Cremated human remains and Iberian megaliths. An analysis from the passage grave of Dolmen de Lácara (Mérida, Spain). (October 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Sánchez-Abellán, David; Cerrillo-Cuenca, Enrique; Blasco Rodríguez, Francisco; Prada Gallardo, Alicia
• Is Part Of: Journal of archaeological science. Volume 39(2021)
• Publication Date: 2021-10
• Subjects: Burned remains -- Osteological analysis -- Megalithic sites -- Statistics -- Copper Age; Archaeology -- Periodicals; Archaeology -- Research -- Periodicals; 930.1
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jasrep.2021.103192
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2352-409X

Abstract

Highlights: An unpublished collection of more than 12 kg of burned human bones is analysed. A comprehensive approach to the analysis of cremains in megaliths is presented. A statistical approach to the analysis of burnt bones reveals trends of fracture and colour. Cremation in megaliths is discussed in a broad scope. Abstract: This paper presents data from a large sample of burnt human bones analysed from a Neolithic and Copper Age passage grave in the inner Iberian Peninsula. The funerary deposition of some 12 kg of burnt bones is uncommon in the cultural context of the Iberian Late Prehistory and allows for a statistical approximation of the material transformations occurring in the bones during the cremation process. The analysis allows us to conclude that cremation was carried out as a form of cadaveric reduction.