Mortuary Behavior Research Articles

Stone axes throw new light on Baltic stone age mortuary rites

Despite their ubiquity, Mesolithic lithic tools given as funerary offerings have rarely been studied in detail. Whereas personal ornaments (e.g. beads, pendants) are commonly interpreted as markers of social identity and status, archaeologists have struggled to understand the stone tools, commonly regarded as “utilitarian” items. As a result, this class of grave goods has not received the same level of attention, leaving a significant gap in our understanding of Mesolithic mortuary behaviours. Our research challenges long-lasting perceptions of lithic tools as strictly utilitarian objects and draws on studies of one of the most substantial stone axe funerary collections from one of the largest Stone Age cemeteries in Europe–Zvejnieki, Latvia. Evidence suggests the selection of unused axes as grave offerings, while unusual wear traces on an axe found in a female grave (no 57) raises questions about its use in the burial rites. Using a multi-proxy approach, we compare life histories of axes placed in burials to those recovered from contemporary, nearby settlement contexts. Finally, a strong correlation between axes and women and children at Zvejnieki challenges gendered stereotypes of stone tools, historically regarded as possessions of the adult male members of Stone Age societies.

"Until death do us part". A multidisciplinary study on human- Animal co- burials from the Late Iron Age necropolis of Seminario Vescovile in Verona (Northern Italy, 3rd-1st c. BCE).

Animal remains are a common find in prehistoric and protohistoric funerary contexts. While taphonomic and osteological data provide insights about the proximate (depositional) factors responsible for these findings, the ultimate cultural causes leading to this observed mortuary behavior are obscured by the opacity of the archaeological record and the lack of written sources. Here, we apply an interdisciplinary suite of analytical approaches (zooarchaeological, anthropological, archaeological, paleogenetic, and isotopic) to explore the funerary deposition of animal remains and the nature of joint human-animal burials at Seminario Vescovile (Verona, Northern Italy 3rd-1st c. BCE). This context, culturally attributed to the Cenomane culture, features 161 inhumations, of which only 16 included animal remains in the form of full skeletons, isolated skeletal parts, or food offerings. Of these, four are of particular interest as they contain either horses (Equus caballus) or dogs (Canis lupus familiaris)-animals that did not play a dietary role. Analyses show no demographic, dietary, funerary similarities, or genetic relatedness between individuals buried with animals. Isotopic data from two analyzed dogs suggest differing management strategies for these animals, possibly linked to economic and/or ritual factors. Overall, our results point to the unsuitability of simple, straightforward explanations for the observed funerary variability. At the same time, they connect the evidence from Seminario Vescovile with documented Transalpine cultural traditions possibly influenced by local and Roman customs.

Mortuary Practices and the Importance of Rock-Shelters during the Early and Middle Holocene in the Southern Maya Mountains

Research at two rock-shelters in the Maya Mountains of southern Belize, Mayahak Cab Pek and Saki Tzul, documents their persistent use as mortuary spaces over 9000 years, spanning the end of the last ice age until the end of the Classic period. These sites offer a rare diachronic view of mortuary behaviors within a single region of the neotropics spanning from early foragers through a long interval of transitional farmers. Here, we provide the first detailed discussion of human remains from these sites representing 30 burials dating between 12,000 and 3700 cal B.P. Analyses of burial features shows that communities in the region used diverse mortuary practices across this interval for the treatment and interment of their dead. These include primary burial, secondary burial, cremation, and possible disarticulation. All age categories are represented in the assemblage. Molecular data from aDNA and isotopes provide evidence of shifts in cultural behaviors and regional population structure. Despite these changes, mortuary treatments continue to be diverse throughout this time period, with no observable pattern or trend. However, all burials were recovered in two rock-shelters, representing unique features on the landscape. We examine and theorize the importance of these locations as mortuary spaces important to communities through time. We also explore evidence for the relationship between mourners, their dead, and these rock-shelters as precursors to later Classic Maya worldviews.

Bioarchaeological insights into the Late Helladic communities of South Kynouria, Peloponnese: The case of the LH IIIA2‐IIIB2 burial cluster of Socha

AbstractThis paper examines the human osteological remains unearthed from six Late Helladic (LH IIIA2‐IIIB2) (1390/70–1200/1190 BCE) tombs at Socha in the Peloponnese. It seeks to investigate the character of a Mycenaean community that though organically integrated into and highly dependent on the palatial system, manifested Mycenaean burial practices with a distinctly local character, namely, through the use of built cist‐tombs. Our analysis investigates further the identity of this community and explores whether these people had also adopted a different way of life, diet and mortuary behavior toward specific groups. The results show that the demographic composition, diet, and health characteristics of the deceased of Socha were analogous to most Mycenaean sites: (a) equal representation of males and females, (b) burial exclusion of infants and young children, and (c) homogenous C3 terrestrial diet. In addition, a tendency for a more frequent inclusion of middle‐aged females with subadults in the same tomb suggests gender and age differentiation are in play. On the other hand, even though the burials of Socha practiced collectivity, an emphasis on individuality through a less variable post‐mortem manipulation of the deceased is also in evidence and is characterized by single secondary deposits within the original grave, no evidence for commingling, and no evidence for removal nor selection of bones in secondary deposits. These characteristics demonstrate the differentiation of the group of Socha during a period of intensive movement and the creation of new settlements in South Kynouria.

Where are the Immigrants? Questions about the Demographic Underpinnings of Late Pleistocene Cultural Changes in Western Europe

Prevailing interpretations of late glacial “azilianization” processes in western Europe emphasize the role of adaptive responses to environmental changes by Late Epigravettian and Late Mag- dalenian populations. These interpretations stress the considerable cultural continuity across this transition. Recent DNA studies, however, have raised the possibility of a significant popu- lation turnover at this time, ultimately deriving from influences from the Near East, perhaps re- flecting a demographic expansion. Such an expansion—or migration—should be reflected by some abrupt changes in the archaeological record, which at present are not obvious or em- phasized. In an attempt to identify the proposed immigrants, the record in terms of lithic tech- nology, projectile use, the domestication of dogs, and artistic and mortuary behavior is examined.

Early Neolithic human remains from Galería del Sílex in Sierra de Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain

We present new datings and a new anthropological study of Early Neolithic human remains found in Galería del Sílex in 1979. This gallery is part of the Cueva Mayor system in the Sierra de Atapuerca. The human fossils attributed to the Neolithic period correspond to a minimum number of three individuals that have been radiocarbon dated to the last third of the 6th millennium cal BCE. Thus, the fossils from Galería del Sílex are among the oldest Neolithic human remains in the interior of the Iberian Peninsula. The human remains from Galería del Sílex were not found within a domestic context of human occupation of the cave, but rather within two pits (simas) located more than three hundred meters from the ancient entrance. This suggests that Galería del Sílex could have been an area reserved for depositing deceased humans during the Early Neolithic. Given the scarcity of this kind of funerary cave in the Spanish northern plateau during the Early Neolithic, the data from the Galería del Sílex add to our knowledge of human mortuary behavior during this period. In addition to the Galería del Sílex, there are two other well-known Neolithic sites in Sierra de Atapuerca: El Portalón in Cueva Mayor, which was a human occupation site, and Cueva del Mirador, which was used for livestock stabling and exploitation. Considered altogether, the emerging evidence provided by these three sites makes Sierra de Atapuerca increasingly relevant as a source of information about Early Neolithic people from the interior of the Iberian Peninsula.

A cranial injury from the earliest Gravettian at the Cro-Magnon rock shelter (Vézère Valley, Dordogne, southwest France).

Discovered over 150 years ago, the early Upper Paleolithic human remains from the Cro-Magnon rock shelter have an iconic status, but because of skeletal commingling after discovery, their bio-profiles remain incomplete and contentious. The defect on the frontal bone of the cranium known as Cro-Magnon 2 has been interpreted as both an antemortem injury and a postmortem (i.e., taphonomic) artifact previously. This contribution considers the cranium in order to clarify the status of the defect on the frontal bone and to situate these remains among others of Pleistocene date with similar types of lesions. The diagnostic criteria used to assess the cranium are drawn from recent publications of actualistic experimental studies of cranial trauma and from those associated with cranial trauma due to violence in forensic anthropological and bioarchaeological contexts. The appearance of the defect and comparison with more recent documented cases from the preantibiotic era suggest that the defect is a result of antemortem trauma with survival for a short period. The location of the lesion on the cranium provides growing evidence for interpersonal aggression in these early modern human groups, and the place of burial also provides insight into related mortuary behavior.

The mortuary treatment of children at Late Roman/Early Byzantine (L)Ibida (4th – 6th Centuries AD)

This study evaluates the treatment of children in death through an examination of the available archaeological evidence related to mortuary practices from Late Roman and Early Byzantine (L) Ibida (Slava Rusă, Tulcea County, Romania). Certain components such as burial location, grave type, orientation, body position, and grave goods were analyzed based on a sample of 41 non‑adult individual burials. A differential approach that involved making a comparison and highlighting the similarities and differences between non‑adult and adult burials was used. The instances where adults and non‑adults were buried together in the same grave were also discussed. Although differences were apparent in certain instances, it was found that children were not necessarily buried differently than adults. The limits of the study determined by the current state of research and by sample sizes are highlighted. Additionally, it is acknowledged that caution should be exercised as material remains and their interpretation only reveal a part of the entire story related to any mortuary behavior.

An infant burial from Arma Veirana in northwestern Italy provides insights into funerary practices and female personhood in early Mesolithic Europe

The evolution and development of human mortuary behaviors is of enormous cultural significance. Here we report a richly-decorated young infant burial (AVH-1) from Arma Veirana (Liguria, northwestern Italy) that is directly dated to 10,211–9910 cal BP (95.4% probability), placing it within the early Holocene and therefore attributable to the early Mesolithic, a cultural period from which well-documented burials are exceedingly rare. Virtual dental histology, proteomics, and aDNA indicate that the infant was a 40–50 days old female. Associated artifacts indicate significant material and emotional investment in the child’s interment. The detailed biological profile of AVH-1 establishes the child as the earliest European near-neonate documented to be female. The Arma Veirana burial thus provides insight into sex/gender-based social status, funerary treatment, and the attribution of personhood to the youngest individuals among prehistoric hunter-gatherer groups and adds substantially to the scant data on mortuary practices from an important period in prehistory shortly following the end of the last Ice Age.

Insights into the Funerary Practices in the Dolmen of Cabecinha (Figueira da Foz, Portugal)

The dolmen of Cabecinha in the region of Figueira da Foz (Coimbra, Portugal) was excavated at the end of the 19th century by António dos Santos Rocha. This tomb belongs to a Megalithic necropolis of c. 21 dolmens in Western-Central Portugal and was explored and published between 1880 and 1909. The aim of this contribution is to present the human bone collection of the Megalitho da Cabecinha, cross-referencing this data with the original available documentation from the excavation and the chronology obtained from direct radiocarbon dating of a human bone fragment. This approach is adopted to get insights into the funerary practices, and the biological and pathological profiles of the individuals deposited in the dolmen. The most relevant information obtained pertains to the mortuary behaviour, where a unique funerary practice for this Megalithic necropolis was identified. In each corner of the irregular polygonal chamber, an adult individual was deposited in crouching or squatting position in sandy sediment and surrounded by small flat limestone slabs. All but one individual was associated with votive items.

Mortuary behaviour and cultural practices in pre-colonial West Central Africa: new data from the Iroungou burial cave, Gabon—CORRIGENDUM

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Mortuary behaviour and cultural practices in pre-colonial West Central Africa: new data from the Iroungou burial cave, Gabon

This study presents preliminary results of recent explorations at Iroungou (Gabon), a pre-colonial burial cave containing scattered skeletal remains of at least 28 men, women and children. The individuals, whose crania show cultural tooth ablation, were buried with abundant metallic objects, a combination with no known equivalent in West Central Africa.

Studies of mortuary value system and its behavior: Columbarium Niche burial and natural burial as study cases in Taiwan

Aim: This study focuses on current Taiwanese mortuary behavior and realizes the gap between mortuary value system and mortuary behavior, and explores the two formers relations with grief care. Eventually, this study provide mortuary policy suggestion to Taiwan government for reference.Method: This study adopts secondary analysis, field interview, and data thematic analysis. This study aims family members who lost their beloved within three years. There are 13 participators. 8 of participators adopted columbarium niche burial and 5 adopts natural burial. Findings: 1) The strategy of funeral arrangement is mostly made of lineal relatives; to be environmental friendly and sanitation and not to be troublesome to the bereaved are mainly reasons to choose burial ways. 2) The corpse mostly sent to a funeral home and erect the deceaseds memorial tablet; the number of people who do not send obituary and simplify total ritual to only 7 days have increased; and traditional wiping and bathing rites to the deceased seems losing its real function. 3) It is prejudicial to grief care while there is a gap between mortuary value and mortuary behavior.Implications/Novel Contribution: Overall, the research findings will provide for the Taiwan government to formulate natural burial policy. The government has to consider grief care of the deceaseds family while it considers the goal of environmental protection and sanitation. Besides, this research attempts to arouse funeral business, academy, and the governments attention to the negative influence on time and space compression of mortuary arrangement and then improve current situation.

LIFE AND DEATH AMONG THE EARLIEST MAYA: A REVIEW OF EARLY AND MIDDLE PRECLASSIC BURIALS FROM THE MAYA WORLD

AbstractThis article presents a review of the earliest Maya skeletal remains thus far found, including a list of 398 burials dating to the Early (1800–900 b.c.) and Middle Preclassic periods (900–300 b.c.) and adjacent regions. These sites are spread throughout the Maya region and the data allow basic descriptive syntheses about early mortuary behavior and aspects of health and diet. Poor preservation and differences in scoring and reporting severely limit the scope of interpretation possible at this point, but it is hoped that this review stimulates coordinated research into the biology of early groups.

Life, death, and the destruction of architecture: Hunter-gatherer mortuary behaviors in prehistoric Jordan

The end of the Pleistocene in Southwest Asia is widely known for the emergence of socially-complex hunter-gatherers—the Natufians—characterized by a rich material culture record, including elaborate burials. In comparison, human interments that predate the Natufian are rare. The discovery and excavation of a hut structure at the 20,000-year-old Epipalaeolithic site of Kharaneh IV in eastern Jordan reveals the remains of an adult female intentionally placed in a semi-flexed position on one of the structure’s floors. The structure was burned down shortly after her deposition, extensively charring the human remains. The burying of the dead within structures and the burning of domestic structures are well-known from later Neolithic periods, although their combination as a mortuary practice is rare. However, for the Early Epipalaeolithic, the burning of a structure containing the primary deposition of human remains is novel and signifies an early appearance for the intentional burning of bodies as a mortuary treatment and symbolic behaviors associated with the interrelated life histories of structures and people.

Ancient DNA reveals monozygotic newborn twins from the Upper Palaeolithic

The Upper Palaeolithic double burial of newborns and the single burial of a ca. 3-month-old infant uncovered at the Gravettian site of Krems-Wachtberg, Austria, are of paramount importance given the rarity of immature human remains from this time. Genome-wide ancient DNA shows that the male infants of the double grave are the earliest reported case of monozygotic twins, while the single grave´s individual was their 3rd-degree male relative. We assessed the individuals´ age at death by applying histological and µCT inspection of the maxillary second incisors (i2) in conjunction with C- and N-isotope ratios and Barium (Ba) intake as biomarker for breastfeeding. The results show that the twins were full-term newborns, and that while individual 2 died at birth, individual 1 survived for about 50 days. The findings show that Gravettian mortuary behaviour also included re-opening of a grave and manipulation of its layout and content.

Issues of theory and method in the analysis of Paleolithic mortuary behavior: A view from Shanidar Cave.

Mortuary behavior (activities concerning dead conspecifics) is one of many traits that were previously widely considered to have been uniquely human, but on which perspectives have changed markedly in recent years. Theoretical approaches to hominin mortuary activity and its evolution have undergone major revision, and advances in diverse archeological and paleoanthropological methods have brought new ways of identifying behaviors such as intentional burial. Despite these advances, debates concerning the nature of hominin mortuary activity, particularly among the Neanderthals, rely heavily on the rereading of old excavations as new finds are relatively rare, limiting the extent to which such debates can benefit from advances in the field. The recent discovery of in situ articulated Neanderthal remains at Shanidar Cave offers a rare opportunity to take full advantage of these methodological and theoretical developments to understand Neanderthal mortuary activity, making a review of these advances relevant and timely.

Mortuary practices of the first Polynesians: formative ethnogenesis in the Kingdom of Tonga

Ancestral Polynesian Society has been argued to represent a formative stage in Polynesian ethnogenesis. Recently discovered human burials at the Talasiu midden site in Tonga, dating to c. 2650 cal BP, now provide the earliest known evidence for Ancestral Polynesian mortuary behaviour. This article presents and evaluates the burials, comparing archaeological evidence for Talasiu mortuary practices with those of older Lapita and more recent Tongan burials, as well as with Ancestral Polynesian Society funerary activities inferred through linguistic reconstruction. These comparisons emphasise that several socio-cultural behaviours that are important to contemporary Polynesian societies were expressed very differently in the past.

Articulando saberes: el aporte de las colecciones particulares a los proyectos de investigación

El estudio de materiales depositados en instituciones y en manos de particulares fue sustancial para el avance de distintas líneas de investigación del Proyecto Arqueológico Chaschuil-Abaucán (PACh-A). Estas colecciones son producto tanto de excavaciones asistemáticas y recolecciones superficiales de clérigos, arqueólogos pioneros o pobladores locales, como de investigaciones sistemáticas, rescates o estudios de impacto arqueológico. La falta de registro de campo y la historia de las distintas instituciones muchas veces dificultan la reconstrucción de los contextos de recuperación de los materiales que las conforman. Sin embargo, en el caso de las colecciones en manos de los pobladores locales, podemos apelar a su memoria para identificar los lugares de proveniencia de los materiales, identificar espacios intervenidos por los arqueólogos pioneros en la década del 60 e intentar rearmar los contextos de asociación.En esta oportunidad presentamos los aportes que estas colecciones particulares realizaron a diferentes objetivos del PACh-A y permitieron analizar: (i) reclamación de espacios en el tiempo, (ii) importancia de ajuares vinculados a la producción textil, (iii) alta frecuencia de imágenes específicas en la alfarería -Lechuzas-, (iv) sustancias pigmentarias, (v) bioarqueología y comportamiento mortuorio, (iv) relaciones extrarregionales y (vii) existencia de conflictos entre poblaciones.

Complex mortuary dynamics in the Upper Paleolithic of the decorated Grotte de Cussac, France

The Mid-Upper Paleolithic (Gravettian) karstic Grotte de Cussac (France) contains two areas of human remains in the context of abundant (and spectacular) parietal engravings. The first area (loci 1 and 2) includes the skeleton of a young adult male in a bear nest, rearranged by postdecomposition inundation, and the variably fragmentary remains of at least two individuals distributed across two bear nests, sorted anatomically and with most of the elements constrained to one side of one nest. The second area (locus 3) retains remains of two adults and an adolescent, in upper hollows and variably distributed down the slope, largely segregated into upper versus lower body groups. The only decoration associated with the human remains is red pigment on some of the bones or underlying sediment. The human remains indicate variable nonnatural deposition and manipulation of human bodies, body portions, and skeletal elements of at least six individuals. Moreover, Cussac is unusual in the association of these remains with exceptional parietal art. The complex Cussac mortuary pattern joins growing evidence from other Gravettian sites of variable treatment of individuals after death, within and across sites, in terms of formal deposition of the body versus postmortem manipulation versus surface abandonment. It provides a window onto the social diversity and the complex interactions of the living and the dead among these successful Late Pleistocene foragers.