Restos de Tortuga en Yacimientos Arqueológicos Medievales de la Península Ibérica

Abstract

A synthesis of a review of the data concerning medieval archaeological terrapin findings from the Iberian Peninsula is presented. To update and examine this information a comprehensive literature review was carried out. These results combined with the analysis of specimens from several archaeological sites where terrapin findings were hitherto unpublished are the starting point of this study, offering firsthand systematic identifications and archaeological interpretations. The first-hand study of terrapin bone remains (Mauremys leprosa, Emys orbicularis and Testudinidae) recovered in eighteen sites in the peninsular area has allowed us to review systematic identifications and archaeological interpretations previously published and to propose new ones for remains both previously known and hitherto unpublished. This recent investigation has provided singular taphonomic evidence that confirms terrapin consumption in the Iberian Peninsula during medieval times.