Ancient chocolate factory — built in 600-year-old building — discovered in Spain

A large medieval house was built 600 years ago in Barcelona, Spain. By the 19th century, it was a chocolate factory.

Now, archaeologists are exploring the remains of the ancient building, revealing artifacts from the structure’s various uses, according to a Feb. 12 news release from the Barcelona Archaeology Service.

Experts said the remains of the estate they found date to the 19th century, but further exploration revealed walls with arches and doors from a medieval home built in the 14th century.

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The large house was converted to a hostel, known as the Hostal de Sant Pere, in the 15th century, archaeologists said. It served as a hostel until the 16th century, when the owner decided to renovate and update the building.

At the beginning of the 18th century, the property was split in three, according to officials.

Within the next 100 or so years, the former home and hostel was transformed into a chocolate factory and workshop, archaeologists said. The Almanac of the Universal Exhibition of 1888 lists the property as “Guardia (Clemente). Chocolates and pastillaje.”

A video shows a 3D rendering of the huge building.

Inside the building, archaeologists unearthed several engraved lead plates. The plates would have been used to make labels for the chocolates, specifying that they came from the Clemente Guardia factory.

Archaeologists found other artifacts linked to the later use of the structure, too.

A collection of seven large ceramic vessels were discovered, experts said. The vessels have not yet been excavated or analyzed, so their contents are unknown.

Google Translate was used to translate a news release from Barcelona Archaeology Service.

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