Representations of rounded bulky figures in the megalithic culture of northwest Iberia

Abstract

Although carvings or paintings on the stones of the megalithic chambers of Galicia have been known for many years, representations in the round were a rarity. The excavations undertaken in the last decade have changed somewhat that picture, yielding -among other examples- an important number of stone pebbles coarsely decorated sometimes with notches and/or incisions, the latter resembling the «facial tattoo» motif, a widespread feature among Chalcolithic idols in the South of the Iberian Peninsula. Less numerous are the figures which show a roughly defined anthropomorphic shape though they occur beside the others in the same monuments. The larger part of these figures was found lined up in areas beside the entrance to passage-graves which are dated towards the second half of the third millenium bc. While objects with the «oculus» and «facial tattoo» motifs in the South of the Iberian Peninsula are generally regarded as representations of the so-called Mother Goddess, the morphological variety of the pieces analysed here would suggest a varied set of meanings for these.