First evidence of hippopotamus ivory exchange networks in north-eastern Iberian Peninsula

The object of Bòbila Madurell (Barcelona, Spain)

Dados Bibliográficos

ID6433264
AutoresJose Miguel Morillo Leon (0000-0003-1150-3757, autor correspondente), Àfrica Pitarch Martí (0000-0002-8396-9487), Albizuri (0000-0001-6194-0475), F Javier López-Cachero (0000-0002-3121-4015), Araceli Martín Cólliga (0000-0002-3406-2627), Millán Mozota, Salvador Moyà Solà (0000-0001-8506-1061), Jordi Nadal (0000-0003-1305-617X)
Ano2025
Volume67
Páginas105375-105375
Data de publicação2025-09-13
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoJournal of Archaeological Science Reports (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 2352-409X • E-ISSN: 2352-4103
EditoraElsevier BV (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1016/j.jasrep.2025.105375
OpenAlexW7081948334
IdiomaEN
Referências citadas23

This study examines a Late Neolithic-Chalcolithic ivory object (Véraza facies) found at the Bòbila Madurell settlement (Sant Quirze del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain). The main objective was to date the object and determine the provenance of the raw material. The radiocarbon analysis places it in the second quarter of the 3rd millennium BC. FTIR analysis identified it as hippopotamus ivory, marking the first and currently the oldest discovery in north-eastern Iberia. While most Iberian ivory is attributed to Asian or African proboscideans, hippopotamus ivory is known in southern Iberia during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age, reflecting emerging trade networks from the Near East and Africa. Though the object is fractured, the archaeological context, together with morphological and residue analyses, suggests a possible use in textile work

Assemblage (archaeology · Bronze · Chalcolithic · Hippopotamus · Provenance · Radiocarbon dating · Sirius · Viewshed analysis · Electrical and Electromagnetic Research · Geochemistry and Geologic Mapping · Geological Modeling and Analysis