Oldest Hippopotamus Ivory Artefact Found in Iberia Sheds Light on Ancient Trade!
Archaeologists have re-examined a curious find from the 1970s and discovered that it’s far more important than anyone first realised. The object in question, unearthed in 1977 at the Copper Age settlement of Bòbila Madurell in Sant Quirze del Vallès (Barcelona), has now been confirmed as the oldest known hippopotamus ivory artefact in the Iberian Peninsula.
The re-analysis, carried out by researchers from the University of Barcelona’s Prehistoric Studies and Research Seminar (SERP), shows that communities in the region were connected to long-distance trade networks over 4,000 years ago. Their findings were recently published in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports.
The artefact is a small piece, just over 10 centimetres long and weighing 11 grams. It was originally stored in the Museu d’Història de Sabadell with little known about its origins. Using advanced techniques such as Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR) and microscopic analysis, researchers confirmed it was made from the lower incisor of a hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius).
Photo Credit: J. M. Morillo León et al., Journal of Archaeological Science, Reports (2025) / CC BY 4.0
Examination revealed traces of a reddish pigment on the surface, likely made from iron compounds bound with animal fat. This suggests it had a decorative or symbolic use. Radiocarbon dating places the object in the early third millennium BCE, during the transition from the Late Neolithic to the Chalcolithic.
Its exact function remains unclear. Some experts believe it may have been a stylised figurine or idol, perhaps used in rituals. Others point to its similarity with weaving tools, especially given that spindle whorls were found in the same archaeological layer. This raises the possibility that it was a textile tool, used as a beater in weaving.
The presence of hippopotamus ivory in Catalonia is remarkable. Unlike elephant ivory, hippo ivory was rarer and indicates that people in Iberia were plugged into specialist trading systems. Other exotic goods such as Sardinian obsidian, Baltic amber, and elephant ivory are already known to have circulated around Iberia at this time. The Bòbila Madurell find adds hippopotamus ivory to this list, strengthening the case for a complex web of exchanges that linked the western Mediterranean with Africa and the Near East.
Evidence from southern Spain shows strong contact with North Africa, which may explain how the material arrived. However, the Catalan discovery also hints at northern trade routes across the Mediterranean, possibly through Sardinia and the Balearic Islands, where ivory has also been found in Bell Beaker contexts.
This unique discovery not only broadens our knowledge of ivory use in prehistoric Iberia but also highlights how important exotic raw materials were in shaping social and economic life during the Copper Age. Far from being isolated, communities in the region were part of far-reaching exchange networks that carried rare and valuable resources across seas and continents.