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.
