Recent developments in later prehistoric Iberia

Abstract

In contrast to the well-known Palaeolithic archaeology of Iberia and its contribution to scholarly debates on the earliest Europeans, the later prehistory (c. 5600–400 BC) of the peninsula remains a relatively unknown subject for the wider world. The three recent volumes under review therefore provide the opportunity to outline current trends in research on the first farmers at the westernmost end of Europe and to assess what these contribute to wider understanding of the past. A common thread among the three volumes is that they are predominantly authored by local (Spanish and Portuguese) scholars but aimed at an international readership, addressing questions of global interest. They tackle essentially Iberian research issues, but some of these (e.g. monumental ditched enclosures, the emergence of unequal socio-political structures) are to be understood as pan-European phenomena.