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A talaiot, or talayot (), is a Bronze Age megalith found on the islands of Menorca and Majorca forming part of the Talaiotic Culture or Talaiotic Period. Talaiots date back to the late second millennium and early first millennium BC. There are at least 274 of them, in, near, or related to Talaiotic settlements and the Talaiotic known as . Talaiots pre-date the megalithic structures known as , which are usually found nearby. While some Talaiots are thought to have had a defensive purpose, the use of others is not clearly understood. Some believe them to have served the purpose of lookout or signalling towers, as on Menorca, where they form a network.Gomila, Joan J. Menorca: An Architectural Guide Talaiots generally take the form of circular or square buildings, and they may have been used as dwellings or meeting places. The talayots on Menorca have been much less prone to weathering than the ones found on Majorca. Despite this, very few grave goods have been found in Menorcan talayots, leading historians to believe that the island had a poorer economy than its larger neighbor.Garcia, Lluis. "The Talayot Culture in Menorca." The Balearic Islands. London: Thames & Hudson, 1972. 67-74. Print.
The first author to write about these structures was Juan Ramis in his book Celtic antiquities on the island of Menorca, which was published in 1818, and was the first book in the Spanish language entirely devoted to prehistory.
There are similar megalithic buildings found in other areas of the Western Mediterranean, though these are not necessarily related to talaiots. Examples include the "" of Sardinia, the "torri" of Corsica, and the "sesi" of Pantelleria.
On the island of Mallorca, most of the talayots fall into two clearly defined types: circular talayots and square talayots. The former are the most common; they have a circular floor plan, measure between eight and seventeen meters in diameter, and are usually oriented toward other monuments. Square talayots, on the other hand, have an approximately square floor plan, almost always with two of their walls aligned with the Solstice or their lunar equivalents, and their dimensions are more precise—almost always between ten and eleven meters per side. Their spatial placement also sets them apart: while circular talayots can be found in settlements, isolated locations, or ceremonial centers, square talayots are almost always part of ceremonial centers. Both circular and square talayots have a single entrance—a corridor that passes through thick walls (up to four meters thick)—and an interior chamber with a central column.
Lluís Plantalamor, partly following the chronological framework of G. Rosselló-Bordoy, suggests that the first talayots (heavily influenced by Sardinia, where the Nuraghe are found) were built around 1500 BCE. This type of construction would have evolved over time, changing in both form and, likely, function.PLANTALAMOR MASSANET, L. (1991) L'arquitectura prehistórica i protohistórica de Menorca i el seu marc cultural. Treballs del Museu de Menorca 12. Maó.
A second proposal comes from a group of researchers at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. These scholars argue that the first talayotic manifestations appeared around 1000 BCE, contemporaneous with the final phases of the Naviforme structures.LULL, V., MICO, R., RIHUETE HERRADA, C. y RISCH, R. (1999), Ideología y sociedad en la Prehistoria de Menorca. La Cova des Carritx y la Cova des Mussol. Consell Insular de Menorca, Barcelona The next proposal comes from the University of the Balearic Islands, where V. M. Guerrero, M. Calvo, and B. Salvà assert that Talayotic culture belongs to the Iron Age, and that the construction of talayots began in the 9th–8th centuries BCE.GUERRERO, V.M., CALVO, M., SALVÀ, B., 2002, "La cultura talayótica. Una sociedad de la Edad del Hierro en la periferia de la colonización fenicia", Complutum 13, 221-258
Recently, archaeological work at the Menorcan site of Cornia Nou (Mahón) has revealed very interesting radiocarbon dates that help situate the construction of the large western talayot chronologically. These dates, based on materials found in Building 1—attached to the large talayot—indicate that this structure was built between 1100 and 900 BCE.ANGLADA, MONTSERRAT (2014). «A chronological framework for the early Talayotic period in Menorca: the settlement of Cornia Nou». Radiocarbon nº52: 411-424. Therefore, the talayot must predate this building. This dating places the construction of the talayot during a period still dominated by the naviform tradition, although it would be prudent to wait for further excavations to determine whether this is an isolated case or part of a broader pattern across the region.
Menorca boasts one of the richest archaeological landscapes in the world, shaped by generations that have safeguarded the Talayotic legacy. It has the highest density of prehistoric sites per surface area on any island, serving as a powerful symbol of its insular identity.
This cultural area is divided into nine zones that include archaeological sites and their associated landscapes, with a timeline spanning from the emergence of cyclopean constructions around 1600 BCE to the Romanization in 123 BCE. The outstanding value of its monuments and landscapes led to its inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2023.
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