The history of prehistory in Spain has just taken an unexpected turn thanks to a team of experts from various academic institutions, with the University of Alcalá At the forefront. In the municipality of Illescas, specifically at the Valdelasilla site, they have unearthed what is considered the oldest monumental necropolis known in the interior of the Iberian Peninsula.
This site, which dates back to the end of the fifth millennium BC, indicates that it already existed more than 6.000 years There were communities capable of organizing complex sacred spaces. The details of this discovery, which have been published in the journal Cambridge Archaeological JournalThey call into question the idea that the interior of the Meseta was a "backward" territory compared to the coastal areas with respect to the development of megalithism.
A planned and massive cemetery
The discovery arose during a preventive excavation The excavation, carried out between 2020 and 2021, was necessary before urban development began in the area. Within a total area of ​​45 hectares, archaeologists located an 11-hectare core where up to 454 structures of various kinds. The most striking thing is that, despite the magnitude of the site, a large part of it has disappeared due to the current industrial facilities in the area.
Regarding the typology of the tombs, specialists have distinguished two clear types. On the one hand, there are the simple pitswith an approximate diameter of one and a half meters and shallow depth, where isolated individuals used to settle. On the other hand, the following stand out: funeral chamberswhich can reach six meters in diameter and which housed collective or multiple burials.
Neolithic Architecture and Symbolism
Although the passage of time has caused the organic materials to disappear, the traces of posts and foundation trenches They confirm that these structures had an aerial elevation. A combination of wood, stone, and clay was used to erect these monuments, which directly links Valdelasilla to the phenomenon of late Neolithic megalithism and the evolution of the funerary architecturewhere death became a visible and monumental element in the landscape.
A unique feature in the region is tomb VLD-T450. This large circular chamber was enclosed by a circular pit of 36 meters in diameter, creating a kind of sacred enclosure that separated the world of the living from that of the dead. The entrance to both elements was oriented to the southeast, which demonstrates a architectural planning very well cared for.
Analysis of the population and its rituals
Through an analysis of 21 radiocarbon dates and Bayesian models, it has been determined that the necropolis had a prolonged activity divided into five chronological phasesFrom 4.336 BC to 2.334 BC, at least [number missing] have been identified. 46 individualsincluding adults, young people and children, with a balanced distribution between men and women.
The grave goods found provide interesting information about their society. Flint tools, pottery fragments, and personal adornments such as beads and bone awls. The discovery of more than one hundred is especially significant. seashells Atlantic and Mediterranean materials were found in the main tomb, suggesting that, although they used local materials, they maintained long-distance contacts or exchange routes.
Changing the European historical narrative
This discovery is a real bombshell for the history of art and archaeology because it breaks with the maritime diffusionismUntil now, it was believed that megaliths reached Europe through northwestern France and spread along the coasts before reaching the interior. Valdelasilla proves that there was a parallel and autonomous development, with independent centers that did not depend on coastal influence.
Professor Rosa Barroso has pointed out that the discovery of such an organized space in the earliest periods is what allows us to properly speak of a necropolis. Furthermore, it has been observed that some burial areas overlapped with domestic spaces and grain silos, which indicates a very close coexistence between daily life and ancestor worship.
The Valdelasilla site is positioned as a fundamental piece for understanding the origin of megalithism in Spain, demonstrating that 6.000 years ago there were already communities in Toledo with a hierarchical social structure and a sophisticated architectural capacity that was maintained for generations as a center of collective memory.
