Spaces and signs of transfer of jade and callaïs in the Neolithic of Western Europe

Summary

Two different groups of green stones with a distant origin are found together in the Neolithic tombs of the Carnac Region (Brittany, France): the Alpine jades (jadeitite, omphacitite, eclogite) were used as raw material for polished axes and disc-rings, while the Iberian callaïs (variscite, turquoise) for pendants and beads. The way in which these transfers took place will be the subject of this presentation, highlighting the specific features of each geographical area. With such aim in mind, the rows of steles and the iconographic programs inscribed in the standing stones of the study area will be analyzed in order to propose a comparison of the respective symbolic systems. If the land routes from the Alps begin to be better monitored during the 5th millennium, the sea routes to/from the Iberian Peninsula remain theoretical but very promising. We will offer several arguments in favor of the latter hypothesis.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)   •
• A Taste for Green: An American/European Perspective on Ancient Jade, Turquoise and Variscite Exchange

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 14846