Dolmen of El Pozuelo

The dolmens of El Pozuelo (Dolmen 1 to 11) are located southeast of El Pozuelo, south of Zalamea la Real near Huelva in Andalusia in Spain . The almost 200 megalithic complexes in the province of Huelva form one of the largest collections in Spain. The dolmen were discovered in 1946 by Carlos Cerdán Márquez (1910–1990) and most of them were excavated. Due to the size of the megalithic complexes in this necropolis , his work had a great impact in the scientific world. In 2002 the area, whose topography is very irregular with steep slopes, ravines and numerous streams, was declared a cultural asset as an archaeological zone.

The eleven often cruciform dolmens with passages and multiple chambers have different sizes and chronologically fit into the Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods (3000 to 2500 BC).

Dolmens 1 and 2 as well as 3 and 4 lie as closely spaced pairs of dolmens in the Cabezo Cebada eucalyptus forest .

The Dolmen Pozuelo 1

37 ° 36 ′ 12 ″ N, 6 ° 38 ′ 7 ″ W.

Dolmen 1

Dolmen 1 is a chamber grave with an undifferentiated passage on a small hill in an oval tumulus about 13.5 m in diameter, which is framed by a curb. The south-eastern dolmen consists of the passage and two axial chambers. The chambers are 3.7 m long and 1.8 m wide. The disappeared ceiling consisted of slates of slate on a bearing stone structure and was covered by the tumulus. The chamber floor is made of earth, on a bed of basalt slate.

37 ° 36 ′ 15 ″ N, 6 ° 38 ′ 6 ″ W.

Dolmen 2

Dolmen 2 is in a similar condition and lies in an oval tumulus about 21.0 m in diameter, which is bordered by a 1.0 m high wall of dry stone , about 80 m away. It has an undifferentiated, cross-shaped space consisting of a corridor and two chambers. The north chamber is 7.4 m long and 1.7 m wide. The south chamber 6.7 m long and 1.8 m wide. From the slate ceiling on a bearing stone structure, only one slab has been preserved in situ . The chamber floor is made of earth on a bed of basalt slate.

37 ° 36 ′ 17 "N, 6 ° 38 ′ 11" W.

Dolmen El Pozuelo 1 - 5
Pozuelo 1
Pozuelo 2
Pozuelo 3
Pozuelo 3
Pozuelo 4
Pozuelo 4
Pozuelo 5
Pozuelo 5

Dolmen 3

Dolmen 3 is much more complete and its oval hill, bordered by curbs, extends almost to the top of the chamber and passage. It is a megalithic chamber grave with an undifferentiated passage and consists of two chambers and passages, with lintels of slate on orthostats (three plates displaced). The chambers are located 1.0 m from the southeast side. Their corridor is about 3.0 m long and 0.5 m wide. The north chamber is about 5.5 m long and 2.5 m wide; the adjoining southern chamber is just as long but only 1.9 m wide. In both chambers the height of the bearing stones is about 1.45 m. The chamber floor is made of earth on a bed of basalt slate.

37 ° 36 ′ 17 "N, 6 ° 38 ′ 11" W.

Dolmen 4

Dolmen 4 is about 20 m away in the same oval hill, which is bordered by a curb ring. Its megalithic complex is elongated and consists of a passage, antechamber and chamber. The trapezoidal corridor widens towards the chamber and is about 1.8 m long and 0.5 m wide. It differs from the 6.2 m long and 2.9 m wide chamber in the lower height of its orthostats. It opens into the 1.7 m long and 1.6 m wide antechamber bordered by two parallel plates. The ceiling that had disappeared originally consisted of slate lintels on supporting stones. Due to the width of the chamber, the ceiling panels had to be supported and the chamber has a longitudinal axis formed by five central supports. The chamber floor is made of earth on a bed of basalt slate.

Dolmens 5 to 9 are over 1.5 km closer to El Pozuelo outside the forest.

37 ° 36 '11 "N, 6 ° 39' 22" W.

Dolmen 5

Dolmen 5 is the easternmost of the group. It is a chamber grave in a small oval hill, which is bordered by a curtain wall. The megalithic complex consists of a corridor and four chambers.

Chamber 1 is about 1.6 m long and a maximum of 2.3 m wide. It tapers towards the corridor.
Chamber 2, the central chamber, is about 3.0 m long and 1.4 m wide. It is rectangular and its entrance is almost closed by a plate perpendicular to the left wall.
Chamber 3 is the smallest of the four chambers. It is about 1.5 m long and 2.0 m wide and semicircular.
Chamber 4 is polygonal and about 3.5 m long and 1.7 m wide.

Between chambers 2 and 3 there is a trapezoidal antechamber about 2.0 m long and one meter in width. The corridor with its lower orthostats is about 2.5 m long and 0.4 m wide. The ceiling, four blocks of which have been preserved in situ and some of which have collapsed, originally consisted of rock falls that lay on bearing stones and were covered by the tumulus. The chamber floor is made of earth on a bed of basalt slate.

Dolmens 6 and 8 are located on a small hill next to the Ribera de los Pinos, whose surroundings are characterized by holm oaks and scrub (rock roses).

37 ° 36 ′ 17 "N, 6 ° 39 ′ 36" W.

Dolmen El Pozuelo 5 and 6
Pozuelo 5
Pozuelo 5
Pozuelo 5
Pozuelo 5
Pozuelo 6
Pozuelo 6
Pozuelo 6
Pozuelo 6

Dolmen 6

The megalithic complex consists of a corridor and four chambers. It lies in an oval hill with a diameter of 14 m, which is built from layers of slate and bordered by a circular wall.

Chamber 1 is rectangular, about 2.3 m long and 1.5 m wide. Her head is formed by a single preserved orthostat.
Chamber 2 is about 1.7 m long and 1.8 m wide, is similar to Chamber 1, but stands across and ends in the same way.

The chambers 3 and 4 are accessed by a side corridor, which is to the side of the main corridor and is 5.5 m long and 0.6 m wide on average.

Chamber 3 is about 4.5 m long and 1.8 m wide, is the largest of them all and is divided by a plate perpendicular to its left wall.
Chamber 4 is approximately 2.6 m long and 1.2 m wide.

The ceiling, of which four blocks have been preserved in situ , some have collapsed and some are on the hill, originally consisted of rock falls that lay on bearing stones and were covered by the tumulus. The chamber floor is made of earth on a bed of basalt slate.

37 ° 36 ′ 14 "N, 6 ° 39 ′ 48" W.

Dolmen 7

Dolmen 7 is a megalithic complex in an oval tumulus about 20.5 by 16.0 m in diameter, the border of which is similar to Dolmen 6. The megalithic complex has a cruciform floor plan consisting of a corridor and three chambers. Two are polygonal side chambers and one is a rectangular, axial chamber.

The elongated polygonal chamber 1 (the north side chamber) has a length of about 3.3 m and a width of 1.7 m.
The rectangular chamber 2 (central chamber) is about 2.3 m long and 1.5 m wide and lies on the aisle axis.
The elongated polygonal chamber 3 (the lateral south chamber) is about 3.0 m long and 2.1 m wide and is the largest of the three chambers in terms of area. In the chamber, due to its size, there is a preserved central column that supported the ceiling.

Between the three chambers is a room that can be viewed as a common anteroom. The duct, which has parallel walls, shows a decrease in the height of its orthostats towards the access and is lower than the chambers. The ceiling, of which two slabs have been preserved in situ, originally consisted of stone lintels resting on bearing stones. The chamber floor is made of earth on a bed of basalt slate.

37 ° 36 ′ 19 ″ N, 6 ° 39 ′ 24 ″ W.

Dolmen El Pozuelo 6 and 7

Dolmen 8

Dolmen 8 is a megalithic complex consisting of a trapezoidal structure in an eroded oval tumulus. It has an approximately 4.0 m long corridor with a base width of 1.1 m and 0.5 m at the top. The chamber appears to have been at least four feet long. The missing ceiling originally consisted of stone lintels that lay on supporting stones. The chamber floor is made of earth on a bed of basalt slate.

Dolmen 7 and 9 are located on a hill near Riscal, near the road from El Pozuelo to Ribera de los Pinos, in a setting of holm oaks and stone roses.

37 ° 36 ′ 19 ″ N, 6 ° 39 ′ 48 ″ W.

Dolmen 9

Dolmen 9 is a megalithic complex in an oval tumulus about 16.0 × 14.0 m in diameter, cut through by a road and bordered by a circular wall. The trapezoidal system consists of the remains of the chamber and the approximately 7.4 m long, 1.2 m wide and an average of 0.7 m high corridor. The ceiling is missing. The chamber floor is made of earth on a bed of basalt slate.

Dolmen 10

Dolmen 10 (de los Rubios) is more disturbed. According to Georg and Vera Leisner , it is a trapezoid gallery grave with a single chamber of an elongated and low design in an oval hill bordered by a circular wall.

Dolmen 11

Dolmen 11 (Martín Gil) is located on a hill in El Chaparral. Dolmen 11 is a chamber grave in an oval hill, which is bordered by a curtain wall. The cruciform megalithic complex consists of a corridor, an antechamber and five chambers.

Chamber 1 is about 3.0 m long, 1.9 m wide and an average of 1.56 m high. The irregular floor at the end of the rectangular corridor is sloping towards the end.
Chamber 2 is oval and around 2.5 m long, 1.4 m wide and has access on the south side.
Chamber 3 is about 3.4 m long, 2.3 m wide and an average of 1.5 m high; its access is on the north side.
Chamber 4 is oval, about 3.6 m long, 1.8 m wide and an average of 1.4 m high, the access is on the north side.
Chamber 5 is about 3.5 m long, 1.4 m wide and an average of 1.56 m high, its entrance is in the east.

The five chambers open into an approximately 3.7 m long and on average 1.2 m wide antechamber between chamber 5 and the end of the corridor. The cruciform structure was originally formed by 60 orthostats, 21 of which have been preserved. The ceiling is missing. The chamber floor is made of rammed earth on a bed of basalt slate.

literature

Adriano Gómez Molina: Nuevas aportaciones al estudio de los dólmenes de El Pozueloel dolmen de “Martín Gil” In: Huelva arqueológica, ISSN 0211-1187 , Nº 4, 1978, pp. 11-78

Web links

Map with all coordinates: OSM | WikiMap