Pre-Roman Civilizations of the Iberian Peninsula: Celts, Iberians, and Colonizers

The Iberian Peninsula Before Rome: Cultures and Colonization

The Dawn of Civilization: Indigenous and Early Contact

Contact between the indigenous population and new arrivals gave rise to the Celtic and Iberian Cultures. These pre-Roman peoples were inhabiting the Iberian Peninsula when the Romans arrived.

Early Mediterranean Colonizers (1000–500 BC)

By the start of the 1st millennium BC, the peoples of the Iberian Peninsula were still living in the Bronze Age. However, between 1000 and 500 BC, peoples from Northern Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean came to the Iberian Peninsula in several waves.

Phoenicians and Greeks: Trade and Settlements

• The Phoenicians settled in the south of the Iberian Peninsula. They founded Gadir (Cádiz) in 1000 BC and established other colonies in the southeast.
• The Greeks came from the city of Phocaea in the 7th century BC and founded colonies on the east coast, such as Emporion.

The Phoenicians and the Greeks traded with the indigenous population, exchanging metals and salted products for manufactured goods.

Carthage: Dominance in Mediterranean Trade

From the 11th to the 8th century BC, the Phoenicians controlled trade in the Mediterranean Sea. Carthage, a Phoenician colony in North Africa, became the dominant trading power in the Mediterranean Sea by the 5th century BC.

The main characteristics of the Phoenician art were...

Major Indigenous Cultures of Pre-Roman Iberia

From the 8th century BC, peoples occupied the North and the Center of the Peninsula.

Tartessos: The Atlantic Trade Hub

Tartessos extended across the west of Andalusia and the south of Extremadura, although its center was located in the provinces of Huelva, Seville, and Cádiz. Tartessos played a key role in the Atlantic routes from Galicia and the British Isles, which supplied the Eastern Mediterranean with tin, silver, and lead. They traded with the Greeks and the Phoenicians, exchanging mineral products for luxury goods. They had a writing system due to Phoenician influence. They worshipped eastern gods.

The Celts and Celtiberians

• Celts: Occupied the north and west of the Iberian Peninsula.
• Celtiberians: Occupied the Ebro Valley and the Meseta and were heavily influenced by the Iberian culture. They generally did not trade with other peoples and did not use money.

The main Celtic works of art were...

The Iberians: Art and Organization

The Iberians were organized in tribes who shared the same languages. The Iberians used an alphabet influenced by the Phoenicians and the Greeks. Trade resulted in the use of money.

The Iberians developed very rich art forms, but the most representative was sculpture and stone relief.

Iberian Burial Practices

There were two types of tombs:

• In the south, chamber tombs covered with stone slabs.

Iberian sculpture represented female figures, warriors, and real or imaginary animals. The Damas (Ladies) are female figures in the form of a bust or the whole body.

Technological and Cultural Contributions of Colonization

The colonizers brought new knowledge and technological advances to the Iberian Peninsula:

• Writing.
• New crops (olives and grapes), agricultural techniques, and domestic animals (chickens and cats).