They have found a burial site in Spain that speaks volumes about women hailing from Bronze Age. Archaeologists are in awe of the lavishness of the site. And they revealed that no other grave in Europe discovered till date is anyway near to its grandeur. Besides unearthing several facts, the site has also sparked speculations.
Archeologists believe that women might have been at the helm of power and might have ruled a part of the Iberian Peninsula till 1550 B.C. Researchers have been carrying out investigations in La Almoloya since 2013. The site belongs to a huge part of the land covering 35,000 sq. km.
Women In The Prehistoric Society
Magnificent evidence from the recent excavations shows a man and a woman buried close to each other in a ceramic jar. They might have died in the 17th century B.C. In their grave were found around 30 valuable objects that can blow anyone’s mind off. Most of them belonged to the woman.
Every object had a good portion of silver on them. There were rings, bracelets, and a diadem as well. The stunning fact is that they unearthed around 230 grams of silver from the burial site. That’s an amount that is equivalent to the daily wages of 938 people in modern times. Unbelievable.
Women’s Importance Was Quite Evident
If not dominant, women playing a prominent, is evident during that age from other discoveries at El Argar. Diadems, quite identical to the one found in the man and woman’s grave, were found at four different graves. And all these were of the womenfolk.
Female gravesites were the burial ground of elite warriors in the later period. As a consequence, such sites were places of aristocracy and high status. The recent discovery is more fascinating as the site’s location was beneath a palace that probably dates back to the first Bronze Age.
This Was Unparalleled
The building was probably in use for any political work, and researchers somehow felt that women derived their power from politics. They also found a few swords at several burial sites dedicated to men. That indicates the fact that men were the warriors during that time. They were the ones who had the responsibility of expanding the boundaries of El Argar.
The society that is the highlight of the discussion started rising towards its peak from 2200 B.C. As shreds of evidence point out, the society had a smart tax system, more disciplined, and organized. Nowhere in Western Europe could they find something of this stature. None of the places excavated were close to what archaeologists found out in La Almoloya.
There Was State Organization
Everything in the society was systematic. And that perhaps never was in existance during those times in the site’s territories. Before the arrival of the Phoenicians and the Greeks, they saw nothing of that anywhere on the Iberian Peninsula.
There were complex urban centers, and the society was somewhat like a state organization. The eye-catching discoveries have put forward one fact that people living in a society were far ahead of their times. The advancements they made with women holding the maximum authority are mindblowing. These humans, as discussed before, was the first one to use bronze.
And They Perished
By the time 16th century B.C. arrived, the settlements were left abandoned. The common belief is that internal uprisings compelled society to meet its fate. Just after the death of a woman, the entire settlement went through the devastation. Everything caught on fire, and eventually, what people have found today is just a portion of the rich history.
Sadly, such a society did not survive the test of time. Excavations are underway. The beauty of the burial site enhances the curiosity in people. Researchers and archaeologists have been digging down and unearthing one tantalizing fact one another. They have no idea of what’s coming up next. A women-centric El Argar society can spring one surprise after another, and people are waiting with bated breath.
This is what we know about El Argar till now and hopefully. The next discovery will be more intriguing than the previous ones. And we are eager to know what new glimpses of history await us! We are sure, it would leave us in as much awe as these excavations.