Funeral rites on the southern boundary of the Komarov culture

Abstract

This paper is the result of Polish and Romanian cooperative investigations of the funeral rites in the Bronze Age in Carpathian area. The purpose of this paper is to present the results of archaeological investigations from the Northern Moldavia where cemeteries of Komarov culture have been excavated since the 19th century. All data were compared with the results from Komarov sites in the Upper Dnister area of the Ukraine that date to the fi rst half of the 2nd millennium BC. The problem of how the Komarov culture has been classifi ed is investigated, specifi cally how the classifi cation of material culture and funeral practices have changed over time. The history of research in the northern Moldavia area is presented, followed by a description of Komarov cemeteries located in this area at the cemetery, grave, burial, and grave inventory levels. The graves and funeral rites in northern Moldavia and those in the Upper Dnister area and neighbouring regions are then comparatively analyzed.