moat, separated this acropolis from the rest of the village. This large rock, blackened by the use of ritual fire and the funerary deposit found, a small stone box with part of a human skull, possibly a woman of about 15 years of age, endorses it. During the Iron Age, the population of Castro of Chao Samartín grew considerably and the defences were doubled with walls of modules that protected large cabins for community service, metallurgical workshops and even a sauna. From the 4th century B.C. the settlement acquired the characteristics of castros, with circular and rectangular dwellings with rounded corners, roofs made of branches and all surrounded by a wall with several moats.
Photograph courtesy of Museum and Castro of Chao Samartín © Sergio Ríos
The Castro of Chao Samartín is the oldest in the Principality of Asturias and there were two cultures, the castreña and later the romana, with which it becomes a prosperous population, with paved streets, houses already divided into rooms with slate roofs, and its typical domus. This town, the old Ocela, will see its history finished with a sudden end, when an earthquake in the II century of our era causes a total and massive abandonment by the people of the place, remaining totally unpopulated until in the high Middle Ages, in times of the Asturian monarchy, between the VII to the X centuries, in the ruins of the old castro a necropolis was located, thus prolonging the funerary use of the Chao Samartín until the end of the Middle Ages. In the XVIII and XIX centuries, its existence as an old fortification was already known but it was not until 1967 when it was recognized as a castro and in May of 2014 it was declared by the Regional Government to be of Cultural Interest.
It is currently a site that can be visited and museumised. The visit to the castro starts in the museum, since a great number of original objects are exhibited in its rooms, which will help the visitor to know and understand the way of life of the inhabitants of the ancient Ocela and the evolution of the castro. In the visit to the archaeological site itself you can see the outer moats excavated in the rock; a canvas of "modular walls"; and in the settlement itself you can observe its three most relevant episodes, the acropolis, the Roman domus and the medieval necropolis. All of this leads the visitor to discover and learn about the history of one of the most important forts in the northwest of the peninsula.
Photograph courtesy of Museum and Castro of Chao Samartín © Sergio Ríos
The Chao Samartín, perhaps originally known as "Saltum Martem", along with the settlement and village, are in an area where storms illuminate the sky with their rays and the loud voice of thunder reverberates through the valley. To all this the ancestral tradition relates him with the god Mars, god of the war that makes assert his power with these effects in the sky. The Christianization of these places, so sacred to the people, changed the pagan name to Christian saints. Martin is very appropriate to the place for its etymological origin, the Latin "warrior" which supports his relationship with the god Mars, and to reinforce the fact, Santa Barbara, lawyer and protector in storms. San Martín and Santa Bárbara are the patron saints of the village Castro.
The owners of the houses from the Roman period of the castro made use of the first known locks and keys in the history of Asturias.
Photograph courtesy of Museum and Castro of Chao Samartín © Sergio Ríos
Photograph courtesy of Museum and Castro of Chao Samartín © Sergio Ríos
The rapid and total abandonment of the castro of Chao Samartín is attributed to a strong earthquake that took place in the place because there are signs of landslides, demolished walls and even it is appreciated that the paving of the main street, which at that time was being carried out, remained unfinished. And it is said that the settlers, reluctant to leave their home but too afraid to return to it, settled in a nearby place creating a new population nucleus, the town of Castro..
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Castro can be reached from Fonsagrada on the LU-701 road and from Grandas de Salime on the AS-28. There is also a bus stop for the Bustelo-Grandas de Salime line. The telephone number for further information is 985 969 600.
After passing the crossroads of Castro, as we arrive from Grandas de Salime, we will find the crossroads of Llandepereira and Trabada road by which we must take a detour to immediately turn left and ascend towards the museum car park, from where the visits are made..
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A magical place of legends and mystery
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