El Argar is an
Early Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...
culture that was based in
Antas,
Almería
Almería (, , ) is a city and municipality of Spain, located in Andalusia. It is the capital of the province of the same name. It lies on southeastern Iberia on the Mediterranean Sea. Caliph Abd al-Rahman III founded the city in 955. The city g ...
, within modern Spain. It is believed to have been active from about 2200 B.C. to 1500 B.C.
[Lull et al.]
"Emblems and spaces of power during the Argaric Bronze Age at La Almoloya, Murcia,"
''Antiquity'', Cambridge University Press
Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press in the world. It is also the King's Printer.
Cambridge University Pre ...
, 11 March 2021 The people developed sophisticated pottery and ceramic techniques that they traded with other Mediterranean tribes.
The civilization of El Argar extended to all the province of
Almería
Almería (, , ) is a city and municipality of Spain, located in Andalusia. It is the capital of the province of the same name. It lies on southeastern Iberia on the Mediterranean Sea. Caliph Abd al-Rahman III founded the city in 955. The city g ...
, north onto the central
Meseta, to most of the
region of Murcia
The Region of Murcia (, ; es, Región de Murcia ), is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain located in the southeastern part of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast. The region is in ...
and westward into the provinces of
Granada and
Jaen, controlling an area similar in size to modern
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
.
Its cultural and possibly political influence was much wider. Its influence has been found in eastern and southwestern Iberia (
Algarve
The Algarve (, , ; from ) is the southernmost NUTS II region of continental Portugal. It has an area of with 467,495 permanent inhabitants and incorporates 16 municipalities ( ''concelhos'' or ''municípios'' in Portuguese).
The region has it ...
), and it likely affected other regions as well.
Some authors have suggested that El Argar was a unified state.
Material culture
El Argar is the cultural center of the Early and Middle Bronze Age, Bronze Age in
Iberia
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
. Metallurgy of bronze and pseudo-bronze (alloyed with
arsenic
Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As and atomic number 33. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in combination with sulfur and metals, but also as a pure elemental crystal. Arsenic is a metalloid. It has various allotropes, ...
instead of
tin
Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn (from la, stannum) and atomic number 50. Tin is a silvery-coloured metal.
Tin is soft enough to be cut with little force and a bar of tin can be bent by hand with little effort. When bent, t ...
) was practiced. Weapons are the main metallurgic product:
knives
A knife ( : knives; from Old Norse 'knife, dirk') is a tool or weapon with a cutting edge or blade, usually attached to a handle or hilt. One of the earliest tools used by humanity, knives appeared at least 2.5 million years ago, as evidenced ...
,
halberd
A halberd (also called halbard, halbert or Swiss voulge) is a two-handed pole weapon that came to prominent use during the 13th, 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries. The word ''halberd'' is cognate with the German word ''Hellebarde'', deriving from ...
s,
swords,
spear
A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with fire hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fasten ...
and
arrow points, and big
axe
An axe ( sometimes ax in American English; see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood, to harvest timber, as a weapon, and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol. The axe has ma ...
s with curved edges are all abundant, not just in the Argaric area, but also elsewhere in Iberia.
Silver was also exploited. Gold had been abundantly used in the
Chalcolithic
The Copper Age, also called the Chalcolithic (; from grc-gre, χαλκός ''khalkós'', "copper" and ''líthos'', "stone") or (A)eneolithic (from Latin '' aeneus'' "of copper"), is an archaeological period characterized by regular ...
period, but it became less common in El Argar culture. Discovery in 2014 of an especially rich grave and an associated building at
La Almoloya have provided important details about the culture. The archaeological site is in a southeastern portion of the Iberian Peninsula. The richness of the burials of its women has led to some re-evaluation of the place of women in this Early Bronze Age culture.
The women at this site were buried with numerous grave goods of silver, treasure that suggests that women held high status in the society. For instance, excavation of Grave 38 began in 2014, and it contains burial goods estimated to be worth tens of thousands of dollars and included a
diadem
A diadem is a type of crown, specifically an ornamental headband worn by monarchs and others as a badge of royalty.
Overview
The word derives from the Greek διάδημα ''diádēma'', "band" or "fillet", from διαδέω ''diadéō'', " ...
. The burial was found below a unique building, when compared to the others excavated. The building above the grave appears to be a great hall, with benches along the sides that could seat up to 60 people. This suggests that the hall was used for politics. The grave and hall have been radiocarbon dated to approximately 1700 BC.
Periodization
The culture of El Argar has traditionally been divided in two phases, named A and B.
El Argar A
Phase A started in the eighteenth century BC, with the earliest calibrated
C-14 dates pointing to the first half of that century:
*
1785 BC (+/- 55 years) in the transitional Late
Chalcolithic
The Copper Age, also called the Chalcolithic (; from grc-gre, χαλκός ''khalkós'', "copper" and ''líthos'', "stone") or (A)eneolithic (from Latin '' aeneus'' "of copper"), is an archaeological period characterized by regular ...
-Early Bronze of , a peripheral site
* 1730 BC (+/- 70 years) in Fuente Álamo for El Argar A2, with six undated A1 layers under it
* 1700 BC in (another peripheral site) with identifiably Argarian materials in its lower layer
El Argar B
Phase B begins in the sixteenth century BC. The main C-14 date is that of 1550 BC (+/- 70 years) in Fuente Álamo for the upper layer of El Argar B2 (with four layers underneath the lowest B phase). Other stratigraphic dates are somewhat more recent, but are not confirmed by C-14.
Post-Argarian phase
El Argar B ends in the fourteenth or thirteenth century BC, giving way to a less homogeneous post-Argarian culture. Again, Fuente Álamo gives the best C-14 dating with 1330 BC (+/- 70 years).
Recent trends
Many more C-14 dates have been published since the beginning of the twenty-first century. In recent publications, at least 260 such dates are cited altogether. There is now a widespread consensus that the emergence of El Argar can be dated at 2200 cal BC, although its end remains somewhat disputed. Various opinions place the end of El Argar at fifteenth-fourteenth centuries BC.
Gallery
File:El Argar (ajuar funerario).png, Grave goods
File:Enterramiento argárico en tinaja.jpg, Typical jar burial
El Argar B
File:El Argar (craneo con diadema).png, Woman's skull
with diadem
File:Espada de Guadalajara. Bronce Pleno. 1600-1300 a. C. - M.A.N. 01.jpg, alt=, Bronze sword with gold-covered hilt
File:Hojas de alabarda y espada. Bronce Antiguo-Medio.jpg, alt=, Bronze axe and dagger blade
File:Copa argárica de arcilla (M.A.N. 1990-133-12) 01.jpg, Ceramic cup
File:El Argar M.A.N. 03.JPG, Pottery
File:Almoloya Diadema.jpg, Silver diadem from La Almoloya.
File:Museoalargar.JPG, Pottery
File:El Argar M.A.N. 01.JPG, Pottery
File:Copas. Bronce Antiguo-Medio.jpg, Ceramics
File:Vaso trípode argárico (M.A.N. 1983-57-339) 01.jpg, Ceramics
File:Brazal de arquero. Cultura argárica.jpg, Archer's wristguard
File:Visita La Bastida (Totana).JPG, La Bastida Totana archaelogical site
File:H3 restaurada La Bastida (Totana).jpg, Remains of a house at La Bastida Totana
File:Excavación de los hábitats de Peñalosa, Jaén.jpg, Excavation at Peñalosa
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Argar, El
Prehistoric sites in Spain
Archaeological sites in Andalusia
Bronze Age Spain
Algarve
Ancient pottery
Almería
Murcian culture