Rare Glass Ornaments from Egypt Found in Spanish Sites Predate Phoenician Colonization

A multidisciplinary study led by researchers from the University of Alicante (UA) and the University of Augsburg (Germany) has discovered that glass ornaments reached the Iberian Peninsula from Central Europe, Egypt, and the Near East during the Bronze Age.

The research, based on the analysis of 17 glass beads recovered from archaeological sites in Alicante and Albacete, sheds light on the complex exchange networks that existed in Prehistoric times.

The research team includes Cinzia Bettineschi, from the University of Augsburg, along with UA professors Virginia Barciela González, Gabriel García Atiénzar, Alberto José Lorrio Alvarado, and Mauro S. Hernández Pérez, emeritus professor at the same university.

egyptian beads spain bronze age — Location of the sites where the ornaments were found. Credit: G. García Atiénzar

Their recently published findings reveal an evolution in glass manufacturing techniques over the centuries, as well as the existence of trade connections much broader than previously believed.

An Evolution in Glass Manufacturing

During the Late Bronze Age (16th–12th centuries BCE), the Iberian Peninsula was predominantly home to glass made with plant ash, a technique typical of Egypt and the Near East since the 2nd millennium BCE. These materials were widely distributed throughout the Mediterranean and Central Europe.

However, beginning in the Final Bronze Age, researchers have documented for the first time in the southeastern Iberian Peninsula glass made with natron, a technology linked to the Egyptian world and the Eastern Mediterranean since the 10th–9th centuries BCE.

According to the authors of the study, these results not only expand our knowledge of glass technology in European Prehistory, but also demonstrate the complexity and dynamism of prehistoric exchange networks. The results open new avenues of research into the origin and circulation of vitreous materials, as well as into the interaction between Iberian Peninsula groups and different cultural groups, they note.

Key Sites: Cabezo Redondo, El Amarejo, and Peña Negra

One of the most significant sites analyzed in this study is the settlement of Cabezo Redondo, in Villena (Alicante), considered one of the most important Late Bronze Age sites in the eastern Iberian Peninsula. There, researchers identified glass beads made with plant ash, some decorated with bands of different colors. The technical sophistication of these pieces reflects a high degree of artisanal specialization and provides evidence of the settlement’s direct connection with coastal areas of the Eastern Mediterranean.

Meanwhile, in the funerary monument of El Amarejo (Albacete), also dated to the Late Bronze Age, a bead made of LMHK vitreous faience was discovered, a technology characteristic of local Central European productions. This finding indicates contacts with workshops in the center of the continent, thereby expanding the commercial exchange map of the time.

One of the most noteworthy discoveries in the study is that of a bead made of Egyptian blue at the Peña Negra site, in Crevillente (Alicante), found in contexts dating to the 10th to 9th centuries BCE. This is the earliest known evidence of this material in the western Mediterranean. Its presence in this context serves as clear proof of the existence of far-reaching trade networks in periods prior to Phoenician colonization.

The study concludes that these findings reinforce the idea that trade networks during the Bronze Age were more extensive and sophisticated than previously thought. In more recent times, starting in the late 8th century BCE, Egyptian blue is documented more frequently, as in the case of objects found at the La Fonteta site in Guardamar del Segura (Alicante), the researchers explain.

In addition, the work highlights the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration in archaeological research, establishing itself as a milestone in archaeometric studies for southern Europe. The results obtained open new questions about the real scope of these trade routes and the cultural influence they may have had on prehistoric societies in the Iberian Peninsula.

SOURCES

Universidad de Alicante

Cinzia Bettineschi, Virginia Barciela González, et al., Early Vitreous Materials from Spain: Chronological and Compositional Variability in the Bronze Age Beads from the Alicante and Albacete Provinces (about 1650–900 cal BCE). Journal of Glass Studies, vol.66 (2024). doi.org/10.3998/jgs.6933