#talaiotic

I assume you mean the Balearic slingers, it's true! They were renowned since Antiquity and part of both the Carthaginian and Roman armies.

For those who don't know what sling means, it's a weapon that consists on a rope that the slinger swings around with a stone projectile, so it can propel and shoot the stone. Like this:

(Image source: Federació Balear de Tir de Fona)

Together with the characteristic shape of their settlements' buildings, the slingers are the most famous element from the ancient Talaiotic culture.

They are known in the Balearic Islands. In the Hort del Rei gardens in the centre of Palma, Mallorca, there is a statue dedicated to a Balearic slinger:

(Image source: Lanoel/Wikimedia)

You can also see slinger's projectiles found by archaeologists:

These ones are from Museu de Menorca (source).

The Cala Morell archaeological site in Menorca, the remains of a village from 1400-1000 aC of the ancient Talaiotic culture that used to inhabit the island.

Capocorb Vell is biggest archaeological site of the ancient Talaiotic culture in Mallorca. This culture existed in the easternmost Balearic Islands during the Bronze and Iron Ages. The town in this site originis towards the 2nd millenium BC, there is also a sanctuary built during the Balearic or Post-Talaiotic Period (600-500 BC) remodelled during Roman Period.

I know you guys want more Talaiotic stuff so here you go!

This is the site at Ses Passeis which is a little better advertised than the previous 'pile of rocks in the middle of nowhere' (I kid you not).

At the entrance of this forested site, I was greeted by a large, megalithic post and lintel entrance. Now if you don't think this is awesome I don't know what to say.

We're still in the Talaiotic period here so 900-400 BCE give or take. This place was abandoned during the post Talaiotic period and I've got some ideas as to why which we can discuss later.

Because of the trees I have zero good pictures of this site but this is the hypostyle hall that leads to the (mostly demolished) talaiot in the middle of the site! This is a pretty large hall and the other sites did not have one which makes it interesting.

There was also this wide open and unmarked space outside the settlement which had some interesting rock formations under the tall grass. I thought it could be some sort of meeting place but I really don't know.

Anyway the houses were pretty normal and fairly similar to the other site though the preservation was not as good except for this one. This house was bigger than the others, it was built in another place and it had multiple rooms. Go figure this house was built towards the end of the period and has near eastern elements. Now I don't know what has been written on this site but in my opinion we have the classic case of cultural invasion here.

This house might have belonged to a trader who wanted to come and live with the local people (after all the Phoenicians were in Spain at the time and Mallorca has a good location as an island). But, if we remember, this settlement was abandoned. So maybe, the native people got sick of the trading influence and got up and left? There are precedents for this all over the ancient world, after all!

I had the pleasure of visiting a very interesting site today called Son Fornes. Now Mallorca has a very unique prehistoric period known as the Talaiotic period because of these large towers/meeting places called Talaiots. This period is between 900 and 400 BCE and is followed by the Post-Talaiotic period and then the Roman conquest of Mallorca.

Son Fornes is one of the best preserved Talaiotic sites on Mallorca and it is really cool because it was occupied from this period through the Roman period. The even cooler part? The Romans even made their houses to look like the older ones on the site!

So now for some pictures.

This picture shows one of the talaiots and some of the houses.

This is the inside of the talaiot not pictured above. Basically, they are circular towers with one single column in the middle. Archaeologists think that these were religious of politic meeting spaces because of the large amount of drinking cups found in them.

Most of these buildings have side entrances, the one above does not because it was filled in (something to do with structural integrity) so this one was entered from the top by stairs (which you can see on the left).

Here is the entrance to the other one for reference. The space is not tall enough for me to stand in (I'm 5'7") and I think this really brings to mind the pedras formosas of mainland Spain. Maybe this doorway was deliberately small so that it was a ritualistic gesture to enter the enclosed space (yes, these would have been taller and would have had a roof).

Now this is the Roman house and though the gravel is new just look at the preservation of these houses! They are so well preserved we can see the stove, the water cistern, the storage area and the central hearth and pillar! This is amazing!