Into the circle. Animal and human deposits in a new Upper Guadalquivir site from the beginning of the 3rd millennium Cal BC (Grañena Baja, Jaén)

Abstract

In 2014 due to the projected layout of the Madrid – Jaén high-speed railway line, a preventive archaeological intervention was carried out on a hill near the Guadalbullón riverbed within the farmland of Grañena Baja (Jaén). During the work, a multi-sequential Late Prehistory occupation, starting from the mid-5th millennium and reaching the end of the 3rd millennium, was documented. The phase corresponding to the last quarter of the 4th and the beginning of the 3rd millennium Cal BC stands out for the presence of circular features containing complete or partial human and domestic animal skeletal remains, in some cases, clearly related. The isotopic values of human collagen are relatively homogeneous (?15N = 9.0 ± 0.6; ?13C = -18.9 ± 0.4) and consistent with a diet based on proteins of animal origin.