Un enfoque biográfico para la Etnogeología de la Prehistoria Final en Portugal

In this paper, I explore the relationship between an artifact's biography and the raw material from which it was made. Specifically, I discuss the biographies of groundstone tools from five Late Neolithic and Chalcolithic (3500-2000 BC) sites in lowland Portugal. An analysis of the formal and material characteristics of tools (totalling over 1300) from these sites indicates that the raw material from which a tool was made not only constrained the form and function of that tool, but also determined, to a large extent, whether that tool would be recycled and the context (settlement V5. burial) in which that tool would be ultimately deposited. I suggest that both the material properties and the socio-symbolic associations of different raw materials might explain the biographies of the artifacts from which they were made.En este trabajo, exploro las relaciones entre la biografía del artefacto y la materia prima a partir de la cual se hizo. Específicamente discuto las biografías de los útiles de piedra pulimentada de cinco sitios del Neolítico Final y Calcolítico (3500-2000 AC) de las tierras bajas portuguesas. El análisis de las características formales y materiales de los útiles (unos 1300 en total) de estos sitios indica que la materia prima a partir de la cual se hizo un utensilio no sólo limitó su forma y función, sino que también determinó, en gran medida, si sería reciclado y el contexto (poblado vs enterramiento) en el que sería finalmente depositado. Sugiero que tanto las propiedades materiales como las asociaciones socio-simbólicas de las diferentes materias primas a partir de las cuales se hicieron los artefactos pueden explicar sus biografías

Veinte años de arqueología de la Prehistoria tardía en la Península Ibérica. Mirando hacia atrás y hacia adelante

Archaeological investigations of the agrarian communities of the 6th-2nd millennia BC in the Iberian Peninsula have undergone fundamental transformations over the past 25 years. This paper attempts to provide an overview of this research by considering three topics: 1) changes in theory, perspective, and practice, 2) the discovery of new sites or site types, and 3) developments in analytical methodologies and techniques. It concludes with some thoughts about possible future challenges and directions for research.Las investigaciones arqueológicas de las comunidades agrarias del VI al II milenios a. C. en la Península Ibérica han sufrido transformaciones fundamentales en los últimos 25 años. Este artículo trata de proporcionar una visión general de esta investigación considerando tres temas: 1) los cambios en la teoría, la perspectiva y la práctica, 2) el descubrimiento de nuevos sitios o tipos de sitios, y 3) la evolución de las metodologías y técnicas analíticas. Se concluye con algunas reflexiones sobre posibles futuros desafíos y direcciones para la investigación

La tumba hipogea de Bolores (Torres Vedras): una aproximación interdisciplinar a la comprensión del paisaje social del Neolítico Final/Edad del Cobre de la Península Ibérica

To better understand the sociopolitical landscape of the Portuguese Estremadura during the Late Neolithic/Copper Age, interdisciplinary excavations were conducted at Bolores (Torres Vedras), in the Sizandro River Valley. Following a test season in 1986, a University of Iowa team conducted four campaigns between 2007 and 2012. Bolores is a rock-cut tomb used primarily between 2800-2600 cal BC for the burial of adults, adolescents, and children (MNI=36). The architectural, material cultural, and bioarchaeological evidence suggests that Bolores housed the remains of a distinctive group of local individuals who marked their difference from other burial populations in the Sizandro and Estremadura through material culture and tomb architecture. Social differences were denoted spatially and through offerings of material goods. No social stratification is evident, however, that would suggest a state-level society: there are no wealthy child burials and no significant health or dietary disparities within this population or between it and others in the region.Para comprender mejor el paisaje sociopolítico de la Extremadura portuguesa durante el Neolítico Final/Edad del Cobre se han llevado a cabo excavaciones interdisciplinares en Bolores (Torres Vedras), en el valle del río Sizandro. Tras una campaña de prueba en 1986, un equipo de la Universidad de Iowa realizó cuatro campañas entre 2007 y 2012. Bolores es una tumba hipogea que fue utilizada principalmente entre 2800 y 2600 cal BCE como enterramiento colectivo para adultos, adolescentes y niños (NMI=36). Los datos arquitectónicos, bioarqueológicos y de cultura material analizados hasta la fecha sugieren que Bolores albergó los restos de un grupo social distintivo compuesto de individuos locales que marcaban sus diferencias con otras poblaciones funerarias del Sizandro y Extremadura portuguesa mediante la cultura material y la arquitectura funeraria. Las diferencias sociales en la población de Bolores fueron señaladas espacialmente y marcadas mediante las ofrendas de bienes materiales. Sin embargo, no se aprecia una estratificación social significativa que sugiera una sociedad de nivel estatal: no hay enterramientos infantiles ricos, ni disparidades en la salud o dieta de esta población funeraria o entre esta población y otras en la región de Torres Vedras

The Beaker phenomenon and the genomic transformation of northwest Europe

From around 2750 to 2500 bc, Bell Beaker pottery became widespread across western and central Europe, before it disappeared between 2200 and 1800 bc. The forces that propelled its expansion are a matter of long-standing debate, and there is support for both cultural diffusion and migration having a role in this process. Here we present genome-wide data from 400 Neolithic, Copper Age and Bronze Age Europeans, including 226 individuals associated with Beaker-complex artefacts. We detected limited genetic affinity between Beaker-complex-associated individuals from Iberia and central Europe, and thus exclude migration as an important mechanism of spread between these two regions. However, migration had a key role in the further dissemination of the Beaker complex. We document this phenomenon most clearly in Britain, where the spread of the Beaker complex introduced high levels of steppe-related ancestry and was associated with the replacement of approximately 90% of Britain’s gene pool within a few hundred years, continuing the east-to-west expansion that had brought steppe-related ancestry into central and northern Europe over the previous centuries

Some new views of the engraved slate plaques of southwest Iberia

The engraved plaques of Late Neolithic and Copper Age Iberia have long intrigued scholars since the 19th century. This paper develops two models to explain the nature of the plaques' iconography and distribution. First, I explore the close parallels between the design on the plaques and textile weaves. Second, I develop and test the hypothesis that the plaques were heraldic and that they recorded lineage affiliation and genealogical distance from an important ancestor.As placas de xisto do Neolítico Final e do Calcolítico da Península Ibérica têm sido objecto de estudo desde o século XIX. Este artigo propõe dois modelos para explicar a iconografia e distribuição das placas. Em primeiro lugar, exploram-se os paralelos entre a decoração das placas e motivos comummente usados na tecelagem. Em segundo lugar, desenvolve- se e testa se a hipótese de que as placas teriam uma função heráldica, servindo para registar a filiação numa linhagem e a distância genealógica do falecido a que estavam associadas em relação a um fundador da mesma

Some new views of the engraved slate plaques of southwest Iberia

The engraved plaques of Late Neolithic and Copper Age Iberia have long intrigued scholars since the 19th century. This paper develops two models to explain the nature of the plaques' iconography and distribution. First, I explore the close parallels between the design on the plaques and textile weaves. Second, I develop and test the hypothesis that the plaques were heraldic and that they recorded lineage affiliation and genealogical distance from an important ancestor.As placas de xisto do Neolítico Final e do Calcolítico da Península Ibérica têm sido objecto de estudo desde o século XIX. Este artigo propõe dois modelos para explicar a iconografia e distribuição das placas. Em primeiro lugar, exploram-se os paralelos entre a decoração das placas e motivos comummente usados na tecelagem. Em segundo lugar, desenvolve- se e testa se a hipótese de que as placas teriam uma função heráldica, servindo para registar a filiação numa linhagem e a distância genealógica do falecido a que estavam associadas em relação a um fundador da mesma