In the municipal area of Ulldecona, in Catalonia, a winding path climbs up the mountain, passing through a set of caves where painted human figures appear, along with hunting scenes and various animals such as deer, goats, bovids, and horses. In shades of brown, red, and black, worn by the passage of time, some images may have been erased forever, while others still endure. This is the archaeological site known as the Abrics d’Ermites. 6,000 years ago, these caves must have been a fascinating spectacle, with shining paintings that adorned the place and simultaneously conveyed knowledge about the fauna, the territory, and the daily life of the communities that lived there.
Another prominent site in Catalonia is the Roca dels Moros, a cave located in the municipal area of El Cogul. Among the painted scenes, there is a group of women, between 11 and 12, in which their clothing, hairstyles, and adornments are visible, surrounded by images of deer and bovids. These figures were not painted at a single moment but were gradually added over time, suggesting an evolving scene. Everything indicates that it represents some kind of community ceremony.
In the shelter of Barranc Gómez, in Castellote (Teruel), and in the Coves de l’Aranya, in Bicorb (Valencia), each site depicts a scene of honey gathering, where a person climbs a rope ladder to reach a beehive.
These examples are part of the Rock Art of the Mediterranean Arc of the Iberian Peninsula, a collection of more than 1,500 sites in the communities of Andalusia, Aragón, Castile-La Mancha, Catalonia, Murcia, and Valencia. Dating from 8000 to 1000 BCE, with a predominance of the late Paleolithic period, it is considered the largest such collection in Europe and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1998. The scenes depicted are considered the first narratives of European prehistory. Located in shallow shelters and caves, they show a wide variety of scenes, ranging from hunting and gathering to rituals and armed confrontations. They also provide information about clothing, the origins of social inequalities, gender roles, rituals, and warfare.
There is a vast body of scientific literature, ranging from historical and archaeological interpretation to anthropology, conservation, and dissemination. When it was declared a World Heritage site 27 years ago, 753 sites had been documented; today, there are more than double that number. This growth in the number of discovered sites highlights the importance and richness of this heritage, which continues to reveal new details about the thoughts and lives of prehistoric communities.
References
- Domingo, I. (Coord.). (2020). Art primer. Artistes de la prehistòria. Museu d’Arqueologia de Catalunya.
- UNESCO. (1998). Rock art of the Mediterranean Basin on the Iberian Peninsula. UNESCO World Heritage Centre. https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/874/
Historian. Educator at the Verneda Sant Martí Learning Community and member of Tot Història Cultural Association.