Density, intensity and clustering patterns in the spatial distribution of Galician megaliths (NW Iberian Peninsula)

摘要

In this paper, a spatial approach to the Galician megalithic complex (NW Iberian Peninsula) is presented, focusing on first instance on a study of the intensity of sites using a kernel density analysis. This aims to define particular zones with important concentration of sites. The study of five environmental variables selected from literature is carried out in the second part of the paper, analysing whether there is a spatial dependence of the intensity of megaliths on first-order covariates. Finally, approximations to point-pattern analysis, such as nearest neighbour distances or grouping analysis, indicate that we are facing a clustered phenomenon with specific geographic meanings. The results allow us to propose that certain environmental affordances may have determined the locational decisions, debating (from a quantitative point of view) parts of a widely discussed but yet unsystematic academic debate.