Zoomorphic Sculpture: Lion. El Pajarillo Sculptural Group (Huelma, Jaén, Spain)

Sculpture carved of limestone dated to the 4th century BC. C. It belongs to the culture of the Iberians and comes from the sculptural group of El Pajarillo sanctuary in the municipality of Huelma, Jaén province, Spain.It has a preserved height of 92 cm high, a length of 120 cm and a thickness of 49.5 cm.It depicts a reclining lion that is missing its head and the ends of its front legs. The mane is smooth and stands out slightly on the ventral neck. The front scapulae are clearly marked by an incision, giving way to thick legs with smoothly marked muscles. At least nine ribs are marked on the body on the left side, where you can also see prominent thighs and a paw ending in a powerful claw with fat toes and pointed nails. The thick tail is inserted between the hindquarters to emerge over the right hind leg. Its poor condition is due to long exposure in the open air, which has caused considerable surface erosion, to the extent that numerous small marine fossil components have emerged. In the centre of the neck part there is also a circular hole, probably made in the modern era.The El Pajarillo (Huelma, Jaén, Spain) sculpture assemblage has been interpreted as a heroon-sanctuary located at the head of the Jandulilla River (Huelma, Jaén, Spain). It was an important work of engineering in which the scenographic aspects were very important and were intended to represent and legitimise the aristocratic power that controlled a territory that exceeded the direct hinterland of an oppidum: Úbeda la Vieja (Iltiraka) (Úbeda, Jaén, Spain). Architecturally, the monument, reminiscent of a fortification including storehouses, was built with very carefully laid masonry and small stone edges filling the gaps between the masonry. In this way, plumb walls typical of the 4th century BC were created. The complex was crowned by a tower built of smaller masonry and interstices filled with abundant mortar, probably lime plaster that has not been preserved. This tower would have had an inclined or sloping profile typical of the 7th and 6th centuries BC, thus recovering an architectural tradition prior to the time of construction and recreating an earlier period.Lion sculptures were located on either side of the entrance stairs to the monument. Above, on the tower platform, two griffins would have framed the main scene, the protagonist of which was a male character who confronts the animal –a large wolf with open jaws– with only the help of a falcata. This ancestor, possibly accompanied by a dog, confronts the animal with the sole purpose of defending a young man who is standing naked at the beast's side. The absence of proper clothing for combat and the presence of mythical animals, which ratify the value and supernatural and heroic character of the action performed, underline the theme of this sculptural group: showing the strength and expression of the hero, his civilising nature and his guarantee of protection and governance of the natural and the supernatural. The monument and sculptural group were located in direct relationship with the Jandulilla River which, as it forms just in front of it in a tiny valley, periodically turned the surroundings into a flooded area when the waters would have reached almost to the wall structure, forming an integrated complex. The sanctuary is thus conceived as a territorial landmark, an image of the territorial expansion of Iltiraka, which also includes control of the passage of people and goods to the Alto Guadalquivir.References:Molinos, M, Chapa, T.; Ruiz, A.; Pereira, J.; Rísquez, C.; Madriga, A.; Esteban, A.; Mayoral, V. y Llorente, M. (1998): El Santuario Heroico del Pajarillo (Huelma, Jaén). Diputación Provincial de Jaén, Universidad de Jaén. Consejería de Cultura de la Junta de Andalucía v Centro Andaluz de Arqueología Ibérica. Jaén.Molinos, M., Chapa, T.; Ruiz, A. y Pereira, J. (2015): "El santuario de El Pajarillo, Huelma", en Ruiz, A. y Molinos, M. (eds.): Jaén, tierra íbera. 40 años de investigación y transferencia. Universidad de Jaén, Jaén. 161-176.Ruiz, A. (2020): “Keimelia, anastasis y otras formas de memoria en la cultura de los iberos del sur”, en Noguera, J.M., López, I., Baena, L., Rodríguez, P. (eds.): Satyrica signa. Estudio de arqueología clásica en homenaje al profesor Pedro Rodríguez Oliva. Comares. 143-154.