Researchers said on Thursday an analysis of tooth enamel showed that the body entombed at the site near Seville was not a man as previously thought, a finding that indicates the leadership role women played in this ancient society that predated the pyramids of Egypt - and perhaps elsewhere. In the British Isles, it is the peak time of Stonehenge, a major megalithic monument and sanctuary," García Sanjuán said. The 'Ivory Lady' reflects all these elements," García Sanjuán said. "This study throws new light on a problem we know preciously little about: the social and political role of women among early complex pre-state societies," García Sanjuán said. The "Ivory Lady" shows that women may have held high leadership positions during the Copper Age, a transitional period between the Stone Age and the more technologically sophisticated Bronze Age.

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Persons: Miriam Lucianez Trivino, Leonardo García Sanjuán, Lady, García Sanjuán, Miriam Luciañez, Triviño, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS, University of Seville, University of Seville's, University of Seville's Department of, Thomson Locations: Handout, Spain, African, Seville, Egypt, Mesopotamia, Iberia, University of Seville's Department, Washington