Eles, Tunisia
| Eles, Tunisia | |
|---|---|
|
Eles is the site of a large number of megalithic dolmens | |
  Eles, Tunisia Location in Tunisia | |
| Coordinates: 35°56′55″N 9°5′50″E / 35.94861°N 9.09722°ECoordinates: 35°56′55″N 9°5′50″E / 35.94861°N 9.09722°E | |
| Country |
 Tunisia |
| Governorate | Siliana Governorate |
| Time zone | CET (UTC1) |
Eles (also transliterated as Ellès and Al Las) is a village in the Siliana Governorate, Tunisia. It is located around 35°56′55″N 9°5′50″E / 35.94861°N 9.09722°E about 13 km northwest of Maktar. It sits over a natural spring at the base of the surrounding hills.
The village is notable for the large number of dolmens found immediately to the west, south and east of the village which are typical of the tombs found around Maktar.[1] A study of fifty-three of the dolmens by Belmonte, Esteban and Jiménez González[2] suggest that some of these tombs may be orientated towards Alpha Centauri. In contrast Hoskin[3] argues that Tunisian dolmen orientations can be explained by the local topography, in that the entrances all face downhill.
The local rock strata are geologically interesting as they provide a particularly good record of the Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary,[4] which is now better known as the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event.
Notes
References
- Belmonte, J.A. Esteban, C. and Jiménez González, J.J. (1998). "Pre-Roman Tombs of Africa Proconsularis". Archaeoastronomy: Supplement to the Journal for the History of Astronomy. 23 (29): S7–S24.
- Coccioni, R. and Marsilia, A. (November 2007). "The response of benthic foraminifera to the K–Pg boundary biotic crisis at Elles (northwestern Tunisia)". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 255 (1-2): 157–180. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2007.02.046.
- Hoskin, M. (2001). Tombs, Temples, and Their Orientations: A New Perspective on Mediterranean Prehistory. Ocarina Books. ISBN 0-9540867-1-6.
- Harbi-Riahi, M. Gragueb, A. Camps, G. M'Timet, A. Zoughlami, J. (1985). Atlas Préhistorique de la Tunisie (8 Maktar). Institut National d'Archéologie et d'Art de Tunis and École Français de Rome. ISBN 2-7283-0091-7.