Absolute Chronology Research Articles

Stratigraphy of Tumulus 6 in Shtoj and the appearance of the violin idols in burial complexes of the south Adriatic region

The paper presents the violin-shaped idols from Shtoj, Rakića Kuće and Apollonia that date to the beginning of the Bronze Age in the area of the southern Adria. A relationship is indicated between the appearance of these idols and the abstract-schematic forms of the Early Cycladic period. Further, the question of contacts between the study area and the Pit-grave culture of the steppe region, with its local derivatives in the eastern Balkans, is discussed. To this end, the emergence of the pit graves under tumuli in the area of the Adria, in which the idols were discovered, is also considered. The links with the Aegean and the eastern Balkans, including several reliable radiocarbon dates that fit within the local framework, offer for the first time the possibility of placing the beginning of the Adriatic Bronze Age in the context of cultural advancements of the first centuries of the 3rd millennium BC. At the same time, it represents the first age determination for this period based on definite indicators of the absolute chronology. The emergence of tumuli and violin idols, as well as rich “princely” graves is an explicit reflection of the important cultural innovations that mark the final break with the former Neolithic traditions. That makes the southern Adriatic, above all the coastal areas of present-day Montenegro and northern Albania, the initial centre of the development of the Adriatic Bronze Age.

Imperishable light of the Amber from the Japod necropolises in the Una valley

Imperishable light of the Amber from the Japod necropolises in the Una valley

The Maikop culture in the Northern Caucasus

The Maikop culture in the Northern Caucasus

Znaczenie kalibracji radiowęglowej skali czasu dla chronostratygrafii późnego vistulianu

Znaczenie kalibracji radiowęglowej skali czasu dla chronostratygrafii późnego vistulianu

Mound 28 from the Paulje necropolis in Brezjak. A contribution to the absolute chronology of the Late Bronze Age in Serbia

The paper brings the results of archaeological excavations of Mound 28 at the Paulje necropolis, conducted in the autumn of 2019, along with the excavations of two adjacent mounds. All of the aforementioned mounds were partially damaged and eroded through decades of ploughing. Consequently, remains of a Late Bronze Age burial were recorded solely in Mound 28. According to the grave inventory comprised of bronze jewellery and analogies from concurrent necropolises, it is assumed that the burial belongs to a female individual (?). Besides the extraordinary examples of bronze jewellery, such as pins, an arm ring, bracelets, crescent-shaped pendants, torques, and remains of amber jewellery, the organic substructure below the fully cast arm ring has been successfully dated. According to the absolute dating, the jewellery is attributed to the 14th century BC, and the inventory of the grave completely corresponds to the previously dated features from the Paulje necropolis. Therefore, certain forms of bronze jewellery were provided with a more precise chronological position based on the absolute dates. The burial is attributed to the Brezjak culture.

Extraordinary Natural Phenomena in Old Rus’ and Czech Historiography of the 12th—13th Century in a Comparative Perspective

The study aims to determine the way in which the extraordinary natural phenomena, including exceptional astronomical or meteorological ones, natural disasters, etc., are reflected in East Slavic and Czech historiography of the 12th and 13th centuries. The analysis of such reports shows that there are fundamental differences in the frequency of these reports and their interpretation depending on the local tradition and the historical genre. While minimal attention is paid to these topics in historical records of Hungary and Poland, historiographical works of medieval Bohemia not only capture a wealth of data on astronomical and meteorological phenomena, but also reflect a diverse range of attitudes to the meaning of recording extraordinary natural phenomena. The way of reflection of these phenomena was given both by the overall intention of the work and by the individual interest of a particular author. The oldest historiographical texts of Old Rus’ shared a strong belief that extraordinary astronomical and meteorological phenomena represent one of the codes by which God communicates with mankind. The recording of such phenomena therefore served as a tool to understand the moral qualities of the human race, the meaning of history, the relationship between man and God. In East Slavic and Czech medieval historiography, the recording of extraordinary natural phenomena strengthens the chronological structure of interpretation, as both of these historiographical traditions emphasize absolute chronology as the basic principle of narration. While in Czech historiography the records of exceptional natural phenomena indicate the relationship between the present and the past, Old Russian chronicles understand extraordinary natural phenomena as a kind of visible, illustrative link between the past, present and future.

Unearthing a Middle Nile crossroads – exploring the prehistory of the Letti Basin (Sudan)

New research on early Holocene settlement and burial practices in the Southern Dongola Reach focused on the key areas of the Letti region, Argi (adjacent to Affad) and the outlets of Wadi el-Melik and Wadi Howar. The project follows up on ten years of investigations by the PalaeoAffad Project in the Affad region (Northern Province, Sudan). Unique data collected in the course of the first season of fieldwork reopens the debate on cattle domestication and early pottery production in the region (previously classified as the Tergis Group). The new finds, concerning Neolithic and Kerma settlement in the region, enables changes in the currently accepted absolute chronology of prehistoric settlement in the area.

Simeon of Beth Arsham: Difficulties of Confessional Identification in the Christian Orient

Simeon of Beth Arsham, a priest and later bishop of the Church of the East, the main Christian community in Sasanian Iran, was one of the most prominent figures in the Syriac tradition. Simeon’s activity began at the turn of the 5th — 6th centuries, when this community was under the strong influence of the extreme dyophysite Christology of the Antiochene school, which prepared the East Syrian tradition for the subsequent reception of Nestorianism. Being a supporter of Christological views diametrically opposed to Antiochene theology, Simeon actively fought against the “Nestorianization” of his native tradition. On the basis of sources dedicated to the “Persian debater”, as well as Simeon’s own writings, the author clarifies the relative and absolute chronology of his life, the confessional status of Simeon’s doctrine within Nicene Christianity, and also considers his struggle with the “Nestorians” not as a set of disparate measures, but as a system of strategies aimed to narrow down the influence of extreme Antiochene theology in Iran.

Helynévtörténeti adalékok Bihar vármegye korai településtörténetéhez

Insights from Historical Toponomastics into the Early Settlement History of Bihar County The historical Bihar County was one of the largest administrative units of the Kingdom of Hungary that played a key role in the life of the eastern region from the beginning. The conclusions of historians regarding the settlement date of its territory are only theoretical suppositions based on the projection of subsequent natural circumstances and ethnic features to an earlier time and they lack real historical or archeological evidence. With the help of settlement name data, linguists may draw more certain conclusions regarding the chronological features of the settlement of the county. Based on the toponyms preserved in sources, we may examine the productive period of particular settlement name types. Although the documentation of names is contingent, this affects all names and thus all name types the same way. Therefore, even if the absolute chronology (date of creation) of particular names is not revealed, the relative chronology of different name types (i.e., relative to one another) may be well indicated also by the first name occurrences of the settlements in the case of a larger quantity of names. The chronological curve of a name type may undoubtedly indicate the changes in the frequency of name specimen belonging to the type only with a temporal delay (and what is more, we cannot even explore the parameters of the delay), however, we have no other tool with which we could examine and model the internal chrono¬logical movements of the name system. The first part of the paper introduces how this method works using the type of settlement names with an ethnonym origin. Geographically and in the daily life of people living in Bihar County, the Sebes-Körös river had an outstanding role. The second part of the paper analyzes the settlement name corpus of the river valley from the Old Hungarian Era. In consideration of the etymological, spatial and chronological attributes of the de¬nominations and using the toolbox of toponym reconstruction, it reveals the varied features of the name patterns of the areas along the Sebes-Körös. The basis of the study is provided by four areas distinguished based on the natural and topog¬raphical features along the river: the lower and upper sections of the Sebes-Körös and the right, i.e., northern, and left, i.e., southern regions of the two sections. The paper introduces the chronological distribution of settlement names in the region. The region-specific differences identified in the toponymic system of particular regions are referred to as name patterns. Of the numerous attributes defining the differing name patterns of the four regions along the Sebes-Körös, the paper introduces the differences in the structural features of the settlement names as linguistic attributes primarily defining the names. The results of the onomatosystematical studies regarding the toponymic system of the Sebes-Körös region provide the following three important conclusions regarding settlement history: 1. Hungarians settling in the area could encounter people speaking another language (Slavic) only in traces. Other foreign people did not settle here in larger numbers in later times either. 2. The characteristics of the name system indicate that in the lower section (despite its marshy, swampy features) settlements of Hungarians could be created earlier. 3. The growth rate and onomatosystematical features of the name corpus indicate that there could also be a second, stronger village foundation wave in the settlement process of the area to the south of the river.

Absolute chronology of settlement remains of the Globular Amphora culture in the Sandomierz Upland (Site Gałkowice-Ocin, Mierzanowice, Złota–Nad Wawrem)

Under the project financed by the National Science Centre no 2014/12/S/HS3/00355 the first series of chronometric data has been obtained which forms the basis for establishing the chronology of the Globular Amphora culture in the Sandomierz Upland. It has produced altogether 42 absolute age determinations setting a chronological bracket of the Sandomierz-Opatów subgroup, of which 19 new radiocarbon determinations came from five settlements of this culture. Some are sites known in the literature, while others have been discovered in recent years. In general, the data from the settlements are compatible with the series obtained from graves, but a few dates and materials indicate the possibility of GAC surviving until the second half of the 3rd millennium BC.

Radiocarbon dating of the archival funeral complexes of the Globular Amphora culture on the Sandomierz Upland: Gajowizna, Malice, Mierzanowice and Sandomierz sites

The article presents results of a special project aimed at re-examining the grave associated with the Globular Amphora culture in the Sandomierz Upland. The main purpose was to obtain data to establish the absolute chronology of the graves. In total, the reported project produced 25 absolute age determinations of samples from 17 sepulchral features. Some determinations are second attempts to date the same sample in an effort to make calibrated BC ranges more accurate. The samples selected for analyses were taken from osteological material coming from human graves and associated animal deposits (twelve and five features, respectively). The graves discussed in the paper come from Gajowizna (known as Złota-Gajowizna), Sandomierz-Kruków, Mierzanowice, site 1, and Malice, site 1. The determinations fit into the range from 4225 ± 25 BP to 4040 ± 35 BP, with the highest concentration occurring in the period of 4200 ± 40–4100 ± 35 BP (18 determinations), or in calibrated years 2901–2577 BC (1 sigma) or 2901–2498 BC (2 sigma). The highest calibration probability, amounting in the case of all the dates to almost 90%, is cumulated in the range of 2870–2600 BC (2 sigma). Summing up, the new age determinations of samples from cemeteries on the Sandomierz Upland are consistent with the knowledge on the chronology of the Globular Amphora culture - Małopolska group gathered by using the traditional typological method and referring to dates for neighbouring regions. The time bracket defined by the new series of radiocarbon dates from the Sandomierz Upland begs important questions about relationships of the Globular Amphora culture communities with other Late and Final Neolithic groups that lived there in the first half of the 3rd millennium BC related to the Złota and Corded Ware cultures.

Luminescence dating estimates for the coastal MSA sequence of Hoedjiespunt 1 (South Africa)

Coastal adaptations have been considered to play an important role in the bio-cultural evolution of early Homo sapiens and their dispersal out of Africa. In line with this assessment, recent years have seen increasing evidence for the exploitation of seafood from the Middle Stone Age (MSA) of northern and southern Africa. Yet, chronological control constitutes a key problem for better understanding the evolution of these behaviours, with little well-dated evidence for their origins in the late Middle Pleistocene and only few sites dated to before 100 ka. The shellfish-bearing MSA site of Hoedjiespunt 1 (HDP1), located in the Western Cape in South Africa, is one of the localities tentatively dated to the early Late Pleistocene. HDP1 has yielded a 1.5 m stratigraphic sequence with three phases of occupation, each containing abundant lithic artefacts, shellfish, terrestrial fauna, ostrich eggshell and pieces of ground ochre. Analyses of the cultural and zooarchaeological remains of HDP1 have provided evidence for systematic gathering of a narrow range of marine resources coupled with stable adaptations to coastal landscapes. Here we present the first complete absolute chronology for the site and its entire stratigraphic sequence by applying luminescence dating (OSL) to quartz grains extracted from the carbonate-rich sediments. The results show repeated human occupations during Marine Isotope Stages 5e-5c (∼130–100 ka) at HDP1, suggesting successful integration of coastal ecosystems into the regular repertoire of behavioural adaptations by early modern humans by no later than the beginning of the Late Pleistocene.

Mid and Late Upper Palaeolithic in the Adriatic Basin: Chronology, transitions and human adaptations to a changing landscape

This paper presents the first attempt to establish a Mid and Late Upper Palaeolithic absolute chronology of the Adriatic basin, including both eastern and western Adriatic coasts and their hinterlands. The proposed chronology for Gravettian, Early and Late Epigravettian techno-complexes is based on statistical analysis of 278 14C dates from 66 archaeological sites. Our analyses are directed towards 1) identifying whether major climatic episodes and corresponding transformations in the local environments are correlated with long-term demographic trends, and potential changes in spatial patterning of human occupation, and 2) identifying robust absolute chronological estimates of techno-complexes to establish the timing of their succession, including their possible overlaps. Results show that the Gravettian appears in the Adriatic area at c. 35-34ka cal BP and ends at c. 26-25ka cal BP. Early and Late Epigravettian timespans are between c. 26-25ka and 18.1–17.6ka cal BP and 17.6–17.1 ka and 11.9–11.6 ka cal BP respectively. The Early-Late Epigravettian transition in the Great Adriatic-Po Region coincides with the transition between GS-2.2 and GI-2.1 and is also associated with apparent transformations in settlement pattern as new biotopes appear to be occupied, particularly in the mountainous areas such as Alps and Dinaric Alps. According to our results, the timespan of Early Epigravettian covers the Badegoulian, Solutrean and even Lower Magdalenian periods in western Europe, hence challenging the earlier interpretations on Early Epigravettian and Solutrean contemporaneity. This suggests an independent cultural evolutionary path for territories that previously (during the Gravettian) showed a high degree of technological affinity.

Dating the Ladies

The cemetery in Nižná Myšľa is one of the most important funerary sites in Early Bronze Age Central Europe. Many years of excavations led to the discovery of nearly 800 graves associated with the Otomani-Füzesabony culture. The presented paper is an attempt to reconstruct the spatial development of the cemetery, based on statistical analyses of grave goods and using the latest findings concerning the absolute chronology of selected categories of finds. A significant role in the analyses was played by female burials, in which numerous objects were discovered, which were evidence of the relatively high status of women in the local community. This provided the authors with a basis for discussion with regard to the dominant male-oriented narratives concerning the communities of fortified settlements.

On the Emergence of the Short Form in Hebrew Names

Abstract This study investigates the emergence of the ending in Hebrew personal names. All available epigraphic evidence is first gathered and then assessed. This source of information is essential to understand when the ending came into use and gained currency and to locate this phenomenon in an absolute chronology. The appearance of the short form receives here a socio-historical explanation. The author believes, in fact, that the shift from the ending to its shorter version should be read against the backdrop of the Assyrian domination during the second half of the eighth century and the seventh century BCE. More specifically, the deportation into the land of Israel of foreign groups of people contributed to the assimilation of the theophoric element in Hebrew names to the hypocoristic ending -īya, attested all over the Ancient Near East.

Challenges and Shortcomings of “Settlement Patterns Analysis” Studies in the Archaeology of Iran: A Critical Evaluation and Some Suggestions

The purpose of the settlement pattern analysis in archaeology is to study the relationship between settlements and analyze the impact of environmental and cultural variables on the distribution, displacement, and evolution of the settlements and population changes over time. These studies have been developed by using combined and interdisciplinary methods. But there are some criticisms regarding the published research works on the mentioned subject in Iran, including inaccuracy of the field survey methods, focusing only on relative chronology, total ignoring of interdisciplinary sciences, satellite and aerial photos, remote sensing methods, the size of sites, taphonomic processes, statistical analysis methods, theories and methods of spatial analysis, and economic factors. Accordingly, it is suggested here that the data collection and analysis could be done by using the combined method that considers the following items: the study of historical texts, full coverage survey of the region, and attention to off-site archaeology especially in Neolithic studies, regarding absolute chronologies before going through the settlement pattern analysis, analysis of animal and plant remains, soil analysis and geophysical methods, statistical analysis, use of models and analysis of economic relations between settlements, and finally, the spatial analysis of settlements based on up-to-date theories and models.

New chronology and extended palaeoenvironmental data to the 1975 loess profile of Madaras brickyard, South Hungary

ABSTRACTThe 10 m thick Madaras loess–palaeosol profile is one of the Hungarian outcrops that yielded Upper Palaeolithic artefacts in 1966. To clarify the nature of the deposits and establish a reliable litho‐ and chronostratigraphy, a profile was opened and sampled at 25 cm intervals on the northern side of the brickyard in 1975. Analyses focused on grain size, carbonate content and the mollusc fauna. The chronology was based on the mollusc composition and a single date from the archaeological layer at the depth of ca 7 m below the surface. The 1975 profile was destroyed by mining but the reposited samples allowed an extended analysis of this important Marine Isotope Stage 2 record to which archaeological features were directly assigned. A new absolute chronology was built based on 11 14C dates. Environmental magnetic, geochemical and palaeoecological investigations allowed a refined view of site evolution with reliable chronology for the Last Glacial Maximum. Our results corroborated those of previous investigations done on other coeval loess–palaeosol sequences of the Southern Carpathian Basin. This also allowed for a temporal correlation to another local record with the published high‐resolution chronology of the same brickyard and enabled modelling of local‐scale heterogeneity of the environment in the long run.

Dating martian mafic crust; microstructurally constrained baddeleyite geochronology of enriched shergottites Northwest Africa (NWA) 7257, NWA 8679 and Zagami

Baddeleyite (monoclinic; m-ZrO2) is a widespread accessory phase within shergottites. However, the effects of shock loading on baddeleyite U-Pb isotopic systematics, and therefore its reliability as a geochronometer within highly shocked lithologies, are less well constrained. To investigate the effects of shock metamorphism on baddeleyite U-Pb chronology, we have conducted high-resolution microstructural analysis and in-situ U-Pb isotopic measurements for baddeleyite within enriched basaltic shergottites Northwest Africa (NWA) 7257, NWA 8679 and Zagami. Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) analyses of baddeleyite reveal significant microstructural heterogeneity within individual thin sections, recording widespread partial to complete reversion from high-pressure (≥3.3 GPa) orthorhombic zirconia polymorphs. We define a continuum of baddeleyite microstructures into four groupings on the basis of microstructural characteristics, including rare grains that retain magmatic twin relationships. Uncorrected U-Pb isotopic measurements form Tera-Wasserburg discordia, yielding new 238U-206Pb discordia ages of 195 ± 15 Ma (n = 17) for NWA 7257 and 220 ± 23 Ma (n = 10) for NWA 8679. Critically, there is no resolvable link between baddeleyite microstructure and U-Pb isotope systematics, indicating negligible open-system behaviour of U-Pb during zirconia phase transformations. Instead, we confirm that high post-shock temperatures exert the greatest control on Pb mobility within shocked baddeleyite; in the absence of high post-shock temperatures, baddeleyite yield robust U-Pb isotope systematics and date the age of magmatic crystallization. Low bulk post-shock temperatures recorded within Zagami (≤220 °C), and suggested within NWA 7257 and NWA 8679 by baddeleyite microstructure and other petrological constraints, confirm that the previously derived baddeleyite age of Zagami records magmatic crystallization, and provide greater age diversity to 225 Ma to 160 Ma enriched shergottites. While our data yield no resolvable link between microstructure and U-Pb isotopic composition, we strongly recommend that microstructural analyses should represent an essential step of baddeleyite U-Pb chronology within planetary (e.g., martian, lunar, asteroidal) and shocked terrestrial samples, allowing full contextualisation prior to destructive isotopic techniques. Microstructurally constrained in-situ U-Pb analyses of baddeleyite thus define new opportunities for the absolute chronology of martian meteorites and, more broadly, shocked planetary materials.

Culture transformation in Targowisko microregion. Trends of changes inside Danubian farmers

The aim of this article is to deepen the discussion on the nature and mechanisms of culture change based on the analysis of newly acquired materials from the Targowisko settlement region. Three groups of materials were acquired (from narrow time horizons) related to the single-phase relics of Linienbandkeramik (Brzezie, site 40 and Targowisko, site 16) and Malice culture houses (Targowisko, site 14-15). The absolute chronology of the beginning of the late phase (III) LBK was established to be 5100-5000 BC, and the classic phase (Ib) of MC was dated to 4650-4550 BC. Selected threads of the cultural tradition (in the field of ceramic-making technology and ornamentation and flint-blade production technology) were passed on among families living in individual houses. Settlement analysis showed the relative instability of microregions, the increased mobility of small groups of people, and risky colonization attempts in Targowisko region. No evidence of direct, contemporaneous contact between the LBK and MC populations was found.
 Key words: LBK, Malice culture, early Neolithic, culture change, Targowisko region

The Epigravettian chronology and the human population of eastern Central Europe during MIS2

The goal of this paper is to refine the relative and absolute chronology of Epigravettian culture (26.5–15.0 ka) in eastern Central Europe (ECE) and clarify its relation to the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and subsequent climatic changes. Epigravettian sites were sorted into three chronological clusters: initial LGM (ILGM) (26.5–24.0 ka), local LGM (LLGM) (24.0–20.0 ka), and post-LGM (PLGM) (20.0–14.7 ka). We obtained new radiocarbon dates from previously dated and undated sites, then analysed the lithic tool typology and faunal data to seek correlations between age and archaeological features.The lithic typology study did not find differences between ILGM and LLGM sites, but the tool type variance between LLGM and PLGM was significant, applicable for relative chronology. ILGM and LLGM lithic assemblages were characterized by domestic tool dominance and the frequent use of flake tools. PLGM assemblages were correlated with armature dominance and blade/let tools. Among the armatures, backed point variants characterized the PLGM sites compared to the ILGM and LLGM. The sole ILGM lithic armature was the retouched blade/let point. The LLGM also possessed this type and often included backed blade/lets.ILGM faunal data, although few, implied the hunting of mammoth and reindeer. The LLGM data represented recurring hunting of reindeer and horse, and PLGM data indicated the hunting of horse, reindeer, and mammoth.Our results suggested that the territory of Poland was deserted by humans in the LLGM. Moravia and Lower Austria was inhabited until the first half of the LLGM, while the Carpathian Basin was all along the ILGM. The preference for the Carpathian Basin could have been the milder climate, the abundance of fauna, and permanent access to tree vegetation. After the LGM the glacial flora and fauna gradually disappeared, leading to a reduced human presence in southern ECE. Thus, the disappearance of the Epigravettian culture and Pleistocene hunter-gatherer occupations are linked to the amelioration of climate that resulted in the disappearance of the Pleistocene environment.