What the analysis of a Pyrenean building burned during the Second Punic War reveals

The remains of a large stable burned at the time of the Second Punic War, more than two millennia ago, analyzed in a recent study, show what daily life was like in the Pyrenees mountain range in times of the Iron Age.

An investigation at the Tossal de Baltarga archaeological site, in Bellver de Cerdanya (Lleida Pyrenees), has brought to light the charred remains of a building, called Building G by archaeologists, due to a fire 2,200 years ago, in the Iron Age. The building had two floors and the fire caused the roof, support beams and upper wooden floor to collapse.

The researchers, led by Oriol Olesti, professor at the Department of Antiquity and Medieval Sciences at the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), have found the charred remains of a horse, four sheep and a goat, along with objects of value like an iron picket and a gold earring hidden inside a pot. From what researchers have inferred, the upper floor appeared to have been divided into storage and textile production spaces. Numerous tools have been found that could have been used to spin and weave the wool of the sheep and goats that lived on the ground floor, such as spindles and loom weights. Archaeologists have also found cereals such as oats and barley, and some entire kitchen vessels, with residue showing that people using the building had been consuming milk and cheese and eating pork and lamb stews.

Findings show complex economy

“The discovery has made it possible to reconstruct the economic patterns of these inhabitants, probably dedicated to transhumance,” explains Oriol Olesti. Isotope analysis indicates that some sheep had previously grazed on valley pastures, possibly by agreement with other communities.

“These mountain communities were not confined in the highlands, but connected with neighboring areas, exchanging products and, probably, cultural knowledge,” Olesti points out. The complex economy of these settlers, with livestock, agriculture, forest management and Mining indicates, for Oriol Olesti, “an Iron Age society adapted to its environment and capable of taking advantage of its resources in the highlands, and also shows its contact with other communities.”

The passage of Hannibal’s troops

The destruction of the Tozal de Baltarga, which occupied a strategic position in the Pyrenees, was perhaps related to the passage of Hannibal’s army through this region to fight the Romans during the Second Punic War.

“The chronological precision in archeology to talk about the Punic War is not enough to affirm it with complete certainty,” points out Oriol Olesti, “but we are very clear that it occurred at that moment in history.” “It is likely that the violent destruction of the site is related to this war. The general fire points to an anthropogenic, intentional and very effective destruction, since all the buildings on the site were destroyed. In an adjacent building we also found a burned dog,” adds Olesti.

El Tossal de Baltarga was a place of residence and surveillance point for the Cereta community with an important fortified settlement nearby, the Castellot de Bolvir. It appears to have lacked defensive walls, but had an excellent view of the river and the main travel routes. “These valleys were an economically and strategically important territory,” remarks Olesti Vila. “We know that Hannibal crossed the Pyrenees fighting against the local tribes, probably also against the Ceretans. Not many archaeological remains are preserved from this expedition and the Tozal de Baltarga is probably one of the best examples.”

The archaeological work has allowed us to obtain revealing data about the daily life of the people in the Pyrenees during the time of the Second Punic War. (Photo: UAB. CC BY-NC)

The hidden gold earring

For Olesti Vila everything points to sudden destruction, with no time to open the stable door and save the animals. “This could just be an unexpected local fire. But the presence of a hidden gold earring indicates the local population’s anticipation of some kind of threat, probably the arrival of an enemy. Furthermore, keeping such a large number of animals in a small stable suggests the anticipation of danger.

Archaeologists do not know what happened to those inhabitants of Tossal de Baltarga, but it was finally reoccupied and used by the Romans. A part of the community probably survived the conflagration, and we find them living with the Romans at the site. The most significant element of this new occupation will be an impressive watchtower that remains at the site.

The research has been led by the researcher from the Department of Antiquity and Middle Ages Sciences of the UAB Oriol Olesti. And it has had the participation of researchers from the same department Jordi Morera, Joan Oller and José M. Carrasco, by researchers from the Department of Prehistory of the UAB Anna Berrocal, Oriol López Bultó, Laura Obea, Nadia Tarifa and Joaquim Sisa López de Pablo, the researcher at the Catalan Institute of Classical Archeology (ICAC-CERCA) Lídia Colominas, the researcher at the Milà i Fontanals Institution of the CSIC Marta Portillo, the researcher at the University of Heidelberg Paula Tàrrega, and the researcher at the Catalan Institute of Human Paleoecology and Social Evolution (IPHES-CERCA) Chiara Messana.

The study is titled “The exploitation of mountain natural resources during the Iron Age in the Eastern Pyrenees: the case study of production unit G at Tossal de Baltarga (Bellver de Cerdanya, Lleida, Spain).” And it has been published in the academic journal Frontiers in Environmental Archeology. (Source: UAB)