The Encantat de Begues is in the top ten archaeology finds of National Geographic

The figurine is dated 6500 years ago.
The figurine is dated 6500 years ago.
(22/01/2013)

The prestigious journal National Geographic selected the Encantat de Begues to be part of the 2012 top ten archaeology finds, together with other finds such as the Templo Mayor in Mexico City, the exact place where Julius Caesar was stabbed or the Temple of the Night Sun in Zotz (Guatemala). It is the most ancient prehistoric human figurine made of pottery found in the Iberian Peninsula, which was discovered during the excavations made in Can Sadurní cave (Begues, Barcelona) by some members of the Col·lectiu per la Investigació de la Prehistòria i lʼArqueologia del Garraf-Ordal (CIPAG), together with the UB Seminar of Studies and Prehistoric Research (SERP).

The figurine is dated 6500 years ago.
The figurine is dated 6500 years ago.
22/01/2013

The prestigious journal National Geographic selected the Encantat de Begues to be part of the 2012 top ten archaeology finds, together with other finds such as the Templo Mayor in Mexico City, the exact place where Julius Caesar was stabbed or the Temple of the Night Sun in Zotz (Guatemala). It is the most ancient prehistoric human figurine made of pottery found in the Iberian Peninsula, which was discovered during the excavations made in Can Sadurní cave (Begues, Barcelona) by some members of the Col·lectiu per la Investigació de la Prehistòria i lʼArqueologia del Garraf-Ordal (CIPAG), together with the UB Seminar of Studies and Prehistoric Research (SERP).

The Encantat de Begues, dated 6500 years ago, matches with the beginnings of the Middle Neolithic; to be exact, the discovery has been made in the layer 11 (post cardial Middle Neolithic 1a), on its contact with the layer 11b (post cardial Early Neolithic 0). The preserved fragment is composed by the torso with one complete arm and the initial part of the other. It is 8 cm height, 1.90 cm thick and its width depends on the point from which we measure: 2.5 cm from its waist, 4 cm from its chest (if we only take into account the preserved arm), and about 5.5 cm on the same point, but we imagine both arms stretched out. The development of the rest of the body make think about a 16-18 cm height figurine.

 
All the factors show that the figurine has a great symbolic and spiritual value. Generally, literature about this kind of images considers them to be images with divine attributes. To sum up, all its characteristics point towards what, in prehistory, can be defined as an idol. Researchers took into account this magical religious component, and the fact that, traditionally, Beguesʼ inhabitants have always received the nickname Els Encantats (the Enchanted), in order to name the figurine as el Encantat de Begues (Begues' Enchanted).
 
The figurine is an important indicator of the relevance that Can Sadurní might have had as a meeting point for the inhabitants of the closest areas during the Neolithic Age. This is not the first discovery that has been made in the cave, where CIPAG researchers have been working for 34 years, and where the most ancient European evidence of production and consumption of beer were previously identified. These discoveries point that Can Sadurní might have hosted some feasts, and some rare products, such as beer, might have been consumed. Moreover, other rituals with a strong symbolic nature might have been hosted there, any kind of crucial celebration to bring together groups scattered around the area and to ensure their economical, ideological and sexual reproduction.
 
Can Sadurní excavations belong to the project “La prehistòria al sud-est del Llobregat. De la costa al massís del Garraf-Ordal”, coordinated by the professor at the UB Department of Prehistory, Ancient History and Archaeology, Josep Maria Fullola, and the prehistorian and archaeologist Manuel Edo, the CIPAG president. The excavations, led by the researchers Manuel Edo and Ferran Antolín, are supported by the Begues Town Council, the Department of Culture of the Government of Catalonia and the Centre dʼEstudis Beguetans, as well as by other organizations and local enterprises, such as the caves Montau of Sadurní, located at the site where the cave and Can Sadurní masia are.