Homines, Funera, Astra 3-4: The Multiple Faces of Death and Burial

Abstract

The third volume of the <i>Homines, Funera, Astra</i> series gathers works presented at the third and fourth editions of the International Symposium on Funerary Archaeology: Death and Fire in Ancient Times (15–18 September 2013), and Time and Cause of Death from Prehistory to the Middle Ages (21–23 September 2014), both held at the ‘1 Decembrie 1918’ University in Alba Iulia, Romania. The contributions focus on two central topics regarding past funerary behaviour in Central and South-Eastern Europe: cremation, and cause and time of death. As in previous volumes, interdisciplinarity is a key feature. The study of archaeological contexts through 14C dating and Bayesian modelling, osteological studies including palaeopathologies, and epigraphic and numismatic evidence were all taken into account to establish the various causes of death and/or the moment these tragic events took place. The present volume includes 13 studies, six of which are dedicated to prehistoric funerary practices – dating to the Neolithic and Eneolithic periods (four studies), Bronze Age (one study) and Iron Age (one study). Three more papers are focused on the Roman Age, while the volume is completed with four papers on the Medieval period, overall providing a wealth of new information on funerary behaviour in this part of Europe.