Torrean civilization
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The Torrean civilization was a
Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...
megalithic A megalith is a large stone that has been used to construct a prehistoric structure or monument, either alone or together with other stones. There are over 35,000 in Europe alone, located widely from Sweden to the Mediterranean sea. The ...
civilization that developed in
Southern Southern may refer to: Businesses * China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China * Southern Airways, defunct US airline * Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US * Southern Airways Express, M ...
Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...
, mostly concentrated south of
Ajaccio Ajaccio (, , ; French: ; it, Aiaccio or ; co, Aiacciu , locally: ; la, Adiacium) is a French commune, prefecture of the department of Corse-du-Sud, and head office of the ''Collectivité territoriale de Corse'' (capital city of Corsica). ...
, during the second half of the second millennium BC.


History

The characteristic buildings of this culture are the ''torri'' ("towers"), megalithic structures similar to the
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...
n
nuraghe The nuraghe (, ; plural: Logudorese Sardinian , Campidanese Sardinian , Italian ), or also nurhag in English, is the main type of ancient megalithic edifice found in Sardinia, developed during the Nuragic Age between 1900 and 730 B.C. To ...
s (although the ''torri'' were smaller and less impressive), from which the culture takes its name, and the ''castelli'' ("castles"), more complex buildings that include a wall, a tower and huts. According to preliminary investigations conducted during the 1950s by the French scholar
Roger Grosjean Roger Grosjean (25 July 1920 – 7 June 1975) was a French Air Force pilot, a double agent during World War II, and one of the founding fathers of Corsican Prehistoric archaeology. Early life Grosjean was born in Chalon-sur-Saône, the son of Jose ...
, the Torrean civilization began when, at the end of the second millennium BC, the
Sea People The Sea Peoples are a hypothesized seafaring confederation that attacked ancient Egypt and other regions in the East Mediterranean prior to and during the Late Bronze Age collapse (1200–900 BCE).. Quote: "First coined in 1881 by the Fren ...
known as
Sherden The Sherden (Egyptian: ''šrdn'', ''šꜣrdꜣnꜣ'' or ''šꜣrdynꜣ'', Ugaritic: ''šrdnn(m)'' and ''trtn(m)'', possibly Akkadian: ''še-er-ta-an-nu''; also glossed “Shardana” or “Sherdanu”) are one of the several ethnic groups the Sea P ...
landed on the island from the
Eastern Mediterranean Eastern Mediterranean is a loose definition of the eastern approximate half, or third, of the Mediterranean Sea, often defined as the countries around the Levantine Sea. It typically embraces all of that sea's coastal zones, referring to communi ...
, subduing the native megalithic population. The Sherden brought
metallurgy Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the sc ...
to the island and built the ''torri'', which Grosjean thought were temples dedicated to the worship of fire and the dead. They also erected statue menhir representing their leaders armed with swords and a horned helmet, similar to the Sherden immortalized in the temple of
Medinet Habu Medinet Habu ( ar, مدينة هابو; Egyptian: ''Tjamet'' or ''Djamet''; cop, ''Djeme'' or ''Djemi'') is an archaeological locality situated near the foot of the Theban Hills on the West Bank of the River Nile opposite the modern city of Lux ...
in
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
. Currently, the Torrean civilization is seen as an indigenous civilization, and the result of a local evolution started since the
Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...
with possible
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...
n (
Bonnanaro culture The Bonnanaro culture is a protohistoric culture that flourished in Sardinia during the 2nd millennium BC (1800–1600 BC), considered to be the first stage of the Nuragic civilization. It takes its name from the comune of Bonnanaro in the provin ...
), North Italian (
Polada culture The Fouladi (alternatively Polada, Poladha, Puladi); ( prs, پولادی) is a tribe of Hazara found in Afghanistan, of the Southern branch of Hazara. Per several references, the Poladha are among the eight overarching Hazara tribes. One study i ...
) and later
Central Italian Central Italian (Italian: ''dialetti mediani'') refers to Italo-Romance varieties spoken in the so-called ''Area Mediana'', which covers a swathe of the central Italian peninsula. ''Area Mediana'' is also used in a narrower sense to describe the ...
(
Apennine culture The Apennine culture is a Archaeological culture, technology complex in central and southern Italy from the Italian Bronze Age Europe, Middle Bronze Age (15th–14th centuries BC). In the mid-20th century the Apennine was divided into Proto-, Ea ...
) influences.Kewin Peche- Quilichini - L'âge du bronze de la Corse In fact, according to modern dating, the first towers and castles were built a millennium earlier than Grosjean thought, at the end of the third millennium BC, at the same time or even before the appearance of the first
protonuraghe A protonuraghe is a style of megalithic building dating from the first half of the 2nd millennium BC that precedes the classical nuraghe in Sardinia. Of the approximately 7,000 nuraghes, only 300 belong to this type.Paolo Melis''Civiltà nuragica'' ...
s in Sardinia.Paolo Melis: the relations between the northern Sardinia and Corsica in the ancient Bronze age.
/ref> Also, contrary to what Grosjean thought, metallurgy had existed in Corsica for centuries before the supposed "arrival of the Sherden near
Porto Vecchio Porto-Vecchio (, ; it, Porto Vecchio or ; co, Portivechju or ) is a commune in the French department of Corse-du-Sud, on the island of Corsica. Porto-Vecchio is a medium-sized port city placed on a good harbor, the southernmost of the mars ...
." The Terrina site, near Aleria, shows that the processing of copper had spread on the island from the early centuries of the third millennium B.C. However, some scholars think that Sherden may have migrated to Corsica from the west (
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...
) instead of the east, and that they themselves pushed toward the
Eastern Mediterranean Eastern Mediterranean is a loose definition of the eastern approximate half, or third, of the Mediterranean Sea, often defined as the countries around the Levantine Sea. It typically embraces all of that sea's coastal zones, referring to communi ...
for piracy, possibly in the pay of the Mycenaean lords. During the
Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...
, the towers and castles were still occupied, but the relationships with Sardinia become less intense (the characteristic
Nuragic bronze statuettes The Nuragic bronze statuettes (''bronzetti'' in Italian, ''brunzitos'' or ''brunzitus'' in Sardinian) are typical Nuragic Sardinian bronze sculptures of the final phase of the Bronze Age and the early Iron Age. During the archaeological excavat ...
are absent in Corsica), while in the north there were increasing contacts with
Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...
and
Liguria Liguria (; lij, Ligûria ; french: Ligurie) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is ...
. The Torrean civilization disappeared in the middle of the
first millennium BC The 1st millennium BC, also known as the last millennium BC, was the period of time lasting from the years 1000 BC to 1 BC ( 10th to 1st centuries BC; in astronomy: JD – ). It encompasses the Iron Age in the Old World and sees the transit ...
, when Corsica was settled by the
Ligurians The Ligures (singular Ligur; Italian: liguri; English: Ligurians) were an ancient people after whom Liguria, a region of present-day north-western Italy, is named. Ancient Liguria corresponded more or less to the current Italian regio ...
, the
Greeks The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...
of
Phocaea Phocaea or Phokaia (Ancient Greek: Φώκαια, ''Phókaia''; modern-day Foça in Turkey) was an ancient Ionia Ionia () was an ancient region on the western coast of Anatolia, to the south of present-day Izmir. It consisted of the northern ...
, the
Etruscans The Etruscan civilization () was developed by a people of Etruria in ancient Italy with a common language and culture who formed a federation of city-states. After conquering adjacent lands, its territory covered, at its greatest extent, rou ...
, the
Carthaginians The Punic people, or western Phoenicians, were a Semitic people in the Western Mediterranean who migrated from Tyre, Phoenicia to North Africa during the Early Iron Age. In modern scholarship, the term ''Punic'' – the Latin equivalent of the ...
, and then the
Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
. The Torrean people might be associated with the '' Corsi'', a people that lived in
Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...
and north-east
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...
during
Roman times In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...
, described as one of the main tribal groups of the two islands together with the Sardinian ''
Ilienses The Ilienses (or ''Iolaes'', later known as ''Diagesbes'' Strabo, Geographica V, 2,7.) were an ancient Nuragic people who lived during the Bronze and Iron Ages in central-southern Sardinia, as well as one of the three major groups among which the ...
'' and the ''
Balares The Balares were one of the three major groups among which the Nuragic Sardinians considered themselves divided (along with the Corsi and the Ilienses). History Pausanias in his work ''Periegesis'' speculated that the Balares were the descenda ...
''. The ''Corsi'' were in turn divided into several other tribes that dwelt in Corsica: the ''Belatoni'', ''
Cervini Cervini is a tribe of deer, containing seven extant genera and several extinct ones. The most recent common ancestor of Cervini is presumed to have three-pointed antlers Antlers are extensions of an animal's skull found in members of the ...
'', ''Cilibensi'', ''Cumanesi'', '' Licinini'', '' Macrini'', '' Opini'', '' Subasani'', '' Sumbri'', '' Tarabeni'', '' Titiani'', and '' Venacini''. Potential ''Corsi'' tribes in Nuragic Sardinia included the proper '' Corsi'', from whom
Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...
derives its name, and who dwelt at the extreme north-east of
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...
; Longonensi; and the ''
Tibulati The Tibulati (Greek: ), also called Tibulates and Tibulatii, were an ancient people of Sardinia, noted by Ptolemy (III, 3). They dwelt at the extreme north of the island, about the ancient city of Tibula, near the Corsi (for whom Corsica is named) ...
'', who dwelt at the extreme north of Sardinia, around the ancient city of
Tibula Tibula (Greek: , Ptol.), was an ancient town of Sardinia, near the northern extremity of the island, which appears to have been the customary landing-place for travelers coming from Corsica; for which reason the Itineraries give no less than four li ...
.


Politics

The Torrean society was not organized into a complex political system with a strong central power; the villages of huts at the foot of the castles rather indicate that it was structured into small
chiefdom A chiefdom is a form of hierarchical political organization in non-industrial societies usually based on kinship, and in which formal leadership is monopolized by the legitimate senior members of select families or 'houses'. These elites form a ...
s that dominated the valleys.


Society

The representations in anthropomorphic statues reflect a hierarchical society led by a warrior class that flaunted its military virtues. Some interpretations also reveal the existence of lower classes such as traders and craftsmen.


Religion

Torrean buildings with specifically religious functions are unknown, making it difficult to identify a possible priestly caste; religiosity was expressed, as in the past, in the maintenance of places like coffres (circular tombs with stone
cist A cist ( or ; also kist ; from grc-gre, κίστη, Middle Welsh ''Kist'' or Germanic ''Kiste'') is a small stone-built coffin-like box or ossuary used to hold the bodies of the dead. Examples can be found across Europe and in the Middle East ...
s) and the
dolmen A dolmen () or portal tomb is a type of single-chamber megalithic tomb, usually consisting of two or more upright megaliths supporting a large flat horizontal capstone or "table". Most date from the early Neolithic (40003000 BCE) and were somet ...
s.


Economy

The economy was based mainly on agriculture and livestock, particularly of cattle, goats and pigs. In Bronze Age Corsica there was a notable expansion in
metallurgy Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the sc ...
and trade with the East, as evidenced by the discovery at Borgo of a copper
oxhide ingot Oxhide ingots are heavy (20-30 kg) metal slabs, usually of copper but sometimes of tin, produced and widely distributed during the Mediterranean Late Bronze Age (LBA). Their shape resembles the hide of an ox with a protruding handle in each of th ...
and some
cobalt Cobalt is a chemical element with the symbol Co and atomic number 27. As with nickel, cobalt is found in the Earth's crust only in a chemically combined form, save for small deposits found in alloys of natural meteoric iron. The free element, pr ...
beads, goods coming from
Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...
and the Aegean, respectively. However, there have been only sporadic discoveries of Mycenaean goods, which are quite common in Sardinia.


Gallery

File:WalPala1.jpg, Statue menhir from Palaggiu File:Megawal25.png, Plans of torri and nuraghi File:JEWAlo-B.jpg, Alo-Bisucce File:Filitosa_V_JPG2.jpg, Statue menhir from
Filitosa Filitosa is a megalithic site in southern Corsica, France. The period of occupation spans from the end of the Neolithic era and the beginning of the Bronze Age, until around the Roman times in Corsica. Location The site lies on road D57, ...
File:Locuințe la Filitosa..JPG, Filitosa


See also

*
Nuragic civilization The Nuragic civilization, also known as the Nuragic culture, was a civilization or culture on Sardinia (Italy), the second largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, which lasted from the 18th century BC (Middle Bronze Age) (or from t ...
*
Talaiot 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 a ...
*
Paleo-Corsican language The Paleo-Corsican language is an extinct language (or perhaps set of languages) spoken in Corsica and presumably in the northeastern part of Sardinia (corresponding to today's historical region of Gallura) by the ancient Corsi populations d ...
*
Corsican people The Corsicans ( Corsican, Italian and Ligurian: ''Corsi''; French: ''Corses'') are a Romance ethnic group. They are native to Corsica, a Mediterranean island and a territorial collectivity of France. Origin The island was populated since t ...


References


Bibliography

* * * * {{cite book , last=Zucca , first=Raimondo , date=1996 , title=La Corsica romana , publisher=S'Alvure , location=Italy , isbn=9788873831266 Archaeology of Corsica Ancient peoples