Marfil para los muertos en la Cultura de las Motillas. Los botones de Castillejo del Bonete (Terrinches, Ciudad Real)

Abstract

Castillejo del Bonete is a Bronze Age site situated on the eastern foothills of the Sierra
Morena mountain range, within the hydrologic basin of the Guadalquivir River. This archaeological
site is an extensive architectonic complex comprising a cave containing various
structures, including megalithic corridors and tumuli associated with funerary contexts and
votive deposits. This article presents a detailed explanation of the ivory pieces recovered in
this tumular complex attached to the ›Cultura de las Motillas‹. The site is a key archaeological
site that allows a better understanding of funerary practices and increasing social hierarchy
occurring during the transition from the 3rd to the 2nd millennia cal BC inside the Iberian
Peninsula. Two of the buttons studied were found inside the tomb with a double interment,
where people fed with marine protein were buried.