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At Cape Trafalgar, in the province of Cadiz, two megalithic tombs have been studied by a team led by Eduardo Vijande-Vila of the University of Cadiz. According to radiocarbon dating of the bones, these monuments were used for about two hundred years, between 1875 and 1625 BC. The discovery raises questions about the place of these collective burials at a time when individual graves were spreading across southern Iberia.
Two monuments with distinct architectures
The first tomb comprises an oval chamber cut into the rock, extended by a corridor lined with slabs and covered by large capstones. The chamber was closed off by a stone wall, the entrance sealed with a slab, and the whole covered by a mound of stones and sand.
The second tomb has a circular chamber roofed with corbelled courses of stone, a technique that gradually closes a space by overhanging layers. After the original dome collapsed, the builders installed a central pillar and filled half of the chamber to stabilise it.
Collective burials reworked over time
Analysis of the bones indicates that the first tomb held the remains of at least thirteen people, the second those of at least seven individuals. The bones were rearranged after the bodies decomposed, with the exception of the skeleton of a young woman found in anatomical connection.
This treatment, in which the dead were first deposited and the remains later gathered together, is characteristic of Megalithic collective tombs. It reflects a conception of the family or social group in which ancestors remained accessible across generations.
Dates that place the end of megalithism
Radiocarbon dating of the young woman's bones shows that her burial was the last before the chamber was closed. The analyses place the use of the two monuments between 1875 and 1625 BC, that is, at the end of the Early Bronze Age in this region.
This chronology is significant: it shows that monumental collective tombs persisted while individual graves were becoming widespread in southern Iberia. The authors have not yet decided between a late reuse of the tombs and construction by the last megalith builders of the region.
Grave goods and their materials
Tomb I yielded two gold earrings, three silver beads, a fragment of green mica, an ivory comb and two perforated shells. Tomb II provided one earring, a copper arrowhead and a green mica bead.
The presence of gold, silver and ivory, rare materials, suggests individuals with a particular status or carefully adorned. These objects offer insight into exchange networks and funerary values among populations of the late third millennium BC.
Next steps in the research
Further analyses are planned. Luminescence dating, which measures when the sand and stones were last exposed to light, could show whether the tombs were reused or whether their builders were among the last to erect megaliths in southern Iberia.
The results were published in the journal PLOS One. For visitors interested in comparable sites, the megalithic tombs of southern Spain, including those in neighbouring Andalusia, offer visitor routes and museum collections that help place these discoveries in context.
Frequently asked questions
When were the megalithic tombs at Cape Trafalgar used?
According to the published radiocarbon dates, the two tombs were used for about two hundred years, between 1875 and 1625 BC. This period corresponds to the end of the Early Bronze Age in southern Iberia.
How many people were buried in these tombs?
The first tomb contained the remains of at least thirteen people and the second those of at least seven individuals. The bones were rearranged after decomposition, except for the skeleton of a young woman.
What grave goods were discovered?
Tomb I yielded two gold earrings, three silver beads, an ivory comb and two perforated shells. Tomb II contained a copper arrowhead and an earring.
Were these tombs reused?
The question remains open. Luminescence analyses, which date when sand and stones were last exposed to light, could clarify whether the monuments were reused or whether their builders were among the last to construct megaliths.
Sources
- Who Constructed the Megalithic Tombs on Spain’s Cape Trafalgar? — Archaeology Magazine
Original summary written with the help of artificial intelligence from the sources cited, checked automatically, then translated from the French original. Information and quotations belong to their authors. Read the French original.
