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Post by Admin on May 1, 2022 0:13:15 GMT
The Bronze Age treasure that could rewrite history – BBC REEL 13,027 views Apr 29, 2022 A silver diadem found at La Almoloya archaeological site in southern Spain suggests that a woman buried almost 4,000 years ago might have been the ruler of the Argaric civilisation. This recent discovery could forever change our understanding of power and politics in the Bronze Age. A Bronze Age society in what is now Spain may have been ruled by women, at least some of the time. Archaeologists have found the bones of a woman buried with a silver diadem – or crown – and other riches under the remains of a building that seems to have been used for political meetings. The woman lived in a society that has been dubbed El Argar – the name of the first archaeological site preserving evidence of the culture, which was excavated in the 1880s by engineer-turned-archaeologist Luis Siret and his brother Henri. The Argaric culture, which dominated what is now south-east Spain between around 2200 and 1550 BC, became famous following the Sirets’s discovery. But the Spanish civil war (1936 – 1939) and ensuing military dictatorship saw research grind to a halt for many decades, says Roberto Risch at the Autonomous University of Barcelona in Spain. Risch and his colleagues have been excavating an Argaric site called La Almoloya for several years. The ancient building they found there seems to have had some kind of governmental purpose, perhaps serving as a palace or a form of parliament. “It’s a building with a hall where 50 to 55 people could be sitting listening to each other, or to someone explaining something,” says Risch. There is no evidence of food and no clear-cut religious artefacts, so it doesn’t look like a home or a temple. Buried in a very large, ovoid jar under the floor of the hall, the team found the bodies of a woman and a man. Both had a multitude of funerary goods, suggesting they were eminent in Argaric society, says co-author Cristina Rihuete Herrada, also at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. DNA analysis shows they weren’t related, but they may have been married: both were immediate relatives of a baby girl buried under a nearby building, who may have been their daughter. Most of the funerary items, including the most spectacular ones, were found on the woman. She was wearing a silver diadem on her head, two silver earplug piercings and two silver bracelets. As a result, the team believes she was the ruler. It has long been suspected that women had leadership roles in Argaric culture, says Rihuete Herrada. Four silver diadems have previously been found buried with Argaric women, although it wasn’t clear whether the women were rulers rather than important religious figures. But this is the first time a woman buried with such riches has been found in a building more clearly used for governing. The man was buried with a dagger and had injuries consistent with a life of horse riding, as well as a long-healed skull injury. This suggests he may have been a warrior. Journal reference: Antiquity, DOI: 10.15184/aqy.2021.8
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Post by Admin on May 1, 2022 14:47:34 GMT
A trove of ornate jewelry, including a silver diadem, suggest a woman buried nearly 4,000 years ago in what is modern-day Spain was a ruler of surrounding lands who may have commanded the might of a state, according to a study published today in the journal Antiquity. The discoveries raise new questions about the role of women in early Bronze Age Europe, and challenge the idea that state power is almost exclusively a product of male-dominated societies, say the researchers. The remains of the woman, alongside those of a man who may have been her consort, were originally unearthed in 2014 at La Almoloya, an archaeological site among forested hills about 35 miles northwest of Cartagena in southeastern Spain. Radiocarbon dating suggests the burial happened about 1700 B.C., and its richness suggests to the researchers that she, rather than he, may have been at the top of the local chain of command. “We have two ways of interpreting this,” says archaeologist Roberto Risch of the Autonomous University of Barcelona, a co-author of the study. “Either you say, it's just the wife of the king; or you say, no, she’s a political personality by herself.” Argarian grave goods show women were considered adults at much younger age than boys—girls as young as six were buried with knives and tools, but boys only in their teens. The graves of some El Argar women were re-opened generations later to inter other men and women, an unusual practice that likely conferred a great honour. And research published by Risch and his colleagues in 2020 showed that elite women in Argarian graves ate more meat than other women, which suggested they had real political power. “What exactly their political power was, we don't know,” he says. “But this burial at La Amoloya questions the role of women in [Bronze Age] politics… it questions a lot of conventional wisdom.” Ancient “princess” buried in style Dubbed the “Princess of La Almoloya,” the woman belonged to the Argaric culture, which is named after the archaeological site of El Argar some 50 miles to the south. Argaric culture flourished in the southeastern Iberian Peninsula between 2200 and 1500 B.C. Its people used bronze long before neighboring tribes; many lived in large hilltop settlements, rather than on isolated small farms; and items found in their gravesites indicate they had stratified classes of wealth and social status—including a ruling class. Risch says the man in the grave was a probably a warrior: Wear on his bones suggests he spent a lot of time on horseback, and his skull shows he had deep scars from a severe facial injury, possibly an old wound sustained in combat. He tied back his long hair with silver bands, and wore gold plugs through his earlobes that indicate he was someone of distinction.
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Post by Admin on May 1, 2022 17:26:04 GMT
But the woman in the same grave was buried a short time later with particular splendour, including bracelets, earlobe plugs, rings, spirals of silver wire, and the silver diadem, which still adorned her skull when the grave was unearthed. It matches six other diadems found on wealthy women in Argaric graves; all have a distinctive disc-shaped projection usually worn downwards to cover the brow and nose. Using the price of silver quoted in Mesopotamian records from the time, the archaeologists estimate the grave goods of the La Almoloya woman were worth the equivalent today of many tens of thousands of pounds. Other burials of high-status El Argar women also indicate great wealth, but men were never buried with such riches. “That suggests that when [women] were alive they played a very important role in the political management of the community,” Risch says. The location of the burial also indicate the woman had a political role. Many of the dead in El Argar communities were buried beneath the floors of buildings, and her grave was found beneath a room set with benches for up to 50 people, nicknamed the “parliament” by the researchers. The room itself was part of an elaborate building that may be the earliest-known palace in continental western European, Risch says—a place where rulers both lived and carried out their duties. Women in Argaric culture The idea that Argaric communities could have been ruled by women makes sense to archaeologist and historian Marina Lozano, a professor at the University of Rovira i Virgili in Tarragona and a researcher at the Catalan Institute of Human Palaeoecology and Social Evolution (IPHES), who was not involved in the latest study. She says it supports her 2020 study that determined many Argaric women were involved in the production of linen and wool textiles —a valuable sector of the economy, along with metallurgy. So it follows that women could have been rulers: “Women in El Argar were an active part of its economy… a ruler is only another example of the significance of women in this society,” she says. Some other experts on Argarian culture are more cautious about the new interpretations. “The finds are spectacular… it’s first-rate archaeology,” says anthropologist Antonio Gilman, an emeritus professor at California State University Northridge. But he questions whether the splendor of the burial should be regarded as the riches of a ruler, and if the building at La Almoloya should be considered a palace when it was much less sophisticated than Early Bronze Age buildings further east in Europe, such as the Minoan palace of Knossos on Crete. “But that doesn’t take away from the fact that these are very important finds,” he adds. Argaric craftswomen: Sex-based division of labor in the Bronze Age southeastern Iberia Abstract The macroscopic and microscopic analyses of teeth from the Castellón Alto individuals belonging to El Argar culture (Southeastern Iberia), dated from Bronze Age, were carried out to identify non-alimentary uses of teeth and the tasks associated with the use of teeth as tools. Macroscopically, we identify 5 out of 106 individuals showing atypical dental features compatible with non-alimentary tooth use. The teeth of these individuals were analyzed in depth with scanning electron microscopy to identify non-alimentary dental features. Evidence of non-alimentary uses of teeth such as enamel chipping, notches, occlusal, and interproximal grooves were recorded from five individuals. One of the most outstanding results is that only 5 females of 106 total individuals showed the use of teeth as tools. The dental wear features of these five individuals indicate the use of teeth as tools to carry out some tasks related to thread and cordages preparation for textile and/or basketry production, suggesting not only occupational specialization but also sex-based division of labor in the Bronze Age of Southeastern Iberia. doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2020.105239
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Post by Admin on May 1, 2022 19:29:06 GMT
Emblems and spaces of power during the Argaric Bronze Age at La Almoloya, Murcia Published online by Cambridge University Press: 11 March 2021 Abstract The recent discovery of an exceptionally rich grave at La Almoloya in south-eastern Spain illuminates the political context of Early Bronze Age El Argar society. The quantity, variety and opulence of the grave goods emphasise the technological, economic and social dimensions of this unique culture. The assemblage includes politically and ideologically emblematic objects, among which a silver diadem stands out. Of equally exceptional character is the building under which the grave was found—possibly one of the first Bronze Age palaces identified in Western Europe. The architecture and artefacts from La Almoloya provide new insight into emblematic individuals and the exercise of power in societies of marked economic asymmetry. Introduction Some archaeological objects are extraordinary. They are distinguished from other objects by their uniqueness—in their materials, forms or both—and the capacity to convey their distinction to the subjects and other objects with which they are associated. Archaeological research often labels these objects as ‘prestige goods’. This designation, however, tells us more about the ideology of those employing the term than it does about these objects. ‘Prestige’ suggests that the individuals associated with these objects were viewed positively, assuming rather than demonstrating social conformity. Instead, referring to these objects as ‘emblematic’ (Lull Reference Lull2007: 231–32) emphasises their distinctive character, as well as their ability to distinguish diverse political actions, while avoiding positive assumptions about the individuals associated with them. We may recognise an emblematic object as a symbol that materially represents ideas or social values, demanding some form of respect or action, from submission to veneration. These objects do not prejudge the nature of the actions, feelings or beliefs directed towards the emblems or their bearers. Rather, these objects are limited to a communicative function within the political framework of society. The Early Bronze Age El Argar society flourished between c. 2200 and 1550 cal BC in the south-east of Iberia (Siret & Siret Reference Siret and Siret1887; Lull Reference Lull1983; Lull et al. Reference Lull, Micó, Herrada, Risch, Hansen and Müller2011). This society is characterised by a complex settlement system, featuring urban centres with monumental structures, a developed division of labour, intramural burials with marked asymmetries in funerary expenditure between individuals, political boundaries and institutionalised violence—all in the context of a class-based state society (Lull & Estévez Reference Lull and Estévez1986; Lull & Risch Reference Lull and Risch1995; Lull Reference Lull2000; Risch Reference Risch2002; Chapman Reference Chapman2003; Lull et al. Reference Lull, Micó, Herrada and Risch2005, Reference Lull, Micó, Herrada, Risch, Hansen and Müller2011, Reference Lull, Micó, Herrada and Risch2014a; Contreras Reference Contreras2009/2010; Cámara & Molina Reference Cámara and Molina2011), although this last point is subject to ongoing debate (e.g. Gilman Reference Gilman, Berrocal, Sanjuán and Gilman2013; Ramos Reference Ramos, Berrocal, Sanjuán and Gilman2013; Aranda et al. Reference Aranda, Montón-Subías and Romero2015). A particular question about El Argar society, raised by the exclusive presence of certain objects of social value in female graves, concerns the potentially prominent political role and status of women. This possibility is further supported by the recognition, in the funerary ritual, of adulthood at a younger age for girls compared with boys, and by the interment of some elite warriors of the middle Argar phase (c. 2000–1800 cal BC) in graves where a woman had been previously buried (Lull et al. Reference Lull, Micó, Herrada and Risch2016, Reference Lull, Micó, Rihuete Herrada, Risch, Escanilla, Barceló, Bogdanovic and Morell2017). Recent excavations at Almoloya, municipality of Pliego, Murcia, approximately 90km north of the eponymous site of El Argar, have provided new evidence concerning the organisation of this society (Lull et al. Reference Lull, Micó, Herrada, Risch, Celdrán, Fregeiro, Oliart and Velasco2015). Here, we outline an archaeology of politics through a discussion of one of the most distinctive emblematic objects of the late El Argar phase, its funerary context and its presence in a unique building.
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Post by Admin on May 1, 2022 23:28:45 GMT
Argaric diadems as embodied emblems Diadems and crowns made of precious metals are some of the most easily recognised emblematic objects. Unlike flags or heraldry, diadems are designed to be worn by individual people. The object's connection with the human head and face—the most visible and distinctive physical features of any individual—produces a hybrid object-subject entity, comprising a general abstract symbol and a specific physical appearance. That hybrid entity, in turn, becomes a new emblem: an ‘emblematic subject’. Metal diadems appear in the archaeological record of the Iberian Peninsula during the Late Chalcolithic and the Early Bronze Age (from the mid to late third millennium cal BC). Such objects, however, are very rare and contextual data are poor. The oldest examples were made of long, plain (undecorated) golden sheets with distal perforations for their attachment to the head (Perea Reference Perea1991). These objects are often interpreted as symbols of rank, worn by ‘leaders’ or ‘chiefs’ with military power (Garrido Reference Garrido and Almagro2014). This interpretation stems from their presence in individual—or presumably individual—tombs (e.g. at Fuente Olmedo, Montilla, Quinta da Agua Branca), along with weapons and other distinctive objects linked with the Bell Beaker complex. When compared with other earlier and contemporaneous examples from Iberia, diadems display distinctive forms and meanings in Argaric society. First, they are made from native silver, with just a single known gold example. There are two varieties: simple headbands and semi-circular rods with a disc-shaped appendix. The latter is unique to the Argaric material repertoire. To date, only six such diadems have been reported. Four were found in 1883 and 1884 by the brothers Henri and Louis Siret and their foreman Pedro Flores at the eponymous site of El Argar (Almería) (Figure 1). The diadems were found either in single (El Argar graves 51, 396 & 454) or double (grave 62) burials (pithoi). Where osteological information about the burials is available, diadems were found to be associated with females. This was also the case with the headbands, which were discovered at the sites of Gatas (grave 2), El Oficio (grave 6) and Fuente Álamo (grave 9) (Siret & Siret Reference Siret and Siret1887). Furthermore, diadems were always found in association with a larger variety of grave goods, including necklaces, silver and copper ornaments, knives, awls and pottery. As a result, the Sirets claimed that the women buried with diadems were “souveraines ou femmes de chefs” (“sovereigns or wives of chiefs”; Siret & Siret Reference Siret and Siret1887: 163). The authors sometimes referred to the headbands as ‘couronnes’ (‘crowns’), in reference to a typical emblem of kingship. Almost a century later, statistical analysis carried out by Lull and Estévez (Reference Lull and Estévez1986) provided support for this interpretation by including diadems in the ‘category 1’ of Argaric grave goods—those associated with the ruling class. A fifth diadem came to light around 1923, probably originating from a tomb in Cerro de la Plaza de Armas, in Murcia (Melgares Reference Melgares1983). This diadem differs from the others in that it is made of gold and features a linear embossed pattern of small dots along its entire perimeter, extending onto the disc-shaped appendix. Figure 1. Silver diadems with disc-shaped appendix and associated grave goods from El Argar (Siret & Siret 1887: pls 43 & 44–45). Although burial context data are available for the four El Argar site graves, nothing is known about the buildings under which the tombs were located. Analysis of the overall site plan of El Argar and the distances between the tombs provided by Flores (see www.man.es/man/coleccion/catalogos-tematicos/siret.html) suggests that all four graves were placed in the central-east sector of the site, probably in two discrete locations separated by at least 15m, with two graves in each area. While these observations are compatible with the existence of an elite quarter, they preclude the possibility of the four graves having been placed beneath a single building.
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