Torrean civilization

Diffusion of the Towers in Corsica

The Torrean civilization was a Bronze Age megalithic civilization that developed in Corsica, mostly in the area south of Ajaccio, during the second half of the 2nd millennium BC.

History

Torre from Ceccia

"Castle" of Cucuruzzu

The characteristic buildings of this culture are the "Torri" (Towers), a megalithic building similar to the Nuraghi of Sardinia (although the torri were smaller and less impressive), from which the culture take it's name, and the Castelli (Castles), more complex buildings that include a wall, a tower and the huts.

According to the preliminary investigations conducted during the 1950s by the French scholar Roger Grosjean the Torrean civilization began when, at the end of the second millennium BC, the Sea People known as Sherden landed on the island from the Eastern Mediterranean, subduing the native megalithic population. The Sherden, brought the metallurgy on the island and built the buildings known as Torri, according to Grosjean temples dedicated to the worship of the fire and the deads, and lifted up the statue menhir representing their leaders armed with swords and helmet with horns that would present similarities with the Sherden immortalized in the temple of Medinet Habu, in Egypt.

Currently the Torrean civilization is seen as an indigenous civilizations, the result of a local evolution started since the Neolithic with possible Sardinian (Bonnanaro culture) and North Italian (Polada culture) influences ; in fact according to the modern dating the first Towers and Castles were built a millennium earlier than what supposed by Grosjean, ie the end of the third millennium BC, at the same time or even in a period prior to the appearance of the first protonuraghi in Sardinia . Also contrary to what Grosjean thought the metallurgy in Corsica had existed for centuries before the supposed " arrival of Shardana near Porto Vecchio ." ; the Terrina site, near Aleria, in fact shows that the processing of copper had spread on the island from the early centuries of the third millennium B.C...

However, the fact that the Sherden are actually arrived in Corsica is not ruled out by some scholars, who, however, are more likely to believe that these people did not come from the East but from the West (from Sardinia? ), and that they themselves pushed toward the Eastern Mediterranean to accomplish missions of piracy, possibly in the pay of the Mycenaean lords.

Dolmen Funtanaccia, Sartene

During the 'Iron Age the Towers and the Castles were still occupied but the relationships with Sardinia become less intense (in Corsica are absent the characteristic bronzetti), while in the north there were increasing contacts with Tuscany and Liguria .

The torrean civilization went disappearing from the middle of the first millennium BCE when Corsica was settled by the Greeks of Phocaea, the Etruscans, the Carthaginians and then the Romans.

The Torrean people are probably identifiable with the Corsi, a people that lived in Corsica and north-east Sardinia during Roman times, described as one of the main ethnic group of the islands together with the Ilienses and the Balares of Sardinia. The Corsi were formed by several ancient tribes that dwelt in Corsica island: Belatones (Belatoni), Cervini, Cilebenses (Cilibensi), Cumanenses (Cumanesi), Licinini, Macrini, Opini, Subasani, Sumbri, Tarabeni, Titiani, Venacini. In Sardinia island, in the far north-east, there were tribes that were also corsi: Corsi Proper (for whom Corsica is named), they dwelt at the extreme north-east of Sardinia; Lestricones/Lestrigones (Lestriconi/Lestrigoni); Longonenses (Longonensi); Tibulati, they dwelt at the extreme north of Sardinia, about the ancient city of Tibula, near the Corsi.

Politics

The Torrean society was not organized in complex political system with a strong central power, the villages of huts at the foot of the Castles rather indicate that it was structured in small chiefdoms that dominated the valleys .

Society

Statue menhir from Tavera

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

Religion

Torrean buildings with specifically religious functions are uknown, making it difficult to identify a possible priestly caste; religiosity was expressed, as in the past, in the maintenance of places like coffres (circles tombs with stone cist) and the dolmens.

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 and trade with the East as evidenced by the discovery at Borgo of a copper oxhide ingot and some cobalt beads, goods coming from Cyprus and the Aegean respectively,; on the other hand are not recorded , except sporadically , discoveries of Mycenaean goods production, quite common in Sardinia.

Gallery

• 
  Statue menhir from Palaggiu
• 
  Plants of Torri and Nuraghi
• 
  Alo-Bisucce
• 
  Statue menhir from Filitosa
• 
  Filitosa

Bibliography

• Gabriel Camps, 1988, Préhistoire d’une île, Éditions Errance, Paris.
• Laurent-Jacques Costa , 2004, Corse préhistorique, Éditions Errance, Paris.
• De Lanfranchi, François (2002). "Mégalithisme et façonnage des roches destinées à être plantées. Concepts, terminologie et chronologie". Bulletin de la Société préhistorique française (in French). 99 (2): 331–356.
• Ugas, Giovanni (2006). L'alba dei nuraghi. Cagliari: Fabula Editore.
• Zucca, Raimondo (1996). La Corsica romana. Oristano: S'Alvure.

See also

• Nuragic civilization
• Talaiot
• Corsican people
• Sardinian people