Bonnanaro culture
Encyclopedia
The Bonnanaro culture is a protohistoric culture that flourished in Sardinia
during the 2nd millennium BC (1800-1600 BC), considered as the first stadium of the Nuragic civilization
. The Bonnanaro culture had been described by scholars as the Sardinian regionalization of the pan-European Bell Beaker culture with some influences from the Polada culture
of northern Italy.
The Bonnanaro culture brought new religious ideas and funerary rites in the island and new a form of sepolture , the so-called "giant's grave
".
The ceramics were smooth and linear with some reminiscences with those of the "Monte Claro" period.
, hyperostosis
, anemia
, caries
and tumors. Cranial trapanation was practiced.
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
during the 2nd millennium BC (1800-1600 BC), considered as the first stadium of the Nuragic civilization
Nuragic civilization
The Nuragic civilization was a civilization of Sardinia, lasting from the Bronze Age to the 2nd century AD. The name derives from its most characteristic monuments, the nuraghe. They consist of tower-fortresses, built starting from about 1800 BC...
. The Bonnanaro culture had been described by scholars as the Sardinian regionalization of the pan-European Bell Beaker culture with some influences from the Polada culture
Polada culture
The Polada culture is the name for a culture of the ancient Bronze Age which spread on all of the territory of Northern Italy and characterized by settlements on pile-dwellings....
of northern Italy.
Description
The main innovation of the Bonnanaro culture were the Proto-Nuraghi, megalithic edifices which are considered the precursors of the future Nuraghi. The Proto-Nuraghi are horizontal building characterized by a long corridor with rooms and cells ; they represent an attempt to fortify the more traditional huts , in a period were tribal clashes , due to the introduction of the first sophisticated weapons , were becoming increasingly common.The Bonnanaro culture brought new religious ideas and funerary rites in the island and new a form of sepolture , the so-called "giant's grave
Giant's Grave
Giant's Grave may refer to:*Giant's Grave , an archaeological site in County Antrim*Giant's Grave, a district within the Briton Ferry West electoral ward, Neath Port Talbot, Wales*"Giant's Grave", a folk song about the docks at Briton Ferry...
".
The ceramics were smooth and linear with some reminiscences with those of the "Monte Claro" period.
Physical anthropology
About 200 human skeletons of that period show that the Bonnanaro population was composed mainly by dolicochepalic individuals (87%) with a minority of "central european" brachycephals (13%), probabily derived from the Bell Beaker bringers. The average height was 1,66 m (men) and 1,50 m (women). The Bonnanaro population suffered of osteoporosisOsteoporosis
Osteoporosis is a disease of bones that leads to an increased risk of fracture. In osteoporosis the bone mineral density is reduced, bone microarchitecture is deteriorating, and the amount and variety of proteins in bone is altered...
, hyperostosis
Hyperostosis
Hyperostosis is an excessive growth of bone. It may lead to exostosis. It occurs in many musculoskeletal disorders.-See also:* Infantile cortical hyperostosis* SAPHO syndrome* Hyperostosis frontalis interna...
, anemia
Anemia
Anemia is a decrease in number of red blood cells or less than the normal quantity of hemoglobin in the blood. However, it can include decreased oxygen-binding ability of each hemoglobin molecule due to deformity or lack in numerical development as in some other types of hemoglobin...
, caries
Caries
Caries is a progressive destruction of any kind of bone structure, including the skull, ribs and other bones, or the teeth. Caries can be caused by osteomyelitis, which is a microorganism disease. A disease that involves caries is mastoiditis, an inflammation of the mastoid process, in which the...
and tumors. Cranial trapanation was practiced.