How did the dead turn up to the burial? A technological and experimental approach to the late Bronze Age wooden biers from Cova des Pas (Minorca, Balearic Islands)

This paper aims to introduce the wooden biers recovered at the Cova des Pas (Minorca, Balearic Island) Late Bronze Age site (1100–800 BC). At least four biers were associated with 66 individuals buried individually and consecutively, most of them during the last 100 years of use (900–800 BC). Technological methodologies complemented by experimental reproduction were used to understand the woodworking process and the functional design purpose in the construction. Our results show that the biers were manufactured from several species using specific woodworking techniques generally related to efficiency and expeditious reasons. On the basis of technological analysis, we took in consideration the particularities of the context to discuss the implications in the collective funerary practices of such apparently functional objects and its symbolic and ritual significance.