0271 - Bela Vista 5 monography

It is edited the nº2 of ERA MONOGRÁFICA dedicated to the cerimonial enclosure of Bela Vista 5 (Beja, South Portugal).

Free download here

0270 - Trade or gift?

In Iberian large ditched enclosures one of the main patterns is the presence of exogenous materials that reveal that those sites were integrated in large trade networks. Ivory, cinnabar, variscite, amber, shells, some specific potteries, etc. These raw materials or objects made of them are present in those large enclosures in regions where they do not exist.

The questions are: is this evidence of just trade? Or is it evidence of something else? For instance, of the social importance of gift. It is possible that many of these ditched enclosures were stages where potlatch type ceremonies might have been performed and the exchange of rare exotic objects as gifts might have had a significant social role.

These are paths for research in Iberian (and therefore Portuguese) ditched enclosures. For that, theoretical research should be done on how can we empirically demonstrate the presence of gift procedures in the archaeological record (yes, empiricism depends on theory).

0269 – Processes of ditch filling

A paper about the processes of filling of the Late Neolithic ditches of Perdigões enclosures will be presented by the end of the month at the VIII Iberian Southwest Archaeology meeting.

Late Neolithic ditches (yellow) in the central area of Perdigões.

The goal is to confront theoretical interpretations in dispute regarding the nature of these type of contexts with empirical data, arguing that the processes of filling and what we find inside ditches are important criteria to the interpretation of functionalities. It seems obvious, and yet still needs to be stressed. 

Bottom depositon in Ditch 12.