19.- Agirreburu

19.- Agirreburu
This dolmen was made up of a chamber of stone slabs covered by a burial mound. In the last excavation it was found that the structure, although deteriorated, is complete. It is one of the few elements in which human remains have been found.

Measurements

The burial mound has a diameter of 11.5 meters and a height of 0.75 meters.

Research

It was discovered by J.M. Barandiaran in 1920, and a year later he investigated it together with T. Aranzadi and E. Eguren. Various structures and materials have been published in research papers: Aranzadi, Barandiaran and Eguren (1922), J. M. Barandiaran (1953), J. Elósegui (1953), Cartas Arquelógicas de Gipuzkoa (1982, 1990), J. M. Apellániz (1973). In 2019 it was excavated again by J. Tapia, and restored in 2020.

Findings

Before beginning the investigation, the dolmen had been looted. But the investigation recovered human bones and pieces of ceramic tableware. In 2002, after cleaning, a stone ax was found on the surface of the burial mound. In the 2019 excavation, more human bones and ceramic pieces were recovered, as well as another polished stone axe.

Highlights

In the Elosua-Plazentzia complex, Agirreburu has been one of the few dolmens in which human bones have been found. Unfortunately, those found in 1921 were lost, and could provide a large amount of information for today's research (DNA, food, anthropology, etc.). In 2019 Agirreburu was investigated again, more human remains were found, and new restoration proposals are being studied.

Type
Dolmen
Date
Chalcolithic-Bronze Age (3200-1500 BC)
Town
Bergara
Location

On Mount Agirreburu, 13 meters from the road that goes from Elosua to the antenna.