Artsoundscapes in Catalonia: Exploring its rock art

14 septiembre, 2020

By Laura Fernández Macías

If this 2020 will be remembered for anything, it will be for this terrible pandemic of Covid-19, which has the whole world on tenterhooks. Since last March, all our plans, both personal and professional, have been affected in one way or another by the pandemic. Obviously, in Artsoundscapes we have not been oblivious to this situation; the main setback is that the quarantine forced us to cancel all the fieldwork scheduled for this year, especially the international projects. This work is essential for obtaining the data that gives meaning to our investigations and, also, on a personal level, it always provides us with unforgettable experiences. For this reason, the paralysis of these fieldworks, and the uncertainty about when it could be continued, meant for us a slap in the face.

In the case of the fieldwork that we carried out in the rock art sites of Catalonia, this had already begun in late 2019, when the acoustic measurements had been made in the sites with Levantine Art of Montblanc and Ulldecona, as well as in some sets of Cornudella de Montsant, as our colleague Tommaso Mattioli explained, in the blog post published on April 22. For this 2020 it was planned to do acoustic measurements in the rest of the Catalan sites with Levantine rock art. In Catalonia, as in the whole Mediterranean area of the Iberian Peninsula, there is a large group of cave paintings called Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin on the Iberian Peninsula, which in the 1998 was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The declaration affects 757 rock-painting sites distributed among the current territories of Catalonia, Aragon, Valencia, Castilla-La Mancha, Murcia and Andalusia. In these sites, pictorial manifestations belonging to different stylistic traditions are located, such as Levantine Art, characterized by the level of naturalism and realism of its figures, or Schematic Art, characterized by the high level of schematism and abstraction of its figures, or the Macroschematic Art, a nucleus with its own characteristics located in the province of Alicante. However, despite these stylistic differences, these rock art sites share their location in shelters, walls and outdoor cavities, located in environments of great ecological and landscape richness, as well as an outstanding role of the human figure, and a Post-Palaeolithic chronology, although the debate on the origin and authorship of Levantine Art continues to generate a heated debate among researchers, who are divided between those who attribute their authorship to the last populations of hunter-gatherers and those who link this art with the Neolithic populations. Likewise, Levantine Art, exclusive to the Mediterranean area, is the first peninsular art that configures narrative scenes of great dynamism and of very varied themes, among which we can identify scenes of hunting, gathering, fighting, dance, rituals and scenes from social life. Since its declaration as World Heritage, new discoveries have continued to occur, and it is currently calculated that the number of rock art sites can exceed 1,500 sets on the Mediterranean area. In Catalonia, of the more than 130 sets documented today, about fifty of them feature Levantine-style figures.

The coronavirus and the months of quarantine, between March and May, also paralyzed the fieldwork in Catalonia, which we did not know when we could restart.

Finally, the end of the state of alarm in Spain and the reduction of infections in May, allowed us to launch the acoustic measurements campaign, which was planned for the month of July. Thereby, we are faced with a month of June of preparation and frenetic work: all the necessary documentation and material had to be prepared, the corresponding archaeological intervention permits had to be requested to the administrations, the route and the logistics of the team had to be organized, request the access to the rock art sites that are protected by a closure, etc. And finally, on July 8, we were able to start the fieldwork. On this occasion the fieldwork team was made up of Margarita Díaz-Andreu (Artsoundscapes Project Principal Investigator), Tommaso Mattioli (senior postdoctoral researcher), Neemias Santos da Rosa (junior postdoctoral researcher), Adriano Farina (acoustical engineer), Samantha López (doctoral researcher) and myself.

Some of the Artsoundscapes team members in the Cova de l’Escoda on the last day of the archaeological campaign. From left to right: Neemias Santos da Rosa; Adriano Farina; Margarita Díaz-Andreu; Laura Fernández Macías; Tommaso Mattioli.

Some of the Artsoundscapes team members in the Cova de l’Escoda on the last day of the archaeological campaign. From left to right: Neemias Santos da Rosa; Adriano Farina; Margarita Díaz-Andreu; Laura Fernández Macías; Tommaso Mattioli.

The first part of the route took us to Terres de l’Ebre, in the southwest of Catalonia, a territory characterized by being the lower course of the Ebro river, and where we find various natural parks (Delta del Ebro and Els Ports de Tortosa-Beseit) and mountain ranges (Cardó, Boix, etc), and which is configured as one of the most outstanding nuclei of rock art in Catalonia. In this area we work in the sites of Cocó de la Gralla (Mas de Barberans), Abric de les Llibreres and Abric dels Masets (Freginals), Abric de la Caparrella (Rasquera), Cabra Feixet (El Perelló) and Cova del Taller, Cova del Cingle and Cova del Ramat (Tivissa). The Cocó de la Gralla, discovered in 2014, is located in a natural setting of great beauty (Els Ports) and features paintings made up of an impressive row of 20 large archers and a lower row formed by 5 smaller archers, in very good condition. Visits to the site are organized from the Museu de la Pauma, where its manager, Pepa Subirats, treated us with great kindness. The sites of Llibreres, where a group of animals is observed, and Masets, where we see a small archer and other remains, located in the Sierra de Godall and less known than the rest of the sites, are not equipped for public visit and they do not have a footpath to access them; the steep slope, the dense vegetation and the heat of the month of July turned its access into a hard feat. The Caparrella and Cabra Feixet sites are located in the Boix and Cardó mountain ranges, an area of great landscape beauty. The entire team was particularly struck by this last pictorial site, due to its exceptional technical execution and its location in a unique setting, known as the Cabra Feixet circus, an area that forms a natural amphitheatre surrounded by high crags. The site can be freely visited and there is a circular and well-marked route, which also passes through the well-known archaeological site of Cova de la Mallada, a cave excavated by Salvador Vilaseca and Ignacio Cantarell in the middle of the 20th century, and which has an occupation of the final upper Palaeolithic.

The most outstanding paintings at Cabra Feixet, which have great technical quality.

The most outstanding paintings at Cabra Feixet, which have great technical quality. 

The Cabra Feixet paintings with the DStretch filter, which allows a better visualization of the figures.

The Cabra Feixet paintings with the DStretch filter, which allows a better visualization of the figures.

Finally, we went to work in the sites of the municipality of Tivissa, where we can find the fantastic deer of the Cova del Taller (the largest documented in Catalonia), the great archer of the Cova del Cingle and the group of nine goats from the Cova del Ramat. As always when we visit these groups, we were guided by the local researcher, Agustí Jardí, this time accompanied by his son Gabi, and with both of us we were able to exchange opinions and listen to his interesting observations.

The main deer of the Cova del Taller with the DStretch filter.

The main deer of the Cova del Taller with the DStretch filter.

The group of goats at the Cova del Ramat with the DStretch filter.

The group of goats at the Cova del Ramat with the DStretch filter.

Our next stop on the route took us to the Priorat region, known for its beautiful villages, its spectacular scenery and its renowned vineyards and wineries. In this region, known for being a world climbing paradise, is located the municipality of Capçanes, where in 2007 ten sites of rock paintings were discovered and, between 2013 and 2014, nine more sets were found, making this nucleus one of the most important of the Levantine rock art in Catalonia. In these pictorial ensembles, the large dimensions of some of his figures stand out, such as the great archer of Parellada I or the bovine of Parellada III, which, with more than 50 cm, corresponds to the largest documented animal figure in Catalonia, as well as complex scenes of difficult interpretation, among which the one of La Vall II, known as “the slaughter scene”, stands out, where we can observe a slaughter or collective human sacrifice. Looking at the panel in detail, one cannot help but feel an immediate connection with the attacked group, represented in the centre of the composition, in downcast, arrowed positions and with detailed gestures of pain and suffering, while a group of small archers surrounds and shoots them with his bows. These days, and under a overwhelming July sun, we were working on the sites of Parellada I and III, La Vall I, II and IV, Els Arcs I, III and IV, Estret de les Taules and Barranc de les Taules I. Here we also live a unique experience when our colleague Samantha, who is also a vocalist of the musical group In Crescendo, sang for us allowing us to check the good acoustics of the shelters and imagine some of the uses that prehistoric populations could have given to these spaces.

The great bull of Parellada III.

The great bull of Parellada III. 

The Artsoundscapes team working at the site of Parellada III.

The Artsoundscapes team working at the site of Parellada III.

In the Priorat region we also travel to the municipality of La Morera de Montsant  to work in the sites of the Abric del Barranc de l’Àguila I and Abric del Barranc de l’Àguila II. From the Charterhouse of Escaladei (whose name literally means “stairway to God”), we access the Serra del Montsant Natural Park, where both sets are located. The site of Àguila I, where two large goats stand out, is located in one of the shelters of a cliff from which there is a panoramic view of the Escaladei valley. Both sets have complicated access, especially in the case of Àguila II, the only way to access it with the team was to make way through the dense vegetation with our saw. Finally, we said goodbye to Priorat from the municipality of Cornudella de Montsant, where we went to work at the Abric del Grau del Tallat, one of the 18 rock art sites that this municipality houses. The site, located on the cliffs of La Gritella, in the western foothills of the Muntanyes de Prades, owes its name to the high vertical wall (“tallat” in Catalan) where it is located, and from where you can enjoy incredible views of Siurana and its reservoir, and the entire Montsant mountain, in the opposite. Taking advantage of the proximity to the town of Siurana, we made a stop there, to eat and enjoy the magnificent panoramic view. Siurana is considered one of the most beautiful towns in Catalonia: the town sits on an impressive impregnable rock of limestone surrounded by stories and legends.

Views from Siurana of the Montsant Natural Park.

Views from Siurana of the Montsant Natural Park.

The main figures of the Abric del Barranc de l`Àguila I with the DStretch filter.

The main figures of the Abric del Barranc de l`Àguila I with the DStretch filter.

The next part of our route took us away from the mountainous areas and placed us over the central Catalan Depression, the Catalan sector of the Ebro depression. In this area of Catalonia an interesting mosaic of rainfed fields (almond, olive, cereal) is observed and irrigated fields (fruit trees and fodder); an area of plains crossed by soft hills and small valleys. In this area, the rock art sites are not located on the walls and shelters of mountain ranges and cliffs, but on large rocky blocks of sandstone and conglomerate, detached on slopes, and it is very common to find Levantine and Schematic rock paintings sharing the same shelter, as in the places we visit. Here we were able to study the well-known site of La Roca dels Moros (Cogul), where Anna Torres, from the Interpretation Center received us one afternoon in which the thermometer set record temperatures. The Roca dels Moros was the first set of prehistoric paintings documented in Catalonia and became, from the moment of its discovery in 1908, a benchmark of peninsular rock art, revealing the existence of an art of post-Palaeolithic chronology. Without a doubt, Cogul is exceptional, both for its themes centered on female figures, and for its historical importance. Another site where we work was that of the Balma dels Punts (L’Albi), which owes its name to the more than 400 points distributed in nine consecutive horizontal lines, which are in contact with a large naturalist deer 35 cm long. Unfortunately, there have been some sprouts of Covid-19 in some areas of Catalonia, which forced the Segrià region (Lleida) to be confined, and for this reason we were unable to access the rock art site of l’Abric de la Figuera (Les Torres del Segre), having to leave his study for later.

The Artsoundscapes team performing the acoustic measurements in the Balma dels Punts.

The Artsoundscapes team performing the acoustic measurements in the Balma dels Punts.

Subsequently, we moved a little further north, towards the pre-Pyrenean mountain ranges of Les Aspres del Montsec, on the eastern slope of the Sierra d’Os, where the Cova dels Vilars or Vilasos (Os de Balaguer) is located, a beautiful cave that is configured as a point of reference of the ravine, and that although it presents a majority of figures of schematic style, some of naturalistic tendency are also observed. And from here, we moved to Central Catalonia, to work in the Roca Roja site (La Llacuna), where our colleague Jordina Sales joined the team, and later on coastal mountain range of Barcelona, the site of La Pedra de les Orenetes (La Roca del Vallès), the rock art site located more to the northwest of the Levantine area. This rock sites presents atypical characteristics, both in terms of the style of its figures, its degree of erosion and its location, in an area surrounded by dolmens. Also in the coastal area, but in this case in the vicinity of the city of Tarragona, we had to return to do some sites that we had left acoustically unmeasured at the beginning of the campaign for logistical reasons. The first was one of the Abrics de l’Apotecari, where a beautiful naturalist deer stands out. Finally, our fieldwork came to an end with the last sites on our list, located in the Muntanyes de Tivissa-Vandellòs. After a long journey on mountain roads, we reached the point where the three sites are located; We were able to perform acoustic measurements of the Cova de l’Escoda, but the state of the vegetation and the steep slope made access to the Balma d’en Roc and Cova del Racó d’en Perdigó impossible, which we will have to do later, perhaps in a period of the year in which it is not so hot and for which we will be adequately equipped to open a path between the almost impregnable brush of weeds that protect them. The last anecdote of our trip was on the way back the puncture of the vehicle wheel in the mountain range of Vandellòs, but with good mood we waited for the crane to pick us up, and we were able to return to Barcelona, tired and with scorching heat, but happy with the experiences lived and the work done.

Panoramic view of the Cova dels Vilars.

Panoramic view of the Cova dels Vilars.

The team working in La Pedra de les Orenetes.

The team working in La Pedra de les Orenetes.

Location of the rock art sites of Cova de l’Escoda, Balma d’en Roc and Cova del Racó d’en Perdigó (Tivissa-Vandellòs Mountains).

Location of the rock art sites of Cova de l’Escoda, Balma d’en Roc and Cova del Racó d’en Perdigó (Tivissa-Vandellòs Mountains).

Acoustic measurements at the Abrics de l’Apotecari.

Acoustic measurements at the Abrics de l’Apotecari.

The global balance of the fieldwork is very positive, since, although the quarantine has forced us to carry out our campaign in a month as hot as July and to visit a large number of groups in a few days, we have been able to carry out the acoustic measurements in 29 rock art sites in all of Catalonia, representing a large amount of data and information, which in the coming months we will have to process and analyse in detail in the laboratory. This fieldwork has also helped us to obtain a global and first-hand vision about the paintings, but also about the characteristics of the shelters and their landscape environment. Because a Rock Art site is inseparable from its landscape environment; the paintings are located in the specific places that their authors chose to carry them out, which establishes important spatial and symbolic relationships between the paintings, the shelters and their landscape, which must be taken into account when investigating these pictorial manifestations. On a personal level, I can say that, although I know the Catalan territory and rock art sites very well, the research that we are carrying out in Artsoundscapes has allowed me to assess and analyse a greater number of characteristics, which tend to go unnoticed in traditional rock art studies. Likewise, the debate and the confrontation of opinions with my colleagues on different aspects of rock art have greatly enriched my knowledge.

This archaeological campaign has been carried out thanks to the work of the entire Artsoundscapes team, both members who have done the fieldwork and those who have collaborated in multiple tasks to make it possible. We also appreciate the collaboration of public administrations, from the municipalities involved and from the Servei d’Arqueologia i Paleontologia of the Department of Culture of the Generalitat de Catalunya, for the help they have provided us, and all the people who have disinterestedly accompanied us to visit the rock art sites and that in some cases we have already named: Agustí Jardí, Gabi Jardí, Anna Torres of the Cogul Interpretation Center, Pepa Subirats of the Museu de la Pauma and Agustí Vericat of the Ulldecona Rock Art Interpretation Center.

This work has allowed us to get to know and visit some of the most interesting rock art sites in the Catalan territory, which are located in beautiful natural environments. Many of these sites are equipped for public visits, and we encourage you to visit them (you can find all the information here.

Have a great holiday! See you in September!