Necropolis of Son Real

The Son Real necropolis is the most important site in an archaeologically rich area and one of the most emblematic in Balearic archaeology. The stretch of land where it is located is known as “Punta dels Fenicis” (The Phoenician´s Point), although in fact the individuals buried in this cemetery are indigenous.

Rediscovered in the mid-20th century, excavation and restoration has been completed in two phases: 1957-1969 and 1998-2019. 143 tombs have been found in 935 m2 and the remains of some 425 individuals have been recovered, as well as large quantities of pottery, bone, glass and metal fragments belonging to tools, weapons, vessels as well as other items associated with personal or ritual use.

Monumental tombs of this kind are unique to Mallorca, where the vast majority were buried in caves and rock-cut tombs, as well as other contemporary sites in the West Mediterranean. Between the 7th and 2nd centuries BCE, these tombs were primarily used to bury the high ranking members of their societies. These local communities lived in settlements close to agricultural land some 1,5km from the coast.

A megalithic tomb (c.1750 BC) and two rock-cut tombs (1600-1200 BC) can be found in the Son Real vicinity, evidence of more than 1500 years of funerary and ritualistic use of this stretch of coast line.

The stone used to build these tombs comes from the sandstone platform on which the cemetery stands, evidence of which can be seen from the semi-circular shapes on the northern edge of the point. Dry stone methods were used to stack the stones and slabs of these monuments.

The dead were usually buried in the ground in a tightly flexed position; the bodies had been tightly bound in some kind of shroud. The average age of deceased individuals was around 34 years for females and 38 for males. Some skulls show evidence of surgical interventions (trepanation), and some clearly survived their skulls being perforated.