Podomorfos in the Canary Islands

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Podomorfos are representations of the soles of the feet carved or carved into rocks . They were found in many places in the Canary Islands , e.g. T. found in large numbers. It is believed today that they were created by the islands' indigenous people.

Podomorfos in the Zona Arqueológica Montaña de Tindaya

Scientific exploration of the Podomorfos

From the end of the 19th century, historical research in the Canary Islands endeavored mainly to check the historical sources. The written sources that tell of the Canary Islands prior to the destruction of indigenous culture do not mention podomorphic rock art. They were therefore only marginally perceived. Drafted petroglyphs, especially the simplified representations of feet, were not as spectacular in the collections of amateur archaeologists as mummies, skulls, idolos or clay bowls. In addition, until the 1970s there was a widespread view that the petroglyphs, especially the characters, but also the Podomorfos, did not come from the indigenous people, but from visitors to the islands. It has also been believed that, like other petroglyphs, particularly in Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, they did not emerge until after the arrival of Europeans in the 16th century. As a result, the petroglyphs in the Canary Islands received little interest in historical research. The first descriptive and comparative studies as well as the systematization of the petroglyphs of all islands, in connection with other archaeological finds, did not begin until the beginning of the 1970s.

description

There are a large number of differences in the level of abstraction and the way in which the toes are rendered in the foot images. Both individual feet are shown, but there are also representations that are clearly recognizable as pairs of feet. In some cases up to five feet are strung together in a kind of frieze. In order to allow a more precise description of the different finds from Podomorfos, different systems of classifications have been proposed.

Type c
Type B
Type a
Type F
Type E
Type D
Type I.
Type H
Type G
  • Type A: pair of feet, toes as flat surfaces, vaguely based on the anatomy
  • Type B: pair of feet, toes as lines, vaguely based on the anatomy
  • Type C: pair of feet, simplified very vaguely based on the anatomy, without toes
  • Type D: pair of feet, highly schematic (rounded rectangles) without toes
  • Type E: Frieze made up of several feet or pairs of feet, highly abstracted, odd number possible
  • Type F: single foot, more or less rounded, highly schematic, without toes
  • Type G: single foot, rounded shape very vaguely based on the anatomy, with toes
  • Type H: pair of feet, greatly simplified with toes on both sides, unreal number of toes
  • Type I: single foot or pair, sometimes better following the anatomy, without toes

Technical design

Since there are no usable ore deposits in the Canary Islands, the indigenous people did not have any metal tools. On some islands obsidians have been found that are suitable for the processing of stone surfaces. Most petroglyphs were made with hard stones or stone fragments. In the striking technique (span. Picado, percusión), small pieces of rock are broken out of the surface to be worked with a pointed stone. The individual hit points can be close together so that they form lines. In some cases, however, the points are further apart, but there are still optical connections between these points. This method can also be used to display curved lines. With the scribing technique (span. Incisión) lines are scribed into the surface to be processed. This way, curved lines are not so easy to make. In some cases, e.g. B. in part of the carving of the Piedra del Majo (Zonzamas), the carved or incised lines were subsequently reworked by scraping .

Locations

The focus of the places of discovery of Podomorfos on the Canary Islands is, both in terms of the number of places of discovery and the number of respective representations, on the islands of Fuerteventura and Lanzarote . The site with the largest number of Podomorfos is in the Montaña de Tindaya in the area of ​​the city of La Oliva on the island of Fuerteventura. There are more than 217 outlines of feet on 52 panels. Other sites on the island are Tisajoire and Los Lajas (La Oliva); Castillejo Alto ( Pájara ); Pico de la Muda, Morro del Humilladero and La Majada del Sol ( Betancuria ); Las Peñitas ( Vega de Río Palmas ). In Lanzarote, a large number of different Podomorfos can be seen in the Zona Arqueológica Zonzamas on the Piedra del Majo. There are also a number of these representations on the Peña del Conchero. Other localities are the Cueva Palomas ( Femés ), Peña de María Herrera ( Haría ) and Pozo de la Cruz ( Yaiza ). On the island of El Hierro , in the Zona Arqueológica de El Julan, a large number of other petroglyphs and Podomorfos were found. On Gran Canaria there are Podomorfos in the Barranco de Balos ( Agüimes ) and on Tenerife at the Roque de Bento ( Arona ).

Podomorfos appear on a panel along with other petroglyphs in various cases. It is not certain that they were created at the same time. This is doubtful in some cases, as the Podomorfos and other petroglyphs were made using different techniques. Podomorfos can also be found individually or in the immediate vicinity of other archaeological sites such as buildings, residential or burial caves.

meaning

In order to explain the importance of the Podomorfos, further investigations are necessary with regard to their origin, their location, arrangement on the surfaces and the connection with other archaeological finds. Based on the current state of research, no conclusive explanations can be given.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Juan Álvarez Delgado: Inscripciones líbicas de Canarias: ensayo de interpretación líbica . J. Regulo, Santa Cruz de Tenerife 1964, pp. 391 (Spanish, [1] [accessed July 24, 2018]).
  2. ↑ María Antonia Perera Betancort, José de León Hernández: Nuevas estaciones de grabados rupestres de Lanzarote en relación con el contexto arqueológico de los majos . In: Francisco Morales Padrón (ed.): XI Coloquio de Historia Canario-Americana: (1994) . Ediciones del Cabildo Insular de Gran Canaria, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria 1996, ISBN 84-8103-139-9 , p. 253 (Spanish, [2] [accessed September 7, 2018]).
  3. ↑ Javier Soler Segura: Interpretando lo rupestre - visiones y significados de los podomorfos en Canarias . In: Manuel Santos Estévez, Andrés Troncoso Meléndez (eds.): Traballos de Arqueoloxía e Patrimonio . Instituto de Estudos Galegos Padre Sarmiento, Santiago de Compostela 2005, ISBN 84-00-08374-1 , p. 167 (Spanish, [3] [accessed September 6, 2018]).
  4. ↑ Hans-Joachim Ulbrich: The podomorphic rock paintings of Lanzarote (Canary Islands) . In: Almogaren . No. 42 , 2011, ISSN  1695-2669 , pp. 137 ( [4] [accessed February 15, 2017]).
  5. ↑ Renata Ana Springer Bunk: The Libyan-Berber inscriptions of the Canary Islands in their rock painting context . Köppe, Cologne 2014, ISBN 978-3-89645-942-8 , pp. 6 .
  6. ↑ Hans-Joachim Ulbrich: The podomorphic rock paintings of Lanzarote (Canary Islands) . In: Almogaren . No. 42 , 2011, ISSN  1695-2669 , pp. 138 ( [5] [accessed February 15, 2017]).
  7. ^ Consejería de Turismo, Cultura y Deportes: Grabados Rupestres de la Montaña de Tindaya. Bienes de Interés Cultural. Gobierno de Canarias, accessed May 26, 2018 (Spanish).
  8. ^ María Antonia Perera Betancort: Tindaya: reflexiones sobre una montaña agredida . In: Cuadernos del Guincho . No. 1 , 1997, ISSN  2341-4294 , pp. 48–57 (Spanish, [6] [accessed September 5, 2018]).
  9. ↑ María Antonia Perera Betancort: Las intervenciones rupestres de los maxies de Fuerteventura. (pdf) In: VII Congreso de Patrimonio Histórico. Inscripciones Rupestres y poblamiento del Archipiélago canario. Cabildo de Lanzarote, 2010, accessed June 11, 2018 (Spanish).
  10. ↑ Consejería de Turismo, Cultura y Deportes: Zonzamas (queseras y construcciones ciclópeas). Bienes de Interés Cultural. Gobierno de Canarias, accessed May 26, 2018 (Spanish).
  11. ↑ María Antonia Perera Betancort: Manifestaciones rupestres de los maxies de Lanzarote. (pdf) In: VII Congreso de Patrimonio Histórico. Inscripciones Rupestres y poblamiento del Archipiélago canario. Cabildo de Lanzarote, 2010, accessed June 11, 2018 (Spanish).
  12. ^ Consejería de Turismo, Cultura y Deportes: El Julan. Bienes de Interés Cultural. Gobierno de Canarias, accessed May 26, 2018 (Spanish).
  13. ↑ Javier Soler Segura: Interpretando lo rupestre - visiones y significados de los podomorfos en Canarias . In: Manuel Santos Estévez, Andrés Troncoso Meléndez (eds.): Traballos de Arqueoloxía e Patrimonio . Instituto de Estudos Galegos Padre Sarmiento, Santiago de Compostela 2005, ISBN 84-00-08374-1 , p. 170 (Spanish, [7] [accessed September 6, 2018]).
  14. ↑ Hans-Joachim Ulbrich: The podomorphic rock paintings of Lanzarote (Canary Islands) . In: Almogaren . No. 42 , 2011, ISSN  1695-2669 , pp. 13 ff . ( [8] [accessed February 15, 2017]).
  15. ↑ Javier Soler Segura: Interpretando lo rupestre - visiones y significados de los podomorfos en Canarias . In: Manuel Santos Estévez, Andrés Troncoso Meléndez (eds.): Traballos de Arqueoloxía e Patrimonio . Instituto de Estudos Galegos Padre Sarmiento, Santiago de Compostela 2005, ISBN 84-00-08374-1 , p. 176 (Spanish, [9] [accessed September 6, 2018]).

literature

  • Javier Soler Segura: Interpretando lo rupestre - visiones y significados de los podomorfos en Canarias . In: Manuel Santos Estévez, Andrés Troncoso Meléndez (eds.): Traballos de Arqueoloxía e Patrimonio . Instituto de Estudos Galegos Padre Sarmiento, Santiago de Compostela 2005, ISBN 84-00-08374-1 , p. 165–178 (Spanish, [10] [accessed September 6, 2018]).
  • Hans-Joachim Ulbrich: The podomorphic rock paintings of Lanzarote (Canary Islands) . In: Almogaren . No. 42 , 2011, ISSN  1695-2669 , pp. 133–168 ( [11] [accessed February 15, 2017]).