Program > By author > Salvador Pardo-Gordó

The engraved plaquettes collection of Cueva de la Cocina offers a unique example of one of the richest Holocene Prehistoric artistic sequences recorded in southern Europe. In fact, it can be considered the clearest Mesolithic graphic symbolism to date in the context of the last hunter-gatherers in Mediterranean Iberia. In this work we aim to show the current record considering the spatial data and temporal distribution of the plaquettes in the context of Cueva de la Cocina (Dos Aguas, Valencia, Eastern Iberia). Performing this new research at the site is also giving the possibility of testing new methodologies in order to better understand older archaeological works, taphonomic processes and, ultimately, the archaeological sequence. For evaluating spatial distribution of the engraved plaquettes we have created 3D models including the different research works conducted at the site. The high-resolution chronology programme conducted confirms the attribution of the engraved plaquettes to the last episodes of the Mesolithic sequence at the beginning of the 8th millennium cal BP.