Analysis of the development of the black African population in Spain from the 16^th to the 19^th century, focusing on the Spanish peninsula but also venturing into relevant aspects of colonial America. We examine the ethno-historical documentation preserved in Spanish archives, iconographical representations and their presence in literature from an historico-anthropological standpoint. We shall highlight an aspect unknown to Social Sciences: the presence in secular Spanish society of free persons and slaves from Sub-Saharan Africa, thus helping to recover the social memory and recognition of what they contributed