000133239 001__ 133239 000133239 005__ 20240410085328.0 000133239 0247_ $$2doi$$a10.1016/j.jasrep.2020.102489 000133239 0248_ $$2sideral$$a119109 000133239 037__ $$aART-2020-119109 000133239 041__ $$aeng 000133239 100__ $$0(orcid)0000-0003-0628-2582$$aMontes, Lourdes$$uUniversidad de Zaragoza 000133239 245__ $$aSpatial distribution of megalithic monuments in the subalpine belt of the Pyrenees: Interpretation and implications for understanding early landscape transformation 000133239 260__ $$c2020 000133239 5060_ $$aAccess copy available to the general public$$fUnrestricted 000133239 5203_ $$aUsing a database of all the catalogued dolmens and stone circles in six Pyrenean valleys, we investigated the distribution of these megalithic monuments on the basis of elevation, gradient, aspect, terrain ruggedness, and terrain position, and identified factors potentially explaining the distribution of the monuments. A map of the areas having the highest probabilities of occurrence of megalithic monuments was developed, and showed that megalithic monuments are located in relatively accessible areas having gentle gradients and low terrain ruggedness close to the fluvial network, with wide U-shaped glacial valleys being the preferred locations. The altitudinal distribution showed one concentration of dolmens and stone circles at relatively low elevation (1250–1400 m a.s.l.) in the mid montane belt, and another at high elevation, at approximately the level of the timberline (1750–1900 m a.s.l.) adjacent to the alpine belt. Today, both areas are pastures that have historically sustained livestock, the traditional economic basis of Pyrenean valleys. The map showing the probability of occurrence of megalithic monuments in the study area suggests that a number of potentially favorable areas were largely inaccessible or too far from the main livestock routes, and remained forested until the Middle Ages. These findings and a variety of archaeological studies contribute to propose that the first shepherds: (i) understood the altitudinal organization of mountain areas; (ii) used the best accessible flat areas in the mid montane belt in late spring and early summer; and (iii) used the upper subalpine/alpine belt in summer. 000133239 536__ $$9info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/DGA/E02-17R$$9info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/DGA/H14-17R$$9info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/MINECO/ESPAS CGL2015-655698-R$$9info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/MINECO/GAS HAR2017-85023-P$$9info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/MINECO/MANMOUNT PID2019-105983RB-100 000133239 540__ $$9info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess$$aby-nc-nd$$uhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/es/ 000133239 592__ $$a0.84$$b2020 000133239 593__ $$aArcheology$$c2020$$dQ1 000133239 593__ $$aHistory$$c2020$$dQ1 000133239 593__ $$aArcheology (arts and humanities)$$c2020$$dQ1 000133239 655_4 $$ainfo:eu-repo/semantics/article$$vinfo:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersion 000133239 700__ $$0(orcid)0000-0002-7646-0826$$aSebastián, María$$uUniversidad de Zaragoza 000133239 700__ $$0(orcid)0000-0003-3894-7112$$aDomingo, Rafael$$uUniversidad de Zaragoza 000133239 700__ $$0(orcid)0000-0002-3974-2947$$aBeguería, Santiago 000133239 700__ $$aGarcía-Ruiz, José M. 000133239 7102_ $$14013$$2210$$aUniversidad de Zaragoza$$bDpto. Didácticas Específicas$$cÁrea Didáctica Ciencias Socia. 000133239 7102_ $$13000$$2695$$aUniversidad de Zaragoza$$bDpto. Ciencias de la Antigüed.$$cÁrea Prehistoria 000133239 773__ $$g33 (2020), 102489 [14 pp.]$$pJ. archaeol. sci. rep.$$tJOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE-REPORTS$$x2352-409X 000133239 8564_ $$s18472754$$uhttps://zaguan.unizar.es/record/133239/files/texto_completo.pdf$$yPostprint 000133239 8564_ $$s1857610$$uhttps://zaguan.unizar.es/record/133239/files/texto_completo.jpg?subformat=icon$$xicon$$yPostprint 000133239 909CO $$ooai:zaguan.unizar.es:133239$$particulos$$pdriver 000133239 951__ $$a2024-04-10-08:36:07 000133239 980__ $$aARTICLE