Zooarqueología del III Milenio A.N.E.: El barrio metalúrgico de Valencina de la Concepción (Sevilla)

Abstract

In this paper we are presenting the zooarchaeological study of the faunal assemblage from the smelting quarter of Valencina de la Concepción (Seville); a political centre found within the intersettlement hierarchical framework (core/periphery relationships) of the Guadalquivir Valley around the Third millennium BCE. These faunal remains were analyzed with the aim of establishing the diet, animal exploitation patterns and social relations through taxonomic identification and classification, the calculation of the relative abundance and the division of animal bones in anatomical regions. Furthermore, the analysis was focused on recognizing the various phenomena that interacted and affected the whole bone (taphonomic processes). The summary of the analysis showed a pattern of behaviour characterized by the exploitation of adult domesticated animals, a high presence of bones with food utility (%MAU, observed/expected values and chi-square test or X2), a pattern of fragmentation due to post-depositional processes and, finally, alterations on the bone surfaces that reflect both human/animal action and abiotic agents on the faunal record.