Talayot

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Square talayot Cova de sa Nineta
Round talayot ​​from Sa Canova

A talayot ( Castilian ) or talaiot ( Catalan ) is a thick-walled tower with mostly a central chamber from the era of the talayot ​​culture on the Balearic Islands, which is named after these buildings . The term talaiot , like talayot , is derived from the Catalan word talaia for "observation and watchtower", which has its origins in the Arabic atalaji for "guard".

Talayots were built using the Cyclops technique , the archaic form of megalithic stone architecture. This contradicts any idea of ​​influence by one of the Iron Age cultures of the same time . Talayots were often placed high up. The precursor of the talaiot is the Prototalayot , and particularly to Minorca well preserved naveta (plur. Navetes) . Both were preceded by the Cueva , an artificial cave carved out of the rock, as a cult building .

description

The floor plan of the Mallorcan talayots was initially round and later became square or square. Most talayots have a level access. However, there were variants within the structural unit. In Menorca in particular, there are often no rooms within the talayots, since the use of the upper platform was the structural purpose here. So far, no talayots have been found on the Pityusen islands of Ibiza and Formentera .

The only central chamber on each floor was otherwise covered with stone slabs, which rested on the side walls and a central column of the western Mediterranean polylithic type stacked from blocks . Columns of this kind, made up of about five roughly worked cuboids, as preserved remnants of a worn talayot ​​are e.g. B. in "Almallutx", Campanari des Moros at Montuïri and N'Amer received.

The second generation of talayots with a square floor plan had several floors, which have now been largely removed, so that their original height is unknown.

  • Talayot ​​under construction
  • Tower with a polylithic column
  • Talayot ​​tower
  • Talayotic column from Hospitalet Vell

context

Spread of megalithic cultures (yellow)

Similar structures were built around the same time in the age of the Talayotic in Corsica , Sardinia and Pantelleria . Some researchers assume a connection between the island cultures of the time in the western Mediterranean. The building techniques of the Torre culture on Corsica, the Sesiots on Pantelleria and the Nuragic culture on Sardinia are partly older, but largely comparable to that of the Talayots. The thesis that the Talayot ​​culture emerged with the arrival of other peoples from the eastern Mediterranean on Mallorca and Menorca, who introduced the last section of the prehistory there with changed forms of construction and a new social and economic system , is refuted. The culture of the Talayotic is a largely independent, comprehensible development of the Balearic Islands, with loose connections to other cultures not being excluded.

literature

  • J. Aramburu, C. Garrido, V. Sastre: Guia arqueologica de Mallorca . Palma de Mallorca 1995, 1998. ISBN 84-7651-227-9 (Spanish)
  • J. Aramburu-Zabala: Talayots de Mallorca . In: Revista de Arqueología . No. 173 , 1995, pp. 18-27 .

Web links

Commons : Talayots  - collection of images, videos and audio files