Burial taphonomy and megalithic ritual practices in Iberia: the Panoría cemetery

• Published in: Archaeological and anthropological sciences Vol. 15; no. 2; p. 18
• Main Authors: Vílchez Suárez, Miriam, Aranda Jiménez, Gonzalo, Díaz-Zorita Bonilla, Marta, Robles Carrasco, Sonia, Sánchez Romero, Margarita, Milesi García, Lara, Esquivel Sánchez, Francisco Javier
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.02.2023; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Anthropology; Archaeology; Bones; Burials; Cemeteries; Chemistry/Food Science; Death rituals; Earth and Environmental Science; Earth Sciences; Field study; Geography; Human remains; Life Sciences; Original Paper; Preservation; Rituals; Taphonomy; Tombs; Variability; Iberian Peninsula; Radiocarbon chronology; Megalithic societies; Funerary ritual; Burial taphonomy
• ISSN: 1866-9557; 1866-9565
• DOI: 10.1007/s12520-023-01716-5

Our ability to build precise narratives regarding megalithic funerary rituals largely depends on an accurate understanding of bone assemblage formation. The cemetery of Panoría offers an excellent opportunity for exploring the ritual variability through the study of funerary taphonomy, as four of the nine recently excavated dolmens are remarkably well-preserved. Based on a multi-proxy approach that includes the contextual archaeological features, skeletal preservation and representation indexes, taphonomic processes, and radiocarbon chronology, three main ritual practices can be outlined: (i) primary sequential inhumations followed by the differential in situ decomposition of skeletal remains; (ii) the selective removal of crania and long bones; and (iii) the curation of subadult crania and probably long bones. The use-life of tombs, the intensity of mortuary depositions, and the intentional protection of specific bones appear as key aspects for understanding the variability in bone assemblage formation.