Dobles exequias y circulación de reliquias en el Calcolítico Inicial de la Cuenca del Duero: Sobre las inhumaciones parciales del “recinto de fosos” de Santa Cruz III (Cabezón de Pisuerga, Valladolid)

Abstract

ResumenEl fenómeno de las "dobles exequias", tempranamente teorizado por R. Hertz (1907), ha servido como marco interpretativo en numerosos estudios de Antropología y Arqueología funerarias. En este trabajo se ensaya su aplicación al Calcolítico Inicial de la Cuenca de Duero (ca. 3000-2400 cal AC), utilizando como punto de partida el estudio bioarqueológico de los restos de dos inhumaciones parciales localizadas en sendos hoyos del recinto de fosos de Santa Cruz III, en Cabezón de Pisuerga. En un intento de trascender este limitado caso de estudio, se pasa revista a otros enterramientos de este tipo documentados en el mismo ámbito cultural. A partir de la descripción de casos -sin recurrir a la analogía etnográfica para explicar cada hecho particular-, se propone una interpretación de conjunto fundamentada en aquella teoría, integrando las heterogéneas manifestaciones conocidas en una compleja secuencia que trata de dar cuenta de la extrema variabilidad (desde sepulturas primarias a huesos-reliquia) que se viene observando en el registro arqueológico. Abstract'Double burials' concept, early theorized by R. Hertz (1907), has been a frequent interpreting framework in many studies of Anthropology and Archaeology of Death. This paper applies Hertz's approach to the funerary rituals of the Early Copper Age in Duero Basin (c. 3000-2400 cal BC), starting from a bioarchaeological study of the partial burials located in two pits of the Santa Cruz III causewayed enclosure (Cabezón de Pisuerga, province of Valladolid, Spain). Looking for a broader picture, the heterogeneous funerary practices of the area during Early Copper Age (from primary burials to relics) are reviewed. From their description, a general reading based on 'double burials' theory is proposed, without using the ethnographic analogy for a direct explanation of each particular event.

As above, so below: Deposition, modification, and reutilization of human remains at Marmoles cave (Cueva de los Marmoles: Southern Spain, 4000–1000 cal. BCE)

“…In this sense, the practices documented at CM fit well with those widely documented in large areas of the Iberian Peninsula during Late Prehistory, and suggest the possibility of shared ideologies where the human body becomes central in maintaining the collective memory of a community [88,89].…”

“…The internal spatial structure of burial chambers (megalithic or hypogeic) and natural caves is reminiscent of the "socially active" houses of the living, conferring to the community of the dead the social role of "ancestors" [ 87 ]. Such cultural elements may vary, but the proximity of and interaction with the physical remains of the deceased seems a rather focal aspect of a system aimed at maintaining and reproducing the social order [ 88 ].…”

Chronological Study of Collective Burials in the Northern Iberian Plateau: Analysis of Radiocarbon Dates on Human Bones From the Megalithic Complex of La Lora (Burgos, Spain)

“…In the field studied in this paper it is possible that the most archaic dates situated events prior to the construction of the monument with other ancient tombs being removed and located with the new burials as a link with ancestors. This phenomenon, rooted in Mesolithic times and already proposed in many megalithic contexts, could demonstrate the important symbolism of bones -taken as relics-and their association with a past legitimizing the social structures typical of the communities buried in these tombs (Cauwe 1997;Chambon 2003;Jones 2005;Bueno Ramírez et al 2016;Fernández-Eraso et al 2015;Delibes de Castro et al 2019;Esparza-Arroyo et al 2018. Therefore, there would be justification for the presence and consolidation of certain lineages in the region, giving rise to what could be seen as itinerant relics to be found at the time the tombs are constructed; these are the so-called "skeletons in motion" (Cauwe 1997).…”

“…Whilst in La Rioja Alavesa the moment of abandonment does not take place until the second half of the 3rd millennium BC, in La Lora the beginning of this millennium is characterized by an authentic abandoning of the collective tombs. Despite the existence of Early Chalcolithic sites at many points on the northern Plateau (Esparza-Arroyo et al 2008; Fabián García and Blanco González 2012; Carmona Ballestero et al 2013; Delibes de Castro et al 2018; Delibes de Castro et al 2019, among others), the reality is that in the region of La Lora occupations at these times have not yet been identified, apart from a few records of materials collected in excavations, such as those from the La Nava Alta site in Huidobro (Delibes de Castro et al 2010). The dichotomy between megalithic burials and new chalcolithic burial trends has been the object of extensive study on the northern Iberian Plateau (Fabian 1995; Esparza-Arroyo et al 2008; Delibes de Castro et al 2019).…”

“…Despite the existence of Early Chalcolithic sites at many points on the northern Plateau(Esparza-Arroyo et al 2008;Fabián García and Blanco González 2012;Carmona Ballestero et al 2013;Delibes de Castro et al 2018; Delibes de Castro et al 2019, among others), the reality is that in the region of La Lora occupations at these times have not yet been identified, apart from a few records of materials collected in excavations, such as those from the La Nava Alta site in Huidobro (Delibes de. The dichotomy between megalithic burials and new chalcolithic burial trends has been the object of extensive study on the northern Iberian Plateau(Fabian 1995;Esparza-Arroyo et al 2008;Delibes de Castro et al 2019). However, in La Lora it is not possible to identify a period when certain tendencies were abandoned and others were initiated, since a radiocarbon vacuum is reported for much of the 3rd millennium BC.…”