New excavation campaign at the Cova dels Xaragalls in Vimbodí i Poblet

On October 13, a new field season began at the Cova dels Xaragalls site (Vimbodí i Poblet, Conca de Barberà), directed by Dr. Josep Vallverdú, Dr. Alfredo Suesta, and Dr. Antonio Rodríguez Hidalgo.

The fieldwork, which will continue until October 31, aims primarily to resume excavation at the B Entrance of the cave, where previous campaigns documented the best-preserved levels of the funerary complex. At the same time, excavations are also being carried out in the entrance corridor, which contains more recent archaeological layers, probably corresponding to the Late Bronze Age.

The Cova dels Xaragalls is a site of great significance for the study of Recent Prehistory in the Prades Mountains. Work conducted so far has recovered more than 7,000 human skeletal remains, along with numerous animal bones, ceramic fragments, and ornamental objects. This evidence points to a prolonged funerary use of the cave between 7,000 and 3,000 years ago, spanning from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age.

Previous excavations revealed the presence of intact and rich Holocene archaeological levels, especially in Entrances B and C. These contexts will make it possible to gain deeper insight into the ritual and funerary practices of the prehistoric communities that inhabited the area. In addition, the analysis of material recovered from past looting activities, now preserved in various museums, has helped complete the archaeological record (including remarkable finds such as the trepanned skull donated by the Museu Terra in l’Espluga de Francolí.

Furthermore, excavations have also identified Pleistocene deposits in older sectors of the cave, where charcoal, burnt remains, and bones of wild goat (Capra pyrenaica) dated to over 40,000 years ago were documented.

Funding

The archaeological intervention is carried out with the authorization of the property owners (Finca Grans Muralles, Torres Family), and with the support and collaboration of the Natural Site of National Interest of Poblet (PNIN) and the Museu Terra of l’Espluga de Francolí. The work is part of the four-year research project of IPHES-CERCA, “Paleoenvironmental evolution and prehistoric settlement in the Francolí, Gaià, and Siurana river basins and the streams of Camp de Tarragona”, funded by the Department of Culture of the Government of Catalonia.