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Alonso Eguíluz, Mónica

Alonso Eguíluz, Mónica

Postdoctoral, ERC

Presentation
I am a postdoctoral researcher at PALEO (PaleoVegetation and PaleoClimatic) research line of the ERAAUB. I defended my thesis at the University of Basque Country in 2021. My PhD dissertation is focused on the study of early Neolithic livestock farming activities carried out in the fumier deposits of San Cristóbal, Los Husos II (Álava, Spain) and El Mirador (Burgos, Spain) through microarchaeological analyses. Microarchaeology encompasses the study of the archaeological record invisible to the naked eye. Specifically, I study plant microremains (phytoliths and ash pseudomorphs), as well calcitic microremains generated within the digestive system of certain rumiants (fecal spherulites). Finally, I also characterize mineralogical composition of sediments using Fourier Transformed Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) analyses.


Research Lines:
My main research line is related to the study of pastoral activities during the recent Prehistory through phytolith, ash pseudomorphs, spherulites and FTIR analyses. In addition, I am interested in evaluate the state of preservation of microrests (phytoliths, ash pseudomorphs and spherulites) in high temperatures combustion contexts.
Nowadays my work is focused in the European agricultural terraces, within the European RC project Terraces, Archaeology and Culture in Europe (TerrACE) (https://www.terrace.no/). Terraces can be found all over the inhabited continents, as they are the largest landform modification carried out by humans (Brown et al. 2021), and they are known since Prehistory. Even though they are an important element for the economy and social development through time, they were not considered as an archaeological artifact by itself, hence they were not object of interest until few years ago. The aim of this project is to characterize terraces from an archaeological and geoarchaeological point of view to, finally, improve their preservation and promote their historical value. Specifically, my contribution to this project lies on shed light into the different framing activities carried out in those terraces through phytolith, calcium oxalate, fecal spherulites and FTIR analyses.
On the other hand, I also collaborate in another project carried out in Mughr el Hamamah (Ajlun District, Jordan). This cave was occupied mainly during the Middle Paleolithic to Early Upper Paleolithic transition (50-40 ka.), and preserves a wide archaeological record including flint tools, animal bones, stratified hearths, charred seeds and hominin bones. I carry out the microarchaeological analyses in order to reconstruct paleoenvironmental landscape of the studied area during this transitional period, and the use of plants by the hominins. At the same time, these analyses intend to assess the state of preservation of the archaeological record.


I have also collaborated with other projects:
-The use of plants by past societies, and the reconstruction of anthropic landscapes through the study of microremains of biological origin. Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad (2017-2020). PI: Rosa Maria Albert (2017-2020).
-Nuevos cultivos, nuevos paisajes: Agricultura y antropización entre las primeras sociedades campesinas del norte peninsular (HAR2011-23716). Plan Nacional de I+D+I. Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (2012-2014). PI: Lydia Zapata Peña.

Selected publications
-Alonso-Eguíluz, M. (2012). Estudio de los fitolitos en conjuntos de la Prehistoria reciente de la Sierra de Cantabria. El caso de los niveles de redil de San Cristóbal (Laguardia, Álava). CKQ, 2, pp. 3-14.
http://www.aranzadi.eus/fileadmin/docs/CKQ/ckq02-web.pdf


-Cepeda-Ocampo, J.J., Moreno-Larrazabal, A. y Alonso-Eguiluz, M. (2014). Los molinos de El Cerco de Bolunburu (Zalla, Bizkaia). Una primera aproximación. Revista d'Arqueologia de Ponent, 24, pp. 323-330 https://www.raco.cat/index.php/RAP/article/view/288722 


-Polo-Díaz, A., Alonso-Eguiluz, M., Ruiz-Alonso, M., Pérez, S., Mujika, J.A., Albert, R.M. y Fernández-Eraso, J. (2016). Management of residues and natural resources at San Cristóbal rock-shelter: contribution to the characterization of chalcolithic agropastoral groups in the Iberian Península. Quaternary International, 414, pp. 202-225. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2016.02.013 


-Alonso-Eguíluz, M., Fernández-Eraso, J. y Albert, R.M. (2017). The first herds in the upper Ebro basin at Los Husos II (Álava, Spain): Microarchaeology applied to fumier deposits. Vegetation History and Archaeobotany, 26, pp. 143-157. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00334-016-0590-y 


-Fernández-Eraso, J., Pérez-Díaz, S., Ruiz-Alonso, M., Alonso-Eguiluz, M., García-Rojas, M., Sánchez, A., Tarriño-Vinagre, A., Camarero, C., García-Marínez de Lagrán, Í., Arévalo-Muñoz, E. y Polo-Díaz, A. (2017). Rediles y pastores en la Prehistoria Reciente de Rioja Alavesa. En: Fernández-Eraso, Javier; Mujika, José Antonio y Arrizabalaga, Álvaro (coords.): Miscelánea en homenaje a Lydia Zapata Peña (1965-2015). Universidad del País Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibersitatea, pp. 397-426.


-Daura, J., Sanz, M., Oms, F. X., Pedro, M., Martínez, P., Mendiela, S., Oliva Poveda, M., Gibaja, J. F., Mozota, M., Alonso-Eguíluz, M., Albert, R. M., Allué, E., Bañuls-Cardona, S., López-García, J. M., Santos Arévalo, F. J., y Fullola, J. M. (2019). Deciphering Neolithic activities from a Cardial burial site (Cova Bonica) on the western Mediterranean coast. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 23, pp. 324-347. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2018.10.036 

 

Websites:
https://wwwwresearchgate.net/profile/Monica-Alonso-7 
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3021-593X 
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=KZOqRLoAAAAJ&hl=es