Daughters of the Sun

Small Human Images in Megalithic Iberia, 4th-3rd Millennium BC

Bueno Ramírez, Primitiva
Soler Díaz, Jorge A.

This study examines Iberian Neolithic and Chalcolithic figurines (4th–3rd millennia BC), exploring their symbolism, craft, and role in funerary and social life. Rich in form and context, these “sun-eyed” images reveal identities, ideologies, and long-distance connections within European prehistory.
Prehistoric human images have fascinated archaeological, anthropological and social researchers for many generations. They are known from the Upper Palaeolithic, but in the Neolithic their number increased significantly, forming part of the archaeological record throughout Europe. In Iberia, especially in the south, thousands of figurines have been preserved. These are small human figures of men, women, boys and girls, with female images predominating in funerary and domestic contexts.
This volume brings us closer to the current state of knowledge in Iberia, from romantic archaeology to processual and post-processual archaeology. The book explores the number, geographical spread and extended chronology of the figurines – from the 6th to the 3rd millennium BC – and the social practices that lay behind their production and use. From goddesses to women, this exceptional legacy indicates an unprecedented role for women in these societies. The figurines illuminate the representation of identity, its chronological depth, the existence of workshops and distribution circuits, and the continued manipulation of these pieces over generations.