Andalusi Populations at La Dehesilla Cave (Sierra de Cádiz, Southern Iberia): An Interdisciplinary Approach to their Rural Economic Systems

Few studies have dealt with the occupation of caves during the Andalusi period in Southern Iberia. This may be explained by the attention placed traditionally on the trinomial mudun (cities), ḥusūn (fortresses) and qurà (farmsteads), in which other forms of rural occupation have been generally overlooked. In this paper we explore the sequence at La Dehesilla Cave –based on the analysis of animal skeleton remains, pollen, seeds and fruits, and phytoliths- with the aim to define the economic systems of its Andalusi inhabitants. Because the sequence displays two different occupation phases, the first during the Taifa Period in the second half of the 11th century and the second during the Almohad Period in the second half of the 12th century, this study characterises the ecological and economic systems of the two periods and highlights the differences between them. The data suggest that the economy of both periods was mainly based on livestock, and especially on sheep herds. Nevertheless, the comparison between them enables us to observe a few significant differences that indicate dissimilar behavioural and economic patterns. Plant macro-remains show a larger amount of cereals and leguminous seeds, as well as of domestic fruits, in the Taifa Period than in the Almohad Period. The zoological record displays clear differences between the two periods. The Taifa Period shows a greater proportion of herds while the input from hunting increased in the Almohad Period. Also, there are proportionally opposite patterns in the age of sacrifice of sheep. The earlier period may correspond to a more sedentary herding and partly farming population, while the second period to a mainly herding, perhaps mobile, population. These results are discussed within the political dynamics of the historical framework of the surrounding territory, and contribute to the knowledge of the rural economic dynamics of the Andalusi period.The archaeological fieldwork carried out in 2016 was possible thanks to the economic support provided by different sources within the Universidad de Sevilla: Plan Propio de Docencia, Vicerrectorado de Investigación, Facultad de Geografía e Historia, Departamento de Prehistoria y Arqueología and Grupo HUM949-PAI. Other institutions and individuals have collaborated with logistic support and diverse resources: Excmo. Ayuntamiento de Algar, Museo Arqueológico Municipal de Jerez de la Frontera, Grupo Espeleológico de Cortes de la Frontera, Familia Díaz y Romero and, finally, EvoCultura -Asociación para el estudio del comportamiento humano y la diversidad cultural. Within the framework of this team a number of students of the Facultad de Geografía e Historia of the Universidad de Sevilla carried out training fieldwork at the excavation and have contributed to the postexcavation study with the archaeological drawings: María Barrera Cruz, Manuel J. Díaz Rodríguez, Patricia Virino Gabella, David López Carmona, Elena Trujillo Godoy and Araceli Barrera Cruz. Guillem Pérez-Jordà’s work has been carried out within the postdoctoral contract IJCI-2015-25082 funded by the Spanish Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad. Finally, we would like to thank the interest of Bethany J. Walker -JIA Senior Editor- in this paper, as well as the comments of the two anonymous reviewers which helped improve the clarity of the work.Peer reviewe