A team of Spanish and Morrocan archaeologists has discovered three ancient burial sites in Tangier Peninsula. The peninsula is located in north-western part of Africa and is separated from south-western Europe by Gibraltar strait.
The oldest burial in the discovered cemeteries has been dated to be around 4000 BC. They also found various rock shelters with painted rock art. Additionally, some standing stones were also identified.
The cemeteries contain evidence for cist burials dated to approximately 2000 BC. This type of burial includes digging cavities in rocks, placing the dead inside the cavity and covering it by a stone slab. Cist burials would have required a lot of work with the available tools during that era.
The analysis of discovered stone art in shelters showed that some of the figures are similar to the ones discovered in Sahara Desert. This might suggest shared heritage between the inhabitants of these regions.
The standing stones range to the height of 2.5 meters. The researchers believe that they might have been used to mark territory by the inhabitants of Tangier Peninsula.
The research was published in African Archaeological Review.
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