Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-wzw2p Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-06-02T13:44:00.542Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The Evolution of the Minorcan Pretalayotic Culture as Evidenced by the Sites of Morellet and Son Mercer de Baix

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 November 2022

Ma Cristina Rita  and
Celia Topp
Ma Cristina Rita
Affiliation:
Museu de Menorca, Mahón, Menorca, Spain
Celia Topp
Affiliation:
Apartado 14, San Carlos, Ibiza, Spain
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The cultural period immediately prior to the Talayotic phase in Minorca, the Pretalayotic, belongs to the Chalcolithic—Early Bronze Age and is represented by a series of megalithic monuments. When of a funerary nature, these consist of megalithic chamber-tombs in the eastern part of the island and of rock-cut graves of elongated plan in the western. So far, apart from the newly-discovered site of Morellet, no habitations are known in eastern Minorca and the new site appears to indicate that they were either of a seasonal nature or merely rock-shelters. In the western half of the island dwelling-sites are clearly evidenced by villages of habitation — navetas (navetiforms) such as Son Mercer de Baix which continued in use during the Early Talayotic period. It should be noted that although their method of construction would incline one to class them all as belonging to an identical Mediterranean cultural group, the finds indicate an autochthonous evolution which in time gave rise to the insular peculiarities, including some of a constructional nature, typical of Minorca.

Type
Research Article
Information
Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society , Volume 54 , Issue 1 , 1988 , pp. 241 - 247
Copyright
Copyright © The Prehistoric Society 1988

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Briard, J., 1986. L'Age du Bronze en Europe Barbare, des mégalithes aux Celtes. Toulouse.Google Scholar
Cantarellas, C., 1971. Cerámica Incisa en Mallorca. Palma de Mallorca.Google Scholar
Cherry, J. F., 1981. Early colonisation of the Mediterranean islands. Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 47, 41–68.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Corpus de Monumentos Megalíticos, 1961. España: Fasc. 1. Instituto de Prehistoria y Archaeología de la Diputación Provincial de Barcelona.Google Scholar
Fernandez, J., Plantalamor, L. and Topp, C., 1975. Excavaciones en el sepulcro megalítico de Ca na Costa, Formentera, Mayurqa 15, 109–38.Google Scholar
Hemp, W. J., 1932. The navetas of Menorca. Antiquaries Journal 12, 127–35.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Murray, M., 1934. Cambridge Excavations in Minorca — Trepucó and Sa Torreta, vols 1–3. London: Quaritch.Google Scholar
Pericot Garcia, L., 1972. The Balearic Islands. London: Thames and Hudson.Google Scholar
Plantalamor, L., 1976. Algunas consideraciones sobre los sepulcros megalíticos de Menorca. Sautuola 2, 157–73.Google Scholar
Plantalamor, L. and Rita, MaC., 1982. Tres cuevas de la Edad del Bronce en la zona occidental de Menorca. Ampurias 44, 1–16.Google Scholar
Plantalamor, L. and Rita, Ma C., 1984a. Formas de población durante el segundo y primer milenio B.C. en Menorca: Son Mercer de Baix, transitión entre la cultura Pretalayotica y Talayotica. In Waldren, W. H., et al. (eds), The Deyá Conference of Prehistory. Early Settlement in the Western Mediterranean Islands and Their Peripheral Areas, 797–826. Oxford: Brit. Archaeol Rep. Int. Series 229.Google Scholar
Plantalamor, L. and Rita, Ma C., 1984b. Fascículo IV de Arquelogía de la Enciclopedia de Menorca. Mahon.Google Scholar
Plantalamor, L. et al. , 1983. Fascículo II de Arqueología de la Enciclopedia de Menorca. Mahon.Google Scholar
Renfrew, C., 1981. Introduction: The megalithic builders of Western Europe. In Evans, J. D., Cunliffe, B. and Renfrew, C. (eds), Antiquity and Man, Essays in Honour of Glyn Daniel, 72–81. London: Thames and Hudson.Google Scholar
Rita, Ma C., 1982. Constatación de la manufactura del bronce en el Yacimiento arqueológico de Son Mercer de Baix. In Estudis Prehistòria d'Història de Mayûrca i d'Historia de Mallorca, 43–49. Palma de Mallorca.Google Scholar
Rosselló-Bordoy, G., 1958–1959. Ceramicas incisas de Mallorca. Studi Sardi 16, 300–15.Google Scholar
Rosselló-Bordoy, G., 1966. Excavaciones en el Círculo funerario de Son Bauló de Dalt. Madrid: Excavaciones Arquelógicas en Españela 51.Google Scholar
Rosselló-Bordoy, G., Plantalamor, L. and Lopez, A., 1980. La sepultura megalítica de Ses Roques Llises. Noticiario Arqueológico Hispánico 8, 71–138.Google Scholar
Santoni, V., 1976. Nota preliminare sulla tipologia delle grotticelle funeraire in Sardegna. Archivio Storico Sardo 30, 1–49.Google Scholar
Topp, C., Fernandez, J. and Plantalamor, L., 1976. Ca na Costa: a Megalithic chamber tomb on Formentera, Balearic Islands. University of London Institute of Archaeology Bulletin 13, 139–74.Google Scholar
Topp, C., 1987. Incised vs Beaker Wares in the Balearic Islands and Further considerations of the Beaker Phenomenon/Problem, especially in relation to wares of the Balearic Islands. In Waldren, W. H., and Kennard, R. C. (eds), The Oxford International Conference 1986: Bell Beakers of the Western Mediterranean. Definition, Inter-pretation, Theory and New Site Data, 19–11 and 267–82. Oxford: British Archaeological Reports, International Series 331.Google Scholar
Topp, C., in press. Incised vs Beaker Wares in the Balearic Islands. University of London Institute of Archaeology Bulletin 25.Google Scholar
Veny, C., 1968. Las cuevas sepulcrales del Bronce Antiguo de Mallorca. Madrid: Biblioteca Prehistórica Hispana 9.Google Scholar
Waldren, W. H., 1982. Balearic Prehistoric Ecology and Culture — the Excavation and Study of Certain Caves, Rock Shelters and Settlements. Oxford: British Archaeo-logical Reports, International Series 149 pts i-iii.Google Scholar
Waldren, W. H. et al. (eds), 1984. The Deyá Conference of Prehistory. Early Settlement in the Western Mediterranean Islands and Their Peripheral Areas. Oxford: British Arch-aeological Reports, International Series 229.Google Scholar
Waldren, W. H., 1985. The Balearic Beaker Wares from Caves, Rock Shelters and Settlements: An Inventory. Deyá: Mallorca.Google Scholar