Virtual approach to a battlefield: Fatarella Ridge 1938. Spanish Civil War

Abstract

The poliorcetic of the twentieth century was characterized by the use of ephemeral trenches. The transformations caused by agricultural use or urbanization erased the evidence and structures of the combat zones. In the case of the conflict landscapes of the Spanish Civil War, it must be added that the disinterest of the administrations increased the degradation of the archaeological sites. The interest of citizens in the battlefields of the 20th century has increased, and the demand for products and content has led to an increase in academic production and in the interest in cultural industries and tourism. The interpretation of the combat spaces requires the design of elements of didactic intermediation that make accessible to users the knowledge available about said spaces. In this context, virtual archaeology becomes a powerful instrument to recreate and make visible places and situations of conflict. But the didactic virtual recreation of a battlefield requires numerous prerequisites: keeping in mind the archaeological record, the historical documentation, the testimonies of the population, and direct fieldwork in conflict areas. The present work focuses on the virtual 3D reconstruction of the Fatarella Ridge battlefield (14-15 November 1938), where one of the toughest battles of the Battle of the Ebro took place.