Shared Spaces (Collective Burials)
Although there are significant gaps in our knowledge of funerary rites, we do know that, despite the existence of important groups of individual burials (such as the trench graves in Catalonia), collective graves were the most common type of interment during the Late Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods.
There is an exceptionally well-preserved group at the Cave of Los Murciélagos in Albunol (Granada), but as they were not excavated systematically it is extremely difficult to interpret the context in which they were recovered.
In the mid-19th century 60 human mummies were discovered at the Cave of Los Murciélagos in Albunol (Granada). One of them was wearind a gold diadem.
Insufficient data about how the mummies were found made them difficult to interpret, and their destruction has precluded further study of the human remains. This cranium, which still bears traces of the mummifying fabric, is an exception. The shell and marble pendants and bracelets in the grave must have been part of the dead people’s attire.
This cranium with gold diadem is a replica. Original at the Museo Arqueologico de Granada.
Photos: Füsun Kavrakoğlu, National Archaeological Museum, Madrid, 2026.
There are various indicators of violent acts perpetrated within Chalcolithic societies. Some sites have yielded large numbers of human remains, including bodies pierced in different places by arrows. In other cases, the unnatural positions of the skeletons suggest execution. Yet another indication of conflict can be found in the construction of robust fortifications at different points around the Iberian Peninsula and the proliferations of weapons.
During the transition between Chalcolithic period and the Bronze Age (Early Bronze Age around 2200-1800 BC), we see the emergence of the first social hierarchies. At this time, we see the appearance of distinguished individuals in society, who marked their status in life after death by being buried in individual tombs and accompanied by rich grave goods like beaker pottery, copper weapons and gold jewellery.
A typical grave of the Beaker period.
The dead man was buried in a trench over which a mound of stones was raised, making the grave visible from a great distance. The corpse is accompanied by grave goods comprising a set of bell beakers and assorted weaponry. A simple gold band encircling the head may have been a symbol of his rank.
Bell beakers, clay, La Cuesta de la Reina Necropolis.
Sources
Information panels of National Archaeological Museum, Madrid.
Beaker Vessels From Ciempozuelos, Eduardo Galan, National Archaeological Museum, pp. 30.
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