Cremation Burial Ground from Hurbanovo in the Context of the Development of the Eastern Hallstatt Culture

The paper highlights the results of research conducted in 2019—2020 at the archaeological site cremation burial ground Kariv I of the Roman period in the basin of the Western Bug River. During the excavations 3 cremation burials were found which perhaps included the remains of one male and two females. Noteworthy is the partially destroyed female burial 12. Rich items of funeral inventory were found there, including the household items, metal costume details, jewelry, including jewelry made of yellow metal. The tilth soil layer contained fragments of glass and ceramic imported utensils, brooches, weapons and horse harness, armour ect. In total 12 cremation burials (including one pair burial) with a variety of equipment were found on the area of 1456 m2 during the entire period of research on the burial ground Kariv I. The remains of thirteen people were found in the burial assemblages: seven men, five women and one adolescent child (infantilis II group). We can suppose that the site may have been a burial place for barbarian elite and members of its inner circle. On the basis of numerous finds (brooches, spurs, tips of drinking horns, amphorae, glass and bronze vessels, etc.), most of which come from closed assemblages, the chronology of the burial ground is ascertained by the second half of the 2nd century CE (phase B2/C1). The people who left the site had mixed cultural traits. The mix of funeral traditions of the Przeworsk culture with notable South Germanic (Suebian), Baltic and Venetian elements can be found on the site. The events of the Marcomannic Wars, during or after which some members of the barbarian coalition tried to leave the troubled areas of the Middle Danube, moving away from Roman political influence in the European Barbaricum, perhaps may be the reason of appearance in the region of the population whom the burial ground belong.

The article discusses the presence in the middle reaches of the Seversky Donets River the Khazar burials carried out by the rite of cremation, which are known upstream of the river, within the forest-steppe. Previously, the only such burial ground in this, steppe, territory was considered "burial ground 2" of the archaeological complex Mayaki. In recent years, the discovery of three more necropolises in the steppe zone has been announced. The mapping of the complexes of "burial ground no. 2" on the monument's plan Mayaki shows that they are a series of pits scattered far apart from each other, including within the residential part of the settlement. The pits contain no calcified bones, burnt objects or other items relevant to cremation burials. There is no reason to attribute these complexes to a single burial ground, nor is there any reason to classify them as "cremations". Other sites (Bondarikha, Gosudarev Yar, Tatyanovka) are archaeological sites completely destroyed by looters. Thus, on the basis of these materials, there is no reason to claim the presence of cremation necropolises in the middle course of the Seversky Donets River.

The article presents the results of the archaeological investigations conducted at Podgorica. They revealed a settlement considered part of the Podgorica-Dragomelj ‘twin settlement’ that was located at a former streambed and extended across more than 2 ha. The clustered buildings in its centre and the metallurgical-casting activities moved to the periphery indicate a deliberate organisation of the living and work spaces of its inhabitants. The area was then reused in the Early Iron Age, when it served as a burial ground in the Hallstatt period.

The prehistoric salt mine of Hallstatt together with its burial ground is one of the most prominent archaeological sites in the world, and has given its name to the “Hallstatt period”, an epoch of European prehistory (800 to 400 BCE). Due to the perfect conservation in rock salt a high number of organic materials have been found, including mostly wooden artefacts and structural timber.More than 2000 samples were taken from various archaeological sites in the mines as well as at the surface. It was possible to date 763 samples by the means of dendrochronology and by 14C wiggle matching. The dendrochronological dating was possible due to crossdating with various available chronologies (like Villingen-Magdalenenberg or Dachstein/Schwarzer See). The fir (Abies alba Mill.) chronologies span the periods: -1232 to -1063; -819 to -425 and -371 to-129. The spruce (Picea abies L. Karst.) chronologies span the periods: -1228 to -1063; -813 to -669 and -342 to -123. The larch (Larix decidua Mill.) chronologies span the periods: -1393 ± 18 to-1286 ± 18 based on wiggle matching data and -252 to -164. A beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) chronology span the time -1182 to -1062.

A partially destroyed burial ground from the Hallstatt period in the area of Mitterkirchen in Upper Austria was archaeologically investigated. The graves are dated to the Hallstatt C period corresponding to the 8th/7th century BC. Two triangular-headed nails and two lamellar “Buckel” (domed bronze plates) made of Sn-bronze were available for material investigations. One of each was subjected to metallographic examinations. The triangular-headed nail’s bronze contains about 15 wt. %Sn. The dendritic cast structure and the eutectoid phase Cu41Sn11 are clearly visible. What is noticeable is that a Cu41Sn11 layer formed in some areas of the surface. The lamellar Buckel’s microstructure is recrystallized and exhibits only a few deformation twins. Its bronze contains about 13 wt. %Sn. Hence, only very little Cu41Sn11 is present. Elongated Cu2S precipitates indicate that the initial sheet was manufactured by fine forging.

Bronze age dating of timber from the salt-mine at Hallstatt, Austria

At the Chernyakhiv / Sвntana de Mureş culture grave fileds, some burials differ from «typical» ones of the peculiarities of the structure of the burial construction, the position of the skeleton and inventory elements, the presence of unique and rare items, and can be designated as «special». According to the investigations from 2005—2021, 16 complexes as «special» burials of the grave filed can be classified: 10 inhumations (Gr. 13, 23, 60, 62, 68, 72, 183, 211, 231, 235) and 6 cremations (Gr. 20, 22, 69, 114, 144, 156). Some of these graves have been published (60, 62, 69, 72, 114, 144, 211, 231). In the «living culture», there were probably more such «special graves» because in the «dead culture» and in the «rediscovered culture», the selection of inhumations is significantly larger than in cremation burials. These graves contain the following «special» features: 1) an element of a burial structure; 2) the number of buried; 3) inventory items; 4) the position of items; 5) an ornament on a vessels. The grave goods are divided into groups of sacrum (symbolic role) and profanum (functional role). In the social assessment of a «special» grave, it is essential which group the «special» feature belongs to, sacrum or profanum? Some signs can be simultaneously attributed to two groups: they have a functional and sacred / symbolic meaning. We conclude that in graves 13, 20, 69, 144, 183, and 231, «special» signs testify to the buried status. Grave 69 probably marks not only the high status of the buried but also belongs to a migrant. In grave 22 and 156 — about occupations and belonging to a professional group. Grave 114 is associated with the group, but a migrant was probably also buried in it. In graves 23, 68, 211, and 235, «special» signs are of an «ideological» nature and probably indicate that the buried belong to a cult group. In grave 60, a «special» sign with the state of the body at death is associated; in graves 62 and 72, it marks a group or status. The combination of «special» features allows us to classify the grave 183 as «special». However, the presence of only one «special» feature in different ways can be assessed: it can be insignificant and very important, decisive. «Special» burials do not occupy a separate area on the burial ground. They are found in many parts of its area.

Vikingetidens gravskik i Danmark – Spor af begravelsesritualer i jordfæstegrave

During excavations carried out in 2023 at the cemetery of the Lusatian culture in Dąbrowa, site 2, Wieluń County, an urnless cremation burial was discovered (Object 24), which is dated generally to the Hallstatt period. Burnt human bones were scattered throughout the object, which form a relatively compact cluster in the central part of the grave. Ceramic fragments from various vessels were found in the fill of the grave cavity. Metal objects, both bronze and iron, showed signs of being smoldered in the fire. This fosters the conclusion that they had been burned with the deceased on the pyre and placed in the grave together with burned human bones. At the same time, such a state of preservation of the grave offerings made it impossible to specify the dating of the tomb. Within the grave, a fragment of an iron plate was found, on which mineralized remains of fabric were preserved. Technological analysis showed that it was a half-basket weave fabric of a very high quality, made of thin z-single yarn (0.25–0.30 mm and 0.40–0.50 mm) and of surprisingly high thread count (32–34/12–14 threads per cm). In the basin of the Vistula and the Oder rivers, none of the fabrics discovered so far had similar parameters. On the other hand, textiles from the main canters of weaving production at the time, such as the Hallstatt culture and the Scandinavian area, showed similar characteristics, but only in rare examples. This highlights the importance of the weaving product presented here. It is difficult to answer conclusively whether we are dealing in this case with an imported object or one produced in a local weaving workshop, although much points to the first option. Given the context of the find and the accompanying offerings, it can be assumed that the fabric belonged to a person of a higher social status. The local community’s custom of accumulating and then depositing imported items of quality into graves also makes such a hypothesis plausible. On the other hand, certain foreign patterns were adopted and creatively developed in local craft workshops of the Lusatian Culture. Most likely, involvement in long-distance trade routes allowed this society to achieve a high position in the aforementioned exchange. It was important to settle and control areas located in the basin of the upper Warta and Prosna rivers, i. e., on the southern borderlands of central Poland. It was here, through Silesia, that foreign patterns flowed in, which were then transmitted further along the Warta river basin in the northern direction, towards the “Lusatian interior”. The communication route created for the Baltic amber trade played an important role here. Finds of this raw material were recorded both in the Hallstatt circle, in areas of northern Italy, and present-day Slovenia.

It was established that in exploring the spiritual culture of ancient societies, an important place is occupied by the study of funeral rites, in particular special funeral ceramics, its functions in funeral rituals, and its symbolic meaning. It was found that in the ceramic complexes of several cultures of the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age in Europe (Urnfield culture of the North Alpine and Middle Danube regions, Lusatian culture, culture of the Hallstatt period of the Northeast Alpine and Middle Danube regions, Villanova, Golasecca and Este in the Central and North Apennines, Bilozerska culture of the North-Western Black Sea region, Ulvivok-Rovantsi group) there was such a form of tableware as a cup (bowl, vase) on a leg. Cups on legs were discovered mainly in cemeteries, inhumation, and cremation burials. Taking into account the context in the burial objects and their unusual shape, they are interpreted as a special kind of funerary ceramics. It was observed that in many cases the bowls were placed in the burials of little girls or young women, less often – in the pair burials of an adult person and a child or a man and a woman. This feature was found in almost all the cultures mentioned in this work, which existed from the XII century BC till VII century BC, and therefore we can talk about stable religious traditions and social rules common to these cultures, which existed in a large area of Europe for about six centuries. It was established that the bowls in burials served as symbolic sacrificial gifts, connected possibly with the cult of «sacred fire». The sacral meaning of such a shape of a vessel as a cup on a leg is also traced in later times, for example, a chalice, which is the main attribute of the Eucharistic liturgical Christian service and a symbol of the Eucharist – an acceptance of the divine sacrifice. It is noted that protrusions on the rims of cups, which occur most often in the burials of women, may be related to astronomy. It is assumed that the cup from the Rovantsi cemetery, where the protrusions on the rims schematically, but quite accurately reflect the directions of the sunrise and sunset during the summer and winter solstices and the autumn equinox and the north-south direction, could serve as a primitive miniature observatory and be the subject of the paraphernalia of the solar cult. Key words: Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age, funeral vessels, cup on the leg, sacrificial gift, Rovantsi cemetery.

The cemetery in Gogolin is one of the flat cemeteries with a biritual funeral rite typical for the Upper Silesian-Lesser Poland group of the Lusatian culture. In the north and south-west range of this group, the Częstochowa-Gliwice subgroup was distinguished. In the classic stage of this subgroup, i.e. at the end of the Bronze Age and at the beginning of the Hallstatt period, a distinctive feature of the funeral rites is the prevalence of cemeteries with more inhumations than cremations. The necropolis in Gogolin is the most southwestern site of this subgroup. Inhumation burials dominate at most biritual cemeteries, although there are also some where cremation graves prevail. It is worth emphasising the peripheral location of the cemetery within the Upper Silesian-Lesser Poland group, because the communities from the western bank of Oder river, representing the Silesian group of the Lusatian culture, practiced cremation burial rite exclusively. At the analysed necropolis 71 graves were examined, including 38 inhumation and 29 cremation burials. The cremation graves varied from simple, small pits with concentrations of bones suggesting their original placement in an organic container, to graves imitating inhumation burials in respect of the grave pit size and furnishing. In three cases, the type of burial rite could not be established because the burials were almost completely destroyed.

Антропологические останки из захоронений по обряду кремации с территории могильника Пинчуга-6 (предварительные итоги)

Excavations from 2009–2010 in Armadale, Isle of Skye, Scotland, encountered a burial site with seven cists, pits containing cremation burials, a kerbed cairn, and a small stone and post circle. Twenty-one radiocarbon measurements were taken from single entities of wood charcoal, carbonized residue on pottery, and cremated human bone. A site chronology has been constructed using a Bayesian approach that considers the stratigraphic contexts and feature formation processes. The site was host to thousands of years of discontinuous human activity beginning with little understood Mesolithic and Neolithic components. Modeling estimates that mortuary activity at the site began in the Early Bronze Age in2220–1985 cal BC(95% probability) and to have ended in1880–1660 cal BC(95% probability). The span of activity during this burial component is estimated to be140–520 yr(95% probability) in the primary Bayesian model and50–470 yr(95% probability) in an alternative model. These modeling results demonstrate that human burial at Armadale was an infrequent event and further suggest that the memory of the location and social role of Armadale as a burial ground persisted throughout much of the Early Bronze Age.

Armaments from the Lower Oder Basin in the Roman Period on the Basis of Burial Grounds at Czelin (ex-Zellin), Stare Łysogórki (ex-Alt Lietzegöricke), and Żelisławiec (ex-Sinzlow), distr. GryfinoInvestigations of the burial ground at Czelin, Gryfino district, site 23 (AZP 45-04/5) yielded 191 features dated from phase A3 of the Late Pre-Roman Period to subphase C1b of the Roman Period. Cremation burials are in the majority. Only one inhumation grave was discovered. The collection of the recovered weapons includes nine swords (five single-edged, i.a. types Biborski B/1, D/1, and D/2), four double-edged (i.a. types Vimose-Illerup, Lachmirowice-Apa, and agladius), 29 heads of shafted weapons (i.a. groups Kaczanowski I, II, III, VIII, X, XVII), 19 shield-bosses (Jahn 5, Jahn 6, Jahn 7, and Jahn 8), 14 shield grips (Jahn 6, Jahn 7, and Jahn 9), four spurs, and two arrowheads. The most interesting weapons are the above-mentioned Vimose-Illerup sword, Pompeii gladius, and decorated spearheads. The typological identifications of the weapons refer to the Przeworsk culture ones, and the pottery vessels correspond with atradition from the Elbe River area. Scandinavian influence is also noticeable in the weapons (aHval-type head, an Illerup Ådal-type sword) and tools, such as needle-shaped strike-a-lights. This is typical situation in the lower Oder River region.

The article is dedicated to the analysis of the issues of periodization and local variants of the Yenisei Kyrgyz culture in the Southern Siberia. The concept of the «long ninth century» is used in relation to the history and archaeology of the medieval population that occupied the Usinsk Basin in the Western Sayan Mountains after 840 AD. It is understood as the integrity of the key elements of the Usinsk Kyrgyz culture, its chronological continuity and inertia, which allowed maintaining the evolutionary nature of development for several centuries. By now, about 16 medieval archaeological sites have been excavated – campsites and burial and memorial complexes containing burials made according to the rite of cremation on the side. The topography of the large burial grounds of Mutnaya I and Eidiktyr-kyr has the same features as the monuments of the first variant of the Kyrgyz culture, located in Central Tuva and the Yenisei Canyon. Metal sets of horseman's and riding horse's equipment from cremation burials also form a single object complex. Only the ornamentation of ceramic vessels is unique. A hypothesis about the entry of the Usinsk Kyrgyz into one of the «six divisions» within the Kem-Kemdzhiut region and their creation of an independent social and political formation – the «Us region», known from written sources, has been put forward. The upper date for the end of the «long ninth century» – 1293 – is determined by the resettlement of the Usinsk Kyrgyz by the Mongols outside the Sayan-Altai Plateau.