The prehistory of the
Iberian Peninsula begins with the arrival of the first
hominins 1.2 million years ago and ends with the
Punic Wars, when the territory enters the domains of
written history. In this long period, some of its most significant landmarks were to host the last stand of the
Neanderthal people, to develop some of the most impressive Paleolithic art, alongside southern
France, to be the seat of the earliest civilizations of
Western Europe and finally to become a most desired
colonial objective due to its strategic position and its many mineral riches.