The history of human settlement in the valleys of the Pyrenees and Pre-Pyrenees has always been closely tied to climate changes over time. The changing nature of the climate in this region, with extremely cold periods followed by milder ones, has decisively influenced the permanence and abandonment of human settlements. During Prehistory, these valleys experienced […]
Catalonia
Posted inStone Age Archaeology
Abric Pizarro archaeological site in Spain reveals “surprising” behavior of Neanderthals
The archaeological site of Abric Pizarro in Lleida, Spain, has revealed surprising information about Neanderthal behavior, challenging our previous understanding of these ancient humans. Located in the foothills of the southern Pyrenees, this unexplored area is shedding light on a little-known period of Neanderthal history and may help solve the mystery of their eventual disappearance. […]
Posted inClassical Archaeology
A Cave in the Pyrenees was Used as a Refuge During the Fall of the Western Roman Empire
Archaeologists from the High Mountain Archaeology Group (GAAM), composed of researchers from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) and the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), who are excavating in the Dead Man’s Cave (Cova de l’Home Mort) in the town of Soriguera, Pallars Sobirà county in the north of the province of Lleida in the […]
Posted inArt, History
The Impregnable Fortress of Vilars d’Arbeca, Built in the Iron Age with 5-Meter Thick Walls
The Fortress of Vilars d’Arbeca is a unique archaeological site in Iberian and European protohistory due to its impressive defensive features, which was discovered in 1975. Located in an alluvial plain about 4 kilometers from the town of Arbeca in the Catalan province of Lleida (Spain), the fortress was founded around 775 B.C., during the […]
Posted inAncient Rome, Art
The Mausoleum of Centcelles in Tarragona (Spain) Houses the Oldest Dome with Mosaics from Roman Times
Located just 7 kilometers from the city of Tarragona in Catalonia, stands the majestic Villa-mausoleum of Centcelles, an exceptional Roman monument that houses the oldest mosaics of early Christian art in the Iberian Peninsula, dating back to the 4th century AD, as well as the oldest Roman dome with preserved mosaics. For centuries during the […]