Provenance study of the limestone used in the cremation rite : the case of Cova de sa Prior (Binigaus, Menorca)

Le résumé fourni par la source

catalaL’absencia gairebe absoluta de carbons a l’enterrament en calc de la cova de sa Prior, aixi com a molts altres enterraments d’aquest tipus a les illes Balears, va fer plantejar si el ritual de cremacio hauria tingut lloc a l’interior de la cova o no. Es varen comparar mostres del conglomerat i dels pilots de calc amb la roca calcaria de la mateixa cova i dels seus voltants. La petrografia de la lamina prima del conglomerat i els pilots de calc no va proporcionar informacio rellevant sobre la procedencia de la calcaria utilitzada al ritual de cremacio, pero les restes inalterades conservades a un fragment de roca calcaria cremat de manera incompleta evidenciaren que, molt probablement, la materia primera prove de l’entorn directe de la cova o, fins i tot, del seu interior. EnglishBecause hardly any charcoal is found in the lime burial of Cova de sa Prior as well as in many other lime burials on the Balearic islands, the question was raised if the cremation ritual was performed on site or not . Samples of the lime conglomerate and lime lumps were compared with limestone from the cave itself as well as from the area around the cave. Thin-section petrography of the lime conglomerate and lumps gave no relevant information about the provenance of the limestone used for the cremation rite, but preserved structures of the source rock found in an incompletely burned limestone fragment showed that most probably the limestone comes from the direct vicinity of the cave or even from within the cave itself.

Ce résumé expose les affirmations des auteurs. BNTIC ne l’interprète pas comme une validation indépendante des résultats.