A taula (meaning 'table' in Catalan) is a Stonehenge-esque stone monument found on the Balearic island of

Menorca Menorca or Minorca (from , later ''Minorica'') is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. Its name derives from its size, contrasting it with nearby Mallorca. Its capital is Maó, situated on the isl ...

. Taulas can be up to 5 metres high and consist of a vertical pillar (a monolith or several smaller stones on top of each other) with a horizontal stone lying on it. A U-shaped wall often encloses the structure. They were built by the

Talaiotic culture The Talaiotic culture or Talaiotic period is the name used to describe the society that existed on the Gymnesian Islands (the easternmost Balearic Islands) during the Iron Age. Its origins date from the end of the second millennium BC, when the i ...

between 500 BC and 300 BC. Their exact cultural meaning remains unknown, but they probably had religious and/or astronomical purposes. Most of the taulas face south, which seems to suggest some astronomical meaning. Archeologist Michael Hoskin has suggested the taulas may have been part of an ancient healing cult. They are frequently found near

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 ...

s. The first author who wrote about these structures was

Juan Ramis Juan Ramis y Ramis (27 April 1746 – 12 February 1819) was a lawyer, writer and historian from Menorca, Balearic Islands. Biography Ramis y Ramis was born and died in Mahón. He was the son of Bartolomé Ramis y Serra and Caternia Ramis y Ca ...

in his book '' Antigüedades célticas de la isla de Menorca'' ("Celtic Antiquities of the Island of Menorca"), which was published 1818, being the first book in the Spanish language entirely devoted to

Prehistory Prehistory, also called pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the first known use of stone tools by hominins million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use ...

. Examples include those at Torre Trencada, Talatí de Dalt, Torrellissá Nou, Trepucó, and the site at Torralba d'en Salord.

Location

* Alfurinet * Algaiarens * Bellaventura * Biniac Vell * Binicrodell Nou * Binimaimut * Binimassó * Binisafullet * Cavalleria * Cotaina * Es Tudons * La Beltrana * Na Comerma de sa Garita * Sa Torreta de Tramuntana * Sant Agustí Vell * So na Caçana Est * So na Caçana Oest * Son Angladó * Son Bernardí * Son Catlar * Son Olivaret Nou * Son Rotger * Talatí de Dalt * Torralba d'en Salort * Torralbenc Vell *

Torre d'en Galmés ''Torre'' (plurals ''torri'' and ''torres'') means ''tower'' in seven Romance languages ( Portuguese, Spanish, Galician, Catalan, Italian, Occitan and Corsican) and may refer to: Biology * Muir-Torre syndrome, the inherited cancer syndrome ...

* Torrellafuda * Torrellisà * Torretrencada * Torrevella d'en Lozano * Trepucó * Sa Cudia Cremada

References

External links

Megalithic Menorca. Discovering Menorca.

Guide to Menorca: Prehistory
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151216094709/http://www.mca-hotels.com/holidays-guide-minorca/95/97/menorca/prehistory/ , date=16 December 2015 Megalithic monuments in Spain Iron Age cultures of Europe Prehistory of the Balearic Islands Prehistoric sites in Spain Iron Age Spain

Location

See also

References

External links