Naveta dels Tudons

Monuments | Ciutadella

The singular burial chambers known as Naveta des Tudons offers the chance to contemplate what is considered Europe's oldest intact construction, dated around 1,500 B.C.. The Es Tudons naveta is Menorca’s most famous burial monument and is a type of tomb found only on the island. It was built using the Cyclopean technique, meaning that medium sized stones were used and they were fitted together using a dry stone walling method, with no mortar. During an archaeological dig carried out in the 1960s, led by Menorcan archaeologist María Lluïsa Serra, the scattered skeletons of a hundred individuals of both genders and all ages were discovered, many of which dated back to the 9th century B.C. Detail of the gap that have appeared over time in the naveta roof, which consists of flat stone slabs. Inside the naveta. You can see how it is split into two levels separated by stone slabs. View of the upper chamber of the naveta, showing the different types of stone used to build it: smaller and evenly-shaped for the walls and large flat slabs for the roof and the upper floor. View of the entrance door from inside the lower chamber. You can see the stone slabs separating the two floors. Despite being scatteredr, the corpses' personal items that they had been buried with were still in evidence close by: bronze bracelets, bone buttons and some bronze weapons. Also found were small pots, pottery vases and a carved bone stopper, which was part of a container holding the human hair of some of the dead, a common burial ritual in this period. The shape of the naveta is similar to an upturned boat (“nave” in Spanish), hence the name given to this type of monument. The main entrance of the naveta leads to a small passageway that runs towards the upper chamber and also to a second entrance leading to the lower chamber. The middle floor and the upper roof are both built from huge stone slabs that act as beams. Visitors are not permitted to go into the naveta or climb onto it for safety and conservation reasons. Some of the burial goods found in the naveta during archaeological excavation work. They are on display in the Museum of Menorca in Maó.