Bronze Age Burials Research Articles

Dödens former och material

This text concerns recent excavations and interpretations about the large Early Iron Age burial ground Jordbro in Österhaninge, south of Stockholm. During three years between 2017-19, six low cairns, eleven small deposits of cremated bone, ceramics and bronze fragments without superstructure, and sixteen trial trenches were excavated in the previously untouched north-eastern part of the burial site. The small deposits were found close to the rock in the northernmost part of the burial ground and comprise a hitherto unknown phase of Bronze Age burials at Jordbro. The low cairns also provided novel information about the Early Iron Age view of death and burial. For example, the consistent asymmetry between the burial pit and the superstructures indicates a prolonged burial ritual where the latter was erected some time after the inhumation of the bodies. Moreover, the careful selection and use of stone and different minerals in the burials is interpreted as an intentionally compiled assemblage arranged for generative purposes rather than only to constitute memorials of dead individuals.

Isotopic and provenance analysis of Neolithic and Bronze Age shell disc beads from Ban Non Wat, north‐east Thailand

Small, disc-shaped shell beads are recorded as mortuary offerings in many Neolithic and Bronze Age burials in Southeast Asia. Yet the provenance of these artefacts is often obscure, as production processes involve the removal of diagnostic morphological features, negating taxonomic classification. Here, the authors report on the combined isotopic and morphological analysis of a subset of shell beads from the site of Ban Non Wat in north-east Thailand. In addition to identifying freshwater sources for nearly all the beads, the results suggest the presence of multiple shell production centres—each with access to distinct aqueous environments—and widespread exchange in the Bronze Age.

МАТЕРИАЛЫ ЭПОХИ БРОНЗЫ МУРАКАЕВСКОГО МОГИЛЬНИКА В ЮЖНОМ ЗАУРАЛЬЕ

The article publishes the material from the Late Bronze Age burials of the Murakaevsky burial ground explored by the expedition of N. A. Mazhitov in 1966. The burial ground is located on the outskirts of the Murakaevo village in the Abzelilovsky District. On the upper plowable terrace of the Maly Kizil River 12 mounds were excavated, most of them provided materials of the Early Middle Ages, Early Iron Age burials were discovered in three mounds. These materials received full coverage in scientific literature. In Mounds 3 and 5 three burials of the Bronze Age were discovered, they were not published in full. In a condensed form, these materials came to light in two works in which Burial 3 of the Mound 3 was attributed to Timber-Frame Culture and Burials 2 and 5 were identified as “Cherkaskul” with the accompanying Timber¬Frame. The purpose of the article is the complete publication of the materials from the Bronze Age burials of the Murakaevsky burial ground and clarification of their cultural attribution. In each of the three Bronze Age burials of the Murakaevsky burial ground, the burial rite was distinguished by its originality. The burial rite traced in Burial 3 of Mound 3, where the skeleton was places crouched on the right side, head to the east, corresponds to the Cherkaskul and Mezhovo traditions, traced to burial grounds located on both sides of the Ural Mountains. However, the fragment of the upper part of the vessel found beside the buried is alien to the Cherkaskul tradition. Its form and ornament find correspondence in the ceramic traditions of the Final Bronze of the Southern Trans-Urals (Pic. 3). Its ornament finds correspondence in the ceramic tradition of the Barkhatov Culture. In the Barkhatov Culture, only few burials are known and the eastern orientation of the buried is not typical for them. Nevertheless, we can conclude that the burial belongs to the final stage of the Bronze Age of the Trans-Urals and its materials reflect the multi-component nature of the formation of the Final Bronze Age culture of this territory. The paired burial of children from Burial 1 of Mound 5, in which the position of the buried is reconstructed as facing each other, was accompanied by Cherkaskul ceramics (Pic. 5, 1–7). Paired heterosexual burials are serially represented in the Alakul and Timber-Frame necropolises of the Southern Urals. A needle under the scull of the skeleton lying on the right side may indicate that it belongs to a girl. This burial indicates that the tradition of paired burials is not alien to the Cherkaskul Culture. In Burial 2 without grave goods of Mound 5, a person was buried on his left side in a strongly crouched position with his head oriented to the south-west (Pic. 5, 8). It is rather difficult to attribute its cultural affiliation, but most likely, it may belong to the Cherkaskul Culture, like the paired burials from this mound. The time of the Cherkaskul complexes of the Southern Urals is determined today within the third quarter of the 2nd millennium B.C. The Barkhatov antiquities date back to the last third of the 2ndmillennium B.C.

Water and the Afterlife – Water-related Resources in the Burial Construction of the Nordic Bronze Age

The waterscape, including the sea, rivers, and lakes, was highly important to communities living during the Nordic Early Bronze Age (1800/1700–1100 bc). Waterways acted as highways that facilitated journeys, trade, and warfare, enabling maritime warriors and others to distinguish themselves. This is reflected in the maritime location of rock art and important Early Bronze Age burials, which have been used to reconstruct the Nordic Bronze Age cosmology. This centres on the journey of the sun across the sky during the day, and the underworld during night. This article analyses the use of water-related resources, such as seaweed, petrified organics, beach pebbles, and molluscs, in the construction of burials, which has received little attention despite renewed interest in the maritime seascape. The data demonstrate that local communities used different resources, indicating that a common belief system was realised in local differences. These marine materials were collected from the beach, which can be conceptualised as the liminal zone between the land of the living and the sea of the dead. It is suggested that these materials, in line with other funerary practices, helped to guide the recently deceased into the afterlife in the sea.

Craniology of Sheep from the Bronze Age Burials of the Lchashen Necropolis (Armenia)

This paper presents the results of the study of osteological material from excavations of necropolis – Lchashen. The burials (97 graves) covered a wide chronological spectrum the Bronze and Iron Ages. Almost in all burials were found skulls of sheep, without significant damage, belonging to hornless and horned females older than two years. The result of comparing the morphometric parameters of the studied skulls with those of the domestic sheep (Mazekh) showed their identity. The constancy of craniological parameters for four thousand years allows for the possibility of the existence of Mazekh sheep already in the second millennium BC.

PAINTED AND DYED POTTERY OF THE LATE BRONZE AGE FROM THE SETTLEMENT OF HLYBOKE OZERO 2 ON THE SIVERSKYI DONETS RIVER

The paper is aimed at the publication of pottery with painted decoration and traces of paint manipulation discovered at the settlement of Hlyboke Ozero 2 in the middle reaches of the Siverskyi Donets. The finds are associated with stratigraphic layers II and III, marking the transition from the Late Zrubna culture to the so-called Post-Zrubna culture (12th—11th centuries BC).
 The settlement of Hlyboke Ozero 2 is located in the middle reaches of the Siverskyi Donets River and was explored by excavations in 1991 (Y. P. Gershkovych, Y. B. Polidovych, V. V. Tsymidanov, O. R. Dubovska, S. M. Degermendzhy). The area of the site is at least 3000 sq.m., of which 1685.5 m2 have been excavated.
 The scheme of cultural and stratigraphic division of the site includes four «layers» (I—IV), with layers II and III divided into two «horizons» each. Based on radiocarbon dates and traditional methods, the period of the settlement’s existence is determined to be the late 13th to 11th centuries BC. Based on analogies with the materials of the North-Western Black Sea coast, layers I and II are synchronized with the developed and late Sabatynivka culture; the following layers are attributed to the «post-Zrubna period».
 Two variants of paint application on pottery were identified.
 1) Painting before firing. Red paint (probably, ochre) was used to cover large areas of the outer surface of the vessels (or possibly the entire vessel). Often this technique is combined with a «pattern» made with black paint: the bottom parts of the vessels were covered rhythmically with vertical stripes, probably around the entire perimeter of the body.
 2) Application of paint to the surface after firing. This technique is likely to be associated with actions carried out, in particular, with already broken vessels. It is possible that pottery sherds served as available tools for the processing of raw materials for paint. Visually, the fragments with paint do not differ from the bulk of the ceramics at the settlement.
 The so-called ochre engobe characterises the materials of the Stepanivka type of the Berezhynivka-Maivka Zrubna culture, while red or polychrome engobe is mentioned as a method of painting vessels from some Late Bronze Age burials of the Dnipro—Donets and Don—Donets interfluve. It is likely that the production of painted vessels on the Hlyboke Ozero 2 was caried out by the bearers of the local or kindred cultural tradition.
 Looking for a probable external source for this decorative style, let’s consider the final stage of the Bronze Age in Eastern Europe as a period of interaction of cultural components of different origins and, probably, population movements on a wide Eurasian scale. One of the main directions of cultural influences on the Siverskyi Donets’ region is the «Eastern» one, associated with the cultures of the Volga region, the Urals and Northern Kazakhstan. It is this direction that was the main source of changes in the material culture of Hlyboke Ozero 2, which is reflected in pottery and bronze metal-working. In this context, we propose to consider the hypothesis of the appearance of painted decoration on Late / Post-Zrubna pottery of the western periphery of the culture under the impact of the traditions of the agricultural entities of Central Asia. This could have been carried out through the agency of the Post-Andronovo population.

Radiocarbon Dating of Late Bronze Age Burials from the Great Urals (Steppe Trans-Urals and Northern Kazakhstan) and Bayesian Modeling

ABSTRACT In the last two decades, the Bronze Age chronology of the Great Urals was revolutionized by the first large-scale radiocarbon dating programs. Since then, the chronology of the Bronze Age in this area has been under discussion. In this paper, we present 23 new AMS dates from Late Bronze Age sites in the steppe and forest steppe areas of the southern Trans-Urals and northwestern Kazakhstan. This includes the first successful dating of cremated bone samples from this area. Bayesian modeling was conducted to date the Late Bronze Age into three chronological phases. The considerable number of outliers suggests previously undetected biases in the material. In addition, we found differences between the Bayesian models of the steppe and forest steppe areas that are not reflected in the archaeological record. This study emphasizes the value of Bayesian modeling for the prehistoric chronology of the Great Urals but also highlights its issues.

A Functional Analysis of Stone Tools from Bronze Age Burials in the Baraba Forest-Steppe, Based on Findings from Sopka-2

Lithics from chronologically diverse burials at Sopka-2, the Baraba forest-steppe, Western Siberia, were subjected to experimental use-wear analysis. We selected relatively well preserved specimens, suitable for microscopic examination and representing cultures such as Ust-Tartas, Odino, Krotovo, etc. Wear traces indicate the functions of tools and their places among the industries of the region. It was found that the tools had not been specially destined to be funerary items-they all display some wear and are well-suited for efficient use. Comparative characteristics of degree of wear are proposed. At the early stages, stone tools had been placed only in female burials, but at later stages they were distributed among Ьurials of females, children, and males. The findings provide a Ьasis for a functional and morphological typology of lithics used during that period.

Усть-Ёдарма II – опорное многослойное геоархеологическое местонахождение в Северном Приангарье (по результатам работ 2009–2012 гг.)

The article presents the results of studying the material culture of the ancient population of the Northern Angara region from the multilayered geoarchaeological site of Ust-Yodarma 2. The site was located on the right cape of the Yodarma River at its confluence with the Angara River. Excavations were carried out in 2009–2012. As a result, 12 cultural levels were identified on the site in the chronological range from the beginning of the Upper Paleolithic to the ethnographic modernity (17th–20th centuries). The work was carried out on 4 excavations (more than 5 thousand square meters). A correlation was made between cultural levels from different excavations. Holocene deposits are most fully and clearly represented in excavation 1 in area A. Level 0 contains artifacts from the time of the development of the region by Russian pioneers in the 17th and 18th centuries to the modern stage of the existence of the Village Yodarma. Cultural levels 1–4 date from the Middle Ages, the Early Bronze Age, and the Final Neolithic. Levels 5– 8 contain only Neolithic artifacts, while materials from levels 9 and 10 are associated with the Mesolithic. In excavation 1 in area B, an Upper Paleolithic horizon was recorded. Neolithic and Mesolithic levels, as well as Bronze Age burials, have been radiocarbon dated. The total collection of artifacts includes more than 70 thousand finds. A technical and morphological analysis of ceramics, stone and bone tools was carried out. The collection of stone products is represented by products of primary knapping, facial processing, and finished tools (more than 40 thousand finds). Pottery was found in the form of separate fragments and vessels with different decoration techniques. The remains of at least 350 ceramic vessels (more than 14 thousand fragments) have been found. Artifacts made of bone and horn are represented by blanks, finished tools and their fragments, and a sculpture in the form of a moose head. Fire pits of different shapes and designs were recorded. A large number of fauna bones (hunting remains and kitchen refuse) were found. The analysis of artifacts in combination with stratigraphy and radiocarbon data makes it possible to identify the UstYodarma 2 site as a reference object for studying ancient cultures of the Late Pleistocene and Holocene of BaikalYenisei Siberia.

HORSE SACRIFICE IN FUNERAL RITES (based on the Bronze and Early Iron Age burials in Armenia)

This paper investigates the problem of horse sacrifice in funeral rites using data of Bronze and Early Iron Age sepulchres in Armenia. To begin with, the study highlights the cultic-ritual role of a horse as a mythological creature, sacramental animal, divine attribute, etc. In this regard, the Armenian epos and petroglyphs are discussed. Horse sacrifice in other rites is also reviewed. As horse is the closest-to-human animal for Indo-Europeans, the author refers widely to the known archaeological and ethnographical evidence on the subject not only from Armenia but also from other countries in discussing the role and significance of the horse sacrifice in funeral rites. The presence of horse in sepulchral complexes demonstrates that human perceptions linked this animal to the abode of the dead. The tie between the horse and the next world also indicates that, in the beliefs of those times, this animal possibly served as a mediator between the worlds. Ethnographic and folkloristic sources and explorations help to reconstruct the main function of the horse in funeral rites. Most probably, ritual horse assumed the role of transferring the deceased from this world to the other, which is one of the most important functions contributing to the revival of the deceased.

The Origin and Character of God: Ancient Israelite Religion through the Lens of Divinity, Yahweh before Israel: Glimpses of History in a Divine Name and Yahweh: Origin of a Desert God

The Origin and Character of God: Ancient Israelite Religion through the Lens of Divinity, Yahweh before Israel: Glimpses of History in a Divine Name and Yahweh: Origin of a Desert God

An Elite Middle Bronze IIA Warrior Tomb from Yehud, Central Coastal Plain, Israel

A salvage excavation held at the city of Yehud (Israel) revealed an unusual burial of the Middle Bronze (MB) IIA period. The grave was isolated from other MB burials in the Yehud area and was exceptionally large and rich in terms of the types and diversity of burial offerings, which included pottery vessels, metal objects, and animal bones. An outstanding find among the burial goods was an anthropomorphic jug whose neck was shaped in the form of a seated figure supporting its head with the right hand, evoking the image of Rodin’s “Le Penseur.” This paper presents the grave and offerings uncovered in the excavation and an interpretation of these finds, along with a discussion of the grave within the wider context of Middle Bronze Age burials in Yehud and beyond, suggesting it was associated with an elite warrior, who served most likely as a local leader.

Нестандартные погребения ранней бронзы Есауловского Аксая. Некоторые вопросы культурогенеза

The article dwells upon publication and analysis of materials from two unusual Early Bronze Age burials, dating back to the first half of the 3rd millennium BC, investigated by the Volgograd State University expedition in the southern part of the Volga-Don interfluve. The published archaeological complexes were discovered in the kurgan cemeteries located on the bank terraces of the steppe river called Yesaulovsky Aksay. A number of distinctive features made it possible to attribute these complexes to the late period of the Lower Volga Yamnaya culture. These kurgan burials stand out on the overall background of the Yamna culture burials due to the grave structure features, details of the burial rite and positions of the buried individuals. The bodies positions in the investigated burials are unusual. In one case, the dead body was arranged into a sitting position with the head turned towards the south. In another one, the dead body was segmented and then put into the typical crouched position on the side with the head turned towards the east. Both rites had come from another culture associated with the North Caucasus region which had a significant impact on the economy, social and ideological structure, burial practices of the population of the Lower Volga region and the adjacent territories of Russias southern steppes throughout the Early and Middle Bronze Ages.

The Power of Relics: The Curation of Human Bone in British Bronze Age Burials

In this article, the authors examine radiocarbon, histo-taphonomic, and contextual evidence for the deliberate curation, manipulation, and redeposition of human bone in British Bronze Age mortuary contexts. New radiocarbon dates and histological analyses are combined with existing data to explore the processes and practices that resulted in the incorporation of ‘relic’ fragments of bone in later graves, including evidence for the deliberate re-opening of previous burials and for funerary treatments such as excarnation and mummification. In some cases, fragments of human bone were curated outside the mortuary context. The authors consider what the treatment of human remains reveals about mortuary complexity in the Bronze Age, about relations between the living and the dead, and about attitudes to the body and concepts of the self.

The genetic identity of the earliest human-made hybrid animals, the kungas of Syro-Mesopotamia.

Before the introduction of domestic horses in Mesopotamia in the late third millennium BCE, contemporary cuneiform tablets and seals document intentional breeding of highly valued equids called kungas for use in diplomacy, ceremony, and warfare. Their precise zoological classification, however, has never been conclusively determined. Morphometric analysis of equids uncovered in rich Early Bronze Age burials at Umm el-Marra, Syria, placed them beyond the ranges reported for other known equid species. We sequenced the genomes of one of these ~4500-year-old equids, together with an ~11,000-year-old Syrian wild ass (hemippe) from Göbekli Tepe and two of the last surviving hemippes. We conclude that kungas were F1 hybrids between female domestic donkeys and male hemippes, thus documenting the earliest evidence of hybrid animal breeding.

Bronze age burials within the Morava, Nisava and Timok basins

Following more than seven decades of research on the Bronze Age cremation burial grounds in the territory of Serbia, the new absolute dates provide us with an opportunity to determine a more precise chronological sequence of different local cultural manifestations. Although the pioneers of the Serbian archaeology after WWII defined the main cultural trajectories that led to the establishment of cremation as the main burial rite during the 2nd millennium BC, several misconceptions were established that need to be corrected, considering new data. We regard this paper as our contribution to the better understanding of the cultural and chronological sequence in the Central Balkans during the Bronze Age.

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.

Bronze Age burials from Doghlauri (Georgia). Preliminary analysis of human remains reveals a change in burial customs

The investigation of the Aradetis Orgora site and its burial area, Doghlauri, is providing new data about the Bronze Age in the Shida Kartli province (Georgia). A salvage excavation allowed the discovery of numerous graves and the human remains from 75 of these were later available for the present study. Twenty-three of them date back to the Early Bronze Age (EBA, Kura-Araxes culture) and 52 to the Late Bronze Age (LBA, Lchashen-Tsitelgori culture). Using standard anthropological methods, the minimum number of individuals (MNI) was estimated for each grave and sex and the age at death were assessed.Our preliminary results reveal a clear difference in burial customs between these two periods. The anthropological data coupled with the archaeological documentation suggest that in the EBA many of these graves can be interpreted as collective burials (in 13 Kura-Araxes graves out of 23 more than one individual was represented, with up to six individuals buried in them). Both sexes and almost all the age classes are represented in these. By contrast, in the LBA, single burials are the rule for all age classes and both sexes.

An Early Bronze Age Burial with a Golden Spiral Ring from Ammerbuch-Reusten, Southwestern Germany

Abstract A women’s burial of the Early Bronze Age that was uncovered near Ammerbuch-Reusten, Tübingen district in autumn 2020 shows clear relations to burial rites of the Final Neolithic in central Europe. The only grave good was in the rear of the burial. A small spiral ring made of gold wire at the left side of the burial at hip level, which can be considered to be the earliest securely dated precious metal find in southwestern Germany. The find fits into a small series of early spiral rings made of gold wire, which are among the oldest precious metal finds in central Europe. Its composition with c. 20 % silver and less than 2 % copper as well as traces of platinum and tin indicates the use of a naturally occurring gold alloy, most likely from so-called alluvial deposits obtained by panning from rivers. The trace element pattern strongly suggests that this type of gold derives from Cornwall, specifically from River Carnon. The burial matches a group of other burials from the Bronze Age on the plateau and is apparently related to a hilltop settlement on the nearby Kirchberg of Reusten.

X-RAY BASED IMAGING AND 3D RECONSTRUCTION OF DENTAL PATHOLOGIES ON THE EXAMPLE OF PALAEOANTHROPOLOGICAL FINDING

Abstract. Findings from Bronze Age burials of Shengavit settlement have become a source of multiple studies referred to anthropological, and especially odontological, research based on 3d imaging and image processing techniques. The currently presented case is an example of palaeopathological analysis of bone tissue resorption caused by complications of dental pathologies. Thus by analogy with diagnostic procedures in clinical dentistry, conventional x-ray based cone-beam tomographic scanning have been applied and have shown its effectiveness as a study method. Through CBCT imaging we managed to reveal a hidden pathological process in the body of the studied semi-mandible fragment, though initially another pathological area located on the same finding was planned to be studied. Application of micro-computed tomography has improved analytical, or diagnostic, part of the current palaepathological study. It has brought to finding unusual morphological features hypothetically causing bone resorption as a complication of dental pathological conditions. However our intention to obtain 3d reconstructions as evidence supporting the most likely version required several attempts to correct image processing in line with the increase of imaging resolution.