UDK 903.02(460)"633/634"; 903'12/'13(460)"633/634" Documenta Praehistorica XXVI Pots, symbo l s and t e rr i t o r i e s: t h e a r c h ae o l og i c a l c on t e x t of n e o li t h i s a t i on in Medi t err an ean Spain J o a n B e r n a b e u A ub a n Departament de Prehistoria i d'Arqueologia, Facultat de Geografia i Historia, Universitat de Valencia, Spain e-mail: jbauban@uv.es ABSTRACT - The central idea in this paper is that the spread of agriculture ivithin the Iberian Pen- insula resultedfrom both a kind ofdemic spread and the acculturation of the Mesolithic substratum. The suggestion of the dual model presented earlier (Bernabeu 1996; 1997 J emphasises precisely this aspect and its consequence: the existence of a certain regional diversitv in the processes of agricul- tural distribution. Within this context, it is suggested that the variabilitv associated with decorative patterns and styles of impressedpotterv and ročk. art has a clear territorial component. The spread of these symbolic manifestations can be better understood in the context ofthe interaction betiveen farmers and hunters, and by assuming that assimilation tras not the only result of this interaction process. IZVLE ČEK - Glavna misel v članku je ta, da je širjenje kmetovanja na Iberskem polotoku posledica obeh vrst demskega širjenja in akulturalizacije mezolitskih prebivalcev. Že predstavljen model dvojno- sti fBernabeu 1996; 1997J poudarja prav ta vidik in tudi njegove posledice: obstoj določenih regional- nih razlik v procesih širjenja kmetovanja. V okviru tega menimo, da ima raznolikost vzorcev okra- ševanja in stilov impresso keramike ter skalne umetnosti izrazito teritorialen pomen. Širjenje teh simbolnih manifestacij lahko bolje razumemo, če upoštevamo medsebojne vplive med kmetovalci in lovci/nabiralci ter če predvidevamo, da asimilacija ni edini rezultat teh medsebojnih vplivov. KEY WORDS - Mediterranean Spain; Neolithisation; migration; colonisation; acculturation; potterv decoration 1. OVERVIEW In Mediterranean Spain, as in other Mediterranean regions, subsistence systems based on domestic re- sources are found together with impressed pottery. Changing patterns over time in decorative tech- niques are used to organise the evolution of archaeo- logical entities or cultures ( Bernabeu 1989). How- ever, the decoration of the first ceramic phases ex- hibits a rich and complex variety of motifs, includ- ing so-called "symbolic" pottery, the relationship of which with post-Palaeolithic ročk art (Fig. 1) has been noted in recent studies ( Marti 1989; Hernan- dez and Marti 1994; Marti and Herndndez 1988). Post-Palaeolithic ročk art in Mediterranean Spain has been divided into three major styles: Macro-schema- tic, Schematic and Levantine. Differences between the first two styles are ambiguous, and probably based upon chronology and evolution. Both are cen- tred on human figures and other abstract motifs, both exhibit a high degree of conceptualism and/or preference for schematism and they are rarely de- scriptive. On the other hand, the Levantine style is more naturalistic, and combines both human and animal representations, showing a clear descriptive intention. Ali have good parallels with Neolithic pot- tery (Fig. 2), which is why recent research claims a Neolithic origin for ali post-Palaeolithic ročk art styles (Marti 1988; Herndndez and Marti 1994). On the other hand, ceramic chronology suggests a priority in the čase of the Macro-schematic-Schematic styles; but their spatial distribution seems to show a clear