A team of Spanish archaeologists has unearthed one of the largest Neolithic stone complexes still standing in Europe in Huelva. The discovery occurred on a farm that was to be used to grow avocados. Menhirs, the oldest stones, are believed to be up to 7,500 years old. The site is made up of thousands of stones that are spread over 600 hectares.
Some of the largest stones in the complex stand alone, but others form tombs, circles, enclosures, mounds, and rows. There is, therefore, a great diversity of structures. As the researchers indicate in their publication: “It is a unique site so far in the Iberian Peninsula.”
Known as La Torre-La Janera , the deposit was discovered in 2018, when the owner of the farm wanted to plant avocados on the land, located about 80 kilometers northwest of Huelva, near the border with Portugal. At the time, archaeologists were unaware of the full extent of the Neolithic complex. It has not been until now when it has come to light.
According to this last finding, it seems that the functions of the Neolithic monuments were multiple and varied . The researchers point out that the menhirs of La Torre – La Janera served to mark the space, the transit zones and the natural accidents. The complex would have had open monuments linked to the control of the cycle of the seasons and the observation of astronomical events. The dolmens, burial mounds and cists would have functioned as tombs and ritual places where the remains of the ancestors and the offerings would have been deposited.
Finding the Neolithic site in 2018 was not a surprise at all. The truth is that there were rumors in the area about the existence of menhirs on the hill where the farm is located. After an initial archaeological study in 2018, a more complete one was carried out in 2020 and 2021 in which the importance of the site was made clear. The universities of Huelva and Alcalá are financing the research until 2026.
At the moment more than 520 standing stones have been found . The researchers suggest that some of the oldest may have been built in the second half of the sixth millennium BC, or about 7,500 years ago, while the latest Neolithic structures were built in the second millennium BC, or between 3,000 and 4 years ago. 000 years.
With several of the standing stones, the Neolithic created roofed tombs or dolmens. With others they formed coffin-shaped structures or cists. Although it is believed that they were used to bury the dead, archaeologists have not found any bone remains , either because they have not yet carried out exhaustive excavations of the tombs, or because the remains have not been preserved due to the acidity of the ground.
megalithic monuments
Megalithic monuments (with giant stones) are found all over Europe, from Sweden to the Mediterranean, including Spain.
Some of the best-known megalithic monuments, such as the famous Stonehenge , are located in Britain, but even larger megalithic structures are found elsewhere, such as at Carnac , in France’s Brittany region, where 10,000 menhirs stand in rows.
It is difficult to determine the exact age of this type of structure since the rock itself cannot be reliably dated. However, tests carried out on other materials buried in the same places suggest that most of them are from the Neolithic, that is, from about 6,500 years ago. The oldest stones from the de La Torre – La Janera site would therefore be older than most.
Archaeologists believe that the construction of megalithic monuments spread throughout Europe during the Neolithic due to successive waves of settlers who arrived, possibly from the Near East.
Reference: Linares-Catela, JA, Mora Molina, C. et. to the. 2022. The megalithic site of La Torre-La Janera (Huelva): prehistoric monumentalities of Bajo Guadiana. Prehistory Works. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3989/tp.2022.12290
