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Cuaternario y Geomorfología ISSN: 0214-1744 y C G www.rediris.es/CuaternarioyGeomorfologia/ Salt in the 4th and 3rd Millennia BC in Portugal: specialization, distribution, and consumption. La sal en el 4º y 3º milenio AC en Portugal: especialización, distribución y consumo Valera, A.C. Era-Arqueologia S.A.; ICArEHB - UAlg ([email protected]). Calçada de Santa Catarina 9c, 1495-705 Cruz Quebrada-Dafundo, Portugal Abstract The available information regarding salt production in the Neolithic and Chalcolithic in Portugal is presented, which in all documented cases correspond to a production through ignition and briquetage method. Based on that empirical data, intensive and specialized productions for exchange are identified and problems of demand, circulation and consume of salt are debated. The littoral production is related to a growing demand in the interior areas of the middle Guadiana and eastern Sado basin and its collapse in the first half of the 3rd millennium is interpreted as a possible shift in the supply areas, associated to the emergence of production centres in more interior areas of Iberia. Key words: Salt; Late Neolithic; Chalcolithic; Interaction; Specialization; Portugal Resumen Se presenta la información disponible para la producción de sal en el Neolítico y Calcolítico en Portugal, que en todos los casos documentados corresponde a una producción por ignición y briquetage. Considerando los dados empíricos, se identifica una producción intensiva y especializada para intercambio y se debate problemas de demanda, circulación y consumo de la sal. La producción litoral es relacionada con la creciente demanda en áreas interiores de las cuencas del Guadiana y del Sado y su colapso es interpretado como un posible cambio en las áreas de aprovisionamiento, asociado a la emergencia de los centros productores en el interior ibérico. Palabras clave: Sal; Neolítico Final; Calcolítico; Interacción; Especialización; Portugal Derechos de reproducción bajo licencia Creative Commons 3.0. https://doi.org/10.17735/cyg.v31i1-2.53656 Se permite su inclusión en repositorios sin ánimo de lucro. 105 Cuaternario y Geomorfología (2017), 31 (1-2), 105-122 1. Introduction The geomorphological history of the Tagus basin is essential to interpret the location and Contrasting with continental Europe, the re- the contexts of Monte da Quinta 2. The place search of salt production and distribution in is coincident with the maximum extension Iberian Recent Prehistory is a late issue that of the Flandrian transgression that formed a has its pioneering works in La Marismilla, in long interior estuary, with the penetration of the estuary of the Guadalquivir River (Escace- salty waters as far as Santarém. As for the Sor- na and Rodríguez de Zulaga, 1988; Escacena, raia River, the salty waters would have almost 1994; Escacena et al, 1996), and in the site reached the area of Coruche (Daveau, 1980; of Santioste, in Zamora (Delibes de Castro et Daveau and Gonçalves, 1985). These salty riv- al., 1998). In Portugal, the first approaches to er waters would reach the site where, Monte the subject occurred in the beginning of the da Quinta 2 was set (Fig. 1). present century, when some more explicit 2 empirical evidences of salt production were The site, with an excavated area of 482 m , revealed a context of intensive salt produc- discovered in the Tagus lower basin and in the tion through the method of ignition and bri- coast of Algarve (Soares, 2000; 2001; Rocha quetage (for the definition see Gouletquer and Barros, 1999/2000; Rocha, 2004; Valera and Daire, 1994). Thirty-two bulks formed et al. 2005; 2006). However, the research by thousands of very thin pottery sherds is still based on a small number of sites for were identified (Fig. 2, 3), presenting diver- which the salt production is empirically well sified shapes (circular, elongated, irregular) supported and specific research programs to and dimensions, sometimes overlapping and approach the exploitation, distribution, and crossing each other. The great majority of the consumption of this product, indispensable for economies dependent on agriculture and husbandry, have not yet been developed. Nevertheless, the available information al- lows some preliminary interpretation of the social, economic, and symbolic role of salt during the 4th and first half of the 3rd millennia BC in the Central/South Portugal (the part of the country where the known sites are locat- ed - Fig. 1), but also including the interior ar- eas where a significant part of the production might have been consumed. 2. The available data 2.1. Monte da Quinta 2 Detected during the construction of a high- Figure 1. Location of the Portuguese Prehistoric way, the site belongs to the municipality of sites with evidences indicating or suggesting salt Benavente and is in a Tagus terrace partially production. A. Monte da Quinta 2; B. Ponta da covered by superficial sand. It is a flat area in Passadeira; C. Assemblage of sites from Comporta; the left bank of the Sorraia River (a tributary D. Praia do Forte Novo. of the Tagus left bank), slightly sloping to the Figura 1. Localización de los sitios prehistóricos portugueses con evidencias de producción de sal. valley and bordered by two lateral streams A. Monte da Quinta 2; B. Ponta da Passadeira; that drain to that river (Fig.1A) (Valera et al., C. Conjunto de sitios da Comporta; D. Praia do Forte 2005; 2006). Novo. 106 Cuaternario y Geomorfología (2017), 31 (1-2), 105-122 Figure 2. Excavated area in Monte da Quinta 2 with example of the recorded structures. A-D. Briquetage bulks; E. Clay fire structure; F. Fireplace of pebbles; G. Structure for mold production. Figura 2. Área excavada en Monte da Quinta 2 con ejemplo de las estructuras registradas. A-D. Escombreras de Briquetage; E. Estructuras de combustión en arcilla; F. Estructuras de combustión de cantos; G. Estructuras de producción de moldes. 107 Cuaternario y Geomorfología (2017), 31 (1-2), 105-122 Activation was performed in the conical pots, bowls, ceramic brackets, and local clays (Val- era et al., 2006). The results showed a signif- icant similarity in the mineralogical compo- sitions of all the analysed materials and raw materials, though the conical molds show a concern with clay decantation to obtain thinner pastes for thinner recipients, mak- ing the briquetage process easier. This study also showed that high temperatures were not achieved in the production of the coni- cal molds (<500ºC), while the other pottery presents evidence of slightly higher tempera- tures and absence of decantation. Therefore, the production of pottery used local clays, but presents two different procedures relat- ed to the intended use of the pots: the ones planned to be used in the last stage of the salt production process, not only have shapes adapted to the function, but are also pro- duced in a manner (decantation of clays, thin walls, low cooking temperatures) that would Figure 3. Monte da Quinta 2. have made them less resistant and easier to Examples of briquetage bulks. break; and the larger bowls, with higher cook- Figura 3. Monte da Quinta 2. ing temperatures and less concern with clay Ejemplos de escombreras de briquetage. decantation, used to obtain the brine. sherds correspond to small pots with a con- In an area between the bulks several com- ic profile, thin walls (2-3 cm) and pastes with bustion structures were recorded (Fig. 5B-E). few degreasing elements, roughly shaped by They are of two types: assemblages of peb- the outside (Fig. 4C, D). They were made us- bles with termoclasts, pottery fragments and ing an internal conical mold, generating a high burned ceramic brackets, and structures of degree of patterning in shapes and sizes. In burned clay. Both type of structures could the bulks, several thousand sherds were re- be related to the process of evaporation of corded totalizing a global weight of 505 kg. both phases of the ignition method (to obtain An ellipsoidal pit filled with pebbles in the brine and after to obtain the salt loaves). base and two layers of embedded thin coni- cal pots was identified, that corresponded to Apart from the ceramics and the knapped a cooking structure for these ceramics at low stone industry (possibly used for the bri- temperatures. They were used to receive the quetage process, as it also seems to have brine and to be broken after the brine turned happened at Espartinas-Valiente Cánovas and into crystalized salt loaves (Fig. 4A, B). The Ramos, 2009), some loom weights and pol- bulks also contained tools made of knapped ished stones tools with intense marks of use river pebbles (Fig. 4E), fragments of ceramic were also documented, the latter possibly re- brackets (Fig. 5F) and fragments of other pot- lated to the acquisition of wood for the fires tery shapes, namely large bowls used to ob- (no organic material was recorded, mainly tain the brine (Fig. 5G). due to the nature of the local soils). An archaeometric approach, through X-Ray Globally, the excavated part of the site cor- Diffraction, X-Ray Fluorescence, and Neutron responds to an intensive salt production 108 Cuaternario y Geomorfología (2017), 31 (1-2), 105-122 Figure 4. Monte da Quinta 2. A, B. Structure from producing the molds. C. Reassembly of fragments from the production structure, allowing the determination of shapes. D. Mold shapes. E. Examples of knapped pebbles possibly used in the fragmentation and scraping of the molds to extract the salt loaves. Figura 4. Monte da Quinta 2. A, B. Estructura para producir moldes. C. Remontaje de fragmentos de la estructura de producción permitiendo la determinación de formas; D. Moldes; E. Ejemplos de cantos trabajados posiblemente utilizados en la fragmentación de moldes para extraer los panes de sal. 109 Cuaternario y Geomorfología (2017), 31 (1-2), 105-122 Figure 5.

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