Historiography Of The Cave Of The Marbles

Historiography of the Cave of the Marbles

When talking about the historiography of the Cueva de los Marmoles, we have to go back to 1935 and in the case of its exploration, in 1934. It will be the archaeologist Julio Mártinez Santa-Olalla who will grant us the first reference with which we have the cave as a prehistoric site, after having spent that summer making excavations on the site. Mártinez Santa-Olalla concludes that they could be dated in the framedecorative style and other data provided by other objects found there ”.

On the investigation of Martinez Santa-Olalla, we must highlight the fact that it indicates in the publication, and it is that it was not an intensive excavation in which all the necessary data were extracted to be able to date the cave with complete accuracy,If not, it was an affirmation based on the pieces they had collected in the exploration made, but that would also result in certain correct deductions such as defining the cave as “sepulchral and room” in addition to dating it inside the Neolithic, ifWell, the existence of remains belonging to the Upper Paleolithic would not be mentioned due to obvious causes such as their ignorance.

Even so, we owe to Mártinez Santa-Olalla the fact of putting the cave of the marbles in the prehistoric point and for including it in the “great set of Andalusian caves of the advanced Neolithic and beginning of the eneolithic” giving rise to more intensive researchin the future.

After this research phase, the cave will enjoy relative importance within the academic field in the early sixties thanks to the activity of the GEJAM (Youth Speleological and Archaeological GroupFrom Córdoba we have the poet and passionate about the history of Córdoba, Juan Bernier Luque.

As recorded in their own writings, in this exploration they will find “molar remains of cervids and other animals” “a piece of flint, in the form of a scraper, 40 × 44 millimeters, possibly of human industry” “black areas that appear in certainSites, corresponding to carboneous remains ”in addition, in another of the visits made in the cave also informs us about“ pieces of neolithic hoces ”.

The bibliographic material that Bernier gives us is useful and also successful in some aspects such as certain references to the Neolithic and also references to the Paleolithic, more specifically to the Musteriense industry based on the tools found, since it would not be until some time later, with severalmost made excavations, when that dating would be abandoned to replace it with a more recent one.

The 60s and 70s, will be a before and after when talking about the cave of the marbles since although these specific explorations were given, from here there is a stop of the investigation in the fieldacademic, but not in the exploration of the cave.

During these years an intense activity of pillage of the site will take. It will be at this time that a large amount is progressing in relation to human bone remains, thanks to the collaboration and testimonies of some of the individuals in whose hands the expolidated pieces had finished, some of them were finally transferred to the Priego Museum.

Of the bone remains that we know they found themselves in the cave, we only retain those who found “under the stalagmitic bed that exists to the left of the great room” which belong to a “child individual” and two adults, woman and man. The skull of man is climbing, which arouses great interest in the fact that the orifice "is partially calcified" meaning this that this individual survived a process as delicate as a trepanation.

This skull is also remarkable for the fact of presenting brands of having suffered some type of process to dwell them, so it is believed that it could have some kind of purpose that we do not get to know yet, in the Priego museum the possibility is currently mentionedthat this was done with some type of ritual purpose, but we do not know for sure.

As we have already said, during these decades the existence of discovered bone remains will also be known before those who preserve. Specifically, they are found in "The Hall of the Niches" and also presented climbing, but were confused by bullet holes, thus believing the plunders, according to the testimonies available, which were killed during the Civil War andtherefore discarding them.

Because these remains were hidden "behind a small dry stone wall that closed access to the lowest part of the room" and also becauseThey found, it has theorized that it was a secondary burial of prehistoric era.

With the 1970s, the Cave of the Marmles will experience a new rebound in the academic field, again enjoying Luis Antonio López Palomo, which will study a lot of 115 pieces belonging to two individuals ofLucena which have been done with them not too clear, although in the publication of López Palomo it is mentioned that they have been acquired through "superficial collection" and through "acquisition".

The pieces presented constitute the total in relation to prehistory that these two individuals had, but the fact that these pieces were mixed with others of medieval dating that will be left out, is like López Palomo himself indicates in his publication: “Evident proof of visits and rupture of strata centuries ago ”.

Based on this we have to take into account that the stratigraphic sequence of some areas of the marble cave has been altered by the plunders, but luckily, as López Palomo indicates in most cases it is an alteration ofsuperficial character and not an intensive excavation that could completely ruin some sections of the deposit. That is, subsequent excavations can still find “strata in situ.

Among the pieces found, mainly the ceramics of different types and uses stand out, but mostly decorated or colorful to the not trained eye, since we must remember that it was ex -plates who collected these pieces, with different types of decorations and diverse functions, giving themselves"Cups, pots and casseroles". It would also be necessary to mention the multiple Siléx (Búriles, Small Knife) toolclear wear by use, that is, implying that they were not created with the intention of being used but as "symbols of social dignity and stratification".

The main problem that López Palomo finds when having to date the pieces of these lots is obvious and has been repeated multiple times throughout this text, do not have a chronological dating based on stratigraphy to be able to frame them within a period within a periodof concrete time. But based on the parallels between the pieces obtained from the Cave of the Marble and others found in different caves, but focusing on comparing the ceramics with those of the Granada Cave of "La Cariguela" based on this, dating some of the piecesthat appear in an "middle neolithic" but also recognizing that some of the existing pieces could have a subsequent dating.

Finally, in relation to historiography, it is very importantBetween 1982 and 1987 and will give us a more complete and never seen perspective, since we will have a stratigraphic sequence for the first time that throws more light on the dating we could give to the cave.

María Dolores Asquerino dates this sequence and the “Neolithic in its medium and final phases, with typical elements of the period with others that we could consider a novelty” in addition to also highlighting the uniqueness of some pieces found within the Andalusian sets.

In addition to this neolithic dating, there are also "indications corresponding to the age of copper" something that had also theorized in the previous interventions that had been made in the cave.

In this series of excavations that were made between 82 and 86 in addition to the stratigraphic series, “a conditioning structure (‘Cabaña’) will be documented with two occupation soils, posts and cereal storage pit” which confirms the theoriesalready proposed previously for the cave to be a room place.

The economic activities of the human groups that inhabit the cave are also documented, remains of cereals, berries and seeds, as well as remains of both domestic and wild animals, in addition to microfauna remains.

Finally, Asquerino will also emphasize the remains belonging to the Pleistocene dating in a first time these within the middle paleolithic, something that will change years later for a more recent dating (upper paleolithic) and considering the cave of the marbles as a place of great greatInterest for prehistoric research since “it is the only cavity in the region that offers a stratigraphic pleistocene/holocene succession in very specific phases, exception made, perhaps, of the caves of Nerja and Caríhuela.

It is necessary to mention that at the same time that María Dolores Asquerino developed her investigations in the cave, another line of research arises by Beatriz Gavilan Ceballos that focuses on Priego’s prehistory in a general way, but within this it will be specified inThe Neolithic.

Thanks to your investigations we know more about the occupation during the Neolithic of the Cave of the Marbles, being able to say that it is "one of the most important deposits in the sector"

The study of the materials also allows us to talk about the production economy that the cave had, finding remains of different types of cereal as well as remains of domestication animals and wild animals, which added to the fertile terrain provided by the environment ofThe cave, make suitable conditions for a Neolithic community to develop here-

In addition, it also brings more light on the pieces found in the cave and that do not belong to the Neolithic, both previous (bone pieces with which it establishes similarities with others of the upper Paleolithic) and posterior (copper age and beginning of the age of the bronze).