Project Description
Project name: MEGALANDS
Project description:
The MegaLands project aims to investigate the megalithic landscapes of the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula through an interdisciplinary approach, combining cutting-edge technologies with archaeological field methods.
The region’s rich megalithic heritage and its environmental archives, such as peat bogs, offer a unique opportunity to explore the interaction between Neolithic societies and their environment. The project integrates artificial intelligence (AI) for the detection of megalithic monuments, ground-penetrating radar (GPR) for the non-invasive analysis of megaliths, and archaeological test pits to generate new chronological evidence. To reconstruct past environmental conditions, palynological and geochemical analyses will be carried out, providing information on vegetation, subsistence practices and environmental degradation processes, such as soil erosion.
Given the difficulty of establishing precise chronologies in the region, MegaLands will employ OSL dating methods, alongside radiocarbon dating and Bayesian modelling, in order to refine the temporal models of the megalithic phenomenon in the region. Geospatial analyses using GIS and spatial statistics will be employed to map the distribution of sites and identify patterns relating to topography, resources and human activity. By integrating diverse data sources, the MegaLands project will provide a more nuanced understanding of the ecological and social dynamics that shaped the megalithic landscapes, contributing to the preservation and management of cultural heritage and expanding our knowledge of the interactions between humans and the environment during the Neolithic period.
MegaLands will have a significant impact on the study of megalithic landscapes in the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula, contributing to broader international debates in megalithic archaeology and environmental sciences. Through a multidisciplinary and multi-proxy approach across five representative areas, the project offers a comparative methodology that could set a new standard for future research in this field. A key scientific contribution will be the advancement of our spatio-temporal understanding of the megalithic complex in the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula. The integration of AI-assisted site detection and advanced archaeological surveying will refine spatial data, whilst new dating programmes will improve the chronological understanding of the phenomenon, particularly in regions with limited dating evidence. This will enable the identification of temporal patterns and their relationship with broader environmental and social changes within the Iberian context.
Furthermore, MegaLands will provide a comprehensive palaeoenvironmental analysis that integrates human and environmental narratives. By studying sequences both in situ and ex situ, the project will enhance our understanding of human subsistence, landscape management and ecological transformations. It will also examine how factors such as deforestation and erosion influenced the location and use of megalithic monuments, contributing to the current debate on megalithic societies in Iberia and Europe. Finally, MegaLands will contribute to broader theoretical debates on memory, monumentality and the long-term structuring of landscapes, offering new perspectives on how societies shaped their environments and, in turn, were shaped by them.
Funded by: Agencia Estatal de Investigación
Start date: 1 January 2025
End date: 31 December 2027