Archaeobotanical evidence from the Bandužiai (Žardė) Late Bronze Age to Late Iron Age settlement in western Lithuania

VIRVELINĖS KERAMIKOS KULTŪRA LIETUVOJE 2800–2400 cal BC

Detektorfund og bebyggelse – Det østlige Limfjordsområde i yngre jernalder og vikingetid

During the Mesolithic and Neolithic, foragers dwelling in the Eastern Baltic, Scandinavia and Fennoscandia regions buried some of their dead on lake islands or other coastal sites. Based on ethnographic accounts, these sites are often understood as liminal places where water separates the lands of the dead and the living. In this paper, we take a more relational view of place and suggest that a particular combination of spatial perception of landscape and the dynamic nature of coastal sites might have contributed to the social agency of these places, resulting in their use as places for ritual activity. By exploring two Mesolithic–Neolithic burial places, Donkalnis and Spiginas (western Lithuania), with sensory archaeological and artistic approaches, we suggest that the ancient foragers of this region buried human bodies in these locations to be part of the place itself. Similar to other depositional acts, this could have been done to mark the location or communicate with the surrounding world.

A re-examination of animal tooth pendants from Mesolithic (c. 9000–5000 BC in Lithuania) graves at Donkalnis (western Lithuania) revealed one engraved specimen. Among the hundreds of pendants reported for this period in the eastern Baltic, engravings are rare. The discovery offers new insights into the human-animal relationships reflected in northern forager burial traditions.

The aim of this study was to determine the impact of plant diversity and agricultural practices on crop productivity on organically managed mixed and arable farms under different natural conditions. Organic farms in three regions of Lithuania, differing in landscape homogeneity, soil quality and farming intensity, were evaluated. The results showed that there were arable farms in all regions, regardless of the soil fertility and the largest number of mixed farms was in Western Lithuania. On the mixed farms, perennial forage grass prevailed in the cropping structure, whilst cereals were the main crops on the arable farms with grain legumes grown to restore soil fertility. Short crop rotations and a low diversity of crops predominated. The average grain yields of the winter and spring cereals and the grain legumes were 3283, 2539 and 2917 kg ha−1, respectively. The productivity of the cereals and grain legumes depended on the region, and for spring cereals also on the interaction between region and farm type. Significantly lower yields of winter and spring cereals were recorded on the arable farms in East Lithuania, compared with the arable farms in the other regions. For organic farming systems, especially for arable farms, it was recommended to explore and implement the use of mixed or strip relay intercrops and multicultural cropping systems or blocks, thereby increasing spatial and temporal crop diversity and using plants that provide ecological services (e.g. legume swards). Reduced tillage practice to increase humification of plant residues in the soil was also recommended.

The Cenomanian–Turonian transition marks one of the most important extinction episodes of the Mesozoic era. This extinction event was associated with the development of widespread oceanic anoxia and pronounced stable carbon isotopic excursion. Despite its importance, the effects of the perturbation on higher latitude biotas, and from the Baltic region in particular, are currently underexplored. Therefore, in this contribution we present the fossil record of a foraminifera succession integrated with δ13C trends from two deep cores: Bliūdsukiai-19 from western Lithuania and Baltasiskė-267 from southern Lithuania. Two foraminiferal zones were distinguished: Rotalipora cushmani from the upper Cenomanian and Whiteinella archaeocretacea from the boundary strata between the Cenomanian and Turonian in the Baltasiskė-267 core section, and a W. archaeocretacea Zone in the Bliūdsukiai-19 core section. A chemostratigraphical analysis of the stable carbon isotopes revealed a positive Cenomanian–Turonian δ13C anomaly, with maximum values reaching 3.57‰ in the upper part of the Bliūdsukiai-19 core section. A non-metric multidimensional scaling analysis of the foraminifera communities revealed that the major changes in their assemblages were strongly temporally organized and associated with the changes in the stable carbon isotopic ratios. This fact points to the significant effects of the C–T extinction event on the northern Neotethys paleocommunities.

Danerne og det danske kongeriges opkomst – Om forskningsprogrammet »Fra Stamme til Stat i Danmark«

Voldbækgravpladsen – Yngre jernalder, vikingetid og middelalder ved Brabrand Sø

Freemen and villeinsA longue durée perspective on villages, farmsteads and social structure in western Jutland
 Over the course of the last two decades, Danish archaeology has seen a vast increase in excavation activity supported by the introduction of GIS-based systems. Moreover, the digital revolution has made accessible an extensive collection of historical maps, thereby enabling direct comparisons between excavated structures and depictions of the landscape extending back to the late 18th century. The time-consuming process of building complete GIS-systems that include older excavations and reconstructing past landscapes from old maps is ongoing at most Danish museums. This has led to many intriguing correlations and insights. The current models for the settlement history in Denmark during the Iron Age and the Viking period are, however, still primarily based on the findings from the renowned Vorbasse excavations undertaken between 1974 and 1987, and only overviews of these results have been so far published. This article is based on finds and evidence held at the Museum of Southwest Jutland and focuses on western Jutland. With a foundation in excavation results and landscape models extracted from the historical maps of c. 1800, the aim is to apply a longue durée perspective in the search for the underlying structures constituting the agrarian landscape during the last two millennia.The shifting climate appears to have had a profound impact, but written sources like the church list from Ribe diocese of c. AD 1325 give vital clues, which can be compared with the data emerging from the booming research into palaeo-climatic change (figs. 1-4).Danish landscape laws written down in the 13th century distinguish between two types of agrarian settlement: the main village (adelby) and the thorp (torp). Thorps derived from main villages and were in some way subordinate to them. It is argued that this division may extend far back in the Iron Age, and a mapping of main villages has been attempted (figs. 5-7). Analysis of historical maps has shown that the arable areas cultivated in c. 1800 lie where the predecessors of the existing villages are to be found, extending all the way back to the Late Pre-Roman Iron Age. Finds recovered during metal-detector surveys are also found concentrated on this arable land. This indicates a direct continuity in the overall settlement pattern, the associated field systems and the growing community.Based on cases from western Jutland, the settlement structure during the Iron Age and the Viking period is discussed. The excavated villages and farmsteads, their associated cemeteries and the numerous finds recovered by metal detector portray a society based on family-run farmsteads apparently without major class differences – very closely resembling the landscape depicted on historical maps 1000 years later (figs. 8-14). Aristocratic sites or “central places” are also present in this area of southern Scandinavia, but they are few and far between. The second part of the text deals with Medieval (in Denmark c. 1050-1550) villages and farmsteads. Based on excavated examples, it is argued that these are not yet as well understood as their predecessors since large parts of the Medieval remains are hidden underneath existing villages. The structural similarities between the Iron Age villages and their Early Modern counterparts portrayed on the historical maps indicate, however, that Medieval villages also followed the same overall trajectory (figs. 15-27). The conclusion from the analysis is that village formation in western Jutland took place in the Late Pre-Roman Iron Age. Climate- and disease-related events, like the volcanic dust cloud after AD 536 and the Black Death in 1350, appear to be traceable as hiatuses in the archaeological record, but the overall trend is one of continuity. Every village that existed around 1800 seems to have had predecessors going all the way back to the Iron Age. The number of farms in an individual village also seems to have been roughly the same through the ages, indicating that shared ideas about sustainability may, in one form or another, have determined this.

Summary The available archaeobotanical evidence from Viking Age sites lying within the boundaries of present day Denmark is summarized and commented upon. The exploitation of both cultivated and wild plant resources is dealt with under the headings - the agrarian economy (crops and weeds), imported plants, collected food plants, brewing, medicinal plants, religion and ritual, wetlands and heaths.

Muldfjælsplovens tidlige historie – Fra yngre romersk jernalder til middelalder

Dynamics of phytoplankton in relation to the upper Homerian (Lower Silurian) lundgreni event – An example from the Eastern Baltic Basin (Western Lithuania)

TamdrupRoyal residence and memorial church in a new light
 Tamdrup has been shrouded in a degree of mystery in recent times. The solitary church located on a moraine hill west of Horsens is visible from afar and has attracted attention for centuries. On the face of it, it resembles an ordinary parish church, but on closer examination it is found to be unusually large, and on entering one discovers that hidden beneath one roof is a three-aisled construction, which originally was a Romanesque basilica. Why was such a large church built in this particular place? What were the prevailing circumstances in the Early Middle Ages when the foundation stone was laid?
 The mystery of Tamdrup has been addressed and discussed before. In the 1980s and 1990s, archaeological excavations were carried out which revealed traces of a magnate’s farm or a royal residence from the Late Viking Age or Early Middle Ages located on the field to the west of the church (fig. 4), and in 1991, the book Tamdrup – Kirke og gård was published.
 Now, by way of metal-detector finds, new information has been added. These new finds provide several answers, but also give rise to several new questions and problems. In recent years, a considerable number of metal finds recovered by metal detector at Tamdrup have been submitted to Horsens Museum. Since 2012, 207 artefacts have been recorded, primarily coins, brooches, weights and fittings from such as harness, dating from the Late Viking Age and Early Middle Ages. Further to these, a coin hoard dating from the time of Svein Estridson was excavated in 2013.
 The museum has processed the submitted finds, which have been recorded and passed on for treasure trove evaluation. As resources were not available for a more detailed assessment of the artefacts, in 2014 the museum formulated a research project that received funding from the Danish Agency for Culture, enabling the finds to be examined in greater depth.
 The aim of the research project was to study the metal-detector finds and the excavation findings, partly through an analysis of the total finds assemblage, partly by digitalisation of the earlier excavation plans so these could be compared with each other and with the new excavation data. This was intended to lead on to a new analysis, new interpretations and a new, overall evaluation of Tamdrup’s function, role and significance in the Late Viking Age and Early Middle Ages.Old excavations – new interpretationsIn 1983, on the eastern part of the field, a trial excavation trench was laid out running north-south (d). This resulted in two trenches (a, b) and a further three trial trenches being opened up in 1984 (fig. 6). In the northern trench, a longhouse, a fence and a pit-house were discovered (fig. 8). The interpretation of the longhouse (fig. 4) still stands, in so far as we are dealing with a longhouse with curved walls. The western end of the house appears unequivocal, but there could be some doubt about its eastern end. An alternative interpretation is a 17.5 m long building (fig. 8), from which the easternmost set of roof-bearing posts are excluded. Instead, another posthole is included as the northernmost post in the gable to the east. This gives a house with regularly curved walls, though with the eastern gable (4.3 m) narrower than the western (5.3 m).
 North of the trench (a) containing the longhouse, a trial trench (c) was also laid out, revealing a number of features. Similarly, there were also several features in the northern part of the middle trial trench (e). A pit in trial trench c was found to contain both a fragment of a bit branch and a bronze key. There was neither time nor resources to permit the excavation of these areas in 1984, but it seems very likely that there are traces of one or more houses here (fig. 9). Here we have a potential site for a possible main dwelling house or hall.
 In August 1990, on the basis of an evaluation, an excavation trench (h) was opened up to the west of the 1984 excavation (fig. 7). Here, traces were found of two buildings, which lay parallel to each other, oriented east-west. These were interpreted as small auxiliary buildings associated with the same magnate’s farm as the longhouse found in the 1984 excavation. The northern building was 4 m wide and the southern building was 5.5 m. Both buildings were considered to be c. 7 m long and with an open eastern gable. The southern building had one set of internal roof-bearing posts.
 The excavation of the two buildings in 1990 represented the art of the possible, as no great resources were available. Aerial photos from the time show that the trial trench from the evaluation was back-filled when the excavation was completed. Today, we have a comprehensive understanding of the trial trenches and excavation trenches thanks to the digitalised plans. Here, it becomes apparent that some postholes recorded during the evaluation belong to the southernmost of the two buildings, but these were unfortunately not relocated during the actual excavation. As these postholes, accordingly, did not form part of the interpretation, it was assumed that the building was 7 m in length (fig. 10). When these postholes from the evaluation are included, a ground plan emerges that can be interpreted as the remains of a Trelleborg house (fig. 11). The original 7 m long building constitutes the western end of this characteristic house, while the remainder of the south wall was found in the trial trench. Part of the north wall is apparently missing, but the rest of the building appears so convincing that the missing postholes must be attributed to poor conditions for preservation and observation. The northeastern part of the house has not been uncovered, which means that it is not possible to say with certainty whether the house was 19 or 25 m in length, minus its buttress posts.
 On the basis of the excavations undertaken in 1984 and 1990, it was assumed that the site represented a magnate’s farm from the Late Viking Age. It was presumed that the excavated buildings stood furthest to the north on the toft and that the farm’s main dwelling – in the best-case scenario the royal residence – should be sought in the area to the south between the excavated buildings. Six north-south-oriented trial trenches were therefore laid out in this area (figs. 6, 7 and 13 – trial trenches o, p, q, r, s and t). The results were, according to the excavation report, disappointing: No trace was found of Harold Bluetooth’s hall. It was concluded that there were no structures and features that could be linked together to give a larger entity such as the presumed magnate’s farm.
 After digitalisation of the excavation plans from 1991, we now have an overview of the trial trenches to a degree that was not possible previously (fig. 13). It is clear that there is a remarkable concentration of structures in the central and northern parts of the two middle trial trenches (q, r) and in part also in the second (p) and fourth (s) trial trenches from the west, as well as in the northern parts of the two easternmost trial trenches (s, t). An actual archaeological excavation would definitely be recommended here if a corresponding intensity of structures were to be encountered in an evaluation today (anno 2016).
 Now that all the plans have been digitalised, it is obvious to look at the trial trenches from 1990 and 1991 together. Although some account has to be taken of uncertainties in the digitalisation, this nevertheless confirms the picture of a high density of structures, especially in the middle of the 1991 trial trenches. The collective interpretation from the 1990 and 1991 investigations is that there are strong indications of settlement in the area of the middle 1991 trial trenches. It is also definitely a possibility that these represent the remains of a longhouse, which could constitute the main dwelling house. It can therefore be concluded that it is apparently possible to confirm the interpretation of the site as a potential royal residence, even though this is still subject to some uncertainty in the absence of new excavations. The archaeologists were disappointed following the evaluation undertaken in 1991, but the overview which modern technology is able to provide means that the interpretation is now rather more encouraging. There are strong indications of the presence of a royal residence.
 FindsThe perception of the area by Tamdrup church gained a completely new dimension when the first metal finds recovered by metal detector arrived at Horsens Museum in the autumn of 2011. With time, as the finds were submitted, considerations of the significance and function of the locality in the Late Viking Age and Early Middle Ages were subjected to revision. The interpretation as a magnate’s farm was, of course, common knowledge, but at Horsens Museum there was an awareness that this interpretation was in some doubt following the results of the 1991 investigations. The many new finds removed any trace of this doubt while, at the same time, giving cause to attribute yet further functions to the site. Was it also a trading place or a central place in conjunction with the farm? And was it active earlier than previously assumed?
 The 207 metal finds comprise 52 coins (whole, hack and fragments), 34 fittings (harness, belt fittings etc.), 28 brooches (enamelled disc brooches, Urnes fibulas and bird brooches), 21 weights, 15 pieces of silver (bars, hack and casting dead heads), 12 figures (pendants, small horses), nine distaff whorls, eight bronze keys, four lead amulets, three bronze bars, two fragments of folding scales and a number of other artefacts, the most spectacular of which included a gold ring and a bronze seal ring. In dating terms, most of the finds can be assigned to the Late Viking Age and Early Middle Ages.
 The largest artefact group consists of the coins, of which

Vegetation occupies a special place on the Earth. It was easily recognized by our remote ancestors who worshipped plants and animals together with the visible world. From the biblical viewpoint about the origin of the world and living organs and resulting from further scientific conceptions, origin and evolution of plants and their special function have always been given great importance. Plants are an unconditional source of life on earth. With their development, early humans changed their ideas about and relationship with the changing environment. After the formation of convenient natural conditions, in different regions of the earth humans started developing a new form of production – land farming and cattle breeding and began creating new firm settlements. Consequently, there emerged new concepts –cultivated plants and domesticated animals - in economic activity. Improved species of plants and animals were created by means of human interference, which is why their majority have preserved only the gene and some characteristics of their wild ancestors. One of such cultivated agricultural plants is the melon with its very interesting history of evolution.

Post–Glacial stratigraphy and palaeoenvironment of the northern part of the Curonian Spit, Western Lithuania