New light on the warrior stelae from Tartessos (Spain).

New light on the warrior stelae from Tartessos (Spain). Introduction We owe the name Tartessos to Graeco-Roman tradition (cf. Herodotus4.152 ff. and 1.163, 165, Ephoros GGM GGM Great-GrandmotherGGM Glucose/Galactose MalabsorptionGGM Gravity and Granular MaterialsGGM Gravity Gradient ModeGGM Gravity Gradiometer Mission (NASA)1. P. 201, Avienus Ora Maritima,etc.), and much scholarship has been dedicated to sorting out myth fromhistory and re-defining what was intended by the name through thecritical reading of the ancient sources and the increasingarchaeological evidence. Today we understand Tartessos as an indigenousculture that developed in the south-west of the Iberian Peninsula Iberian Peninsula,c.230,400 sq mi (596,740 sq km), SW Europe, separated from the rest of Europe by the Pyrenees. Comprising Spain and Portugal, it is washed on the N and W by the Atlantic Ocean and on the S and E by the Mediterranean Sea; the Strait of Gibraltar (modern Spain and Portugal), expanding from an original nucleus in thelower Gaudalquivir (today's south-west Andalucia) (see Figure 1).The flourishing of this culture has long been associated with the impactof Phoenician colonisation during the eighth to sixth centuries BC, withclear signs of crisis and decline in the fifth century BC. The term'orientalising', applied to this short period, refers to thecultural impact produced by the contact between the Levantine Le��vant?1?The countries bordering on the eastern Mediterranean Sea from Turkey to Egypt.Le peoplesand the European societies of the Mediterranean realm. [FIGURE 1 OMITTED] Some of the most tangible transformations in Tartessic culture dueto this process were the beginning of proto-urbanism and theintroduction of the wheel in pottery manufacture. In fact, the generalstrategy of investigation nowadays is to consider Tartessos as a tradingcommunity composed of a number of proto-urban settlements, with aneconomic focus on maritime trade built upon agricultural and mineralexploitation of the hinterland. The phenomenon of the so-called warrior stelae of the south-west ofthe Iberian Peninsula, around the ninth to eighth centuries BC, hasbecome a key element in understanding the social complexity of theindigenous populations associated with the site of Tartessos. Newopportunities for studying the nature of the contact with the easternMediterranean have arisen from the discovery of a monumental stela in1997 dating to the eighth century BC at the excavations of Beth-Saida,on the north-east coast of the Sea of Galilee Galilee(găl`ĭlē), region, N Israel, roughly the portion north of the plain of Esdraelon. Galilee was the chief scene of the ministry of Jesus. (Israel) (Barnett &Keel 1998; Arav & Freund 1998; Ornan 2001) (cf. Figure 6). Thepurpose of this paper is to review the images, symbols and artefactsthat belong, as we shall see, to both cultural spheres, and to study thecultural dialogue that they imply. [FIGURE 6 OMITTED] The slabs and stelae of Tartessos The Tartessic stelae originated in the Tagus valley in the LateBronze period and reached their maximum geographic expansion andcomplexity at the beginning of the orientalising period (Barcelo 1989;Galan 1993; Celestino 2001a). There are two main classes of monument:the so-called slabs (of basic stelae) and the stelae proper. The slabsare characterised by the invariable in��var��i��a��ble?adj.Not changing or subject to change; constant.in��vari��a��bil presence of a shield, a spear and asword, and always present the same arrangement with the shield at thecentre of the composition and the spear and the sword lying horizontallyabove and below the shield, respectively (Figure 2). The slabs reserve ablank space Noun 1. blank space - a blank area; "write your name in the space provided"space, placesurface area, expanse, area - the extent of a 2-dimensional surface enclosed within a boundary; "the area of a rectangle"; "it was about 500 square feet in area" with no decoration on the upper and lower parts, and areusually 1.70m long, which has prompted the hypothesis that they would beused to cover inhumation cists. The distribution of the slabs is limitedto the Tagus valley, but over time they apparently spread slowly towardsthe Guadiana valley. New objects of prestige and weapons of Atlanticorigin were then added to the graphic repertoire, such as carp'stongue swords or conical helmets (cf. Figure 3). As the slabs startedappearing also in the south, they incorporated new elements of clearMediterranean origin, such as the first chariots, mirrors, ivory combsand pins, or fibulae, but they maintained the same form of monument andthe basic arrangement of the images engraved on it. This developmentprobably belonged to the stage previous to the Phoenician colonisation.During this stage, loosely called 'pre-colonisation', therewere more or less regular contacts with the Levantine peoples, but thesocial system of the indigenous groups was not essentially altered(Almagro-Gorbea 1998; Celestino 1998, 2001a; Moreno 1999). [FIGURES 2-3 OMITTED] We can start talking about 'stelae proper' in exampleswhere the lower end of the stone is left undecorated and narrowed inorder to be fixed in the floor. These stelae are found in the Guadianaand Guadalquivir valleys (that is, more to the south-west). This newform coincides, very significantly, with the introduction of theanthropomorphic Having the characteristics of a human being. For example, an anthropomorphic robot has a head, arms and legs. element in the composition, while the shield, spear,sword and other Mediterranean prestige and luxury goods that accompanythe deceased are relegated to a secondary place. Some of these aretwo-wheeled chariots, musical instruments such as lyres or crotaloi, aspecial type of fibula fibula(fĭb`yələ): see leg. called 'elbow-type' because of itsmarked angular shape Noun 1. angular shape - a shape having one or more sharp anglesangularityshape, form - the spatial arrangement of something as distinct from its substance; "geometry is the mathematical science of shape" and, very important for our argument, helmets withhorns. These helmets definitively replace the older conic helmets ofAtLantic type (see Figures 4 and 5 for two stelae with horned helmets,and Figure 3 for the evolution of the helmets). [FIGURES 4-5 OMITTED] It is generally believed that this substantial change not only inthe shape of the stelae but also in the rich decoration that they by nowincorporated, clearly associated with social prestige, was simultaneouswith the introduction of cremation cremation,disposal of a corpse by fire. It is an ancient and widespread practice, second only to burial. It has been found among the chiefdoms of the Pacific Northwest, among Northern Athapascan bands in Alaska, and among Canadian cultural groups. burials. This funerary fu��ner��ar��y?adj.Of or suitable for a funeral or burial.[Latin fner ritual,already extensive in the Mediterranean basin The Mediterranean Basin refers to the lands around and surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea. In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin refers to the lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have a Mediterranean climate, with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers, which , appeared only at this timein the Iberian Peninsula. It was probably first applied to the mostprestigious burials and must have coexisted with the inhumation systemfor some generations. Furthermore, the fact that all the warrior stelaepresent a Fairly homogeneous iconography leads us to think that they hadreached some degree of systematisation Noun 1. systematisation - systematic organization; the act of organizing something according to a system or a rationalesystematization, rationalisation, rationalization as to their symbolic meaning,perhaps indicating that the represented men were deified de��i��fy?tr.v. dei��fied, dei��fy��ing, dei��fies1. To make a god of; raise to the condition of a god.2. To worship or revere as a god: deify a leader.3. or at leastgiven the status of heroes. Taking into account the area in which the latest warrior stelaeappear, along the lower Guadalquivir valley, and also the elementsrepresented in them, they can be dated without much difficulty to theninth and eighth centuries BC, coinciding with the settlement ofPhoenician colonists in this area of the Iberian Peninsula. Thesewarriors were not only the first elite members to receive exoticproducts and adopt new technologies from the Levant Levant(ləvănt`)[Ital.,=east], collective name for the countries of the eastern shore of the Mediterranean from Egypt to, and including, Turkey. , but they would alsohave assimilated and spread out the new funerary ritual, which stillcoexisted with older traditions (Torres 1999). Beth-Saida and other parallels: iconography and interpretation At the other end of the Mediterranean basin, the stela found atBeth-Saida (Figure 6) has become the first monument of its kind to befound in a reliable archaeological context In archaeology, not only the context (physical location) of a discovery is a significant fact, but the formation of the context is as well. An archaeological context is an event in time which has been preserved in the archaeological record. . This factor allowed itsdiscoverers to date it with some certainty, to the second half of theeighth century BC. The broken stela was found near the foot of a'high place' (cultic spot) beside one of the monumental gatesof Beth-Saida. Carved on local basalt basalt(bəsôlt`, băs`ôlt), fine-grained rock of volcanic origin, dark gray, dark green, brown, reddish, or black in color. Basalt is an igneous rock, i.e., one that has congealed from a molten state. stone, the Beth-Saida stela bearsa very schematic anthropomorphic relief with a bull's head. Itshorns, with conspicuous ears at their base, make an almost completecircle, while two symmetrical arches represent the arms and legs, andthe body takes the form of a straight pillar. A sword crosses the polediagonally from right to left. It has a wide blade and a seemingly solidcurved handle. Finally, a rosette RosetteD’Albert’s pliable, versatile, talented, acknowledged bedmate. [Fr. Lit.: Mademoiselle de Maupin. Magill I, 542–543]See : Courtesanship(language) Rosette - A concurrent object-oriented language from MCC. composed of four small spheres wasadded between the left arm and the sword blade the blade, or cutting part, of a sword.See also: Sword . In the same context,according to according toprep.1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians.2. In keeping with: according to instructions.3. the discoverers, other cultic objects were found, such asincense burners, a basin used for libations and three other non-iconicstelae (Barnett & Keel 1998). Only three stelae similar to the one at Beth-Saida were previouslyknown. The first is in the Turkish Museum of Gaziantepe, close to theSyrian border, in the region of Harran, north of Aleppo (see map inFigure 7 and stela in Figure 8). Its archaeological context and exactprovenance, however, are unknown (Krebernik & Seidl 1997: 106).Despite the absence of a sword, the representation is almost identicalto that of Beth-Saida, especially the bull's head topped by themassive horns of circular shape and the rosette tinder the left arm ofthe figure. The other two stelae are also very similar and practicallyidentical to one another (Figure 9). They were found in the south ofSyria, in the region of the Hauran, east of the Sea of Galilee. Thefirst stela was reused as part of a Roman funerary structure of thesecond century AD, while the second one appeared during modernconstruction works (Krebenik & Seidl 1997: 107, 108). [FIGURES 7-9 OMITTED] All four stelae share a common iconography, namely, ananthropomorphic pillar, long circular horns with conspicuous ears, asword at the waist (in three of them) and a four-petalled rosette underthe left arm. Besides this, the two Damascus Museum stelae present anadditional rosette of eight petals in the circular space produced by thehorns. The three previously known stelae were dated to the eighth toseventh centuries BC, based on iconographic criteria and comparison withsimilar motifs in other monuments, mainly with the Assyrian stela ofAdad-Nirari III which came from the heart of Assyria and dated between810 BC and 783 BC (Tadmor 1973; Krebernik & Seidl 1997: 109). Thesemotifs (the pole topped with a bull's head, the rosette, etc.) alsoappear on some bronze objects of unknown provenance in the Museum ofDamascus (Seyrig 1959: 43-8, pl. VIII-X; Krebernik & Seidl 1997:106-7) (Figure 10) and on a stamp seal The Stamp seal and the Cylinder seal are stone type seals, first made in the Fourth Millennium and probably earlier. They were made of a hard material (stone), and used to "impress" their "markings" (picture, inscription, etc.) into typically soft, prepared clay. of unknown provenance dated tothe eighth to seventh centuries BC now in the Israel Museum (Figure 11).The recent appearance of the stela from Beth-Saida now provides us witha more solid point of reference for the dating of these three otherSyro-Palestinian stelae (Ornan 2001; Barnett & Keel 1998). [FIGURES 10-11 OMITTED] The interpretation of the origin and meaning of these symbols (thepole with a bull's head or with a crescent symbol, the rosette),which seem to emerge at some point in the Fertile Crescent Fertile Crescent,historic region of the Middle East. A well-watered and fertile area, it arcs across the northern part of the Syrian desert. It is flanked on the west by the Mediterranean and on the east by the Euphrates and Tigris rivers, and includes all or parts , is certainlycomplicated. The lunar god of fertility, Sin, appears to be connected tothe figure of the bull (in turn a symbol of fertility) from the thirdmillennium BC in Mesopotamia (Ornan 2001: 2-3). On the other hand, thebull as a representative of the storm god Baal/Haddad is especiallycharacteristic of the Syro-Palestinian region, at least since the secondmillennium BC. In fact, the association of the two divinities might haveworked in both directions (Ornan 2001: 20). In any event, given thebroad geographic context of the stelae in Syria-Palestine and theWest-Semitic character of the bull as a storm god, it seems reasonableto interpret these figures as representations of the storm god withadditional lunar attributes, associated with the horns in crescentshape. The rosettes, in turn, belong to a feminine realm associated withthe fertility goddess The fertility goddesses are the female deities to watch over and promote fertility, pregnancy, and birth in many polytheistic cultures. In some cases these deities were directly associated with sex, and in others they simply embodied related attributes. Ashtarte, whose relationship with the West-Semiticstorm god is often represented in objects around the eighth century BCand coming from Syro-Palestinian contexts (cf. Figures 10 and 11). However this symbolism might have worked, we are confronted withthe representation of a creature or a divinity with bull head andwarrior attributes, carved on stelae of very similar types anddistributed through the realm of the Aramaic kingdoms with apredominantly West-Semitic population. In the case of Beth-Saida, we canadd with some degree of certainty that the stela was associated withreligious activities. Finally, we should recall that the practice ofsetting up stelae and their association with the primordial deities isdeeply rooted among the north-west Semitic peoples, from the Canaanitesof Ugarit to the Hebrews and the Phoenicians in the Iron Age and later.The most conspicuous examples are the well-attested mazzebot or standingstones standing stones:see megalithic monuments. in Israel, which are betyls or cultic stones related to fertilityand ancestry (Avner 2001: 39-41). The extended use of stelae in thePhoenician tophet or children's graveyards dedicated to the goddessTanit also belongs to this tradition (Moscati 1989: 91-2). Discussion It is precisely this trend of Phoenician tradition which interestsus, for the so-called Phoenicians, understood as comprising variouspeoples from the Syro-Palestinian region (Lebanon, Syria, Cilicia),extended their commercial routes throughout the Mediterranean at leastfrom the end of the ninth century BC (Baurin & Bonnet 1992; Aubet1993; Bartoloni 1990; Niemeyer 1995), transmitting their culture and newtechnologies and provoking deep transformations in the societies theycame into contact with. The Iberian Peninsula was one of these areas,previously relatively isolated from the Levantine world until it becamepart of the route of the first explorers and colonists. The warriorstelae from the area of Tartessos in south-west Spain have long beenconsidered unique witnesses of these relationships. It is particularlyinteresting in this context that they show certain analogies with theLevantine stelae recently brought to the attention of the scholarlycommunity. If we focus on the chronologically latest stelae found around theGuadiana and Guadalquivir valleys, we see that these monuments underwenta transformation, which drew them closer to the Near Eastern stelaepresented here, not only in terms of iconography but also ofchronological range. Furthermore, there is an association of both groupsof stelae with sacred and, perhaps, funerary realms. While two of theSyro-Palestinian stelae lack archaeological context, the one atBeth-Saida was unearthed Unearthed is the name of a Triple J project to find and "dig up" (hence the name) hidden talent in regional Australia.Unearthed has had three incarnations - they first visited each region of Australia where Triple J had a transmitter - 41 regions in all. in what seemed to be a sacred precinct, and theone from Hauran was reused in a Roman funerary monument, which mightindicate a certain continuity in the meaning and use of this type ofstela in later periods. Many of the Tartessic stelae also appear reused,some of them in Roman times, with inscriptions often added to them inorder to signal the grave. This is the case of the stelae of Ibahernando(Celestino 2001a: 342) or Chillon (Fernandez Ochoa & Zarzalejos1994). In turn, the connection of the Tartessic stelae with the funeraryworld seems to be quite evident, without denying other possibleinterpretations of their function (Ruiz-Galvez & Galan 1991; Galan1993). New findings such as the stela from Setefilla (Aubet 1997) andrecent studies of the forms, iconography and dispersion of thedocumented cases support this interpretation (Celestino 2001a). In this sense, the finding of other stones shaped like stelae butlacking decoration near the famous stela from Beth-Saida is significant,since this pattern is also noted in the Tartessic stelae. The latter areoften grouped in reduced spaces, as is the case in sites such as Cabezadel Buey, Zarza Capilla, Ecija, El Viso El Viso is a city located in the province of C��rdoba, Spain. According to the 2006 census (INE), the city has a population of 2849 inhabitants. External linksEl Viso - Sistema de Informaci��n Multiterritorial de Andaluc��a or Torrejon el Rubio El Rubio is a city located in the province of Seville, Spain. According to the 2005 census (INE), the city has a population of 3584 inhabitants. External linksEl Rubio - Sistema de Informaci��n Multiterritorial de Andaluc��a . In some ofthese sites undecorated stones with the same shape as the stelae havebeen found, in areas where this type of stone cannot be obtained locally(e.g. Cabeza del Buey and El Viso). This suggests that the stelae workedas a highly valued method of signalling tombs or places of some funerarysignificance (e.g. as cenotaphs). It is the case also in Near Easternand Mediterranean archaeology in general that particular stelae withspecial symbolism appear surrounded by other simple stelae, which eithermark less important burials or are used to enclose the sacred precinct.The stelae found in the Negev desert Noun 1. Negev Desert - a desert in southern IsraelNegevIsrael, State of Israel, Yisrael, Zion, Sion - Jewish republic in southwestern Asia at eastern end of Mediterranean; formerly part of Palestine (Israel), for instance, dated tothe end of the Neolithic period Neolithic periodor New Stone Age.The term neolithic is used, especially in archaeology and anthropology, to designate a stage of cultural evolution or technological development characterized by the use of stone tools, the existence of , are grouped following differentpatterns and have both funerary and ancestors' cult function (Avner2001). More importantly, we have to consider the iconographictransformation that the stelae underwent during the orientalisingperiod. It is then that they incorporated Mediterranean elements of thewarrior's panoply pan��o��ply?n. pl. pan��o��plies1. A splendid or striking array: a panoply of colorful flags.See Synonyms at display.2. , and the represented scenes show a clearassimilation to the funerary rituals that characterised other areas ofthe Mediterranean world. We can see this in the stela from Ategua(Bendala 1977: 191) (Figure 12) and Zarza Capilla III (Celestino 2001a:383). The assimilation of a Mediterranean religious iconography, alwaysadapted to the preexisting indigenous beliefs, can also be traced atdifferent levels in the archaeological record The archaeological record is a term used in archaeology to denote all archaeological evidence, including the physical remains of past human activities which archaeologists seek out and record in an attempt to analyze and reconstruct the past. . Perhaps the most obviousevidence of this has survived in jewellery, where we haverepresentations of trees of life, lotus flowers, crescent moons,rosettes, etc., which sometimes also appear as decorative motifs in thelocal pottery (Belen & Escacena 1998). The stelae themselves,therefore, provide us with important clues to understanding this change,no doubt only a hint of the deeper ideological and religioustransformations that must have taken place in the period of Phoeniciancolonisation. Last but not least, the war-like aspect of these stelae is constantfrom the beginning to the end of their development. However, as we havepointed out, the weapons and plainly war-like aspect of the stelae giveway to a progressively greater importance of the prestige objects andfunerary scenes. The horned helmet European Iron Age helmets with horns are known from a few depictions, and even fewer actual finds. They were probably used for religious ceremonial or ritual purposes.An early find dating to ca. appears in the Tartessic stelae atthis last stage, precisely at the same time that the warrior-bull of theSyro-Palestinian stelae is portrayed at the other end of theMediterranean basin. The assimilation of the symbol of the warrior attired as a bull inthe Tartessic stelae can be associated with the broad presence of thebull image in Mediterranean cultures of the time. A very importantexample is that of the so-called Cypriot ingots, also known as'ox-hide ingots', due to their shape imitating an extendedbull skin. These pieces have been widely found in the Iberian Peninsula,invariably in��var��i��a��ble?adj.Not changing or subject to change; constant.in��vari��a��bil associated with cultic spaces, either funerary or ritual(Celestino 1994; Maier 2003). Numerous such copper ingots are well knownfrom the fifteenth century BC in the Central and Eastern Mediterranean,especially in Sardinia, Sicily and Cyprus, as well as in the Egyptianand Syro-Palestinian cultures (Lagarce & Lagarce 1997). Their shapeis usually explained as a consequence of the use of the bull or ox skinas exchange currency in the Late Bronze Age Bronze Age,period in the development of technology when metals were first used regularly in the manufacture of tools and weapons. Pure copper and bronze, an alloy of copper and tin, were used indiscriminately at first; this early period is sometimes called the , which prompted theirassociation with human and divine power. Their symbolic importance thenspread throughout the Mediterranean basin. It is worth mentioning here astatue known as the 'god of the ingot', found at the sanctuaryof Enkomi (Cyprus) and dated to the twelfth century BC (Schaeffer 1965).The statue, only 35cm high, undoubtedly represents the Smiting God, theweather god of the north-west Semites, represented as a warrior wearinga short skirt (in an Egyptian style) carrying a spear, a shield and ahorned helmet, and standing on an ox hide. It is not by chance that inthe same building a number of bull skulls with their horns were found(Courtois 1971). The sacred importance of the bull can be noted in many othermanifestations. For instance, the main animal sacrificed to thenorth-west Semitic weather god Baal Haddad was the bull. In the sameway, bulls were also the highest items of sacrifice for the Israelitegod Yahweh (cr. Bible, 1 Kings 18: 2-35; Maier 2003: 97). Theseassociations of the bull and the storm god reached the main pantheons ofthe Mediterranean; in the Graeco-Roman world the figure of Zeus-Jupiteradopted the same storm attributes as Baal, and myth represents Zeustaking the shape of a bull in order to kidnap the Phoenician princessEuropa and carry her away to Crete. Returning to ancient Iberia, and despite the generalised gap in therecord of the ox-hide ingots or their representations between thetwelfth and the seventh centuries BC, this type of orientalMediterranean motif seems to have had a clear impact on the iconographythat appears in the Iberian Peninsula precisely during the orientalisingperiod. It is precisely then that the horned-warrior stelae startappearing, and the symbols associated with the bull spread widelythroughout the Tartessic world. Some examples are the gold pectoralsfrom El Carambolo, the treasure of Ebora or the ivory box of La Joya(Celestino 1994). Most significant in this sense is a specific type ofaltar with the shape of a bull skin that appears also in the Tartessicarea, such as the seventh century BC altar at Caura's sanctuary III(Coria co��ri��a?n.Plural of corium. del Rio, Seville) dedicated to Baal Saphon (Escacena &Izquierdo 2001: 13), or the one unearthed in the sanctuary of CanchoRoano B, dated to the end of the sixth century BC (Celestino 2001b: 30)(see Figure 13). The continuity of these altars of extended bull-hideshape is well represented in the later Iberian culture, where they areidentifiable in royal tombs, such as Pozo Moro (Almagro-Gorbea 1983:185) and in necropolises such as Los Villares (Albacete) (Blanquez Perez1992: 255) or Castillejos de Banos (Murcia) (Garcia Cano 1992:321).Altars of this type have appeared in other areas of the IberianPeninsula in similar contexts as the Tartessic ones (Abad & Sala1997: 95; G.I.P. 2005; Ortega Blanco & del Valle Gutierrez 2004). Moreover, what might have been the model for this kind of altar inthe Iberian Peninsula has been recently unearthed in the central spaceof the El Carambolo sanctuary in Seville. This was the first centre where permanent oriental presence can bedetected at the core of Tartessic civilisation. The discovery of a large'ox-hide altar' in one of the chapels of the sanctuary seemsto be the key to understanding the diffusion of this religious symbolduring the orientalising period and its persistence in Iberian societyuntil at least the fifth century BC (Fernandez Flores & RodriguezAzogue 2005). Conclusion The importance of the bull in Tartessic and Iberian religion isunquestionable (Delgado 1996), and must have been a critical factor inthe adaptation of representations of Baal (and of his consort Ashtarte,goddess of fertility, also well represented in the Tartessic realm) bythe indigenous groups. Also very important in relation to the stelae isthe warrior character of Baal and the assimilation of those features inthe central and western Mediterranean, as is well represented by theCypriot god and the Sardinian warriors wearing horned helmets, andcarrying shields and spears in a very similar fashion to the warriors ofthe Tartessic stelae. The successful introduction of a god such as Baal into theseregions was no doubt instigated by the first Levantine merchantslaunching commercial activity in these areas and slowly settling down inthem as Phoenician colonisation advanced and fosteredindigenous--oriental interaction. Whether the bull-warrior of theTartessic stelae represents a god (Baal or a similar indigenous god) ora Tartessic hero or chief in the mode of the first Greek Geometricfunerary representations (cr. especially Ategua stela and Dipylon vases)is difficult to say. The precise function and meaning of both groups ofstelae, the Syro-Palestinian and the Tartessic, are still not totallycertain. But it is clear that the first warrior stelae present only theweapons and conical helmets. It is only as the first colonial encounterswith the Phoenicians took place, that the anthropomorphic figures startto appear, surrounded by his weapons and attired with horned helmets (orbull heads?). The assimilation of the warrior-bull motif must have beenadapted to the pre-existing use and meaning of the same objects andtheir decoration in the indigenous culture. These traditions wereenriched and only partially transformed by the vibrant relationshipswith the oriental peoples at a particular time period. At the same time,this assimilation was made easier by a certain degree of shared culturalfeatures and perhaps beliefs throughout the Mediterranean basin, such asthe importance of the bull in relation to aspects of human, natural anddivine power. A case such as this, where imposition or borrowing does not seem toaccount for the evidence, suggests that the transformation of theiconography in the Tartessic stelae might have been the product of alonger and more balanced exchange. In this model, the necessary degreeof integration had already taken place between permanent settlers ofLevantine background (e.g. those familiar with the bull-warrior godrepresented in the Syro-Palestinian stelae) and local populations (e.g.those familiar with the long indigenous tradition of setting up stelaeand decorating them with warrior-like motifs). The active participationof both communities is, in our view, the key to understanding themonuments and the process of cultural change in this region. Thisimplies a very different picture from the generally passive andreceptive role often ascribed to the native and more primitivepopulations in colonial studies. Acknowledgements Preliminary versions of this work were presented at the 'VIICongreso Internacional de Estelas Funerarias', sponsored by theFundacion Marcelino Botin, in Santander (Spain), October 2002 (publishedin Celestino & Lopez-Ruiz 2004), and at the 'Ancient SocietiesWorkshop' of the University of Chicago in November 2003. We wouldlike to thank the audience in both meetings for their enthusiasm anduseful feedback. Special thanks go to Leslie Warden for her help withthe English version and to Christopher Faraone, Margarita Diaz-Andreuand Fernando Lozano for their important suggestions on this work. Allmistakes and flaws are of course only ours. Received: 22 November 2004; Accepted: 9 May 2005; Revised: 18 May2005 References ABAD, L. & F. SALA. 1997. Sobre el posible uso cultico dealgunos edificios de la Contestania iberica. Espacios y lugarescultuales en el mundo iberrico. Quaderns de Prehistoria y Arqueologia deCastello 18: 91-102. ALMAGRO-GORBEA, M. 1983. 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Actas del VII Congreso Internacional de Estelas Funerarias(2 vols), vol I: 95-108. Santander: Fundacion Marcelino Botin. COURTOIS, J.C. 1971. Le sanctuaire du dieu au lingotd'Enkomi-Alasia, in C.F.-A. Schaeffer (ed.) Alasia I: 151-362.Paris: Lib. Klincksiek. DELGADO, C. 1996. El toro en el Mediterraneo. Analisis de supresencia y significado en las grandes culturas del mundo antiguo.Madrid: Universidad Autonoma de Madrid. ESCACENA, J.L. & R. IZQUIERDO. 2001. Oriente en Occidente:arquitectura civil y religiosa en el barrio bar��ri��o?n. pl. bar��ri��os1. An urban district or quarter in a Spanish-speaking country.2. A chiefly Spanish-speaking community or neighborhood in a U.S. city. fenicio de la Cauratartesica, in D. Ruiz Mata & S. Celestino (ed.) ArquitecturaOrientaly Orientalizante e la Peninsula Iberica: 123-57. Madrid:CEPO-CSIC. FERNANDEZ FLORES, A. & A. RODRIGUEZ AZOGUE. 2005. NuevasExcavaciones en el Carambolo Alto, Camas (Sevilla). ResultadosPreliminares, in S. Celestino & J. 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Dos hogares orientalizantes de la fortaleza de Els Vilars(Arbeca, Lerida), in S. Celestino & J. Jimenez (ed.) El PeriodoOrientalizante. Actas del III Simposio Internacional de Arqueologia deMirida. Anejos del Archivo Espanol de Arqueologta xxxv: 651-67. Madrid:CSIC. KREBERNIK, M. & U. SEIDL. 1997. Ein Sschildbeschlag mitBukranion und alphabetischer Inschrift. Zeitschrift fur Assyrologie 87:101-11. LAGARCE, E. & J. LAGARCE. 1997. Les lingots "en peau deboeuf," objets de comerce et symboles ideologiques dans le monde n. 1. The world; a globe as an ensign of royalty.Le beau mondefashionable society. See Beau monde.Demi mondeSee Demimonde. Mediterran&. Revue des etudes pheniciennes-puniques et desantiquites libyennes 10: 73-97. MAIER, J. 2003. El lingote en rama chipriota o piel de toro:simbolo divino de la antigua Iberia. Fiestas de toros y Sociedad.Coleccion Tauromaquias 5: 85-106. MORENO, F. 1999. Conflictos y perspectivas del periodo precolonial pre��co��lo��ni��alor pre-co��lo��ni��al ?adj.Of, relating to, or being the period of time before colonization of a region or territory. tartesico. Gerion. 17: 149-78. MOSCATI, S. 1989. Tra Tiro e Cadice: Temi e problemi degli sutifenici. Studia Punica 5. Roma. NIEMEYER, H.G. 1995. Expansion et colonisation, in V. Krings (ed.)La civilisation phenicienne et punique: 247-67. Leiden: Brill. ORNAN, T. 2001. The bull and its two masters: moon and stormdeities in relation to the bull in Ancient Near Eastern art. IsraelExploration Journal 51 : 1-26. ORTEGA BLANCO, J. & M. DEL VALLE GUTIERREZ. 2004. El poblado dela Edad del Hierro del Cerro de la Mesa (Alcolea del Tajo, Toledo).Primeros resultados. Trabajos de Prehistoria 61 (1): 175-85. RUIZ-GALVEZ, M.L. & E. GALAN. 1991. Las estelas del suroestecomo hitos de vias ganaderas y rutas comerciales. Trabajos dePrehistoria 48: 257-73. SCHAEFFER, C.F.A. 1965. An ingot ingotMass of metal cast into a size and shape such as a bar, plate, or sheet convenient to store, transport, and work into a semifinished or finished product. The term also refers to a mold in which metal is so cast. god from Cyprus. Antiquity 39:56-7. SEYRIG, H. 1959. Antiquites syriennes. Syria 36: 38-89. TADMOR, H. 1973. The historical inscriptions of Adad-Nirari III.Iraq 35: 141-50. TORRES, M. 1999. Sociedad y mundo funerario en Tartessos.Bibliotheca bib��li��o��the��ca?n.1. A collection of books; a library.2. A catalog of books.[Latin biblioth Archaeologica Hispana 3. Madrid: Real Academia de laHistoria. Sebastian Celestino Perez (1) & Carolina Lopez-Ruiz (2) (1) Instituto de Arqueologia, de Merida. Consejo Superior deInvestigaciones Cientificas, Merida 06800, Spain (Email:scelestino@iam.csic.es) (2) Department of Greek and Latin, The Ohio State University Ohio State University,main campus at Columbus; land-grant and state supported; coeducational; chartered 1870, opened 1873 as Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College, renamed 1878. There are also campuses at Lima, Mansfield, Marion, and Newark. ,Columbus, OH 43210, USA (Email: lopez-ruiz.1@osu.edu)