Preliminary Results of Stable Isotope Analysis on Bone Collagen Samples from the Avar-Age Cemetery Privlaka-Gole Njive

Abstract

The material culture of the Avar era is considered to be one of the best documented Early Medieval material cultures of central Europe. The nomadic Avar community settled in the Carpathian basin at the end of the 6th century and remained as rulers until the Frankish wars at the end of the 8th century. Unlike the neighbouring communities, there is no evidence of the Avars being Christianised, and their relatively conservative burial customs, in which great importance is attached to the costumes of the deceased, have enabled archaeologists not only to create a precise typological-chronological framework but also to analyse the different ways of life of the Khaganate population. Among other things, stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses have recently been undertaken to establish and better understand the dietary practices of certain communities. This represents an important factor in social organisation. The authors of this paper conducted a stable isotope analysis of 22 selected bone samples from the Privlaka-Gole njive site, to this date the largest Avar-age inhumation cemetery in Croatia with 231 excavated graves. Overall, it seems that there are no major differences in diet regarding sex, age and social stratification, although females do exhibit slightly lower δ15N values than males, while non-adults and older adults exhibit slightly higher δ15N values than younger adults.