Talaiot

A talaiot ( Castilian ) or Talaiot (Catalan ) is a thick-walled tower, usually with a central chamber from the era named after these structures Talayotic in the Balearic Islands. The term talaiot, as well talayotic, is derived from the Catalan word talaia for " observation and watchtower ", which has its origin in the Arabic atalaji for " guard ".

Talayots was built in cyclopean technique, the archaic form of the megalithic stone architecture. This is contrary to every idea of ​​influence by one of the contemporaneous Bronze Age cultures. Talayots were often placed high up. The precursor of the talaiot is the Prototalayot ​​, and the well-preserved particularly in Menorca naveta ( navetes ). Both went as a cult building the Cueva requires an artificial cave carved out of the rock.

Description

The floor plan of the Mallorcan Talayots was first round and was square or rectangular in a later phase. Most Talayots have level access. Within the structural unit but there were variations. Especially in Menorca there are often no spaces in the Talayots, since use of the upper platform represented the structural purpose. On the Pityuseninseln Ibiza and Formentera no Talayots been found so far.

The only central chamber per floor was otherwise covered with stone slabs, resting on the side walls and a stacked blocks from central column of the Western Mediterranean polylithischen type. The second generation of Talayots with a square plan had several, but now largely worn floors so that their original height is unknown.

• Talaiot under construction
• Tower with polylithischer column
• Talaiotic tower

Context

Similar buildings were in the age of Talayotic about the same time on Corsica, Sardinia, and Pantelleria. Some researchers suggest a link between the former cultures of the western Mediterranean. The construction techniques of Torre- culture in Corsica, the Sesioten on Pantelleria and the Nuraghen in Sardinia are some older, but broadly comparable with that of the Talayots. The thesis that the Talayotic on Mallorca and Menorca originated with the arrival of other peoples from the eastern Mediterranean, which ushered in the last section of the local history with altered designs and a new social and economic system is refuted. In the culture of Talayotic is a largely self-contained, reproducible development of the Balearic Islands, with loose connections to other cultures are not excluded.