Local historians seek to preserve part of Santiago de Compostela’s heritage after residents find nine-hole patterns across city
A local historical association in Santiago de Compostela has called for the protection of a lesser-known facet of the Spanish city’s past: the almost 200 games of noughts and crosses carved centuries ago into some of its most emblematic buildings and spaces.. “We’ve never heard of anything like the concentration of games we have here.”
Their presence probably reflects the deep inequality in the city at the time, said Leclere. Clusters of the games have been found near the city’s main religious buildings, suggesting they were played by people looking to kill time as they waited in line to receive alms.Photograph: Colectivo A Rula Leclere contrasted the games – nearly all of them versions of tic-tac-toe – with the more intricately carved games found in some cloisters and in the enclosed atriums of churches. “These ones are always etched into public spaces that were accessible to ordinary citizens,” said Leclere.What emerges is a rarely seen side of the city’s history, said the art historian Miguel Ángel Cajigal.
The association has sought to raise awareness of the find, organising tours for locals, tourists and school groups.He described the games’ long-overlooked status as a double-edged sword – allowing them to quietly endure for centuries but also paving the way for them to disappear with little awareness of what was being lost.
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