Universitat de Barcelona

Post-Doc, Dpt. Arqueologia, Prehistoria i Historia Antiga

Thesis Title: LA OFRENDA ANIMAL DURANTE EL BRONCE INICIAL EN CAN ROQUETA II (SABADELL, VALLÈS OCCIDENTAL). ARQUEOZOOLOGÍA DEL RITUAL FUNERARIO

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ABSTRACT

The site of Can Roqueta is located in the northeast of the Iberian Peninsula (Vallès Occidental, Barcelona). It has been the object of ongoing archaeological activity since 1990, providing a record of human settlement from the Neolithic to the medieval period.

The research undertaken for this thesis focuses on the use of animals in ritual deposits during the Early Bronze Age (2.000-1.450 cal BC) through an analysis of the faunal remains recovered from the internal structures carved in the clay. The settlement of the Early Bronze Age is composed of small groups of pits and silos, as well as funerary structures.

The objectives of the paper are to contribute to a better understanding of both cultural and economic aspects of life and death in these populations in Catalonia, including subsistence strategies and ritual ceremonies. Furthermore, by comparing the materials analyzed with those from other sites, the research aims to show that animal sacrifice is a universal response to death, with slight differences that probably reflect cultural and social adjustments.

The results of this research show that children, women and men were buried together in a very similar ceremony and accompanied by animals deposited within the same mortuary
structures, as well as in ritual pits nearby. Sheep and goats, cows, pigs and dogs are the best-represented species, although foxes and birds are also documented. While many of these animals were offered as a meal to accompany the deceased on his journey, the dogs, which were not consumed, were probably sacrificed as guides of the soul.

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