UDK 903’12/’15(46)“633/634”


Documenta Praehistorica XXXI 

The Neolithic in Almería:
the valley of the Almanzora river and Vera basin


María Dolores Cámalich1, Dimas Martín-Socas2, Pedro González3,
Antonio Goni4, Áquede Rodríguez5


1 Departamento de Prehistoria, Antropología e Historia Antigua. Universidad de La Laguna
dmassieu@ull.es
2 Departamento de Prehistoria, Antropología e Historia Antigua. Universidad de La Laguna
dsocas@ull.es
3 Departamento de Ciencias Históricas. Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
pgonzalez@dch.ulpgc.es
4 Departamento de Prehistoria, Antropología e Historia Antigua. Universidad de La Laguna
5 Departamento de Ciencias Históricas. Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
arodriguez@dch.ulpgc.es


ABSTRACT – The valley of the Almanzora River and Vera Basin (Almería) shows an intense dynamics of occupation in Prehistory, particularly between the Early Neolithic and the Late Bronze Age. 
Several factors, such as the recurrent associations between diverse productions – including the presence of cardial-impressed pots in Cabecicos Negros (Vera) – and the distinctive characteristics of 
the type of occupation, indicate that the oldest phase of occupation took place during the Andalusian 
Early Neolithic. The socio-economic pattern is defined both by the exploitation of numerous resources in an area of variable size, and by the temporary occupation of settlements, with seasonal or periodical variations. This constant mobility was aimed at obtaining different subsistence goods, as well 
as obtaining and/or transforming primary resources for manufacturing crafts and exchanging excess 
production with communities in the same area or from other regions. 

IZVLE
EK – Dolina reke Almanzora in kotlina Vera (Almería) ka
eta veliko dinamiko poselitve v prazgodovini, e posebno med zgodnjim neolitikom in pozno bronasto dobo. Medsebojna povezanost 
razlinih produkcij – vkljuno z navzonostjo impresso-cardium keramike v Cabecicos Negros (Vera) – in jasne znailnosti tipa naselitve ka
ejo, da je najstareja faza poselitve potekala v asu andaluzijskega zgodnjega neolitika. Za dru
beno-gospodarski vzorec sta znailna izkorianje tevilnih 
virov na razlino velikih povrinah ter zaasna (sezonska oziroma periodina) poselitev naselbin. 
Namen stalne mobilnosti je bil pridobiti razline dobrine za pre
ivetje in pridobiti oziroma predelati primarne vire za proizvodnjo izdelkov ter menjevanje vikov proizvodnje s skupnostmi na istem 
obmoju ali s skupnostmi iz drugih regij. 

KEY WORDS – Andalusia; Neolithic; social interactions; palaeoeconomy 

When approaching the analysis of the dynamics of tlement patterns in the region. It was basically inter-
social formations in the context of Recent Prehistory preted from a traditional point of view as the result 
in the so-called lowlands of southeast Iberia, one of of the maritime movements of Mediterranean and 
the first problems is the tradition of the studies of E. other settlers. 
and L. Siret and P. Flores and of the archaeological 
data recovered at the end of the 19th and beginnings We consider that the analysis of P. Bosch Gimpera 
of the 20th century. This documentation constitutes (1932; 1944; 1965; 1969) in the 30’s was the first 
the fundamental empirical support for studies of set-important systematic study of the Neolithic and early 


María Dolores Cámalich, Dimas Martín-Socas, Pedro González, Antonio Goni, Áquede Rodríguez 

Chalcolithic societies in the region. He introduced 
concept of genesis of two communities in Western 
Andalusia – Cultura de las Cuevas, with a wide influence in the peninsular territory, and Cultura de 
Almería, restricted to the southeast, where the main 
centre was located. Within the five phases into which 
he divided the evolution of this culture, the first 
phase was defined by the social formations of the 
Final Neolithic, with its North African origin. The appearance of metallurgy was closely connected with 
Cultura de los Millares and its origin in the peninsular Neo-Eneolithic. 

Nevertheless, as determining a period depends on 
the presence or absence of metals, the present discussion will focus on whether the Cultura de Almería corresponds to the last Neolithic phases societies 
or to the first Chalcolithic ones. In fact, throughout 
almost the whole of the 20th century, investigations 
were focused on explaining how to access this technological innovation, which was considered as the impulse for the process of complexity and hierarchy in 
these societies. In the area of the Cultura de El Argar there is an example of the climax of this process. 

The resolution of this problem is imposed by each researcher’s interpretation. If the pattern is diffusionism 
and colonialism, the Cultura de Almería will be considered as representative of the Ancient Chalcolithic; 
whereas, if the proposed pattern is an evolutionist-
lineal one, it will be identified as a Neo-Eneolithic culture. And both of these interpretation patterns use almost exclusively the same empirical base: the archaeological evidence unearthed by E. and L. Siret. 

From the 80’s, new theoretical and methodological 
patterns replaced diffusionism. Approaches were focused on establishing which factors played a role in 
the configuration of such a complex society of the 
Southeast region beginning in the middle of the third 
millennium BC. 

Therefore, there are three initial and closely interrelated problems to solve: 


 The origin and the causes of the impulse for agricultural colonisation in the lowlands of Almería; 

 The origins of metallurgy, their internal dynamics 
and their consequences through the development 
of each prehistoric period and; 

 The importance of this southeast area in this whole 
transformation. 
To solve these initial problems and, mainly that of 
agricultural colonisation, environmental characteri

stics have been taken as a first consideration. Traditionally, it was accepted that the environment had 
very similar characteristics to that of the present: an 
arid or semi-arid climate, with a deforested landscape and a very active erosive action (Gilman and 
Thornes 1985). Within this general framework, some 
authors have adopted an intermediate position. They 
agree with the existence of small oscillations, with 
a small increment in humidity during the second 
millennium, coinciding with the development of the 
Bronze Age. (Walker 1985; 1986; Chapman 1991, 
although this author in previous publications, 1978 
and 1984, has defended the absence of significant 
climatic changes). 

Lately, due to the available paleo-ecological evidence 
for this region, the situation has changed. The existence of a more humid climate during the Neolithic 
and the Copper Ages, with a vegetation climax quite 
well conserved during the Neolithic that would begin to suffer an important deterioration starting from 
advanced moments of the Copper Age (the period 
between the third to the second millennium BC) has 
now been highlighted. On the other hand, the presence of water courses was documented by the identification of ripisylvae species in settlements dating 
to the third millennium BC, like El Puente de Santa 
Bárbara (Huércal-Overa) and Los Millares (Santa Fé 
de Mondújar) (Rodríguez Ariza 1992; 1996; Pantaleon Cano et al. 1996; Yll et al. 1995; Cámalich Massieu and Martín Socas (drt.) 1999). 

Nevertheless, we will defend different models for 
explaining at which moment the occupation takes 
place, as well as the interpretation of the strategies 
developed by these societies in the first periods of 
the Recent Prehistory of the peninsular Southeast. 
As we consider agricultural activity a priority factor 
in a subsistence lifestyle, the settlement choice will 
depend on soil and/or water resources. Thus a settlement and exploitation pattern of the territory focuses on the growing complexity of these social formations, starting from agricultural production or 
control of water resources. 

On the other hand, the appropriate conditions for 
early agricultural colonisation in such a hard environment did not exist because of the absence of indispensable technological support. It is the reason 
this occupation was dated as subsequent to that of 
the more humid inland areas, as well as the western 
lands of Granada and Málaga (Chapman 1978; 
1991). Consequently, the occupation of these lowlands of the peninsular Southeast took place at the 


The Neolithic in Almería: the valley of the Almanzora river and Vera basin 

end of the Neolithic. The Cultura de Almería has 
been again representative in this area of this chronological and cultural period, as the process of organizational complexity begins, coinciding in time with 
the first development of metallurgical activity. 

Furthermore, to understand the surge of global 
change of third millenium social formations, most 
researchers have interpreted southeast Iberia as one 
of the central areas of activity. The representative 
settlements at Garcél and Purchena and the Canto-
ria necropolis of the Late Neolithic in the area feature simple circular or oval single-floored tombs. 
Since Siret’s excavation at the beginning of the 20th 
century and after G. and V. Leisner’s (1943) and P. 
Bosch Gimper’s (1969) comprehensive studies, the 
Almizaraque site has been recognized as highly ranked in the early copper production in the region. 
Consequently, this interpretation clearly reflects the 
importance attributed to east Almería, and also to 
the gap in understanding of the processes of transformation, consolidation and evolution of the different social formations that took place during the 
sixth and second millenia BC, and, particularly, understanding when, how, and why this process began. 

To answer all these questions Cámalich Massieu and 
Martín Socas (1983; 1986) presented in 1985 a research project on the development of social formations in late Prehistory in the Vera Basin and the 
valley of the Almanzora River (Fig. 1). It was carried 
out under the Junta de Andalusia's public convocation for regulating interventions on Archaeological 
Heritage. In fact, its aim was to analyse the transformation of the area from the beginnings of fishing and agricultural production to the development of social hierarchy in the 
Bronze Age (Cámalich Massieu 
et al. 1993). 

Consequently, the general and 
priority aims were: 
 To carry out a comprehensive 

study, including all the useful 
factors for debating its analysis and its general interpretations; and 

 to determine how these factors 
take part in the configuration 
of this historical process. 

The project develops from four 
types of field actions: 1 Study of 

territory; 2 stratigraphic surveys; 3 Systematic archaeological excavations; and, 4 Rescue interventions. 

The development of the project was divided into successive phases, due to the aforementioned aims and 
its application over a large area. The first phase was 
focused on the area of the mouth of the Almanzora 
River, and covers all the area of the Vera Basin (Fig. 
1), limited to the south by the Sierra de Cabrera, to 
the north by the Sierra of Almagrera y Almagro, and 
to the west by the municipality of Cantoria. 

Work has been done on: 

 Systematic excavation of the settlements of Campos and Zájara (Cuevas de Almanzora). The latter 
is still under study. 

 Prospecting with stratigraphic surveys on the site 
of Cabecicos Negros-El Pajarraco (Vera). 

 Rescue excavations on the sites of Puente de Santa Bárbara (Huércal-Overa), Las Pilas/Huerta Seca 
(Mojácar), and Cabecicos Negros (Vera). 

 A study of a large part of the territory of the lowlands and midlands of the Almanzora River – with 
complements from the previous documentation 
and the later bibliography in 1985. It has permitted a detailed listing of more than 600 archaeological sites. 

Regarding the results, the area of this study maintains an intense occupation dynamics during the different periods of Prehistory, from the middle of the 
sixth millennium BC until the end of the second millennium BC. This means, in the traditional scale of 
this area, the Middle Neolithic until the development 

Fig. 1. Area of study. 

María Dolores Cámalich, Dimas Martín-Socas, Pedro González, Antonio Goni, Áquede Rodríguez 

of the Final Bronze Age, where its climactic moments would take place starting from the Copper 
Age. Consequently, the main characteristic of the 
dynamics of social formations is the continuity of 
settlement pattern in the territory. The modifications that took place in the development of this pattern can be explained by the search for a location according to the socio-political and economic conditions for each moment. Consequently, internal dynamics become the essential factor in the development 
of these communities. 

Therefore, the oldest evidence in the prehistorical 
context is associated with the Neolithic, as the chrono-stratigraphic layers of the Andalusian central and 
eastern regions and radiometric datings from the 
Cerro Virtud show. However, the principal researchers defend the hypothesis that this context is correlated to the beginning of the process of metallurgical production in the southeast. Its development 
would have taken place, at least, from the mid sixth 
millennium until the end of the fifth and the beginning of the fourth millennium BC, in calibrated dates, 
between 6160 ± 180 BP (4120 BC) and 5300 ± 120 
BP (3710 BC) (Delibes de Castro and Montero 1997; 
Montero Ruiz and Ruiz Taboada 1996; Ruiz Taboada and Montero Ruiz 1999). 

In general, as is typical of other Andalusian areas, 
they are outdoor settlements of small dimensions. 
The small residence structures were probably built 
from perishable materials, evidencing seasonal occupation, also associated with river beds, elevations, 
or coastal sites and, exceptionally, caves or shelters. 

It is necessary to highlight the results obtained in 
the first of our excavations of the villages of Zájara 
(1987 and 1990) and Cabecicos Negros (1991 and 
2000) during the initial phase of the Project (Cámalich Massieu and Martín Socas 1999; Goni Quinteiro et al. 2003). 

The present location of Cabecicos Negros (Vera) is 
20 m above sea level, on the left bank of the River 
Antas, and about 2 km from its outflow in the Mediterranean. In the Neolithic the site was located on 
the coast, as the results of the Proyecto Costa (Arteaga and Hoffman 1987) demonstrated. Thus, their 
immediate environment was a wide bay. It forms 
part of a group structured with the so-called El Pajarraco, although it is now divided by the Vera-Garrucha road. The two interventions, in 1991 and 2000, 
at this location were carried out in a special context 
because it was partially affected by the urban expan

sion plans of the Vera coastal area agricultural works. 
Consequently, the objectives were, besides elaborating a precise delimitation of the location, the realization of stratigraphic polls in the different sectors 
because the superficial archaeological survey identified a wide time-span for occupation over a large 
area. 

The results obtained for the oldest period of occupation specify small settlement nuclei distributed on 
the six hills on the left bank of the Antas River and 
across the plain, which are a result of recurrent occupation of the same territory. Of the different excavation areas, the northeast hill site stands out because 
it helped to determine that this was a single occupation layer site. It allowed an analysis of the special 
topography of the hillside, which has a series of natural steps that could have been used for the grounding of small structures, built with stone and mud 
walls, with roofs made from vegetation, as the collapsed constructions indicates. 

In these ceramic groups (Figs. 2; 3.1–4; 4.5–17), the 
most abundant are decorated in different techniques with a wide variety of ornamental motifs. Regarding the impressed ceramics, there is abundant 
cardial ceramic, as well as specimens obtained from 
other matrices or with a pointed tool, resulting in 
very different ornamental motifs that are either isolated or mixed with intertwined and grooved lines, 
both curved and rectilinear. The relief decorations 
are made with cords and most have impressions. It 
is necessary to equally highlight the presence, in 
some of these decorations, of engobe filled with redcoloured slips (almagra). There are different types 
of handles, with flattened or solid protuberances, 
but mainly spout-shaped. With respect to the form 
and size of these, analysis is limited because there 
are few complete reconstructions, due to the high 
degree of fragmentation and erosion. However, in 
some cases it has been possible to infer narrow borders, and necks of varied dimensions. 

Among these ceramic records from Cabecicos Negros, the impressed cardial decorations stand out. 
This pottery corroborates the hypothesis that the 
characterisation of the Neolithic in this area correlated with the settlement process in the High Andalusia region and in the Central-Eastern coast. (Cámalich Massieu and Martín Socas 1986). In addition, 
these were open-air settlements, which again emphasises the importance of this occupation type rather than the traditional view of a preferential cave 
settlement. 


The Neolithic in Almería: the valley of the Almanzora river and Vera basin 


Fig. 2. Pottery. Cabecicos Negros. 


María Dolores Cámalich, Dimas Martín-Socas, Pedro González, Antonio Goni, Áquede Rodríguez 

Indeed, the presence of impressed cardial ceramics 
is not new in the Andalusian Neolithic, although its 
proportion in the general ceramic record is not the 
most abundant, as is the case in the peninsular Levant region, where cardial ceramics characterize the 
Early Neolithic. On the contrary, in the south of Iberia the cardial ceramics appear in the initial phases 
of the Andalusian Neolithic, coexisting with other impression types: the use of other matrices, such as the 
combed, pointed or blunt object decorations, and 
also those with relief cords, as well as incised and 
graffiti ceramics, and the characteristic use of almagra, either as a slip or to fill incised or impressed decorations. 

Lithic production (Martínez Fernández and Afonso 
Marrero 1999) forms an important assemblage of 
more than 1300 pieces, of which almost half are 
semi-finished products from the manufacturing process, and where a considerable amount of lithic nuclei have been identified. Among these there are abundant flakes from local rock materials and from foraminiferous radiolarian siliceous rocks, whose origin 
is located in the Vélez region. As already mentioned, 
flakes are dominant (over 50% in Cabecicos Negros); therefore, considering that the flakes constitute 
38% of the sub-products, this industry could qualify 
as a laminar manufacturing type. 

The production techniques recorded are the same as 
those used in other areas of Andalusia, that is to say, 
by means of pressure on the previously heated nuclei, prismatic flakes are produced. The method may 
have been either direct or indirect percussion, although this is still not known (Martínez Fernández 
and Afonso Marrero 1999). 

The traceological analysis carried out on the lithic 
production (Rodríguez Rodríguez 1999), has contributed information on different aspects of the manufacturing process itself and its role in everyday 
activities. Although a considerable part of the worked lithic material presents post-depositional alterations that hinder its study, a significant number of 
pieces still exists with use prints that testify to diverse types of activities in the settlement and its surroundings (Goni Quinteiro et al. 1999) (Fig. 3.5– 
16). 

The low percentage of lithic tools related to the acquisition of consumption products is outstanding. 
Only one piece was used as a sickle in cereal harvesting, whilst three geometrics were employed as projectile points, presumably in hunting activities. Meat 

processing and hide treatment are scarcely represented. The handicraft activities left a large quantity of 
artefacts, in which the transformation of diverse mineral materials stands out. Indeed, perforators, flakes and thin modified sheets, as well as unmodified 
flake products were used to perforate, saw, groove, 
scrape and, possibly, to crack marine shells and rocks 
of varying hardness, although soft materials such as 
slate stand out. It is seen that the presence of a significant quantity of personal ornaments elaborated 
from these same raw materials corroborates the importance that this craft must have had. This work 
was carried out with two types of tool: some very 
elaborate, such as the micro-perforators, and others 
of more expeditious manufacture, such as unmodified or slightly worked flakes and laminar sheets. In 
this latter group, there were also recycled pieces, as 
is the case of two micro-laminar nuclei which were 
used as scrapers. This dichotomy shows that the 
most complicated part in these production chains 
was, undoubtedly, the perforation process, which is 
also the case with the ornaments, many pendants 
being abandoned during manufacture due to perforation failures. 

Leatherwork was also important at this site and, 
with the exception of leather which was worked 
when the hide was fresh – supposedly from a recently killed animal – most was done on dry leather that 
could be stored or brought from another place. However, the transformation of wood or bone has left 
scarce evidence in the analyzed material. 

In this settlement, personal adornments had great 
relevance. They are mainly small discoid or elongated beads made from shells (Fig. 4.8–14), and a great 
variety of bracelets (Fig. 4.1–7), with different types, 
sizes and materials used, including local slate, and 
marble-like stones from the Almanzora River. We 
must stress that an important part of this group is in 
different stages of manufacture, which means that 
it had reached a very high degree of standardisation. 
It was the result of a very specialized activity directed towards trading surpluses at regional and interregional levels. 

Polished stone tools are not very abundant, and consist of axes, adzes, and chisels, mainly of circular or 
oval cross-section, with simple bevel sharp ends, and 
grinding elements, used in food processing. 

The bone tools also lack variety and, being mainly 
perforation implements, such as punches, that could 
be related to the leather works. 


The Neolithic in Almería: the valley of the Almanzora river and Vera basin 


Fig. 3. Pottery and carved lithic productions. Cabecicos Negros. 


María Dolores Cámalich, Dimas Martín-Socas, Pedro González, Antonio Goni, Áquede Rodríguez 

Therefore, in the village of Cabecicos Negros certain 
surplus craft activities were carried out to the detriment of others more related to subsistence. This 
would imply that the community was integrated 
within a wider territory, where its inhabitants would 
be able to subsist, either by means of seasonal movements to exploitable areas, or from an exchange 
network of local products between communities. 

In this context, the recurrent association of the various productions, where the presence of cardial ceramics in Cabecicos Negros should be highlighted, supports the hypothesis of an occupation of the Almerían lowlands since the oldest phases of the Neolithic. This corresponds to findings from other Western 
Andalusia locations such as the cave of Carigüela 
(Pinar, Granada), the site of Las Majolicas (Alfacar, 
Granada), the caves of Malalmuerzo (Moclín, Granada), and Los Murciélagos (Zuheros, Córdoba), or occupation Phase I of the site at Los Castillejos (Montefrío, Granada) (Martín Socas et al.1998). On the 
other hand, the date proposed for these moments 
coincides with the last chronologies contributed by 
Cerro Virtud (Cuevas del Almanzora) that, as already 
pointed out, date the Neolithic occupation of this village to the second half of the sixth millennium and 
throughout the fifth millennium BC, calibrated date 
(Ruiz Taboada and Montero Ruiz 1999). 

Consequently, the traditional interpretation of the 
beginnings of production in this area, in which the 
first cohesive population structure would correspond 
to the Late Neolithic and would be in some way associated with the Cultura of Almería (Fernández 
Miranda et al. 1993), cannot be accepted. 

Regarding the site of Zájara, located on an elevated 
plateau at the convergence of the River Almanzora 
and the Alifraga ravine, at 111m. above sea level, its 
study has added fundamental information with respect to the general aims of the project. Apart from 
the clearly particular characteristics of the Copper 
Age settlements, the presence of a Neolithic occupation could be inferred, thanks to information from 
materials deposited in the National Archaeological 
Museum which came from one of the caves excavated by L. Siret, as well as those on the higher sector 
of the plateau. 

Indeed, this possible occupation, prior to the development of the initial phases of the metallurgy, is 
the one that we are interested in highlighting in this 
work, was documented during the 1990 excavation 
campaign. There was a pit, with a large ceramic re

ceptacle (approximate capacity 38 litres) inside, located in the central area of the plateau. The pot has 
been identified as a water container, with an ellipsoid body, a slightly conical bottom, three flattened 
handles with double perforations distributed regularly around the body, and a cylindrical neck. Its 
mouth was level with the floor and it had been covered by a fragment corresponding to the paunch of 
another ware, of equally large dimensions, that had 
impressed cords as a relief decoration. Inside the 
pot, there was another receptacle of smaller dimensions (approximate capacity, 1 litre). This group, 
from its technological, formal and ornamental characteristics is indicative of the Neolithic occupation 
of the site whose intensity cannot yet be evaluated, 
since work at this location is continuing. 

A series of large excavated structures stand out and, 
given their construction and morphological features, 
as well as to the identification inside the only partially registered one of a domestic combustion structure, they were shelters with very similar characteristics to those documented in various sites of the 
valley of the Guadalquivir, in the final stages of the 
fourth and beginnings of the third millennia BC. 
Such is the case, among others, of the Polideportivo 
de Martos (Jaén) (Cámara Serrano and Lizcano 
Prestel 1996; Lizcano Prestel 1999). Here, we must 
point out that almost 150 pits at the El Garcél settlement described in P. Flores’ field notebooks could 
be linked to this function. 

In consequence, the current documentation available 
from the structures and the identified evidence allow 
us to date the beginnings of the occupation of Zájara 
to the Middle and Late Neolithic. 

Taking into account the data we have for the low 
valley area of the Almanzora River and Vera Basin, 
the Neolithic settlements of Los Cabecicos Negros, as 
well as the village of Zájara can not be isolated phenomena. They are indeed clearly correlated both 
with the general characteristics of the settlement 
type and with the different groups of materials also 
observed in other well-known sites in the area (Fig. 
5). Consequently, we can indicate that there were 
two fundamental types of settlement located in elevated sites. The first is recognized as a small hill settlement, close to streams, river mouths and ancient 
coastlines (Arteaga and Hoffman 1987; Schubart 
et al. 1988). This type of settlement could be represented by villages like Almizaraque on the Almanzora River, Cabecicos, Negros-Pajarraco in the Antas, 
and La Isleta, or the Loma del Campo in the basin of 


The Neolithic in Almería: the valley of the Almanzora river and Vera basin 


Fig. 4. Lithic personal ornaments and pottery products. Cabecicos Negros. 


María Dolores Cámalich, Dimas Martín-Socas, Pedro González, Antonio Goni, Áquede Rodríguez 

the Aguas River (Fig. 5. Nos. 147, 155 and 19 (respectively), 58, 52). At the same time, there was a second type of settlement on elevated sites, such as single hill-tops which dominated basal areas, whose 
occupation in some cases continued during the Late 
Neolithic. Some examples of this type of habitat are: 
El Penascal, Cerro Virtud, Zájara, Raja Ortega, Cuartillas, Moro Manco, Cerro Guevara, Cerro del Cortijo 
de Gatas and, probably Cerro María and Cerro del Espíritu Santo (Fig. 5. Nos. 347, 146, 144, 66, 42, 26, 
62, 34, 7 and 163). After this period, an intense period of Late Roman and Hispanic-Muslim occupation 
can be identified. The main characteristic was the interrelationship between these different and separated settlements by visual oversight of the whole basin, which meant considerable control over this extensive area. 

In the high and middle basins of the Almanzora River, the open-air settlements are situated in the 
mountain areas of the Sierras de Filabres or of Las 
Estancias, such as La Cerrá, Macael or Partaloa. Others, like El Palo or El Castillico de Cobdar, are cave 
settlements (Fig. 5. Nos. 371, 620, 136). All of them, 
including Los Cabecicos Negros, have a very defined 

and representative group of materials belonging to 
the Neolithic of southern Iberia. This evidence coincides with results obtained in settlements with wide 
stratigraphic layers, such as the caves of Carigüela 
(Granada), Nerja (Málaga), El Toro (Málaga), or Los 
Murciélagos (Córdoba) (Martín Socas et al. 1998). 

In relation to what has been said, the socio-economic formation was based on the exploitation of the 
environment through itinerant occupation of territory variable size, which depended on the communities and the seasons. Consequently, this seasonality 
or periodicity allowed for the acquisition of various 
resources through a strong tendency to move and to 
set up seasonal settlements. Therefore, these were 
small, and aimed at obtaining subsistence goods as 
well as towards the transformation/exploitation of 
raw materials for the production of handicraft surpluses which were traded with other communities in 
the same area or from other regions. This would largely explain why the archaeological evidence indicates a large number of manufacturing crafts from local 
raw materials. It could also explain, in the case of 
Cabecicos Negros, the presence of a single tool for 
the harvesting of cereals. It is also true that we chose 


Fig. 5. Map of Middle Neolithic sites. 


The Neolithic in Almería: the valley of the Almanzora river and Vera basin 

the agricultural factor as the priority element in the 
hypothesis to understand the first Neolithic occupation (Fernández Miranda et al. 1993), as well as its 
being the cause of the transformation process towards the complexity of later social formations in 
this large area. In this context, we would have to use 
the terms “agricultural colonisation or intensification”. A good example is the Neolithic village at the 
Polideportivo of Martos (Jaén)1. 

Therefore, the traditional importance assigned to 
the agricultural variable in these communities does 
not seem to correspond to all the findings, which, in 
turn, has meant that its systematic and mechanical 
application has generated in some recent research 
work a strong rejection of the evidence of such an 
old settlement in the Alto de Almanzora. The weight 
of this reasoning is based on strong natural or anthropic erosion that would have affected the elevated areas chosen by these communities (Román 
Díaz et al. 1996; Román Díaz and Martínez Padilla 1999). This assumes a certain occupation pattern 
based on a reduction in farming. 

Nevertheless, there must be initiated/completed further studies on these various activities in order to 
gain knowledge on the development of these social 
formations. Moreover, both the existent relationship 
between them and the dynamics of the trade exchanges and how these would influence the transformation processes, especially during the Final Neolithic, 
could be identified. 

Gradually, it is observed how the aggregation and 
settlement processes were established at this period 
through the appearance of excavated living and storage structures, the silos, increasing the stability of 
occupation, and the exploitation of the territory. Parallel to the settlement process and, consequently, 
that of land appropriation, the normalised independent burial zones become reinforced as a result of 
the wider and deeper structuring and organisation 
process of these social formations. 

The final phase of the Neolithic, which in many aspects is undistinguished from what has become 
known as an Early Copper Age and determined by 
the presence of metallurgical evidence, consolidates 
this mechanism of doubling of settlements – that is, 
neighbouring sites were closely interconnected – 

and, the demographic pattern as seen in the previous phases (Fig. 6). Thus, together with the continuity of some of the previous occupational nuclei 
such as Cerro María, Cuartillas, Loma del Campo, Zájara, Cerro Virtud, Almizaraque, and Cueva de Zájara, there were some settlements on elevated plateaux over the fluvial bed (Fig. 6. Nos. 7, 42, 52, 144, 
146, 147 and 308). These sites had more useful horizontal surface areas for the construction of semi-
excavated rooms that, on occasion, had a central 
post, as well as storage structures, silos, which probably had different uses, as could have been the 
case with water containers. The aforementioned villages, as well as the Tres Cabezos, La Torrecica-Cortijo Soler, El Arteal, and those already mentioned at 
El Garcel, Zájara, and Las Pilas/Huerta Seca, in the 
Vera Basin – which coexisted with high dominant 
sites – and the Muela del Ajo or Canada del Herrero 
– in the middle and high basins of the Almanzora – 
are good examples of these dynamics (Fig. 6. Nos. 
159, 298, 100, 179, 595 and 596, 372 and 402). 

Consequently, larger communities were established 
in diverse environments, spanning various biotopes, 
and with a pattern that implies a strong relationship 
between them, possibly depending on a work force 
that integrated into larger units. At the same time, a 
process of social dissymmetry and of a differentiated appropriation of subsistence or non-subsistence 
goods developed. Even though the smallest groups 
were self-sufficient in order to cover basic necessities, this cannot be considered a general rule, because they could not have been so in all aspects: firstly, obtaining certain primary resources; secondly, 
the possibility of guaranteeing the whole production 
cycle of animal and agricultural products in the 
event of failure or accident; and thirdly, the fact that 
they would have been too far from the main route 
connections which would facilitate access to the valley, where the main sites were located. In consequence, the dynamics of power structures would have 
consolidated in the Copper Age. 

At present, it is difficult to obtain a correct chronological and evolutionary sequence of the Copper Age 
in the region, although the research in the last few 
years has contributed very outstanding data. The 
hypothesis is that, with the beginning of settlement 
and the political delimitation of the territory – in 
parcels smaller than those inferred for the previous 

1 “…demonstrates that the settlement nuclearisation process at the beginning of the third millenium was not unilineal and could be 
explained by other models in which agriculture is not the main factor in changes in the relationship between production and social formations” (Cámara Serrano and Lizcano Prestel 1996). 


María Dolores Cámalich, Dimas Martín-Socas, Pedro González, Antonio Goni, Áquede Rodríguez 


Fig. 6. Map of Late Neolithic/Early Copper Age sites. 

phase – there would be continuity in the exploitation 
pattern. However, it seems that now the river courses of the Almanzora, Antas, and Aguas, would have 
become the axes of new settlement patterns. These 
were characterized by larger settlements, with funerary zones of concentrated burial structures, which 
symbolise centralisation and land ownership, as 
well as by a series of interdependent and complementary villages. This model would be represented 
in the Vera Basin by LasPilas/Huerta Seca site which, 
with the village of Cuartillas, has the associated sepulchres of the Las Lomas del Campo and of El Cerro de la Mata, located at the outlet of the River Aguas 
(Fig. 6. Nos. 54, 42, 52, 63). In the area of Antas, 
the pattern would be the group of El Garcel, with 
which the villages of Las Ramiras and Alto de la Canada del Cura are related, together with the sepultures of the Lomo de la Rutilla and the La Pernera–1 
(Fig. 6. Nos. 179, 595 and 596, 165, 167, 590–594, 
312). In the lower basin and outlet of the River Almanzora, Almizaraque is the most important site, 
with which the site and the burials sites of Cerro Virtud, the village and the cave of Zajara, Tres Cabezos, 
La Torrecica-Cortijo Soler, Los Sifones, and the tomb 
of El Arteal are associated (Fig. 6. Nos. 147, 146, 144 
and 308, 159, 184, 145, 290) 

In the middle and high river basin there would have 
been, on the one hand, the Llano de los Pedregales/ 
Casablanca, with which the sepulchre of the Cabezo 
de la Copa is associated, as well as the villages of La 
Quinta, Terrera Alcaina and El Llano de las Ánimas– 
3, that control access from the high areas of the Sierra de Las Estancias toward this sector of the Valley 
(Fig. 6. Nos. 14, 13, 236, 20, 503). On the other hand, 
there was the Churuletas group, which included the 
village of the Cerro de los Navíos, and the associated 
necropolis of El Llano de Turuletes/Churuletas, of 
Llano de la Lámpara/Loma de la Estación, and of Lo-
ma de la Jocalla/Cortijo Jocalla (Fig. 6. Nos. 560, 
440–448, 420–421, 424–425). 

These settlement and centralisation processes in the 
study area could be partly related to the development of new agricultural and pastoral techniques, 
which tended towards the restriction of the movement of large livestock, and to the practice of transhumance of ovicaprine flocks. R. Buxó (1997) in his 
study of the cave de El Toro (Málaga) points out that 
the differences in the agricultural activities inferred 
from the carpological remains for the Middle and 
Late Neolithic indicate an evolution from a primitive 
agriculture to a more evolved one. This is shown, in 


The Neolithic in Almería: the valley of the Almanzora river and Vera basin 

the higher layers of the Late Neolithic in the south-Therefore, it can be said that the process of develop-
eastern region, by the change of frequencies of na-ment was long and that this process of change was 
ked barley and bean that seem to point out a pat-characterized by a convergence of multiple factors of 
tern of alternating exploitation of the two cultivated different nature. The acquisition and transformation 
species. This agricultural model, observable in Toro of different products not exclusively used for agriculfrom the Late Neolithic, is based on the use of cere-tural production acquire an important role in this 
als and leguminous crops, which implies that the cul-change. We have to admit that data on this whole 
tivable land was stable (Martín Socas et al. 1999; process is incomplete, although we must not forget 
2004). This fact, together with other factors such as that these studies – particularly the significant excademography, production and organization during vation at Las Pilas/Huerta Seca – have shed more 
the end of the Late Neolithic/Early Copper Age, con-light on the final periods of the Neolithic and its consolidated a system of dependent relationships be-nection with the beginnings and the development 
tween social groups, which would distinguish the of the Copper Age (Cámalich Massieu and Martín 
political connections of the Copper Age in the area. Socas 1999). 


 
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