Captación y selección de materias primas en la primera metalurgia del Sureste de la península ibérica

Abstract

The role of metallurgy in the Copper Age communities of the Iberian Southeast is a recurrent question of archaeo­logical research in western Europe. Based on lead isotope and trace element analyses of archaeometallurgical remains, this paper addresses the territorial organisation of metallur­gical production during the Copper Age (3100-2200 cal BC) in the Vera Basin (Almeria, Spain), the region with the ear­liest metallurgical evidence in western Europe. This paper comprises the study of materials from the three main settle­ments with metallurgical activity in the area (Las Pilas, San­ta Barbara and Almizaraque), as well as some metal objects from these and other sites (La Encantada I, Loma de Bel­monte and Las Churuletas 1). The results support a model of small-scale regional pro­duction whereby settlements exploited the resources of their nearby surroundings (up to 30 km as the crow flies). Howev­er, metallurgical exploitation prioritised mineralisations rich in arsenic and other elements, even when other sources were more readily accessible: for the case of Las Pilas, the exploita­tion of Pinar de Bedar sources instead of Sierra Cabrera, clos­er to the site; for the cases of Santa Barbara and Almizaraque, the sources of Cerro Minado. The possibility that Almizaraque and Las Pilas also exploited the minerals of Herrerias, although to a lesser extent, remains open. Broader exchange networks are indicated by the data from finished objects, from which greater mobility can be inferred.