Dobles exequias y circulación de reliquias en el Calcolítico Inicial de la Cuenca del Duero: Sobre las inhumaciones parciales del “recinto de fosos” de Santa Cruz III (Cabezón de Pisuerga, Valladolid)

‘Double burials’ concept, early theorized by R. Hertz (1907), has been a frequent interpreting framework in many studies of Anthropology and Archaeology of Death. This paper applies Hertz’s approach to the funerary rituals of the Early Copper Age in Duero Basin (c. 3000-2400 cal BC), starting from a bioarchaeological study of the partial burials located in 2 pits of the Santa Cruz III causewayed enclosure (Cabezon de Pisuerga, province of Valladolid, Spain). Looking for a broader picture, the heterogeneous funerary practices of the area during Early Copper Age (from primary burials to relics) are reviewed. From their description, a general reading based on ‘double burials’ theory is proposed, without using the ethnographic analogy for a direct explanation of each particular event.