Orígenes del urbanismo y dinámicas sociales en el Bronce Final de Cataluña meridional: El Avenc del Primo (Bellmunt del Priorat, Tarragona)

Abstract

The settlement of Avenc del Primo (Bellmunt del Priorat, Tarragona), at which we have carried out two brief excavation campaigns, is currently the earliest example (10th-9th century BCE) of town planning in southern Catalonia. Among the archaeological finds, a fragment of local copper ore is particularly interesting, as it indicates that the settlement's inhabitants may already have been exploiting the veins of the important Molar-Bellmunt-Falset mining area. Previously, the first evidence of town planning in southern Catalonia had been dated to the 7th century BCE and considered a consequence of contacts with Phoenicians. However, the results we present here suggest an earlier origin related to the internal dynamics of the Late Bronze Age communities.