Neolithic Burials Research Articles

Tracing the Past: Microwear Analysis of Stone and Shell Beads Unearthed in Early Neolithic Burials at Samborzec, Poland

This paper presents a thorough analysis of ornaments discovered in two Neolithic burials at Samborzec Site 1, providing valuable insights into their origins and significance. The artefacts, retrieved over six decades ago in the burials of a woman and child, have undergone extensive examination, including raw material identification, microwear studies, and the analysis of red residues found on their surfaces. While most of the ornaments concerned were crafted from marble, two beads were identified as Spondylus shells. Chemical analysis of residues, primarily found on the marble ornaments, revealed the presence of cinnabar, a red pigment of foreign origin. The remarkable similarities in ornaments between the investigated burials strongly suggest the association of both with LBK communities. The presented studies offer valuable insights into their object biographies, from the acquisition of raw materials from distant regions through their manufacture, assembly, and prolonged use as personal items. In this context, our research emphasizes their belonging to a shared Neolithic tradition in Europe.

Neolithic burial of a dog on Olkhon Island (lake Baikal)

In 2022, archaeological activities were conducted to clarify the boundaries of the multilayer Unkhrug 1 site located on Olkhon Island (Lake Baikal). In the lowest layer of one of the test pits, a burial of an ancient dog in an artificial pit was found with the remains of a red deer. This find is very rare for the Neolithic of the Baikal region. A morphometric study of bone remains, a comparative analysis with other skeletal materials, and radiocarbon and isotope analyzes were conducted. The data obtained made it possible to establish the individual characteristics of the buried dog and its possible diet. An individual burial with a ritual meat part of a red deer carcass inside indicates the special significance of this individual for the Neolithic inhabitants of Olkhon Island.

Analysis of the evolutionary path of early civilization agriculture based on the plain Bayesian model

Abstract First, this paper focuses on the problem of nonlinear association between attributes and categories, combines inverse document frequency information and deep attribute weighting, improves the distance correlation coefficient, and proposes an attribute-weighted polynomial plain Bayesian text classification algorithm based on the improved distance correlation coefficient. Then a specific scheme for stage classification of early Chinese civilization provides a theoretical premise and expository framework for systematically exploring the relationship between primitive agricultural types and early Chinese civilization and also provides conditions for forming the agricultural revolution of early Chinese civilization in the Central Plains region. Finally, according to the research objectives, the 7000-year-old Ningzhen area was selected as the research object, and the attribute-weighted polynomial plain Bayesian text classification algorithm was used to analyze the data of the research object. The results show that: in the Neolithic burials of the North Yingying culture period alone, there are 240 burial relics with a total of 1,580 pieces of all burial relics, including 554 pieces of stone production workers, but the fundamental reason is the active change of human for the survival crisis. This study is a preliminary attempt to conduct an interdisciplinary study on the history of agriculture and civilization and provides an academic path for the sublimation of agricultural history to the study of the history of agricultural civilization.

Dental modification techniques in Neolithic and modern Cambodia

Intentional dental modifications are known to have occurred on several continents at different periods and have been used as a diachronic bio-cultural marker to reconstruct the history of human settlement on different geographical scales. Such practices, present since the Neolithic in Southeast Asia, are thought to have originated in China and to co-exist in different forms in archaeological sites. There are many gaps and the proportion of archaeological evidence of these practices varies, making it impossible to trace their history and evolution perfectly. However, in Cambodia, cases of dental ablations are known from the Neolithic, the Metal Age and historical periods, and joint cases of dental abrasions or ablations have been attested since the Metal Age. As cases of dental abrasion were documented right up to the end of the twentieth century, this article aims to provide information on the still living memory of the motivations and techniques used by the mountain populations of Cambodia. As a complement and in comparison, we will present the unpublished cases of the Neolithic burials at the Laang Spean site, which bear witness to similar practices and raise questions about their relationship with those that persist today among certain ethnic groups.

Beyond subsistence: Evidence for red rice beer in 8000-year old Neolithic burials, north China

The domestication of rice and the brewing of rice-based alcoholic beverages in pottery vessels were closely intertwined during the early Neolithic period in China. This practice may have originated in the Shangshan culture of the lower Yangzi River valley around 9000 cal. BP. The brewing process involved the preparation of qu starter using rice and molds to produce rice beer. Over time, this fermentation tradition spread northward to the Yellow River region, although the exact timing of this diffusion process remains unclear. To shed light on this issue, our study focuses on two early Neolithic Peiligang culture sites, namely Peiligang and Shuiquan, dating to 8000–7600 cal. BP in the middle Yellow River region. Through microfossil analysis of ceramic vessels, we have discovered multiple lines of evidence indicating the use of rice and Monascus mold as ingredients for preparing qu starter in the production of fermented alcoholic beverages. These beverages included a variety of ingredients such as rice, millet, Job's tears, wild Triticeae, foxnut, and yam. During the early stage of rice domestication, when rice was still a minor crop serving to partially fulfill subsistence needs, the development of rice-based fermentation technology played a significant role in the provision of alcoholic beverages, particularly in the context of mortuary rituals within the Peiligang culture.

Bioarchaeological and paleogenomic profiling of the unusual Neolithic burial from Grotta di Pietra Sant’Angelo (Calabria, Italy)

The Neolithic burial of Grotta di Pietra Sant’Angelo (CS) represents a unique archaeological finding for the prehistory of Southern Italy. The unusual placement of the inhumation at a rather high altitude and far from inhabited areas, the lack of funerary equipment and the prone deposition of the body find limited similarities in coeval Italian sites. These elements have prompted wider questions on mortuary customs during the prehistory of Southern Italy. This atypical case requires an interdisciplinary approach aimed to build an integrated bioarchaeological profile of the individual. The paleopathological investigation of the skeletal remains revealed the presence of numerous markers that could be associated with craft activities, suggesting possible interpretations of the individual’s lifestyle. CT analyses, carried out on the maxillary bones, showed the presence of a peculiar type of dental wear, but also a good density of the bone matrix. Biomolecular and micromorphological analyses of dental calculus highlight the presence of a rich Neolithic-like oral microbiome, the composition of which is consistent with the presence pathologies. Finally, paleogenomic data obtained from the individual were compared with ancient and modern Mediterranean populations, including unpublished high-resolution genome-wide data for 20 modern inhabitants of the nearby village of San Lorenzo Bellizzi, which provided interesting insights into the biodemographic landscape of the Neolithic in Southern Italy.

Middle Neolithic Burials in Baikal-Yenisey Siberia: Problems of Cultural Identity and Genesis

The study focuses on the analysis of Middle Neolithic burial complexes of the Baikal-Yenisey Siberia. Based on a series of reliable radiocarbon dates, their age lies within the range of 6190–5900 cal BP. It partly corresponds to the end of the hiatus in the mortuary traditions of Cis-Baikal. Features of the burial rite and funerary offerings are analyzed and compared with those of neighboring territories. One of the most frequent images in the art of the Middle Neolithic Baikal-Yenisey Siberia is that of the waterfowl, rendered as fi gurines. The common grave goods are leaf-shaped stone arrowheads, shell beads, and pendants made of animal bones and teeth. The funerary rite included the use of fi re and reddish mineral pigment, as well as disrupting the anatomical integrity of the skeletons, possibly due to partial burial (the data are tentative). Most burials of the late stage of the hiatus are evidently those of hunter-gatherers manufacturing the Ust-Belaya ceramics, which were found in certain burials. A bone arrowhead with a biconical point and fi gurines representing waterfowl suggest cultural ties with the Urals and Western Siberia; but their nature has yet to be clarifi ed, which requires large-scale AMS-dating and paleogenetic analysis.

Возможности технологии создания цифровых копий археологических артефактов на примере пешни с памятника Фирсово-XI (Барнаульское Приобье)

The article discusses the possibilities of using 3D-fixation technologies to create an exact digital copy of stone artifacts with irregular geometry using photogrammetry. This technology can be used for two main purposes: Firstly, as a means of creating and long-term storage of digital copies of objects for a more complete visualization and representation of the object, which may be necessary for various purposes, and easy access to databases; The second goal can be considered to be analytical studies - measurements of dimensions, volumes, surface areas, densities, roughness, etc.; determination of geometric characteristics - center of mass, axes of symmetry, deviations, construction of sections. In the process of research, a digital copy of a stone ice pick from the Firsovo-XI site (Barnaul Stretch of the Ob) was created. The product is made of a large elongated block of very viscous dark green stone. As a result of the study of traces of microwear, it turned out that this tool is a pawn, i.e. used to cut a hole in the ice. Traces of micro wear are concentrated on the ground, cone-shaped edge of the product. This edge is the working part of the tool. Polishing of the working part, traces of microfinishing, dislocation of wear is typical for such tools as a ice pick. The circumstances of the discovery do not allow us to accurately determine the age of the artifact, but most likely this item is synchronous with the Neolithic burials of Firsovo-XI. The paper states that the construction of orthogonal projections of an object is not a trivial task in working with stone artifacts. The use of photography leads to the inevitable distortion of perspective - the deformation or transformation of the object and its surrounding area. From such projections it is impossible to take measurements, make sections and conduct a study. The construction of clear projections with any angular step, without any perspective distortions, as well as the construction of sections, setting dimensions, is the basic function of most 3D graphics packages. An equally important function is rendering under a given illumination - that is, the process of constructing the final two-dimensional image of an object at the angle and intensity of the incident light that the researcher needs, etc. The position of the light source can help solve the problem of contrast sensitivity, that is, the ability of the eye to distinguish the minimum difference in brightness between the object in question or two adjacent surfaces. It is concluded that the absence of physical limitations in the use of the obtained 3D models makes photogrammetry an extremely useful tool both in research and for data exchange, public demonstrations and remote collaboration. It is noted that photogrammetry can be used as a tool for creating exact solid copies of objects using a 3D printer, as museum exhibits.

Towards understanding the influence of Neolithisation for communities using the Zvejnieki cemetery, Latvia: A technological and functional analysis of the osseous artefacts discovered in the Late Mesolithic burial no 57 and Neolithic burial no 164

The results of traceological (technological and use-wear) studies of osseous artefacts discovered in the Mesolithic burial no 57 and Neolithic burial no 164 from the cemetery in Zvejnieki, Latvia are discussed. This research identified significant differentiation in the techniques used to make animal tooth pendants deposited in the Mesolithic grave and, by contrast, identified relative uniformity in the methods used to make those from the Neolithic grave. In addition, use-wear traces were observed on many of the Mesolithic pendants and were absent from almost all Neolithic ones, indicating the Neolithic examples were probably made for funerary purposes. This research also identified that the bone points from both graves were made in a similar manner and had been used. The technological and functional similarities and differences between the artefacts from the Mesolithic and Neolithic burials are discussed in the context of their probable origin and on observations made on other collections of similar chronology in the region.

Neolithic Burials in the Zelinda River Mouth, Northern Angara: Burial Practices and Radiocarbon Chronology

We describe new findings relating to Neolithic burials at two cemeteries in the Northern Angara area, excavated in 2012 by the Boguchany archaeological expedition. The sites are located at the outlet of the Zelinda—the right tributary of the Angara. Two burials were revealed at Ust-Zelinda-1, and five at Ust-Zelinda-2. We describe preserved remains and the funerary rite, and analyze radiocarbon dates generated from the human bones. On the basis of archaeological parallels, we attribute certain burials to the Isakovo culture. Burial practices include the use of “ocher” and the supine position of the buried along the Angara, heads to the south, upstream of the site. Calibrated radiocarbon dates, details of the funerary rite, grave goods and their typological characteristics, as well as the placement of graves within the cemeteries, suggest that three chronological groups existed within the 7499–5583 cal BP (5550–3634 cal BC) interval. The 14C date of the third group (5718–5583 cal BP, or 3769–3634 cal BC), details of the funerary rite, and grave goods are indicative of the Late Neolithic (Isakovo culture of the Southern Angara). Burials of the second group, which is the best represented (7157–6555 cal BP, or 5208–4606 cal BC), resemble those of the classic Isakovo tradition. The burial (without grave goods) attributed to the fi rst chronological group dates to 7499–7317 cal BP, or 5550– 5368 cal BC. It is hypothesized that “proto-Isakovo” traditions originated on the Northern Angara, having later spread to the Southern Angara.

Ancient DNA at the edge of the world: Continental immigration and the persistence of Neolithic male lineages in Bronze Age Orkney

Orkney was a major cultural center during the Neolithic, 3800 to 2500 BC. Farming flourished, permanent stone settlements and chambered tombs were constructed, and long-range contacts were sustained. From ∼3200 BC, the number, density, and extravagance of settlements increased, and new ceremonial monuments and ceramic styles, possibly originating in Orkney, spread across Britain and Ireland. By ∼2800 BC, this phenomenon was waning, although Neolithic traditions persisted to at least 2500 BC. Unlike elsewhere in Britain, there is little material evidence to suggest a Beaker presence, suggesting that Orkney may have developed along an insular trajectory during the second millennium BC. We tested this by comparing new genomic evidence from 22 Bronze Age and 3 Iron Age burials in northwest Orkney with Neolithic burials from across the archipelago. We identified signals of inward migration on a scale unsuspected from the archaeological record: As elsewhere in Bronze Age Britain, much of the population displayed significant genome-wide ancestry deriving ultimately from the Pontic-Caspian Steppe. However, uniquely in northern and central Europe, most of the male lineages were inherited from the local Neolithic. This suggests that some male descendants of Neolithic Orkney may have remained distinct well into the Bronze Age, although there are signs that this had dwindled by the Iron Age. Furthermore, although the majority of mitochondrial DNA lineages evidently arrived afresh with the Bronze Age, we also find evidence for continuity in the female line of descent from Mesolithic Britain into the Bronze Age and even to the present day.

Проблемы культурно-хронологической идентификации Усть-Илирского могильника (Южное Приангарье)

The search for the Middle Neolithic burial complexes in Baikal-Yenisei Siberia is one of the most important fields of modern regional research. It is directly related to the problem of the so-called hiatus, which is characterized by the absence of dated burials for several hundred years between the Early and Late Neolithic in the range of ~7–5.5 ka cal BP (or ~6.6–6 ka cal BP to updated data). We see the greatest prospects at this stage of research in identifying the burials of hunter-gatherers who owned the technique of making Ust-Belaya pottery, so the connection of this ceramic type with some burials is already quite clear. This article proposes a new view on the cultural and chronological affiliation of the Ust-Ilir burial ground, which was discovered in 1990 at the mouth of the Ilir River, the left tributary of the Iya River (Southern Angara region). It is distinguished by the originality of the mortuary rite and inventory and stands out against the background of the known Neolithic burial complexes in Baikal-Yenisei Siberia. In the grave, partially destroyed by the Bratsk Reservoir, the remains of three people, fire traces and “ocher” spots (powdered red mineral pigment) were found. During the excavation of the burial, along with various tools, bone needle cases with carved ornaments, pendants from deer teeth, and bone pendants that imitate the latter in shape, unique objects of art were found - miniature bone sculptures with images of waterfowl. In addition, on the beach where the burial was discovered, exhibited finds were collected, including stone and bone tools, as well as fragments of ceramics of the Ust-Belaya type, which most likely belong to this complex. As a result of the analysis of the elements of mortuary rite and inventory of the Ust-Ilir burial ground, its similarity to some Neolithic burials of Krasnoyarsk, the Northern and Southern Angara region, whose cultural and chronological affiliation has not yet been clearly defined, has been established. The closest to Ust-Ilir is the burial complex discovered in 1959 in Krasnoyarsk near the Gremyachii Klyuch stream, in the materials of which there are similar artifacts with images of waterfowl and needle cases with an ornament. We recently obtained a radiocarbon date for this complex from a deer bone sample (from the inventory), which shows its age at 5280±25 BP (6182–5943 cal BP). Given the above facts, the Ust-Ilir burial ground can be synchronous with the Gremyachii Klyuch burial. These complexes, as well as burials close to them from other areas of Baikal-Yenisei Siberia, with a high degree of probability could have belonged to hunter-gatherers who own the Ust-Belaya pottery tradition and inhabited the region in the Middle Neolithic.

Первые радиоуглеродные данные для средненеолитических погребений Южного Приангарья (сообщение)

In the Neolithic studies of the Cis-Baikal, the problem of hiatus (break in mortuary traditions) remains topical. According to the latest data, adjusted for the freshwater reservoir effect, it manifests itself over a period of about 600 years (6660–6060 cal BP). During the implementation of the project “Missing Link: The Problem of Identification of Middle Neolithic Burials on the Territory of Baikal-Yenisei Siberia”, carried out under the guidance of one of the authors, it was proposed to associate with the Middle Neolithic complexes of campsites where Ust-Belaya and Posolskaya ceramics are recorded. In parallel, a search was carried out for burials that could be correlated with this stage. More recently, we have received the first radiocarbon data on two burials from the Southern Angara region. One of them (Ust-Ilir burial ground) was included in the database already at the first stage of the study. The second (from Shumilikha burial ground) was not initially considered as a potential object for dating and was analyzed as an addition to other materials. As a result of radiocarbon dating, two determinations were obtained from fauna samples (fragments of bone tools). It has been established that the age of the Ust-Ilir burial complex with bone pendants with waterfowl images, unique for the Angara region, is within the range of 6275–6012 cal BP (6182±70 mean HPD cal BP). A similar burial (Gremyachii Klyuch) was excavated in 1959 in Krasnoyarsk. Burial No. 44 from Shumilikha is somewhat older and is dated in the range of 6622–6410 cal BP (6508±43 mean HPD cal BP). Thus, the age of this burial complexes falls within the interval of the Middle Neolithic hiatus. Moreover, these data do not require any correction, since they were obtained from samples from the bones of herbivorous mammals. Both burials could have been left by huntergatherers who made Ust-Belaya ceramics, as evidenced by the finds of fragments of this type in the collection of exposed materials from the Ust-Ilir burial ground, as well as the synchronism and territorial proximity of burial No. 44 of the Shumilikha burial ground and complexes of cultural layer 3 of the Ust-Belaya site with fragments of similar vessels. This is the first reliable data on hiatus, the problem of which is likely to lose its relevance in the near future.

Погребальные комплексы Байкало-Енисейской Сибири с неопределенной культурно-хронологической принадлежностью: анализ и корректировка базы данных

To identify the burial complexes of the hiatus period (a break in traditional burial practice), which, considering the latest adjustment, is determined in the Cis-Baikal by the interval of 6660–6060 cal BP, we are implementing the project “Missing Link: The Problem of Identifying Middle Neolithic Burials in the Baikal-Yenisei Siberia”, which aims to address this issue within the territorial framework of the entire region. In less than three years, it was possible to collect and process data on a large series of burials, whose cultural and chronological affiliation raised questions. As a result, a database was created, which at the first stage consisted of 107 complexes, then was reduced to 57. Over the past year, new data have been obtained that make it possible to refine the database. There were also changes in the content of the database: some burial complexes were excluded, while others were added to it. Some inaccuracies made at the previous stage of the study have also been corrected. In addition, for the first time, we rank objects according to their likelihood of belonging to the Middle Neolithic (hiatus) based on reliable radiocarbon dates and comparative analysis. The revised database includes burial complexes from four locations of Baikal-Yenisei Siberia: the Kansk-Yenisei region, Northern Angara region, Southern Angara region, and Upper Lena. Now it contains information about 49 complexes of Baikal-Yenisei Siberia, which are divided into five groups. It was established that 9 burials (groups 1 and 2) can be associated with the hiatus period, and in 6 cases reliable confirmations in the form of correct AMS-dates have already been received. Burials from groups 3 and 4 have a high potential for filling the hiatus after correcting the available radiocarbon data and obtaining an additional series of determinations. The complexes of group 5 have the lowest degree of probability of belonging to the Middle Neolithic. We also note that when filling the hiatus, one should not strive to be limited to the period of 6660–6060 cal BP, since these frameworks of the Middle Neolithic indicated only the absence of known burials in the territory of the Cis-Baikal at that time. The Middle Neolithic is actually a more complex phenomenon, associated with the development of Baikal-Yenisei Siberia by new groups of hunter-gatherers who came from the west a little earlier, probably about 7000 cal BP. The exodus of this population also did not occur instantly, and the upper boundary of the Middle Neolithic requires clarification.

ПОСЕЛЕНИЕ ЧИЛИМКА V И ЕГО МЕСТО В НЕОЛИТЕ ТАЕЖНОЙ ЗОНЫ ЗАПАДНОЙ СИБИРИ

Settlements with a similar material culture dominated in the West Siberian taiga zone in the 6th and 5th millennia BC. They are characterized by pottery with rounded bottoms, thin walls and incised ornamentation. In the upper and middle Konda River area and in the basin of the Severnaya Sosva River such pottery is identified as belonging to the Umyt’insky and Chestyjyagsky cultural type, respectively, in the mid-Ob region it relates to the Bystrinsky archaeological culture. The Chilimka V settlement is situated in the lower section of the Konda River basin, on the border of the Bystrinsky and Umyt’insky areas. It was investigated by I. G. Glushkov in 1988. The Chilimka V complex characterized by pottery with rounded bottoms, thin walls and incised ornamentation was defined as a “Chilimkinsky ceramic type”. The genesis of this type, according to I. G. Glushkov and T. N. Sobolnikova, is connected with migrations of Kelterminar population to the taiga zone in the 3rd millennium BC. The fundamental question of the definition of the “Chilimkinsky ceramic type”, which arose during the development of the modern cultural and chronological scheme of the Neolithic, required to re-examine the materials of the excavations. We have established that the site is multi-layered. The Neolithic dwelling was penetrated by several late Neolithic burials. In addition, some shards of the Bronze Age were discovered. The analysis of Neolithic ceramics demonstrates its objective similarity to both Umyt’insky type and Bystrinsky culture. Based on this, it is suggested to combine the settlements of these types into one cultural-chronological horizon of the taiga Neolithic of the north of Western Siberia.

Relationships between sepulchral caves and dolmens during the Neolithic in the Western Pyrenees (France)—abridged version

This contribution aims to evaluate the state of our knowledge about Neolithic burials in natural cavities and in stone-built monuments within a geographic area limited to the southern part of the Adour river basin. Particular emphasis was placed on shared concepts of funerary spaces and sanctuaries. This research is mainly based on the excavations and studies carried out over the last 30 years and within the ongoing collective research project dedicated to the investigation of dolmen features and territories in the north-western Pyrenees (PCR “Structures dolméniques et territoires dans les Pyrénées nord-occidentales”). Data from the Early Neolithic period are scarce. Documentation relating to the Middle and Late/Final Neolithic shows that the practices are linked to modalities observed more widely within an Atlantic tradition, but that they were also influenced by traditions in the eastern part of the Pyrenean chain, particularly during the Late/Final Neolithic. Two features turned out to be significant: burial mounds – built as early as the Middle Neolithic period, including or not including megalithic architecture, were real territorial markers still erected in the Bronze Age but also reused up to Antiquity; and, less monumental, sepulchral caves – used and sometimes re-used several decades or centuries later by the same community.

Results of Radiocarbon Dating of Early Burials in the Firsovo Archaeological Area, Barnaul Stretch of the Ob

An especially noteworthy part of the Firsovo archaeological area is a group of early burials at the fl at-grave cemeteries Novoaltaisk-Razvilka, Firsovo XI, and Firsovo XIV. Nine radiocarbon dates have been generated for those cemeteries at various laboratories: two by the liquid-scintillation (LSC) method and seven using the accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) method. The dates were calibrated using OxCal version 3.10 software. Dates for the Chalcolithic Bolshoy Mys culture burials at Novoaltaisk-Razvilka and Tuzovskiye Bugry-1 burial 7 match the previously suggested ones (around 3000 BC). Certain Neolithic burials in the Altai differ from others in the position of the bodies (fl exed on the side). They were dated to the late 5th to the early 4th millennia BC by the AMS method. Burials belonging to the “cultural core” of Firsovo XI, then, fall within the Early Neolithic (68 % interval, 5710–5460 BC; 95 % interval, 5740–5360 BC). The date 9106 ± 80 BP (GV-02889), obtained for Firsovo XI burial 18, may be somewhat accurate, pointing to the Final Mesolithic or Early Neolithic. Both the date and the cultural characteristics of this burial (sitting position, abundant ocher) are accompanied by the craniometric distinctness of the male cranium (huge total size).

On the relative and absolute chronology of early burials at the Firsovo-XI burial ground (Barnaul Ob River region)

The present work addresses the issues of the absolute and relative chronology of early burials at the Firsovo-XI burial ground on the right bank of the Upper Ob River. Description of four burials of the site and results of their AMS 14C dating are reported, alongside with the cultural and chronological analogies among the contem-poraneous monuments of Altai. Eight burial places were discovered at Firsovo-XI, including five single graves, two double graves and one collective burial. The burials were arranged in two rows in the direction from northwest to southeast. The deceased were oriented with their heads to the north and northeast. The research concluded that the burials which form the cultural “core” of the Firsovo-XI burial place (burial grounds nos. 14, 15 and 42) belong to the Early Neolithic period, and their radiocarbon age is determined by the middle of the 5th millennium BC, while their calendar age fits into a very narrow interval of several decades or several centuries (a one-sigma interval of 5710–5460 cal BC and a two-sigma interval of 5740–5360 cal BC). The Neolithic burials of Firsovo-XI constitute a single chronological group with burials nos.1 and 13 of the Bolshoi Mys burial ground. It stands to reason that this group may grow in size over time, as the work on AMS 14C dating of early necropolises and single burials of the Upper Ob region expands. At this stage of research, the problem of identifying cultural and chrono-logical markers for the selected group of burials remains urgent. Within the framework of this study, it has been suggested that the ornaments made from the teeth of a bear and a horse (?), or an onager (?), take the role of such markers. It cannot be ruled out that with the appearance of new data such markers may include the orna-ments made from wolf teeth and double-sided polished knives with a concave blade. As a working hypothesis, it has been suggested that the date obtained for the cemetery no. 18 of Firsovo-XI (GV-02889 9106±80 BP) was not accidental and that this burial actually belongs to the final Mesolithic or early Neolithic period. The chronologi-cal and ritual specifics of this burial are also emphasized by the craniological specificity of the buried male, and by the large total size of the skull, which distinguishes him from the rest of those buried at the burial ground.

REVENIA-KORINOS: ONE OF THE EARLIEST NEOLITHIC SETTLEMENTS IN NORTH GREECE AS EVIDENCED BY RADIOCARBON DATING

ABSTRACTRadiocarbon (14C) dating was applied to the Neolithic open-air, flat-extended settlement at Revenia-Korinos in Pieria, North Greece. The samples came from the earlier habitation period of the settlement, characterized by more than 100 pits that vary significantly in shape and dimensions, some of them being identified as subterranean or semi-subterranean pit dwellings. It is suggested that the fills of the pits were the result of secondary, structured refuse deposition, except for pits that preserve their habitational use, according to stratigraphic data. The 14C results confirm that Revenia is among the earliest Neolithic settlements in North Greece and the Aegean in general. The initial phase of habitation is dated at around 6600/6550 BC comparable only to two other EN sites in North Greece. Habitation intensified at around 6460/6430 BC, accompanied by a shift in pottery style. This phase lasts until 6200/6100 BC when the pit habitation mode is followed by above-ground, rectangular post-framed structures. The dates of the human burials from Revenia also identify them as among the earliest Neolithic burials in Greece. Finally, the radiocarbon dates proved very useful for sequencing the chronological use of the pits and the excavated area in general.

Comparing maxillary first molar crown shape using elliptical Fourier analysis in the Late Neolithic cave burials of Belgium

The Belgian Meuse karstic basin holds more than 200 Late Neolithic collective burials. Four of the largest include Hastière Caverne M, Hastière Trou Garçon C, Sclaigneaux and Bois Madame. The remains from these caves are commingled and fragmentary. However, in situ maxillary molars are well preserved permitting an investigation of molar crown shape within and across sites. Crown outlines from the burials are compared using elliptical Fourier analysis to capture shape distinctions in the relatively numerous first maxillary molars (n = 27). Elliptical Fourier analysis is designed to compare deviations between each shape outline and an idealized ellipse, recorded as amplitudes of the harmonics which are reduced to principal components (PC) scores. We expect individuals from each site will be more similar to one another than to other internments in PC scores, and that the sites will be distributed along PC axes according to differences in chronology and geographic location. Principal components analysis reveals that individuals tend to cluster together based on cave burial as well as time period. Geographic distance only differentiates the final/late Neolithic cave burials. The earliest of the sites, Hastière Caverne M, is distinctive and includes multiple outliers. Hastière Trou Garçon C from earlier in the Late Neolithic does not cluster with Hastière Caverne M as expected. Instead, this cave burial groups with Sclaigneaux, the most geographically distant site but chronologically the closest to Hastière Trou Garçon C. Although the limited sample sizes for each site must be considered, it appears that early farmers of the Belgian Meuse basin exhibited intricate human population dynamics which may have included small, semi-isolated groups early in the Late Neolithic and larger communities with greater contact toward the onset of the northern European Bronze Age.