Autonomous but not isolated: A petrographic study of Iron Age ceramics from a ‘deep-rural’ community in Asturias (NW Iberia)

Abstract

This article discusses a petrographic study of Late Iron Age (400–19 BCE) ceramics from El Castru in Vigaña (Asturias, NW Spain), providing evidence, for the first time in this region and time period, for the circulation of ceramics across NW Iberia. This preliminary study comprises the petrographic analysis of 40 pottery sherds and nine geological samples in order to discuss the mineralogical composition of the ceramic fabrics. The results point to a non-local origin of most samples, providing the basis of a re-examination of traditional views on the self-sufficiency and isolation of Iron Age communities in Asturias during the Late Iron Age.