Dataciones de Carbono 14 para castros del Noroeste peninsular

Abstract

The fortified settlements, locally called «castros», are one of the most outstanding features in the NW of the lberian peninsula during protohistoric limes. In spite of their heavy number and monumentality, scientific excavations have been scarce until the last 20 years, so that only a few absolute dates were available to build up a chronological chart of this phenomenon. The multiplication of field works in recen! times has led to an increase in the number of the C-14 dates, which are more than one hundred by now. In this paper we have intended to give a complete reference of the dates and their provenance, together with a critical review of the chronological implications. Once the whole set of radiocarbon dates had been considered and converted to calendar years (chart 1), we proceeded with the discard of all the values that did not fit with their archaelogical context or had a too large calibration range (chart 2). The analysis of this last set shows some clusters of dates which are in general agreement with the chronological stages that several authors have proposed for the development of the hillforts in the Northwest. Thus, a group of «castros» could start at the X-IX centuries BC (Barbudo, San Juliao), while other hillforts, like Torroso, are less old (VIII -VII centuries BC). Certain levels of Borneiro, Troña or Recarea, among others, must be attached to a second phase, ranging from the fifth 10 the second centuries BC. Finally, some hillforts or settlement levels within them (Vixil, Troña, Castrovite) could be adscribed to a third phase, stretching from the later part of the 2nd century BC until the end of the 1st century AD.