A new project is examining the traces of Roman mining associated with extracting
a particularly prized stone. Guillermo León, Catalina Urquijo, Dionisio Urbína,
José Luis Córdoba, and the spelunkers of the Cuenca Ara Club of Speleology describe the demands of archaeological investigation deep within the bowels of central Spain.
In Travels through Prehistoric Spain, Jude Brown and Gary Lock provide a richly rewarding and deeply engaging exploration of Spain’s prehistoric heritage. Written with enthusiasm, knowledge, and genuine affection for both archaeology and the Spanish landscape, their book succeeds not only…
Your thoughts on issues raised by the magazine.
A remarkable Roman cup discovered in central Spain is revealing links between Hadrian’s Wall and the Hispanic soldiers who served there. The object was uncovered by chance in farmland in Berlanga de Duero, in the province of Soria. Despite being…
Ritual practices have been part of human life for almost as long as we can trace archaeological remains. The supernatural and inexplicable attract, excite, and worry people, with religion and its associated rituals being one of the main ways through which humans try to make sense of the world, create structure, and seek support
No episode of Spain’s bloody and brutal Civil War is more swathed in myth than the siege of Toledo’s historic Alcázar. Ninety years on, Nigel Jones tells its story.
Under-funded and wracked by the hostility between political factions within its ranks, Spain’s military aviation was in a dire state in the period immediately before the Spanish Civil War. At this time, the air force was equipped with 60 Bréguet…
Culture vultures A new study, recently published in Ecology (), reveals that the nests of bearded vultures can contain objects dating back hundreds of years. Examination of more than 50 historical bearded vulture nests in southern Spain, where the species…
REVIEW BY ROBIN OSBORNE Trade in Greek pottery long attracted little interest. Finley’s massively influential The Ancient Economy (1973) discouraged both the idea that archaeological data might have anything to add to study of the ancient economy and the idea…
Edmund West traces the history of the small island with an outsized natural harbour that played a critical role in the battle for naval superiority in the Mediterranean.
Neanderthal fossil hunters? Excavations of Prado Vargas cave in northern Spain have uncovered 15 marine fossils in a Neanderthal assemblage dating to 39,800-54,600 years ago. With the exception of one, which had been used as a hammer, none of these…
Stonehenge is often portrayed as if it were a unique monument, which in some respects it is. No other surviving monument uses mortise-and-tenon joints to lock the lintels to the uprights that form the massive stone circle and the inner trilithons (though this kind of joint was probably used in similar monuments built from timber that have not survived).
Once home to Celtiberians, Romans, Visigoths, and Moors, the ancient city of Valeria is now the venue for an archaeological project focusing on investigating the imperial Roman forum. Catalina Urquijo and Dionisio Urbina share their surprising discoveries.
In 1418, Captain ‘One-eyed’ Zarco sailed out from Lisbon to plant the flag of Portugal on the islands first of Porto Santo and then of Madeira. In doing so, he not only claimed for Portugal a useful harbour and a staging post that would enable explorations further out into the Atlantic – first to the Azores and then to Brazil – he also secured a fertile, well-wooded, and well-watered island where sugar cane flourished, making Madeiran landowners and the Portuguese Crown extremely rich for a century by selling ‘white gold’ through the markets of Venice, London, and Antwerp.
The Dolmen of Guadalperal is a megalithic tomb located in the Spanish province of Cáceres, some two hours south-west of Madrid. The site is believed to be a Neolithic funerary monument, probably constructed between the 5th and 4th millennium BC.…
Nick Spenceley recalls one of the great works of military history.
What is it? This almond-shaped lead object is a type of Roman projectile known as a glans inscripta (‘inscribed bullet’). Measuring 4.5cm by 2cm by 1.7cm and weighing 71g, it has a dent at one end, probably the result of…
A collaborative exhibition explores the Iron Age people of the Iberian Peninsula. Amy Brunskill spoke to curator Laurent Gorgerat to find out more.
A major new cave-art discovery has recently been made in Cova Dones, Spain. The nature of these images poses fascinating questions about how and where Palaeolithic people created such art, as Aitor Ruiz-Redondo told Matthew Symonds.
What is it? This small sherd of pottery, measuring 6cm wide and 8cm long, comes from the lower part of a Roman amphora once used to hold olive oil. The fragment bears part of an inscription carved into the clay…
Graham Goodlad assesses the events that led to the defeat of Napoleonic France in the Peninsular War.
Graham Goodlad describes the capture of two key frontier fortresses, whose fall opened Spain to the advance of Wellington’s army.
Strands of human hair from the Bronze Age burial and cult-cave of Es Càrritx in Menorca have been analysed, providing the first direct evidence of ancient drug-use in Europe. Around 1450 BC, Menorca’s inhabitants started to use natural caves as…
EGYPTIAN MUMMIES: EXPLORING ANCIENT LIVES An international touring exhibition exploring the hidden history behind six ancient Egyptian mummies from the British Museum, as revealed by state-of-the-art, non-invasive technology. Caixa Forum, Sevilla, Torre Sevilla Shopping Centre, C/López Pintado s/n, Seville, Spain …
Archaeologists found an alignment of large limestone rocks and sandstone cobbles that appears to have been arranged by the cave’s occupants.
The motifs found on the panel include quadrupeds (possibly bovids and equids), as well as circles, zigzags, lines, reticulates, stelliforms (suns and/or stars), and more.
Until now, evidence of drug use in prehistoric Europe has mostly been derived from archaeobotanical remains, artistic depictions, and chemical analysis of artefacts
PHARAOH: KING OF EGYPT An international touring exhibition of more than 120 objects from the British Museum, exploring the ideals, symbolism, and ideology of Egyptian kingship, and the realities of life in ancient Egypt. The exhibition is organised by the…
What is it? This 2,100-year-old piece of bronze sheet cut into the shape of a life-size right hand has been dubbed the ‘Hand of Irulegi’, after the site in Spain where it was found. The hand is 143mm tall, 128mm…
A powerful iron-clad battleship, HMS Captain sank off Cape Finisterre in Spain in 1870.
Thousands of engraved owl-shaped plaques have been discovered in Copper Age tombs and pits throughout the Iberian Peninsula.
In this month’s ‘Science Notes’, we explore recent research that has tested whether zinc (Zn) isotopes could be used as a proxy for nitrogen in such cases.
New analysis has revealed that the layer containing the footprints dates to c.295,8000 years ago.
Chris Bambery traces the history of the Spanish Civil War and sets the scene for the conflict’s bloodiest battle.
Chris Bambery examines how the deadliest engagement of the Spanish Civil War paved the way for Republican defeat.
The site, known as La Torre- La Janera, covers an area of c.600ha near the Guadiana River in the province of Huelva.