La huerta de Untinyān (Ontinyent, Valencia). Aproximación a un conjunto irrigado en el secano andalusí valenciano

In present-day municipal district of Ontinyent (Valencia), there is an irrigated agricultural area sustained by a hydraulic system that collects its water mainlfrom the Clariano river. The origin of this periurban farmland dates back at least to the time of al-Andalus, since it already existed at the time of the arrival of the Christian troop in the 1240s. Until now, there had been no thorough investigation into this topic, nor had it been possible to provide a more precise account of its origin and evolution. Through the application of the so-called agrarian archaeology, we propose a reconstruction of the possible layout of the canals that composed this hydraulic system and an identification of the present-day plots of land within the historical spaces of Andalusí farmland. Additionally, we present a sequence of the construction of the system, offering hypotheses on the dating of its different phases. Finally, we attempt to justify why we believe that the peasant communities of Untinyān were responsible for constructing most of this landscape, locating what are possibly the settlement sites of these groups.