La Bastida

La Bastida de Totana

Spain · Murcia, Totana

Ancient cityIntermittent excavation
Approximate period2,200 BCE — 1,600 BCEEarly Bronze Age See on the map ↓

In brief

La Bastida, near Totana, is one of the important urban centers of El Argar society. Excavations have revealed defensive structures and graves placed beneath houses.

What was found?

  • 1Stone defensive system

    It consists of parallel walls, projecting towers and a narrow entrance passage. According to researchers, its design reflects a response to changes in methods of warfare and weapons.

  • 2Human and animal bones

    Isotopes in the bones allowed human diets to be studied alongside animal diets. This comparison reveals the limitations of interpretations based solely on human bones.

  • 3Charred cereal grains

    Barley and wheat remains were used to investigate diet and agricultural methods. The isotope values of the cereals help explain the effect of manuring on the values observed in human bones.

  • 4Grinding implements and grain storage structures

    The settlement's grinding equipment and storage facilities show the importance of cereals in the economy. They allow dietary analyses to be evaluated together with archaeological finds.

What does it point to?

La Bastida indicates an economy based on intensive farming and animal husbandry alongside strong defenses. According to researchers, animals' use of harvest residues and the return of their manure to the fields were important parts of this production system.

What did it teach us?

  1. The defensive structures documented the existence of advanced military architecture in the Early Bronze Age.
  2. It revealed the predominance of barley, and to a lesser extent wheat, in the diet.
  3. It showed that high nitrogen isotope values could not be explained solely by high meat consumption; manured cereals could also have contributed.

Images

Iglesia de San Francisco de Asís, La Bastida 03
Rodelar · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Latest news / selected archive

An isotope study published in 2020 used cereal and animal remains to demonstrate the importance of manuring and herd management in local production.

Record

Culture
El Argar
First modern dig
1869
Team / historical
Autonomous University of Barcelona, ASOME / La Bastida Project
Coordinates
37.7611°, -1.5603°

Sources

  1. turismoregiondemurcia.es
  2. turismoregiondemurcia.es
  3. uab.cat
  4. ddd.uab.cat
  5. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona Araştırma Portalı — Antiquity

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12.000

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