Productive and Social Practices in Prehistoric and Protohistoric Earthen Building

Bringing together international research, this volume examines earthen architecture from the Mesolithic to the Iron Age through archaeological, archaeometric and experimental approaches. The contributions reveal how earthen building practices shaped past communities while offering new perspectives on heritage and sustainability.

Productive and Social Practices in Prehistoric and Protohistoric Earthen Building presents new perspectives on one of the most widespread yet historically undervalued forms of construction. Bringing together contributions from leading researchers, the volume explores the production, use and social significance of earthen architecture across a wide range of prehistoric and protohistoric contexts.

Drawing on evidence from the Mediterranean, Europe, the Near East and South America, the chapters examine construction techniques, architectural traditions, domestic and monumental structures, and adopt approaches including experimental reconstruction and the application of advanced archaeometric and micromorphological techniques. Together, they reveal how earthen buildings provide unique insights into technological innovation, cultural interaction, collective labour and the organisation of past communities.

The volume also considers the continuing relevance of earthen building traditions within contemporary debates on heritage management and sustainable construction, demonstrating the enduring value of these ancient practices in addressing modern challenges.

List of Figures and Tables

The Social and Gender Fabric of Mud: Reviewing Earthen Architecture in Archaeology. Introduction to “Productive and Social Practices in Prehistoric and Protohistoric Earthen Building” – María Pastor Quiles, Lucía Ruano Posada, Alejandra Sánchez-Polo and Marta Mateu

Macroscopic Evidence for the Use of Adobes at Minoan Malia (Bronze Age Crete) – Maud Devolder

Production, Storage and Sustainability: The Use of Earthen and Sunken Architecture at Late Bronze Age Erimi-Pitharka, Cyprus – Lærke Recht and Katarzyna Zeman-Wiśniewska

Interactions and Continuity: Characterising Earthen Building Techniques of the Iberian Northern Plateau in a Transitional Period (Late Bronze Age–Early Iron Age) – Alejandra Sánchez-Polo and Lucía Ruano Posada

‘Tell Me How You Build and I Will Tell You Who You Are’: Earthen Construction Techniques at Sant Jaume d’Alcanar (Catalonia, NE Iberian Peninsula) and Their Cultural Attribution – Marta Mateu, David Garcia i Rubert and Sonia Carbonell Pastor

Early Neolithic Earth Mortar in the Iberian Peninsula: Chaff Tempering, Manufacture and Functionality in Domestic Structures – Magdalena Gómez-Puche and Ana Polo-Díaz

Constructions in Raw Earth in the Bronze Age Navetiforms in Mallorca (Spain): A Microstratigraphic View of Naveta I at Closos de Can Gaià – M. Mercè Bergadà, Joan Carbonell-Roca, Marta Mateu, David Javaloyas-Molina, Bartomeu Salvà-Simonet and Gabriel Servera-Vives

Rare Earth Elements Marking Anthropic Soil Development at the Geoglyphs of Acre (Brazil) – Gianni Gallello, Mirco Ramacciotti, Ivandra Rampanelli, Sonia López-Melón, Fernando Ferreira, Jacó César Piccoli, Ángel Morales-Rubio, Laura Bartual Moreno, Adriana Serra-Meléndez, Carlos Arnau-Félix and Agustín Diez-Castillo

A Geometric and Constructive Approach to Self-Supporting Domes and Vaults in the Architecture of the Ancient Near East – Luis Miguel Carranza Peco, Manuel Fortea Luna, Esther Rodríguez González and Sebastián Celestino Pérez

Building a Mesolithic Hut. A Social Interaction Analysis of Coordinated Engagement with the Material Environment – Antje Wilton and Kenan Hochuli

The EARTHERITAGE Project. Earthen Heritage in the Eastern Mediterranean between Archaeology and Sustainability – Marialucia Amadio, Luca Bombardieri, Ivano Rellini, Sabina Ghislandi and Maria Luisa Germanà

María Pastor Quiles is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Alicante, focused on earth construction techniques in the late prehistoric Iberian Peninsula. She has also carried out research on the various uses of mud in domestic contexts, being broadly interested in the study of materials, production processes, technology, ethnoarchaeology, and experimental archaeology.

Lucía Ruano Posada is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Lisbon, focused on the archaeology of domestic construction during late prehistory, specifically examining the technical processes of earthen building and the functional organisation of household spaces.

Alejandra Sánchez-Polo is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Valladolid whose work is defi ned by a multi-disciplinary approach that combines documentary sources, archaeological analysis, and cutting-edge geoarchaeological techniques. With a particular focus on domestic architecture, her research explores construction practices, material choices, and ritual practices in the Bronze and Early Iron Ages of Iberia.

Marta Mateu Sagués is an archaeologist and director of the Sant Jaume excavations. Currently, she is a GRAP collaborator (University of Barcelona), and an affiliated researcher at the ICAC. Having completed several postdoctoral fellowships, including in Mexico, she specialises in micromorphology and earthen architecture. Her research explores protohistoric domestic spaces and construction techniques, notably through the MICRODOM project, applying micromorphological analysis to northwestern Mediterranean settlements. She actively promotes academic dissemination.

• Edited by María Pastor Quiles
• Edited by Lucía Ruano Posada
• Edited by Alejandra Sánchez-Polo
• Edited by Marta Mateu Sagués