In the last 6,000 years, people in the Iberian Peninsula have a prominent funeral tradition. But archaeologists are not sure who’s beheaded: Is it a consciousness of worship to an important community member, or is it a clear warning to the enemies?
To investigate this question, the European Research Institute analyzed seven cutting heads at the two archaeological sites in Spain and decided whether or not the beheaded individual was an local or an external person of this ancient settlement. The local origin suggests funeral customs to respectful members of the community, while the head of the cut outsiders may have been used as a threatening power symbol. Interestingly, the researchers have found evidence of both hypotheses, and the funeral rejection tradition suggests that it is diverse in each community and even in individual settlements.
“Our premise was IF in approaching research. [the severed heads] They were a war trophy that would not come out of the analyzed site, and it is likely that this is the region if they are respected. ” name. He is also the first author of the studyPublished on February 13 Archaeological Science Journal: Report.
Researchers conducted Isotope analysis (A methodology used to study ancient human diet, environment and exercise) On the seven -cut heads of Puig Castellar and Ulastret: Ancient Iberian settlement and city on the northeast coast of modern Spain. According to this study, the two were abandoned between the end of the 3rd and early second century B.C.E., and perhaps related to the invasion of the Iberian Peninsula.
According to this analysis, three of the four cutting heads in Puig Castellar are probably a non -limited individual. In addition, all Puig Castellar head said, “It was found near the inside of the wall over the main entrance of the settlement. “I’m still interested in making them noticeable,” he added. Based on these two elements, Fuente-seoane and his colleagues are more likely to be a war trophy for these three heads to defeat external and internal enemies.
As for the three cut hairs of ULLASTRET, they “released a mixture of local and non-Korean origins.” Fuente-seoane continued in a statement. Two of the three subdivided heads were locally, found in the streets of the city and suggested that they could hang on the walls or doors of the house: “It suggests that exposed relics will be an important resident of the settlement that is worshiped or proven by society.
On the other hand, the third head was an outsiders and would have been found in the pit.
Ultimately, this study says, “ [displaying] Uniform heads are applied in different ways on each site, which seems to exclude homogeneous symbolic representations, ”said Fuente-seoane. In other words, the consistent good tradition was more complicated than the previously thought scholars. “But more research is needed.”
Nevertheless, their research reflects the light in the ancient culture that almost left the archaeological traces of their social organizations.
