Neolithic Diversities : Perspectives from a conference in Lund, Sweden
Brink, Kristian; Hydén, Susan; Jennbert, Kristina; Larsson, Lars; Olausson, Deborah
2015
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Citation for published version (APA): Brink, K., Hydén, S., Jennbert, K., Larsson, L., & Olausson, D. (Eds.) (2015). Neolithic Diversities : Perspectives from a conference in Lund, Sweden. (Acta Archaeologica Lundensia. Series in 8°; Vol. 65). Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, Lund University.
Total number of authors: 5
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LUND UNIVERSITY
PO Box 117 221 00 Lund +46 46-222 00 00 Lund, Sweden Lund, a conference in a conference in Perspectives from from Perspectives NEOLITHIC Edited by Kristian Brink Susan Hydén Kristina Jennbert Lars Larsson Deborah Olausson DIVERSITIES
NEOLITHIC DIVERSITIES Lund University ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA LUNDENSIA ACTA tion of agriculture were crucial fac- crucial were agriculture of tion of tors for the continued existence humankind on earth. to grow plants and domesticate animals. The rise and dissemina- passages from one human state to state to one human passages from a global perspective, From another. of the last feature the characteristic years is that people ten thousand and world, the of parts erent diff in points in erent time, started at diff In the study of the distant human distant human study of the In the and periods events past, certain decisive represent to come have ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA LUNDENSIA SERIES IN °, No. e members of the conference “What’s New in the Neolithic”, May . Photo by Kristina Jennbert. ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA LUNDENSIA SERIES IN °, No.
Neolithic Diversities Perspectives from a conference in Lund, Sweden
Editors: Kristian Brink, Susan Hydén, Kristina Jennbert, Lars Larsson & Deborah Olausson Published with grants from e Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities and Stiftelsen Elisabeth Rausings minnesfond.
Cover photo: e dolmen at Hofterup, western Scania. Photo by Kristina Jennbert
© Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, and the authors Layout: Stilbildarna i Mölle/Frederic Täckström Printed by: Elanders Fälth & Hässler, Värnamo Distribution: HT-skriftserier, www.ht.lu.se/skriftserier. Email: [email protected] ISBN -- - - ISSN - Contents
Preface
. , Paleodemography of maritime hunter-gatherers and the quest for forager baseline demography Torbjörn Ahlström Neolithic depositional practices at Dösemarken – a discussion of categorization Åsa Berggren New insights into early farming practice and diet from stable isotope analysis of crop assemblages Amy Bogaard Growth and decline? Population dynamics of Funnel Beaker societies in the th millennium BC Martin Hinz e cultural encounters of neolithization processes A discussion of dierent ways to understand plurality Anders Högberg Creolization processes in the later south Scandinavian Neolithic An approach to cultural heterogeneity Rune Iversen Cultural identity? e Middle Neolithic Pitted Ware complex in southern Scandinavia Kristina Jennbert Agency, creolization and the transformation of tradition in the constitution of the earliest Neolithic in southern Scandinavia Mats Larsson Animal husbandry and social identities during the Neolithic in southern Sweden Ola Magnell e Neolithic house as a procurement, production and consumption unit e case of the Late Neolithic at Çatalhöyük Arkadiusz Marciniak Burial in the Swedish-Norwegian Battle Axe Culture: questioning the myth of homogeneity Deborah Olausson A tale of the tall A short report on stature in Late Neolithic–Early Bronze Age southern Scandinavia Anna Tornberg . Frydenlund – Early Neolithic settlement and “barkaer” structures in the Sarup area Niels H. Andersen Megaliths and timber structures in northeast Scania, Sweden Anders Edring e Hamremoen enclosure in southeastern Norway An exotic glimpse into the process of Neolithization Håkon Glørstad and Steinar Solheim Occupy time! e construction of design and monuments in Tiefstich central Europe Johannes Müller Transforming place and architecture through cremation Cremation traditions at the third millennium BC monument complex at Forteviot, central Scotland Gordon Noble and Kenneth Brophy e proper way of dwelling at the Early Neolithic gathering site of Almhov in Scania, Sweden Elisabeth Rudebeck and Stella Macheridis e diversity of settings Ritual and social aspects of tradition and innovation in megalithic landscapes Almut Schülke News from Frälsegården Aspects of Neolithic burial practices Karl-Göran Sjögren . An ABC of lithic arrowheads A case study from southeastern France Kevan Edinborough, Enrico R. Crema, Tim Kerig and Stephen Shennan e scent of sandstone – exploring a TRB material Susan Hydén Fragmentation during the Neolithic Transformation and enchainment from a south Swedish perspective Lars Larsson Michelsberg and Oxie in contact next to the Baltic Sea Doris Mischka, Georg Roth and Katrin Struckmeyer Preface
In the study of the distant human past, cer- tional conference in Lund in May entitled tain events and periods have come to repre- “What’s New in the Neolithic”. Invitations to sent decisive passages from one human state this conference were sent to two dozen prom- to another. From a global perspective, the inent Neolithic scholars from northern and characteristic feature of the last ten thousand central Europe. years is that people in dierent parts of the e conference was a great success, with world, and at dierent points in time, started presentations and discussions of dierent to grow plants and domesticate animals. e aspects of innovative research on the Neo- rise and dissemination of agriculture were lithic. e members of the Neolithic group crucial factors for the continued existence of took an active part in the discussions following humankind on earth. e incipient agricul- the presentations. ture is often regarded as the very beginning It was decided before the conference that the of human culture, as it has traditionally been papers would be published. e members of perceived in western historiography, that is, the Neolithic group also had the opportunity to as control over nature and the “cultivation” contribute current research to this publication. of intellectual abilities. After the conference an editorial group As a result of the increasing national and was set up, consisting of Dr Kristian Brink, international interest in the northern Europe- PhD student Susan Hydén, Professor Kristina an Neolithic (– BC), combined with Jenn bert, Professor Lars Larsson and Professor large-scale archaeological excavations which Deborah Olausson. helped to nuance and modify the picture of A grant was received from Riksbankens Jubi- the period, senior researchers and research stu- leumsfond for the meetings and excursions of dents formed a Neolithic group in . e the Neolithic group –. We would Department of Archaeology and Ancient His- like to thank e Royal Swedish Academy tory at Lund University served as the base, but of Letters, History and Antiquities and Berit the group also included collaborators from Wallenbergs Stiftelse for grants which enabled Linnaeus University and Södertörn University, us to hold the conference “What’s New in the and from the Southern Contract Archaeolo- Neolithic”. Grants from e Royal Swedish gy Division of the National Heritage Board Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities, in Lund and Sydsvensk Arkeologi in Malmö and Stiftelsen Elisabeth Rausings Minnesfond and Kristianstad. nanced the layout and printing of this pub- Meetings and excursions in the following lication. two years resulted in the holding of an interna-
. ,
Paleodemography of maritime hunter- gatherers and the quest for forager baseline demography Torbjörn Ahlström
Abstract Burger et al. () used the average statistics computed from ve contemporary groups of foragers, and designated this as baseline demography for the original hunter-gatherer lifeway. is average for- ager model (AFM) was compared to a paleodemographical analysis of two Scandinavian archaeological samples, Skateholm and Västerbjers. e salient dierence between the archaeological samples and the AFM is that the latter implies a substantial juvenile mortality, reducing a cohort by at the age of years. e corresponding gure is for Skateholm and for Västerbjers. It is argued, based on the dynamics of infectious diseases, that the relatively higher mortality among the recent foragers is a func- tion of these groups living in the vicinity of much larger populations. us, the baseline AFM is in fact modern, and not relevant in an archaeological context.
Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, LUX, Lund University, Box , SE- Lund, Sweden. [email protected]
Introduction this contrast also entail a dierent demogra- of human evolution phy? According to a recently published paper is the prolongation of the lifespan. Humans by Burger et al. (), it does. have experienced a signicant shift in age-spe- Burger et al. () portray forager demog- cic mortalities, shifting from relatively high raphy based on mortality proles from ve age-specic mortalities in early life (< years), to ethnographically observed hunter-gatherer relatively high age-specic mortalities in late life populations collected by Gurven & Kaplan (> years). As a corollary to this, life expectancy (). For Burger et al. (), the aver- has risen, for example, to . years among mod- age statistics computed from these popula- ern Swedish females (Statistics Sweden ). tions serve as a baseline for the original hunt- Co-varying with this shift is the transition from er-gatherer lifeway, thus facilitating a number mortality due to infectious diseases, to mortality of thought-provoking comparisons. According caused by chronic diseases, such as cancer and to Burger et al. (), a -year-old hunt- cardiovascular disease (Jones , p. ). For er-gatherer has the same probability of death much of the time that our species has existed, as a contemporary person from Japan at however, it has existed as hunter-gatherers or years. At age , a forager has a . percent foragers, a lifeway based on shing, hunting probability of dying in the next year. Modern and collecting. e contrast between the forag- Swedes experience the same probabilities much ing lifeway and a lifeway based on a Neolithic later, at age . e dierence between mod- economy may be construed as stark, but does ern Japan and Sweden and the contemporary
- Fig. . Map with the loca- tion of the sites mentioned in the text.
hunter-gatherers is accordingly of such a magnitude that the demography of hunter-gather- ers has more in common with wild chimpanzees than mod- ern populations. e question addressed in this paper is how well this pro- posed baseline ts the mor- tality pattern encountered in prehistoric populations. e alternative comprises graves, and charcoal and collagen source for demographic data on hunter-gath- dates from four graves range between and erers is provided by skeletal remains from pre- BC (Ertebølle culture). Skateholm II is historic cemeteries. In this paper, I present a smaller with graves and dated to the Late paleo demographical analysis of two maritime Kongemose-early Ertebølle culture, but with hunter -gatherer populations, from the Mes- no radiocarbon dates on the bones (Larsson olithic cemeteries at Skateholm, Scania, and , ). ere are skeletal remains of the Middle Neolithic cemetery at Västerbjers, individuals from Skateholm, but the decay is Gotland. A transition analysis (Boldsen et al. advanced. In all, adult individuals were so ) was used to age the skeletons. e mor- well preserved that transition analysis could tality data thus generated were summarized in be applied. To this we add juveniles aged terms of Siler models (Siler , ), com- by traditional osteological methods. e total patible with the analysis presented by Gurven sample size from Skateholm is . However, & Kaplan (). e results generated was this sample is likely to increase somewhat in the compared to mortality data of nomadic Saami future as skeletons currently in museums are populations from northern Sweden (Wahlund, made available for osteological analysis in con- ), as well as the populations used by Gur- nection with refurbishments of the exhibitions. ven & Kaplan (). Specically, how do these e Västerbjers site is situated some archaeologically derived populations concur metres north of the farmstead with the same with the proposed baseline for the original name, on a gravel-knoll protruding towards hunter-gatherer, or foraging, lifeway? an adjacent creek, Gothemsån. e site was excavated in the thirties and forties, under the supervision of Mårten Stenberger (Stenberger Material and method ), with some later additions (cf. Janzon Both Skateholm and Västerbjers (Fig. ) have ). Recent dating suggests that the Västerbjers been published elsewhere, so the presentation cemetery was in use to BC (Eriks- of the sites will be brief. e grave elds and son ). Apart from the refuse layer from a settlements Skateholm I and II were investigat- dwelling site, a grave eld was unearthed. e ed by Lars Larsson in – . Skateholm I full extent of this grave eld has yet to be fully
Fig. . Components of the Siler model. demarcated, but it is reasonable to believe the majority of the graves have been uncovered. e sample comprises individuals, with skeletons aged by transition analysis and juveniles aged by traditional osteological methods. e preservation of bone at Väs- terbjers is better than Skateholm, due to the limestone bedrock. In a paper that predicted the demise of paleodemography, Boquet-Appel & holm and Västerbjers was modelled by a Siler Masset ( ) drew attention to the way the competing hazard model (Siler , ; age distribution of an archaeological (or target) Wood et al. ). It is referred to as competing, population mimicked the age distribution of or additive, as human mortality may be broken the reference sample. e goal might have been down into three components. e rst compo- to capture the demography of past populations, nent (immature) captures the initially high, but but the result was just a reection of the con- declining mortality associated with neonatal/ temporary reference population. e ensuing infant mortality and early childhood mortality. debate revitalized the eld and it has re-emerged e second component (residual) represents a very much aware of its biases (Hoppa & Vau- constant mortality hazard across the life span. pel ). One major development was the is component measures constant attrition and understanding that ageing itself necessitates that is age-independent. In general, this component the age indications be weighted by mortality embraces causes of death not related to growth prole reecting natural mortality, not strat- and maturation as well as senescence, such as egies reecting how the reference sample was accidents, violence, starvation and environmen- collected (Wood, et al. ; cf. Ahlström & tal causes. e last component is the senescent Sjögren ). Transition analysis (Boldsen, et component, depicting the increasing risk of al. , cf. Milner ) is an ageing method death with advanced age. e components of that also accomplishes this. Based on nineteen the Siler model will be described with reference characters, involving the pubic symphysis, iliac to the baseline forager model (Fig. ). auricular surface, and suture synostosis, and a In order to describe human mortality across model of mortality that is derived from histor- the life span, we need ve parameters. e rst ic times in Denmark, transition analysis uses two describe the immature component, where Bayes theorem to obtain the highest posterior α describes the initial neonate mortality rate, point estimate of age for each skeleton. Juvenile and β describes the rate of mortality decline. skeletons were aged with respect to epiphyseal e parameter α describes age-independ- closure and dental development and eruption ent mortality (residual). Finally, the parameter (Schaefer, Black & Scheuer ). α is the initial adult mortality rate, and β e distribution of age at death from Skate- describes the rate of mortality increase. When
- Fig. . Survivorship functions for Västerbjers and Skateholm (Red) and reference populations. AFM (Blue).
for Västerbjers. us, survival is apparently somewhat higher at Västerbjers than at Skateholm. Gurven & Kaplan () collected data from ve con- temporary groups of foragers, namely the Dobe !Kung (How- ell ; see also Howell ), Ache (Hill & Hurtado ), Agta (Early & Headland ), combined they portray the senescent mortality. Hadza (Blurton Jones et al. , see also Mar- Summing all three components results in the lowe ), and Hiwi (Hill et al. ), which hazard function, a function that describes the encompass, in all, data on individuals risk of death at dierent ages. e Siler model and deaths. e Saami mortality data are was tted to the Västerbjers and Skateholm based on recorded deaths ( females data using a maximum likelihood procedure. and males) among the Saami in the north- ern parts of Sweden, from to AD (Wahlund ). ere is marked dierence Results between Skateholm and Västerbjers on one e results of the paleodemographical analysis hand, and the comparative populations, on of Skateholm and Västerbjers are presented in the other (Fig. ). e initial neonate mortality Fig. (survival function) and Table (param- rate (α) is considerably smaller for Skateholm eters of the Siler models). e survivorship and Västerbjers. In comparison with the aver- curve depicts the number or proportion of age forager model (AFM) (Table , Fig. ), the individuals surviving at each age. It may be ratio of mortality risk suggests that the neonate visualized as a number of individuals (say , mortality risk is seven times higher among the or a cohort) that are reduced by mortality as recent foragers compared with the archaeolog- age progresses. e survivorship curves from ical examples (Västerbjers). Another marked Skateholm and Västerbjers resemble the type contrast between the AFM and the archae- II survivorship curve, characterized by mor- ological populations is the magnitude of the tality rates that persistently reduce the popu- residual (α): Skateholm displays the highest lation regardless of age. ere is some variabil- age-independent mortality (.), comparable ity among the two archaeological groups. e to that of wild chimpanzees (. ). Following mean age at death (average life expectancy at Hiwi (.), Västerbjers (.) is also associ- birth [e]) is years for Västerbjers and ated with an age-independent mortality slightly years for Skateholm. e proportion surviving larger than the AFM (.). is suggests for to age is for Skateholm and for the archaeological populations, apart from a Västerbjers. At age , the corresponding gure relatively smaller immature component, that for Skateholm is for Skateholm and they are associated with relatively larger resid-
Fig. . Comparison between the Average Forager Model (blue) and Västerbjers (red). e dierences are expressed as a ratio of mortality risks plot (left). ual components, implying a constant attrition ized if we simulate , deaths given the two through the lifespan. Siler models. We will specically look into the e last result to be communicated is an distribution of deaths of juveniles (< years) independent test of the two models with respect and infants (< year). e simulation result to another Pitted Ware culture cemetery from for the AFM suggest that . of the deaths Gotland, namely Ajvide. is site is dated to would involve infants, and in all, . of the – BC, and contemporary with Väs- death assemblage would comprise individuals terbjers (Molnar ). We could address this aged below years (infants and juveniles) (Fig. problem the other way around, by asking how A). e corresponding gures for the model the distributions of deaths would be character- derived from Västerbjers is . for infants and
Table . Siler models with parameters from a set of archaeological populations (Västerbjers and Skate- holm), church records (Saami), ethnographic recordings (Hadza, Ache, Hiwi, Dobe !Kung, Agta and the average among the ve populations), and wild chimpanzees (Gurven and Kaplan, ). Population Parameters of the model Mean age
at death (e0) α1 β1 α2 α3 β3 Västerbjers 0.045 1.425 0.017 5.40E-09 0.022 42 Skateholm 0.035 4.420 0.024 3.16E-22 0.062 35 Saami, females 0.447 0.956 0.014 1.73E-06 0.142 29 Saami, males 0.449 0.799 3.625E-08 6.148E-03 0.032 28 Hadza1 0.351 0.895 0.011 6.70E-06 0.125 34 Ache forest1 0.157 0.721 0.013 4.80E-05 0.103 37 Hiwi1 0.458 1.390 0.020 6.32E-09 0.251 27 Dobe !Kung1 0.340 0.913 0.010 3.31E-04 0.077 36 Agta1 0.961 1.506 N/A 7.57E-03 0.040 21 Average forager1 0.422 1.131 0.013 1.47E-04 0.086 Wild chimpanzee1 0.248 0.608 0.028 7.53E-03 0.063 13 = parameters from Gurven & Kaplan ().
- Fig. . Simulation of death assemblag- es given dierent models of mortal- ity. A. Average For- ager Model, B. Väs- terbjers.
for juveniles and infants (Fig. B). Now, ly clear with respect to the ageing of adults in we may contrast these ndings with Ajvide. Skateholm. Compared with previous analysis Molnar ( ) lists the ages of skeletons, of the Skateholm skeletons (Persson & Persson and () of the specimens were aged as , ; Alexandersen ), the new esti- juveniles and infants (< years), and () mates based on transition analysis signicantly as infants. us, the death assemblage from increase the number of older individuals. Let us Ajvide ts the Siler model from Västerbjers well, turn now to the supposed under-enumeration of but AFM does not capture the dynamics we juveniles, and the golden rule that of a skel- see in the forager populations from sub-boreal etal sample should comprise non-adults (Lewis Gotland, neither at Västerbjers nor at Ajvide. ). Even though this is based on mortality regimes persistent in preindustrial populations (Schoeld & Wrigley ; cf. Weiss ; Discussion Coale & Demeny ), and not relevant in this e results presented above indicate substantial context, it has fuelled speculations regarding the dierences in the archaeological record com- missing children in archaeological death assem- pared with the AFM as proposed by Burger et blages involving specialized mortuary behaviours al. (). It is important to discuss the possible not associated with the rest of the population. causes of this dierence. e traditional tactic It should be acknowledged that bones from would be to highlight the under-enumeration of immature individuals do not survive to the same juveniles in the archaeological material, as well extent as bones from adults, as immature bones as the problems associated with the ageing of the are not as mineralized. In acidic environments, older adults. However, the latter was eectively bones from infants and children may not per- addressed by the development of Bayesian ageing sist (Gordon & Buikstra ; Walker, Johnson techniques (discussed above). is is especial- & Lambert ). However, as the bedrock of
Gotland consists of limestone, and we do in fact identify infants and children both from Väster- bjers and Ajvide, taphonomy is not critical in this context. Rather than accepting the golden rule uncritically, we should ask why we have non- >300,000 adult mortality in the rst place. is endeavour will eventually develop into the argument that the proposed AFM basically re ects a modern <1,000 demography, and is not appropriate as a model for prehistoric foragers. e health and survival of children represents >300,000 >300,000 an important characteristic of the well-being and tness of a human population, as childhood embodies the most sensitive period of the humanA life history. Ahlström () demonstrated with respect to historical life-tables from Sweden, that survival below the age of has a substantial e ect on the dynamics of human populations, which supersedes that of fertility. Causes of death <1,000 among infants can be subdivided into endog- enous, neonatal causes (congenital anomalies, prematurity, low birth weight, infectious diseases, <1,000 and birth trauma) and exogenous, post-neona- tal causes (starvation, infectious diseases, acci- dents, etc.) (Lewis ). In , of all <1,000 <1,000 deaths involving children younger than years were attributed to infectious diseases (Black et Fig. . Critical community size. A. Small popula- al. ). Infectious diseases can be character-B tion encircled by much larger populations and a ized as density-dependent (transmissible diseases constant reintroduction of infectious diseases. B. such as measles) or frequency-dependent (sexu- Sparsely populated landscape with small popula- ally transmitted diseases, tetanus). Whereas the tions with no epidemics. former follow a dynamical pattern, the latter are a function of the individual’s exposure to risk. Hiwi from Columbia and Venezuela. Hill and Transmissible diseases follow a dynamical pat- Hurtado ( ) list cause of death for the Ache tern involving a pathogen, a population, and a during the forest period as well as the reservation number of susceptible individuals. Let us revisit period ( –). During the forest period, the ethnographic populations collected by Gur- the data embrace reported deaths, ( ) ven & Kaplan () and illuminate the load of of which involve juveniles (< years). For the infections experienced by these populations. It age group – years, the dominating cause of should be emphasized that identifying the cause death in this sample was violence ( .) fol- of death is not an easy task, especially working lowed by illness (. ). e category of illness with ethnographic evidence. embraces infections sensu lato with gastrointes- ere are two South American populations tinal diseases (.) and respiratory diseases in the sample, the Ache from Paraguay and the (. ), among others. For the older children
- (– years), the causes of death are dominated () concludes that – of the deaths by violence (. ), illness ( .) and acci- among the !Kung from the Dobe region are dents (.). During the reservation period, attributed to infectious disease, far outnum- the spectrum of cause of death changed radical- bering other causes of death such as predators, ly. Hill and Hurtado ( ) list deaths, of violence, degenerative diseases, accidents etc. which aected juveniles. Illness dominates She estimates that of female juveniles (– ( .) with respiratory diseases constituting years) and of male juveniles will succumb . of the cases. Gastrointestinal diseases to infections. Marlowe (, p. ) states account for ., followed by other illness regarding the Hadza, that infant (< year) (.). e latter category includes malaria, mortality is , and including the juveniles tetanus, systemic infection, malnutrition and (< years), the mortality rises to . e leukaemia. Hill et al. () studied death caus- high infant mortality is due to respiratory and es among the Hiwi. Disease included infectious diarrhoeal infections. At later ages children will disease, such as respiratory infection, skin infec- succumb to occasional outbreaks of epidem- tion, microbial-caused blindness, tetanus, meas- ics, such as measles. Other infections include les, systemic infection, diarrhoea and vomiting, malaria. e causes of death among the Agta gastrointestinal infections, malaria, fever and from the Philippines is described by Early & headache, general lethargy, and miscellaneous Headland ( ). It is for this group we nd “illness”. e distribution of deaths among the the shortest average life expectancy at birth [e], precontact Hiwi infants (< year) is dominated namely years (Table ). It should also be by violence ( .), infectious disease ( . ), noted that the Agta transitioned from foragers and congenital infant deaths ( . ). For the to agriculturalists in the time span covered by older juveniles (– years), the distribution of the Early & Headland ( ) study. Infectious deaths involves infectious disease ( ), acci- disease comprising measles, diarrhoea, pneumo- dents ( ), violence () and congenital nia, malaria and tuberculosis constitutes causes (). Following the postcontact period, of the known causes of deaths. Extrapolating infectious disease is referred to as the cause of this to the sample of unknown deaths, it is death among of the infants and of assumed by the authors that infections may have the older children. caused of the mortality among the Agtas. e two African populations are the Dobe For all ethnographic groups discussed above, !Kung in Botswana and the Hadza in Tanzania. infectious disease is a signicant contributory Data on cause of death have been collected for cause of death, although the eect of the specic the Dobe !Kung by Howell (). e Dobe infectious diseases cannot always be discerned. area was apparently spared from epidemics that An important concept from epidemiology ravaged in other regions where !Kung were rep- is critical community size, dened as the mini- resented, such as a smallpox outbreak in the mum size of a closed population within which mid- s. Tuberculosis is common among a human-to-human, non-zoonotic pathogen the Dobe !Kung and was probably a common can persist indenitely (Bartlett ). If the cause of death among adults and older juve- size of an infected population falls below this niles. Other respiratory diseases (pneumonia, threshold, the relatively lower density of sus- bronchitis) cannot be ruled out, however. Inu- ceptible individuals will result in the extinc- enza and cold are other infections documented tion of the pathogen, the disease will fade out. among them, as well as venereal diseases and However, if the population is living adjacent to parasites such as malaria and bilharzia. Howell large populations with sizes above the critical
community size, the pathogen could be reintro- groups in a sparsely populated environment. duced. Bartlett ( ) indicated, with respect to High juvenile mortality is intrinsically linked to measles, that the threshold would correspond to high fertility, and the results can be interpreted ,–, individuals. For populations to mean that fertility was relatively low, at least not larger than , to , individuals, lower than the total fertility rate of . attrib- the fade-out probability approximates unity uted to the Ache (cf. Pennington ). Apart () (Bolker & Grenfell ). As a corollary from juvenile mortality, one salient feature of to this, small groups of foragers cannot sustain this research that necessitates further analysis density-dependent infections whether not liv- is the strong residual component demonstrat- ing adjacent to much larger populations. ere ed for Skateholm. is population experienc- are good reasons to question whether these es mortality rates that persistently reduce the ethnographic populations discussed above are population regardless of age more strongly than appropriate sources for demographic data in an any other of the populations. archaeological setting, as the load of infections experienced by these populations demonstrates that they are aected by the presence of large Acknowledgement populations in the vicinity. As they are aected Research for this paper has been supported by by density-dependent infectious diseases, the a grant from Åke Wiberg’s Foundation. demography experienced is in fact, modern. e AFM fails to account for the marcroeco- logy of infections; it does not connect to rele- References vant population processes with respect to the Ahlström T. . Life-History eory, Past Human geographical distributions of archaeological Populations and Climatic Perturbations. International Journal of Osteoarchaeology . foragers. Whereas the ethnographic popula- Ahlström, T. & Sjögren, K-G. . Kvinnan från tions, albeit living in small groups, are sur- Österöd: Ett tidigmesolitiskt skelett från Bohuslän. rounded by larger groups that may facilitate In Situ / . the spread of density-dependent infections Alexandersen, V. . Description of the human den- titions from the late Mesolithic Grave-Fields at Skate- (Fig. A), the sparsely populated landscapes in holm, Southern Sweden. In Larsson, L. (ed.), e Skate- much of Holocene Europe probably did not holm project , Man and environment: interdisciplinary have this capacity (Fig. B). Mortality due to studies. Stockholm. density-dependent infectious diseases may have Bartlett, M. S. . e critical community size for been lower among the juveniles. measles in the United States. Journal of the Royal Sta- tistical Society, Ser A. e endeavour to portray forager demogra- Black, R. E., Cousens, S., Johnson, H. L., Lawn, J. E., phy, whether in the plural or the singular, is an Rudan, I., Bassani, D. G., Jha, P., Campbell, H., Walk- important task. To accomplish this, we have to er, C. F., Cibulskis, R., Eisele, T., Liu, L., Mathers, C., rely on the archaeological record and especially Child Health Epidemiology Reference Group of WHO skeletons. Modern ethnographic populations are and UNICEF. . Global, regional, and national causes of child mortality in : a systematic analy- not relics of past foragers (cf. Wobst ), and sis. e Lancet . the demography they expose may lead us astray Blurton Jones, N. G., Hawkes, K. & O’Connell, J. . if we aspire to research whether, for instance, e antiquity of postreproductive life: Are there modern the shift to a Neolithic economy had any root impacts on hunter-gatherer postreproductive lifespans? Human Biology . in an increase of well-being. e results pre- Boldsen , J. L. , Milner , G. R. , Konigsberg , L. W. , & sented here suggest that juvenile mortality has Wood , J. W. . Transition analysis: a new method been overestimated in these small and dispersed for estimating age from skeleton. In Hoppa, R. D. &
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Neolithic depositional practices at Dösemarken – a discussion of categorization Åsa Berggren
Abstract Depositional practices have been regarded as a part of a Neolithic lifestyle together with farming and keeping livestock. As an ongoing discussion shows, however, it is not entirely clear how we should under- stand these practices. e categorization of Neolithic pits still raises questions and leaves some issues unresolved, especially as the categorization often leads to the use of dichotomies, and the material at the same time seems varied and complex. How to separate one category from the next is often unclear, and in some cases the empirical material seem to t best somewhere in between categories. As an alternative a practice theory perspective is suggested. It allows variations of a practice to be regarded as a continuum, making it possible to avoid the use of seemingly unambiguous categories. is paper outlines the discussion concerning depositional practices and suggests how some of the problematic issues may be solved. Pits from Dösemarken, Malmö, southern Sweden (Berggren & Brink ) are used as a case study.
Sydsvensk Arkeologi AB, Erlandsrovägen , SE- Vintrie, Sweden. [email protected]
Concepts – structured depositions, this concept (Garrow ). It is often used oering pits and nd rich pits when mundane remains of material culture are pits during the Neo- found in pits. is situation diers from the lithic have received an increasing amount of discussion concerning ritual depositions, as attention in archaeological discussions during this is often concerned with quite spectacular recent years. Some of this discussion has taken objects. However, the discussion concerning place recently within British archaeology (e.g. structured depositions in pits started with an Garrow, Beadsmoore & Knight ; Ander- explicit aim of addressing issues of “ritual or son-Whymark & omas ; Chadwick not ritual”, and has led to its use also in cases ; Garrow with comments) as well of more spectacular objects. as in Sweden (e.g. Sandén ; Rudebeck Garrow points to the fact that the category , Berggren ; Rudebeck & Macheridis structured deposition has become something this volume). more than initially intended. Introduced as In Great Britain the term structured depo- an analytical tool to be used in discussions of sition was suggested as a means of nding the possible interpretations, it has been used as an formalized, repetitive and thus highly structured interpretation in its own right (Garrow , p. patterns of rituals (Richards & omas , ). ere is an interesting parallel in Swedish pp. f.). e concept has spread within archaeology, where the concepts of “oering pit” British archaeology and beyond and been used and “nd-rich pit” have seen a similar develop- for material from various periods, as shown ment (Berggren ). Starting as a discussion by Duncan Garrow in a thorough review of of whether pits with large amounts of material
– remains should be interpreted as waste or cer- has also been unclear at times and has been emonial deposits (e.g. Stålbom ), some used in the same way as the concept of struc- nd-rich pits were categorized as oering pits by tured depositions as described by Garrow. First Stålbom (), a category previously reserved introduced as an analytical tool, it too has been for pits with more spectacular objects. is was used as an interpretation in itself. a shift in the use of this category. Pits with very fragmented material remains were starting to be interpreted as oering pits also in other regions, Problematic dichotomies as their assemblages were similar to those in e discussion concerning pit depositions has other pits categorized as oering pits, where partly been concerned with the question wheth- e.g. intact vessels or large parts of vessels had er the depositions were ritual or not, in many been deposited (e.g. Touminen & Koch ). respects echoing the discussion concerning e meaning assigned to the term oering pit wetland depositions (Berggren ). Tradi- has thus shifted in Swedish archaeology dur- tionally, deposits of anything odd or spectacular ing the last decade. From having signied pits have been interpreted as ritual and deposits of with specially arranged materials such as intact less spectacular materials have been catego- pots and other artefacts, the term “oering pit” rized as mundane. is has been regarded as now also includes pits with rich assemblages unsatisfactory, as the ritual interpretation was of fragmented materials. habitually used to explain what was perceived In an attempt to discuss the function of pits as inexplicable in utilitarian terms (Richards with large amounts of material using examples & omas , p. ; Brüch ; Bradley from the Malmö region in southwestern Scania, ; ; Chadwick , pp. f.). It the concept of Early Neolithic nd-rich pits (in seems the complex material will not easily be Swedish fyndrika TN-gropar) was suggested in placed in binary categories such as dichotomies, a paper from Lund University (Eriksson et al. and a question such as “ritual or not ritual?” ). e concept has been increasingly used can perhaps be phrased dierently. during the past decade, at least in the Malmö e use of dichotomies, such as the separa- area. To turn this concept into a functional ana- tion of a ritual sphere from a domestic sphere lytical tool, dierent denitions of nd-rich in society, ritual sites from domestic sites, and pits have been used. In the original paper it ritual acts from domestic acts, has been increas- was dened as a pit with nds of a total weight ingly criticized (e.g. Brüch ). is is con- of between . and . kg or more, consist- nected to the concept of ritual and how it is ing of int and/or pottery, not excluding other dened. Many denitions of the concept of materials (Eriksson et al. , p. ). In another ritual aim to separate ritual from non-ritual study, the denition was at least one kilogram of phenomena, even though they fail to do just material (Gidlöf , p. ), and in yet another this (Bell , pp. f.). e use the concept study a nd-rich pit was dened as containing of ritual in archaeology is a product of mod- more than of the average nd material of ern rationalism, resulting in a view of ritual int tools, animal bones and pottery from the as irrational. However, ritual may be regarded studied site (Rudebeck , p. ). as rational by the participants, which means I believe this concept grew in popularity as that what is regarded rational action has to be there was a need for an analytical tool in the reconsidered. We cannot assume a distinction eorts to understand these material patterns. between ritual and rationality in prehistoric However, the use of the term “nd-rich pit” society (Brüch ).
Additionally, this division has often been without thinking that everything in prehistory connected to a division between sacred and was permeated by ritual. Ritual acts may be seen profane phenomena, connecting the ritual to as a part of domestic life, not separated from it the sacred. Ritual has thus most often been (Bradley ; ). Instead of asking what seen as belonging to a religious sphere, which is ritual and not ritual, a possibility of ritual- means that other rituals, e.g. social rituals, are ization of dierent degrees may be discussed. left out of the discussion (Berggren , pp. In cases it may even be dicult to distinguish f.). Ritual has hence been seen as discon- between what was ritual and what wasn’t. But nected from profane and rational behaviour. perhaps this may not have to be problematic, Garrow suggests a distinction between if the focus is shifted to the social signicance odd deposits and material culture patterning, of the acts (Berggren & Nilsson Stutz ). describing depositions of a more spectacular kind and less spectacular depositions respec- tively. Garrow stresses that these categories are A practice theory perspective on not to be regarded as distinct, but rather two depositions ends of a continuous spectrum (Garrow , As shown above, the use of dichotomies has p. ). Garrow is unsatised with an imbal- implicitly connected ritual to irrationality. ance between ritual and everyday interpreta- However, there is nothing to suggest that ritual tions of structured depositions, as he believes behaviour is irrational. On the contrary, a ritual there has been an unjustied focus on ritual is often experienced as “the right thing to do” in what he calls a hyperinterpretative turn. in certain situations, as is discussed in a prac- Interpretations of odd deposits as meaningful tice theory (Bourdieu ; Bell ). Vari- and ritually deposited are used as arguments to ous solutions to the problematic dichotomies interpret material culture patterning as mean- and the separation of the ritual and mundane ingful and ritual as well. Instead Garrow points practices have been suggested, ranging from to the possibility that not all material culture avoiding the concept of ritual altogether (Brüch patterning may have been meaningful or sym- ; Fontijn ) to a view of depositional bolic; in fact, some of it may just have happened practices as a continuum from ceremonial to (Garrow ). routine acts (Bell ; Nilsson Stutz ; Garrow’s idea of a spectrum from odd depos- Berggren ; Berggren & Nilsson Stutz ; its to material culture patterning is in line with Chadwick ; omas ). is approach other calls for a view of acts in a continuum to practice is made possible by a practice the- (Bell ; Berggren & Nilsson Stutz ; ory perspective. It allows us to regard acts in a Chadwick ). continuum of degrees of formalization, which However, it is dicult to embrace the idea may let us avoid either/or questions, avoid of a continuum, and easy to fall into thinking regarding ritual as irrational and give us more with dichotomies. What Garrow introduces as exible analytical tools. extremes of a continuum is used – by Garrow According to practice theory, practice gener- – as an absolute dichotomy ( omas , p. ates meaning. is is in opposition to a view of ). is is problematic as the distinction and practice as representing or expressing a meaning separation make it dicult to understand how that is predened, a priori to the act. Instead these phenomena may have been unseparated in the meaning is seen as created and dened in the eyes of a prehistoric person. We have to be the act, and may vary according to situation able to think that this distinction was not made, and context. is means that the meaning of
– one type of act can vary. Most importantly, way on dierent occasions, but only when, for the meaning that is dened in practice consists example, a special word is uttered is it dierenti- of relations between phenomena, it is not the ated and ritualized. is means that the material phenomena themselves that are dened by the remains of the acts, ritualized and non-ritual- acts (Bourdieu , p. ). e relations con- ized, may be identical. us we have to consider sist of structures that become embodied in the that ritualized acts are not materially distinct participants but also objectied in the material from other acts. Ritualized acts may be found components connected to the act. e key to anywhere in a continuum of acts of dierent understanding practice lies in these relations degrees of formalization, from very formalized created by the act. ceremonies to more casual, more temporal, less Practice theory is closely connected to the formal acts (Bell , p. ). It may thus be concept of materiality and the study of relations concluded that rituals may have dierent degrees between things, or the order of things (Mill- of formalism and other acts may have the same er , pp. f.). According to Bourdieu the degree of formalism. However, rituals are more order of things is given a homology or a coun- common near the more formal end of the con- terpart in other orders in society that are thus tinuum (Rappaport , pp. f.). given a material base. e material culture may is conclusion may be illuminated by a thus be regarded as a network of correspond- discussion about translation and ambiguity. ing orders, that is, the base for everything in Bourdieu was well aware of the discrepancy society (Bourdieu , p. ; Miller , between the unambiguous concepts of science pp. f.; Tilley , p. ). within anthropology and the ambiguous way A practice theory perspective oers us tools informants may use to express themselves to discuss the relation between acts of indi- (Bourdieu , p. ). is is one of his viduals as well as the relations between these reasons for developing a practice theory. A sim- individuals and the social structure of their ilar point is made on behalf of archaeology, as society. is way it is possible to discuss the it aims at unambiguous interpretations, when signicance of these acts in society, regardless social reality is often characterized by ambiguity of how the acts are categorized. and uncertainty. Instead of cleaning our data Any act may be ritualized, through a strategy from ambiguity, it has been suggested that we of dierentiation (Bell ). However, iden- should strive for concepts that emphasize this tifying these strategies archaeologically may be ambiguity (Gero ). ere is a problem of dicult. An act may be performed in the same translation between dierent cultures, and it
Table I. Some characteristics of the three pits from Dösemarken.
worked pottery (incl. burnt worked pit size depth fill stone clay discs) clay bone flint date 2.22 × 1.53 1 homo- ENI (based 12461 m 0.26 m geneous 220 g 2220 g – 114 g 1909 g on pottery) 1.60 × 1.25 0.30 m ENII/MNAI m & 0.60 × & 0.03 1 layer in 1035 (based on 2777 0.70 m m each pit 7 611 g 2714 g 263 g g 4252 g pottery) MNA (3270–2930 28411 0.7 × 0.7m 0.30 m 5 layers – 69 g – – 1969 g BC cal. 1 σ)
Fig. . Stones at the northern edge of pit A . Photo: Anna-Clara Johannisson. may be dicult to nd the right concepts. It ey represent depositional practices of dif- may even be impossible to nd translations of ferent degrees of formalization. is limited concepts or phenomena across culture borders, amount of pits is a small sample. e discussion as “even the most modest attempts at descrip- is meant to be of more general interest, rather tion are surely in some sense translations across than an exhaustive interpretation of deposi- conceptual schemes” (Keane , p. ). In tional practices at Dösemarken. other words, subtle meanings and nuances get lost in translation. Our categories are rather blunt tools, but we may try to make them more Large, oblong pit (A ) exible and open to these nuances. To regard e homogeneous ll indicates that the pit was acts in a continuum of degrees of formaliza- lled rather quickly, but in several stages. Pot- tion instead of using separate categories may tery and stones were a part of this inlling. ey be a fruitful solution. is way the categories, were not carefully placed, some were deposited both as analytical tools and as interpretations, with the soil, some deposited between instances are not strictly delimited, but rather exible. of backlling. Some pottery and stones land- ed in clusters. Some stones rolled to the edges (Fig. ), perhaps as soil had built up a pile in Depositional practices at the middle of the pit. Dösemarken; three examples One stone had probably been used in crushing ree pits dated to the Early and Middle Neo- some organic material prior to the deposition in lithic from Dösemarken (Berggren & Brink the pit. e other stones showed no signs of use, ) are chosen as a case study (see Table I). but were of similar size and form. e sherds of
– pottery in the pit represented at least dier- pit were perhaps a part of organizing or clean- ent vessels of dierent sizes. ey were proba- ing the workplace. A large-scale example of bly used in cooking, consumption and perhaps organizing a temporary living space by depos- storage of foods. e clay disc may have been iting material remains in pits without special used for the preservation of heat (Stilborg ). arrangements can be seen at the nearby site of e int implements consisted of remains of all Almhov (Rudebeck & Macheridis this volume). parts of production of blade-like akes. Some akes were given a jagged edge, and a use-wear analysis shows that they were used for process- Two pits with arrangements of stone, ing vegetable bres, perhaps in the production bone and pottery (A ) of rope or thread. Some akes without retouch Two pits, dug one after the other in close con- were used in the same way, others were used to nection, were located on a settlement, about work on wood. A ake with polished surface metres from a contemporary longhouse. shows that an axe was used as raw material for Dierent character of the lls suggests that the producing other tools. e bones scattered in pits were lled in on two separate occasions. At the ll were both burnt and unburnt and a few the bottom of the shallow pits, stones, animal fragments were identied as coming from cattle bones and pottery were carefully arranged. In and pig. ey show that meat was cooked and the larger pit stones were placed in a rather probably also consumed in the area (Berggren sparse formation, creating two semicircles. Two & Brink , p. ). of the stones were grinding stones. Between Many of the objects in the pit can be con- the stones and in the middle of the semicircles, nected to the preparation and consumption of large sherds of funnel beakers and two animal food, but dierent crafts are represented as well. skulls were placed: a pair of cattle horns with a Some of the stones and pottery were deposit- piece of the skull attached and a half-sectioned ed separately from the soil. e lack of careful cranium of a pig. In the eye socket of the pig a arrangements indicates that the formalization small, red stone was found (Fig. ). e stones, of the deposition of stones and pottery was low. pottery sherds and the two skulls were partly e objects are of types that may be found resting on each other and must have been placed at a settlement, but the nearest contemporary together in a sequence, on one occasion, as one known remains are located about metres arrangement. Outside the circle of stones, two away. Digging and lling this pit may have lower legs of cattle were positioned next to each been a solitary event, away from the houses other, one foreleg and one hind leg. ey must of the settlement. Perhaps this was an isolated have had remaining soft tissue when they were workplace of some kind, where food was con- positioned in the pit. In the smaller pit, one sumed as well. Some of the material may have intact clay disc and parts of an incomplete disc been lying in the soil that was used to backll were found on the bottom. the pit, indicating that the workplace was used e deposition of the objects may have been frequently. If anything, this deposition would performed by one person or a small group (Fig. represent what Garrow calls material culture ). e arrangement may have been laid out patterning. e lack of formalization suggests as a display to be viewed, before the pits were the acts were not dierentiated and thus not backlled. ritualized. However, depositing fragmented e order of this arrangement may have material in a pit may have been understood as taken its structure from another arena in soci- the correct way to act. e depositions in the ety, as a material homology. To understand this
Fig. . e pig cranium in pit A, with red stone in eye socket. Photo: Ulf Sandén. homology, it may be helpful to look at what were burnt and two were clearly worked. ey happened to the objects prior to deposition. had probably been used in polishing and grind- Before the deposition, the objects were used ing tasks, possibly polishing of int objects in various functions. e majority of the stones and grinding some form of plant. ey were both parts of fragmented quern stones. e animal bones consist of the parts of the ani- mals that have less meat, such as the skulls and the lower legs. ey are not likely remains of meals, but rather bones from slaughter. One of the two lower legs of cattle was scorched by re, which in other cases may be a sign of cooking. However, this leg was probably burnt in other circumstances before the deposition. e pottery and clay discs that were used in the arrangement were fragmented before the deposition. is may have taken place just before the deposition as the pieces were large; one side of a funnel beaker and a large part of a clay disc. Another clay disc was intact when deposited. Fig. . A reconstruction of the deposition in A. Most of the objects were probably found Illustration: Krister Kàm Tayanin. nearby, at the settlement. Many of the objects
– were used in the processing, preparation and As the pits were located on the settlement, the consumption of food. e vessels may have soil can be expected to contain much debris been used at the house and the burnt stones may from activities of the people living there. e have been collected in hearths in the house or majority of the objects in the ll of the pits nearby. e two worked stones show that quern were probably already in the soil when it was stones had been fragmented after use. One of used to backll the pits, as a material culture the fragments was burnt and must have been patterning taking its structure from the organi- in contact with re before deposition in the pit. zation of the settlement. However, the unusu- e bones from slaughter were collected at ally large sherds may have been picked up and a slaughter place, perhaps on the perimeter of deposited separately with the soil. ey were the settlement and not directly at the house not arranged, and the degree of formalization like the rest of the objects. is means that the in the deposition of these sherds was low. ey arranged objects could be found in the area, were a part of a depositional practice, but not but not all in the same place. Before deposition necessarily a part of a formalized and perhaps they had to be selected and collected. ritualized activity. However, the objects at the After the objects were arranged at the bottom bottom of the pits were arranged according to of the pits, the pits were backlled with soil that some structure in a more formalized fashion contained many nds. e plentiful int mate- and are found on the odd-deposit end of Gar- rial scattered in the soil consisted of remains of row’s continuum. In fact, the acts of depositing simple production of akes and blade-like akes. them may have been dierentiated by creating e whole chain of production is represented new relations, and thus ritualized. in the material. Mostly the local int from the Many of the objects in A were con- till was used, but other int materials and pol- nected to food preparation and consumption. ished int objects were also used as cores in However, the animal bones arranged at the some cases. A use-wear analysis of a small por- bottom were not remains of meals. Instead tion of the akes show that retouched as well they were collected directly from the slaughter as unmodied akes were used for processing area. Perhaps the deposition was performed to wood, hide/meat, bone/horn and plants. A small handle the relation to the individual animals proportion of the int was burnt. that were just killed? e red stone in the eye e pottery sherds represented at least socket of the pig may have made it easier to vessels of dierent sizes and functions, e.g. fun- regard him or her as an individual. nel beakers and hanging vessels. A study of the fragmentation of the pottery shows that it was probably deposited as rather large sherds. Some Small pit with arrangement of ints vessels were represented by several sherds, e.g. a (A ) funnel beaker with a wavy decoration of two- Five layers of ll that contained dierent ply cord. Pieces of burnt clay of clay packings amounts of nds indicate that the pit was lled were also found scattered in the soil, probably on ve occasions. Many int implements, some remains of ovens or clay-coated hearths (Berg- pieces of clay discs, a few pottery sherds and gren & Brink , p. ). pieces of burnt clay were mixed in with the soil e material scattered in the soil indicates and deposited with it. e int dominated this activities that were carried out at the settlement, material while other materials that are usually such as cooking and consumption of food, frequent in Neolithic pits were missing (animal processing, crafts, storage and burning res. bones), or scarce (pottery).
Fig. . Flint implements and clay disc parts arranged in pit A . Note the two pieces of clay disc on the left, almost the colour of the soil. Photo: Ulf Sandén.
Some time may have lapsed between the to the odd-deposit end of the continuum as occasions of lling the pit, and after the third proposed by Garrow. one some objects were placed at the bottom Analysis of the int supports the impres- of the pit, on top of the third layer of soil. e sion of a selected material. It originates mostly objects were clearly arranged in a certain order from production of square int axes and some (Fig. ). Some int akes from axe production from the production of blades (Berggren & were placed on top of each other in a pile and a Brink , p. ). A smaller amount origi- sherd of a clay disc was placed on top of them. nates from so-called household production of Another clay disc was broken into two pieces akes, which usually is the most common int that were placed near each other, and a scrap- material found in Neolithic pits (Knarrström er used to process hide was placed between ). e analysis shows that int tools were them, and a blade struck from a polished axe produced and used somewhere in the area. was placed next to them. Above this two more Some scrapers and retouched akes had been layers of soil, containing scattered int objects, used in the processing of meat and perhaps represent two more inlling events. hide (Berggren & Brink , p. ). Only e objects are not representative of every- unretouched akes had been in contact with thing that may have been found on a settlement, re, in contrast to the other int implements but seem rather selected. e choice and layout such as the axe production remains, the blades, of the carefully arranged objects on top of the retouched akes, polished akes and tools such third layer seem to follow a structure, perhaps as scrapers. It seems that the use of int may a material homology. It would be placed close have been spatially organized, and only house-
– hold production happened near res. Produc- from the settlement, in this case about tion of e.g. axes took place where there was no metres from a contemporary house. It is thus contact with res. e int implements may possible that the objects in the soil can be a have had dierent connotations, not only as result of a material culture patterning, with- they were products of dierent manufacture, out any degree of formalization. It is rather but also as they were collected at dierent places a result of how the activities were organized in and around the settlement. outside the settlement. However, the deposi- e clay discs were broken before the depo- tion of the int and clay discs was formalized sition, one of them perhaps just prior to depo- and may also have been ritualized, creating sition, or at least not very long before, as the relations between tasks or people performing pieces were kept together until they were tasks not normally in close proximity. arranged in the pit. It has been suggested that clay discs were used to preserve heat (Stilborg ). ey were often heated repeatedly and Conclusion it seems they are closely connected to re and It seems possible to locate the depositions in the heat. e clay discs in this pit are no exception. three pits at various places along a continuum of It is not known whether the pieces were heated dierent degrees of formalization. e carefully during the deposition, but it is possible, and arranged objects in the double pit A and they may thus have brought heat to the pit. A with ints are both examples of what e clay discs were closely arranged with the may be regarded as formalized depositions, int. As two pieces of a disc were placed on following certain structures. ey are close to both sides of a scraper and one piece of clay the odd-deposit end of the continuum, using disc was placed on top of akes, it seems that Garrow’s concepts. the discs enveloped or covered the int in heat. e stones and pottery in the isolated pit Perhaps this was bringing int production and A and some of the large pottery sherds re together, phenomena that were spatially in the double pit A seem to have been kept apart at the settlement. e objects had part of a less formalized depositional practice, to be collected in dierent areas, perhaps by and should be placed closer to the other end people who normally did not perform tasks of the continuum. ey may still be a part of together, creating a relation between them. a socially signicant practice, such as cleaning e objects that were mixed in with the and organizing a workplace. soil were dominated by int, but not repre- e majority of the objects scattered in the sentative of any random int scatter on the lls of these pits may have accompanied the ground. Instead they consisted of the same soil used for backll, not following any depo- selected stages of axe production and blade sitional practice in themselves, but indicating production as those found in the int mate- spatial structures of activities in and around rial arranged with the clay discs. It is possible the settlement. ey are at the material culture that the int mixed with the soil was equally patterning end of the continuum. However, selected, but it is also possible that certain the backlling may have been regarded as one stages of int production took place near the part of a sequence of formalized acts when the pit. When the pit was lled with soil from the arranged objects were covered with soil, mak- ground around the pit, the int on the ground ing them a part of the same practice. How the followed the soil into the pit. Certain stages objects in this soil were treated, though, was of int production may have taken place away not a part of the formalization.
is means that the objects occur in the socially signicant depositional practice and pits may have found their way into the pits in were a part of organizing space. dierent circumstances and for dierent rea- Some of the acts of deposition discussed sons. Even though one pit may constitute one here may have, and some may not have, been context, the nds and the acts that took place ritualized by the person performing them. It is there should not automatically be regarded as not possible to place these acts in unambiguous homogeneous. categories such as ritual or non-ritual. However, Both more and less formalized acts seem to by placing the acts at dierent points along a have taken place at the pits that may have been continuum of dierent degrees of formaliza- parts of depositional practices which created tion, it is possible to discuss interpretations of relations between the objects as well as the social signicance, also of less formalized acts persons involved. ese relations may have – regardless of categorization. It is also possible been a part of the social structure created and to discuss the creation of various signicant recreated by various practices in this socie- relations. is is in my view a more exible ty. e depositional practices may have been approach to acts and practice than dichotomies performed to handle relations resulting from such as ritual/non-ritual. a spatial organization of the settlement. e structure was embodied in the persons per- forming the depositions and also objectied in References the pit and the deposited material. is may Anderson-Whymark, H. & omas, J. . Regional per- be seen in the pit with int objects, A , spectives on Neolithic pit deposition: Beyond the mundane. where dierent tasks performed in dierent Neolithic Studies Group Seminar papers . Oxford. Bell, C. . Ritual theory, ritual practice. New York. areas seem to be connected to each other, and – . Ritual. Perspectives and Dimensions. New York. in the double pit A where relations may Berggren, Å. . Med Kärret som källa. Om begreppen have been created between individual animals oer och ritual inom arkeologin. Vägar till Midgård and the participants. . Lund. – . e interpretation of depositions in pits. Is it According to practice theory and the ritual- time for the pendulum to swing back? Archaeological ization concept, all acts may be ritualized, but Dialogues (). a high degree of formalization is a common Berggren, Å. & Brink, K. . Dösemarken – Limhamn dierentiation strategy. It is possible that in : . Arkeologiska slutundersökningar . Rapport this case too, the more formalized depositions : Malmö. Berggren Å., & Nilsson Stutz, L. . From Spectator may have been a part of ritualized activities. to Critic and Participant – a New Role for Archaeology Other dierentiation strategies of these depo- in Ritual Studies. Journal of Social Archaeology (). sitional acts may have been the arrangement Bourdieu, P. . Outline of a theory of practice. Cam- of objects that were normally not connected, bridge. such as remains of certain int production Bradley, R. . A Life Less Ordinary: e Ritualization of the Domestic Sphere in Later Prehistoric Europe. and re, or handling slaughter remains as if Cambridge Archaeological Journal (). they were still individual animals. Also, the Bradley, R. . Ritual and Domestic Life in Prehistoric fact that the objects were placed and arranged Europe. London. under ground may have dierentiated them Brüch, J. . Ritual and rationality: some problems of interpretation in European archaeology. European from others. e acts of depositing stones and Journal of Archaeology (). pottery in the isolated pit A and the Chadwick, A. . Routine magic, mundane ritual: large pottery sherds in A were not likely towards a unied notion of depositional practice. ritualized, even though they were a part of a Oxford Journal of Archaeology ().
– Eriksson, N., Rogius, K., Rosendahl, A. & Wennberg, Richards, C. & omas, J. . Ritual activity and T. . Fyndrika TN-gropar. Student paper, Lund structured deposition in Later Neolithic Wessex. In University. Bradley, R. & Gardiner, J. (eds.), Neolithic Studies: A Fontijn, D. . Meaningful but beyond words? Inter- Review of Some Current Research. BAR British Series preting material culture patterning. Archaeological Dia- . Oxford. logues (). Rudebeck, E. . I trästodernas skugga – monumen- Garrow, D. . Odd deposits and average practice: A tala möten i neolitiseringens tid. In Nilsson, B, & critical history of the concept of structured deposition. Rudebeck, E. (eds.), Arkeologiska och förhistoriska värl- Archaeological Dialogues (). dar: Fält, erfarenheter och stenåldersplatser i sydvästra Garrow, D., Beadsmoore, E. & Knight, M. . Pit Skåne. Malmö. clusters and the temporality of occupation: An earlier Sandén, U. . En festplats i Hyllie och den sena Neolithic site at Kilverstone, etford, Norfolk. Pro- trattbägarkulturen i Malmöområdet. In Skoglund, ceedings of the Prehistoric Society . P. (ed.), Fest, slakt, odling: Neolitikum och järnålder i Gero, J. . Honoring ambiguity/problematizing certi- Hyllie. Malmö. tude. Journal of Archaeological Method and eory (). Stilborg, O. . Lerskivor, glödvärme och lerblock – Gidlöf, K. . En tidigneolitisk samlingsplats – fynd- att ytta värme. In Lindahl, A. et al. (eds.), Keramik i rika gropar och långhögar på Almhov. In Hadevik, Sydsverige: En handbok för arkeologer. Lund. C. & Steineke, M. (eds.), Tematisk rapportering av Stålbom, U. . Waste or what? Rubbish pits or cer- Citytunnelprojektet. Rapport . Malmö. emonial deposits at the Pryssgården site in the Late Keane, W. . e evidence of the senses and the mate- Bronze Age. Lund Archaeological Review. riality of religion. Journal of the Royal Institute . omas, J. . Some deposits are more structured than Knarrström, B. . Flinta i sydvästra Skåne. En diak- others. Archaeological Dialogues (). ron studie av råmaterial, produktion och funktion med Tilley, C. . Objectication. In Tilley, C. et al. (eds.), fokus på boplatsteknologi och metalltida intutnyttjande. Handbook of material culture. London. Stockholm. Touminen, K., & H. Koch. . Arkeologisk slut- Miller, D. . Materiality: an introduction. In Miller, undersökning Svågertorps industriområde, delområde D. (ed.), Materiality. Durham & London. M, N, O, Q and R, Rapport . Malmö. Rappaport, R. . Ritual and religion in the making of humanity. Cambridge.
New insights into early farming practice and diet from stable isotope analysis of crop assemblages Amy Bogaard
Abstract Stable isotope analysis of charred cereal grain and pulse seed material can shed new light on both the nature of farming practice and the dietary importance of crops. Measurement of δ13C and δ15N values in well preserved crop remains provides complementary perspectives on growing conditions, with implica- tions for water status and manuring, respectively. Particularly when measured across many bulk samples, and informed by ecological analysis of weed assemblages associated with crop material, stable isotope analysis of crop remains oers a direct means of assessing key dimensions of agricultural intensity. More- over, δ13C and δ15N values of plant remains provide much needed constraints on the estimation of the dietary role of farmed produce in the human diet. ese applications are illustrated through examples from dierent parts of Europe.
School of Archaeology, Beaumont Street, Oxford OX PG, UK. [email protected]
Introduction reasons. First, crops were often autumn-sown debate and so would be damaged by spring ooding the nature and dietary contribution of Neo- (Bogaard ). Secondly, geomorphological lithic farming, and the ways in which its form work on the formation of oodplain sediments and signicance may have varied across Europe through later prehistory suggests that Neolith- (e.g., Whittle ; Colledge & Conolly ; ic oodplains were poorly suited to cultivation Hedges et al. ). One central issue is the (Bogaard , p. ); instead, these habitats “value” of arable land: to what extent did Neo- were probably important for livestock grazing lithic farmers make investments of labour and/ (Kreuz ; Knipper ). e role of farmers or nutrients that increased the suitability of in maintaining high soil productivity, however, certain plots for crop growing and enhanced is ambiguous. Circumstantial evidence suggests the likelihood of ownership claims over them? that an anthropogenic component through mid- is question has fundamental implications dening and manuring is likely – farming spread for broader issues of property, inheritance and in tandem with livestock keeping, for example, social status (e.g., Bentley et al. ; Bowles and herding appears to have been generally a & Choi ). Previous work on arable weed small-scale and local activity (e.g., Halstead assemblages from central European sites suggests ; Schibler & Jacomet ; Bartosiewicz that growing conditions tended to be highly ) – but weed ecology per se does not reveal productive and disturbed (Bogaard ). Soil its signicance. disturbance plausibly reects tillage and weeding A second key issue is the dietary contri- activities, rather than “natural” soil disturbance bution of crops to Neolithic diets. Intensive in oodplain habitats (Sherratt ), for two management of arable plots need not imply
Fig. . Summary of inferences on crop water status (using ∆¹³C values) and manuring (using δ15N values) based on modern agricultural experiments (Fraser et al. ; Bogaard et al. , Fig. ; Wallace et al. , Fig. ). Dashed horizontal lines rep- resent thresholds of low (i.e., residual from previous land use history only), medium (– t/ha) and high ( t/ha) manuring rates in cereals. that crops played a staple role; “gardens” could underestimated the potential importance of be maintained for aesthetic reasons, and to crops in Neolithic diets. provide special foods rather than core com- Stable isotope analysis of charred cereal grain ponents of the diet (e.g., Ingold ; Leach and pulse seed material can shed new light on ). e only methodological approach that both the nature of farming practice and the can make a direct assessment of the dietary dietary importance of crops. In this paper I importance of specic foods is palaeodietary discuss case studies ranging from southeastern analysis through stable isotope measurements to northwest Europe in order to explore and of human skeletal collagen and of potential illustrate the potential and limitations of crop food sources (Tauber ; Schoeninger et al. stable isotope analysis as a source of evidence ). Until recently, however, this approach for early farming practice and diet. has tended to exclude direct measurements in archaeobotanical material due to lack of preservation and/or concerns over contami- Archaeobotanical stable isotope nation (e.g., Hedges & Reynard ). For a analysis combination of reasons to be explored further Hastorf and DeNiro ( ; DeNiro & Hastorf below, interpretation of stable C and N isotope ) conducted pioneering work on stable ratios in human and faunal collagen has likely C and N isotope analysis of archaeobotanical
materials, and highlighted the potential con- the data presented in this paper. δ13C values tribution of this approach for dierentiating appear to be less aected by charring, and nei- (morphologically unidentiable) residues of C ther isotope appears to be biased by burial or versus C plants, or N-xing legumes versus appropriate laboratory pre-treatment protocols. cereals. Another early study, by Marino and (Since this paper was written two papers have DeNiro ( ), highlighted the potential of been published that further rene understand- stable C, O and H isotopes in food plants for ing of charring eects (Nitsch et al. ) and palaeoclimatological investigations. Araus and pre-treatment options (Vaiglova et al. b)). colleagues (e.g., Araus et al. ; Ferrio et al. Crop stable isotope analysis thus appears to ) have investigated stable carbon isotope provide a useful method for assessing specic analysis as a method of inferring crop water aspects of land use, and for constraining palaeo- status, with a particular focus on arid regions of dietary interpretation (Fraser et al. ; Vaiglova western Asia and Iberia. Analysis of crop stable et al. a). In relation to land use and crop nitrogen isotope ratios oers a means of infer- husbandry, this potential complements infer- ring soil nitrogen composition and, in an arable ences aorded through weed ecological analysis: context, the practice of manuring (e.g., Bogaard weed ecological characteristics relating to gener- et al. ; Fraser et al. ). Volatization of al soil productivity are often the best correlates 14N in ammonia enriches soil nitrates in 15N of manuring and irrigation (e.g., Charles et al. as well as plants taking up those nitrates; the , ; Jones et al. ), and stable isotope eect on plant δ15N increases with manuring determinations of crops provide an independent rate. Isotopic study of present-day cereals and means of identifying these specic contribu- pulses grown under a range of experimental tions to growing conditions. Moreover, stable C and “traditional” farming regimes from the and N isotope analysis is conducted directly on UK to the eastern Mediterranean (Fraser et al. crop remains, and can be used to compare the ; Wallace et al. ) has demonstrated growing conditions of dierent crops, or crop the usefulness of stable C and N isotope com- deposits, whether or not associated weed data are positions for assessing whether soil productivity available. On the other hand, weed data provide was manipulated through water management useful ecological constraints on the interpreta- and/or manuring, respectively (Fig. ). tion of stable isotope data, indicate levels of soil A complementary strand of work has assessed disturbance, pH etc. that are not directly acces- the extent to which the original stable C and N sible through isotopic analysis and can identify isotope values in cereal grains and pulse seeds subtle ecological dierences that may not be are retrievable despite charring and burial (e.g., apparent from isotope data. Ideally, therefore, Kanstrup et al. ; Fraser et al. ; Sty- crop growing conditions would be reconstructed ring et al. ). e upshot of work to date through a combination of weed ecological and is that δ15N values in cereal grains and pulse stable isotope approaches, in order to exploit seeds tend to be increased by charring, but that their complementary strengths. these increases are modest and predictable, and In terms of Neolithic diets, the contribution can be taken into account. Fraser et al. () of crops cannot be inferred from the frequency suggest that be subtracted from δ15N val- of crop remains per se, but becomes accessible ues in charred cereal grain and pulse seed to if stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis make (generous) allowance for the biasing eect of well preserved archaeobotanical remains is of charring on nitrogen isotope composition, integrated with that of faunal and human colla- and this adjustment has been applied to all of gen (Fraser et al. ). In the absence of actual
Fig. . ∆¹³C and δ15N values of cereal (and pulse) crops at six Neolithic sites: (A) Koufovouno, Greece; (B) Slatina, Bulgaria; (C) Sarup and Skaghorn, Denmark; (D) Hambledon Hill and Lismore Fields, UK. Horizontal lines (“Forage”) in A, B and D represent estimates of large herbivore forage δ15N values (by subtracting from the mean value for herbivore bone collagen to account for trophic shift). Dashed horizontal lines represent thresholds of low, medium, and high manuring rates inferred from modern experiments (see Fig. ). Black vertical line represents well-watered wheat and pulse threshold; grey ver- tical line represents well watered barley threshold (see Fig. ). crop δ13C and δ15N values, previous studies have gen values by subtracting plant-diet to collagen made assumptions about the isotopic values of fractionation values (Hedges & Reynard ). plant foods that tend to minimize their apparent Neither approach takes account of variation protein contribution: either generalized modern in plant δ15N among habitats, including the plant values are used (e.g. an average δ15N value “manuring eect”, or of substantial dierences of for non-N xing plants), or plant δ15N in isotope ratios between dierent plant parts, values are inferred from herbivore bone colla- cereal grain being more enriched in 15N than
“cha” components (Bogaard et al. ; Fraser a), high δ15N values are associated with wheat et al. ). Given the likelihood that humans versus barley, while at Slatina, western Bulgaria were the primary consumers of cereal grain, both (Fig. b), groups of cereals with relatively high manuring and compositional dierences among and low δ15N values occur within the same crop plant parts would tend to elevate the δ15N val- type (the hulled wheats, einkorn and emmer). ues of plant foods consumed by humans above Nevertheless, both sites reect a similar range those of animal forage (Fraser et al. ). On of cereal δ15N values, and a tendency for (nitro- the other hand, dung evidence demonstrates gen-xing) pulses to be better watered than the that livestock consumed a range of plants and cereals (i.e. irrigated or grown on more humid plant parts from a variety of habitats (e.g., Kühn soils), as well as manured (given enrichment in & Hadorn ), and estimated herbivore for- 15N above atmospheric nitrogen, – Fraser et age δ15N values provide an indication of local al. ). Emmer samples from the TRB enclo- unmanured vegetation baselines. sure site of Sarup on the island of Fyn, Denmark, dating to the later th millennium BC, present a strikingly dierent distribution of values (Fig. Implications for land use c): stable carbon isotope values are markedly Bogaard et al. () reported the results of a higher, reecting the wetter climate, but δ15N large-scale programme of stable C and N iso- values are almost all within the range expected tope determinations on bulk samples of for cereals with little to no manuring. It is per- well preserved archaeobotanical cereal grains haps important here that Sarup is a ceremonial and pulse seeds from Neolithic sites across enclosure site rather than a settlement; tantaliz- Europe, from the UK to southern Greece. Along ingly, a pair of cereal samples from the nearby with reference values derived from agricultur- TRB settlement site of Skaghorn returned δ15N al experiments (Fig. ), estimates of herbivore values higher than all but one (outlier) sample forage δ15N values were derived from collagen from Sarup (Fig. c). While the low number analysis of associated fauna to provide local veg- of samples from Skaghorn limits the reliability etation baselines. Stable carbon isotope ratios of this observation, a similar contrast in cereal are expressed as carbon discrimination (∆¹³C) δ15N values, and hence potentially in manuring values, which take into account changes in levels, is observed between emmer wheat sam- 13 δ C of source CO2 through time (e.g., Ferrio ples from the Stepleton enclosure at Hambledon et al. ). Hill, Dorset (n=) and the burned structures Fig. illustrates results from a selection of at Lismore Fields, Derbyshire (n= ), though sites, two in southeast Europe and four in the sample numbers remain low (Fig. d). Geology northwest: Koufovouno in Laconia, southern may also be relevant to the Hambledon values: Greece (c. – cal. BC) (Vaiglova et al. previous stable isotope work on chalkland sites a), Slatina near Soa, western Bulgaria (c. suggests that they are associated with relatively – cal. BC) (Marinova ), Sarup low δ15N values (Stevens et al. ). and Skaghorn, Denmark (c. – cal. BC) e broad implication of these results is that (Andersen ), Hambledon Hill, Dorset, UK early farmers used manuring and (where lim- (c. – cal. BC) (Mercer & Healey ) iting) watering to enhance arable productivity and Lismore Fields, Derbyshire, UK (c. – to varying degrees, depending on local circum- cal. BC) (Jones ). An initial obser- stances and crops. People cultivated arable land vation is that each site is to an extent unique: with variable histories and degrees of “invest- thus, at Koufovouno in southern Greece (Fig. ment” through manuring. Crops deposited at
Table . Linear-mixing model parameters and outputs used for estimating the percentage of animal pro- tein of total dietary protein in human diets at Vaihingen (modied from Fraser et al. : Table ) and Hambledon Hill. Grey shading = not applicable to Hambledon Hill due to lack of pulses.
Human dietary model scenarios Model inputs 15 F. Mixed for δ N values C. Mixed E. Cereal A. Standard B. Cereal D. Standard cereal(/pulse) cereal/pulse consumer model consumer model (+5‰) consumer consumer (+5‰) (+5‰) Vaihingen an der Enz Human col- 9.1‰ 9.1‰ 9.1‰ 9.1‰ 9.1‰ 9.1‰ lagen Herbivore col- 6.7‰ 6.7‰ 6.7‰ 6.7‰ 6.7‰ 6.7‰ lagen inferred herbi- 2.7‰ na na 2.7‰ na na vore forage Vaihingen na 4.5‰ na 4.5‰ cereal crops 3.7‰ 3.7‰ Vaihingen na na na na pulse crops
Δplant-herbivore 4‰ na na 4‰ na na
Δdiet-human 4‰ 4‰ 4‰ 5‰ 5‰ 5‰ estimated % ~60% ~29% ~46% ~35% ~0% ~13% animal protein Hambledon
Hill Human col- 9.2‰ 9.2‰ 9.2‰ 9.2‰ lagen Herbivore col- 5.2‰ 5.2‰ 5.2‰ 5.2‰ lagen inferred herbi- 1.2‰ na 1.2‰ na vore forage Hambledon na 3.6‰ na 3.6‰ cereal crops
Δplant-herbivore 4‰ na 4‰ na
Δdiet-human 4‰ 4‰ 5‰ 5‰ estimated % ~100% ~100% ~77% ~40% animal protein
Sarup and Hambledon Hill could represent derived protein (~ –) than the standard relatively non-intensive forms of production model estimate (~), which assumes that situated near the enclosures themselves – and human plant food δ15N is the same as that of hence lacking potential middening/manuring animal forage (Table A-C) (Fraser et al. ). Human dietary model from substantial year-round human and live- Estimates of plant-derived protein are higher scenarios stock populations – or from outeld areas near still if greater trophic osets of + are used Model inputs settlement sites elsewhere. (cf. O’Connell et al. ) rather than 15 F. Mixed for δ N values C. Mixed E. Cereal A. Standard B. Cereal D. Standard cereal(/pulse) Evidence for variable rates/histories of manur- as the mid-point of the conventional – cereal/pulse consumer model consumer model (+5‰) consumer ing at these sites are consistent with the available range (Table D-F). Interestingly, given a high- consumer (+5‰) (+5‰) weed ecological data and other bioarchaeolog- er trophic oset of +, the Vaihingen cereal Vaihingen an ical datasets. Relatively rich weed assemblages value would be slightly too high to account der Enz from Bulgarian Neolithic sites including Slatina for the average human δ15N value, suggesting Human col- (Marinova ) suggest long lived cultivation that (manured) pulses played a signicant role 9.1‰ 9.1‰ 9.1‰ 9.1‰ 9.1‰ 9.1‰ lagen plots: few woodland taxa but many of disturbed alongside cereals (cf. Bogaard , p. , Table Herbivore col- habitats imply plots established for – years . ). In sum, direct measurement of crop stable 6.7‰ 6.7‰ 6.7‰ 6.7‰ 6.7‰ 6.7‰ lagen at least (cf. Bogaard , ). Bulgarian isotope ratios at Vaihingen builds a strong case inferred herbi- assemblages present the mixture of “garden for their staple role in the diet. 2.7‰ na na 2.7‰ na na 15 vore forage crop weeds” and “cereal weeds” characteristic of e implications of crop δ N values for small-scale and intensive cultivation (cf. Jones human diets can also be assessed at Hamble- Vaihingen na 4.5‰ na 4.5‰ cereal crops et al. ). Sheep/goat dung and associated don Hill, Dorset (c. – cal. BC) (Mer- 3.7‰ 3.7‰ mineralized plant remains (Marinova ) cer & Healey ), where a small number Vaihingen na na na na pulse crops imply herding near settlements, compatible with of emmer wheat samples yielded an average small-scale animal husbandry and manuring. δ15N value of . (n=) (Fig. d). It should Δ 4‰ na na 4‰ na na plant-herbivore At Sarup, where the crop isotope data suggest be emphasized that this is essentially a heuris-
Δdiet-human 4‰ 4‰ 4‰ 5‰ 5‰ 5‰ little to no manuring, weeds associated with tic exercise: the few grain samples from Ham- estimated % cereals reect sandy soils of low productivity bledon Hill – a place of periodic aggregation ~60% ~29% ~46% ~35% ~0% ~13% animal protein (e.g. thyme-leaved sandwort, Arenaria serpylli- rather than a residential site – are unlikely to Hambledon folia – Andersen , p. ). represent the average year-round isotope val-
Hill ues of plant foods consumed by the people Human col- represented in the skeletal assemblage. e 9.2‰ 9.2‰ 9.2‰ 9.2‰ Implications for diet 15 lagen δ N value of emmer wheat at Hambledon Herbivore col- When combined with stable C and N isotope is higher than the forage value inferred from 5.2‰ 5.2‰ 5.2‰ 5.2‰ lagen analysis of associated fauna and humans, crop herbivore collagen data (., assuming a isotope measurements can rene palaeodietary plant-herbivore oset of ) (Richards , inferred herbi- 1.2‰ na 1.2‰ na vore forage interpretation. Fraser et al. () reconstruct- ; pers. comm.; Bogaard et al. , Table ed the palaeodietary setting of LBK Vaihingen ). Nevertheless, given an average human δ15N Hambledon na 3.6‰ na 3.6‰ cereal crops an der Enz, southwest Germany (later sixth value of . (n= (sub)adults) and a fau- millennium cal. BC) using δ13C and δ15N val- nal average (excluding dogs and indeterminate Δ 4‰ na 4‰ na plant-herbivore ues of human and faunal bone collagen and of specimens) of . (pigs on average . ,
Δdiet-human 4‰ 4‰ 5‰ 5‰ charred plant remains from cereal crops (emmer n=; herbivores on average ., n= cattle, estimated % and einkorn wheat) and pulses (lentil and pea). red deer and sheep/ovicaprid – Richards , ~100% ~100% ~77% ~40% animal protein Simple linear mixing models for Vaihingen that , pers. comm.), consumption of animal take account of the actual crop δ15N values meas- protein by people at Hambledon Hill would ured all point to higher consumption of plant- remain ~ (Table B). Adopting a higher
diet-collagen oset in δ15N of + as recent- (cf. Kanstrup et al. ) – but the intra- and ly suggested on the basis of isotopic data from inter-site patterning observed suggests diversi- humans fed on controlled diets (O’Connell et ty as well as common tendencies in Neolithic al. ), the standard “human plant food = farming practice. herbivore forage” assumption would indicate an animal protein contribution of ~ (Table D). If the Hambledon grain δ15N value of Acknowledgements . were used to estimate that of human plant e stable isotope work discussed here was food, the animal protein contribution would funded by the Natural Environment Research become much lower (~), though still appre- Council Standard Grant NE/E / and ciably higher than that inferred using the same by l’Ecole française d’Athènes (Koufovouno). assumptions at Vaihingen (~) (Table E). Clearly, both higher human-diet trophic o- sets and enrichment of human plant food in References 15N over herbivore forage lead to greater esti- Andersen, N. H. . e Sarup Enclosures I. Jutland mates of plant-derived protein in the human Archaeological Society. Aarhus. Araus, J. L., Febrero, A., Buxó, R., Rodríguez-Ariza, M. diet. ough there are too many unknowns O., Molina, F., Camalich, M. D., Martín, D., & Voltas, to hazard specic estimates, it is striking that J. . Identication of ancient irrigation practices animal protein contributions at Hambledon based on the carbon isotope discrimination of plant Hill appear higher than at Vaihingen. Such seeds: a case study from the south-east Iberian penin- a contrast may reect a broad trend towards sula. Journal of Archaeological Science . higher animal protein consumption in northern Bartosiewicz, L. . Plain talk: animals, environment and culture in the Neolithic of the Carpathian Basin Europe as protein-rich pulse crops were aban- and adjacent areas. In Bailey, D., Whittle, A. & Cum- doned and other sources of protein (including mings, V. (eds.), (un)settling the Neolithic. Oxford. milk) became more important (cf. Halstead Bentley, R. A., Bickle, P., Fibiger, L., Nowell, G. M., ; Salque et al. ); recent work in Britain Dales, C. W., Hedges, R .E. M., Hamilton, J., Wahl, J., (Colledge et al. ) and Ireland (McClatchie Francken, M., Grupe, G., Lenneis, E., Teschler-Nicola, M., Arbogast, R.-M., Hofmann, D. and Whittle, A. et al . ) appears to conrm that pulse crops . Community dierentiation and kinship among were lacking altogether from Neolithic crop Europe’s rst farmers. Proceedings of the National Acad- spectra in these regions. emy of Sciences . Bogaard, A. . Questioning the relevance of shifting cultivation to Neolithic farming in the loess belt of Conclusions Europe: evidence from the Hambach Forest experiment. Vegetation History and Archaeobotany . A new ecological understanding of early farm- Bogaard, A. . Neolithic Farming in Central Europe. ing niches and diets is accessible through stable London. isotope analysis of archaeobotanical crop assem- – . Plant Use and Crop Husbandry in an Early Neo- blages. As an approach to land use, it is com- lithic Village: Vaihingen an der Enz, Baden-Württemberg. plemented by ecological analysis of arable weed Frankfurter Archäologische Schriften. Bonn. Bogaard, A., Heaton, T. H. E., Poulton, P. & Merbach, assemblages, while dietary insights require inte- I. . e impact of manuring on nitrogen iso- gration with stable isotope analysis of associ- tope ratios in cereals: archaeological implications for ated faunal and human remains. e results reconstruction of diet and crop management practices. to date are thinly scattered across Europe – Journal of Archaeological Science . more intensive regional studies are needed to Bogaard, A., Fraser, R. A., Heaton, T. H. E., Wallace, develop an understanding of local sequences M., Vaiglova, P., Charles, M., Jones, G., Evershed, R.
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Growth and decline? Population dynamics of Funnel Beaker societies in the th millennium BC Martin Hinz
Abstract is article tries to combine dierent indicators of a decline in settlement activities between and cal. BC that was rst visible in the analysis of summed calibrated 14C dates. While until now such analyses were seldom associated with independent data, here the results are enriched with palaeobotanical and cultural developments in the distribution area of Funnel Beakers. A climatic trigger for the observed decline seems to be the most likely explanation. But this need not necessarily result in a monocausal and oversimplistic explanation. Such an interpretation has to take into account local, not global, climatic signals, and has to take place considering the complex nature of the interplay of natural and cultural systems. Given a certain magnitude of climatic change, only a society that is vulnerable will react on an external shock with a collapse.
Institut für Ur- und Frühgeschichte, Christian-Albrechts-Universität, Johanna-Mestorf-Straße - , D- Kiel, Germany. [email protected]
Introduction to verify that this trend is not only true for the , increasingly more studies distribution area of the TRB but is also visible have succeeded in showing demographic trends in France and the British Isles. in prehistory with the tool of summed calibrat- ed date probability distributions (SCDPD) and Multiproxy and multicausal were able to make them plausible. e method itself, introduced by Rick ( ), is not with- explanations out controversy. Williams () gives a cur- What is lacking in our study from , in rent overview of the discussion and also lists that of the Shennan working group as well as conditions under which such an analysis can be in most other attempts to identify demographic taken seriously. Considering these conditions, developments using SCDPD, is the consider- we (Hinz et al. ) were able to show by using ation of and associations with other proxies. SCDPD that, after the introduction of agricul- Of interest are, of course, such proxies that tural practices around cal. BC in northern mirror the intensity of human impact on the central Europe and south Scandinavia (distri- environment as well as those that give informa- bution area of the TRB), a phase of growth and tion about the cultural development of those stabilization took place, as commonly expected. human societies whose demographic trends are is phase was followed by a sharp decline of to be traced, interpreted and explained. With- settlement activity deduced from the SCDPD, out such a multiproxy approach, it is hard or starting at approximately cal. BC. A con- even impossible to obtain a holistic, historical siderable rebound is not visible before cal. picture of the human past. Moreover, in the BC. Recently, Shennan et al. () were able absence of alternatives, this could lead to an
explanation of demographic change either as culture (in the form of traditions) and cultural an eect of demography itself (demographic techniques. But it is the same complexity that pressure) or as a passive reaction (often mono- makes them vulnerable to a combination of causal) determined by external environmental inuences that, in isolation, would not cause conditions, mostly prominently from climate any crisis. at is not to say that climate or envi- shifts. A focus on climatic explanations may ronment do not have any inuence on human result from recent discussions about climate societies. Such a statement would ignore many change. Another reason for such explanations counterexamples in human history. But the could be that palaeoclimatic data is among the environment only represents the framework in few sources that is continuously available over which humans organize their lives and surviv- longer periods of (pre-)history and is therefore al. e environmental conditions can be used especially attractive as a basis for interpretations. more or less eciently. is results in the fact us, it was the aim of this investigation that it is always culture that mediates between to incorporate additional indicators of the the environment and the well-being of indi- intensity of human activities and their impact viduals. us, an interpretation framework is on the environment as proxies for the level necessary that complies with the characteristics of the population that was the cause of these of human societies as specic systems as well as impacts. In addition, we try to synchronize with those of environmental systems. cultural characteristics and dynamics with the demographic trends indicated by the SCDPD in order to achieve a better understanding of System breakdown? causal relationships: Are the changes caused by In our study, we observed a repetitive pattern an external event, an internal development, or in the SCDPD: a drop in the second half of the are they a combination of both? th millennium BC, more specically between In the past, large-scale and coordinated migra- cal. BC and cal. BC (Fig. ). A pin- tory movements were often used as explanato- pointed accuracy in dating the event cannot, of ry models for demographic changes, especially course, be achieved due to the standard devi- when crises seem to be indicated by the archae- ation of the dates themselves and the blurring ological material. Such interpretations become which results from the sum calibration. With this fashionable again with the availability of aDNA method, only a timeframe can be determined analysis. is cannot and should not be our during which the triggering event took place. model. An “invasion” of “foreign people” is not e pattern was visible in the areas around the an option for explaining the crisis which we Danish Isles (northern Germany, Jutland, Sca- assume to have occurred between cal. BC nia, western Sweden), while the Isles themselves and cal. BC. is is already obvious from apparently underwent a dierent development. the fact that the development we have identied e fact that this signal was observable in dif- takes place in the middle of the Funnel Beaker ferent regions veries that it is not an eect Complex and is therefore completely void of of dierent scientic traditions (including 14C anything warranting ethnic interpretation. samples or not). It also can be excluded that it Ethnic interpretations and climatic deter- is the eect of the calibration curve, as it can minism in the search for monocausal expla- be shown that there is no signicant inuence nations ignore the complex nature of human of this curve on a sum calibration of sucient societies. It is this complexity that gives societies sample size (Hinz & Müller in prep.). Because the ability to resist singular inuences through our reasoning is based upon 14C dates from
summer temperature (darker - cooler) 0.03
0.02 prob
0.01
0.00 −4500 −4000 −3500 −3000 −2500 cal BC Fig. . SCDPD of the 14C dates of settlements from Northern Germany, Jutland, Scania, Western Sweden (n= ). e grey band results from a sedimentological analysis (Drei- brodt et al. ), darker colours indicate cooler summer temperatures.
settlements, the cause of the drop in the SCDPD activities are observable during the same time- is most likely a demographic change. e use of frame in di erent regions of Europe. Also based settlements has two further important advantag- on SCDPD, Shennan et al. () were able to es: e settlements of the north European Neo- show this on a supra-regional level. In the aggre- lithic have a comparable detection probability gated chart (Shennan et al. , p. , g. ), the during the period in consideration. Counting drop in the second half of the th millennium settlements per time period is a standard tool is obvious. In the regionalized chart (Shennan for an estimation of demographic change. We et al. , p. , g. ), the respective drops are use essentially the same method by pooling the also visible in the areas focused on in our paper. data per settlement. Still there may be issues at Shennan et al. () could not certify sig- with this proxy. In some areas, especially in the ni cance in their test for these areas is probably Danish Isles, but also in Jutland, concentration a result of the insu cient sample size. Our study of settlement activity at large single sites can be was able to use a higher number of samples for observed. Another problem could be that e.g. the relevant regions. In their interpretation, the for southwest parts of Scania it is possible that authors reject a climatic cause since no (glob- the preferred settlements locations shifted to al) climatic proxy correlates with the SCDPD the coast (Larsson ), which could bias the (cf. Shennan et al. , p. , table ). We will picture. But as the changes in settlement pat- come back to the suitability of global (ice core) terns di er from region to region still due to proxies for such a purpose. the wide spread of the observed developments, is strengthens the assumption that we we think that it cannot be explained by any of are dealing with a large-scale phenomenon in these possibilities in toto. case of the possible crisis between cal. Surprisingly, similar decreases in settlement BC and cal. BC. As one additional study
based on 14C, the paper by Stevens & Fuller we observed. Climate is for sure the rst suspect () should be mentioned. With reference to if we have to explain a pan-European shift. But, cereal dates, they observe a contemporaneous as indicated above, Shennan et al. (, p. ) −35 drop. Although they used the same method could not nd a correlation between global
(SCDPD), due to their specic and very dif- climate proxies and the SCDPD. Before we Temperature −40 ferent sample selection it is still interesting that discuss this contradiction, we will call atten- the investigation arrived at the same results. tion to a last indication of a critical situation. Here, the drop is also especially visible on the In their analysis of mtDNA of prehistoric WCH CCH OCH/BO/US British “mainland”, while the surrounding Isles populations, Brandt et al. () observed a show dierent trends (Stevens & Fuller , development, among others, that could matter p. g. ). eir interpretation maintains in our model: their B event is characterized by a total abandonment of cereal cultivation and an increase of the haplogroups U that are com- a turn towards pure pastoralism (, pp. monly associated with pre-Neolithic hunter/ f.). Whether this statement is correct for gatherer communities. is event dates between Great Britain or not, it does not t our working cal. BC and cal. BC. Although this 3000 area where cereals are also present after observation ts very well with a general crisis 2500 cal. BC (e.g. Kirleis et al. ). in this timeframe, it must be kept in mind that 2000 e empirical background of all studies men- the database for this interpretation consists of 1500 Ring Width tioned so far was SCDPD. us, it could still only successfully sampled individuals. 1000 be supposed that the observed trend could be −3900 −3600 −3300 −3000 considered a consequence of the methodology cal BC and represent an articial rather than a real sig- Global and local climatic proxies nal. But indications of a phase with decreased As already mentioned, climate is a tempting settlement activity and an associated demo- explanation for such a large-scale phenomenon. graphic development can also be deduced from But it is always a risky choice. Archaeological as other indicators. Such a phase is also inferable well as climatological investigations deal with from the dendro dates from the alpine area temporal uncertainties. is makes it dicult and its periphery. Schlichtherle (, p. ) to decide whether two events are actually cor- presented an overview that combines the Swiss related. Additionally, correlation itself is, of dendro dates with those from the Bodensee and course, not sucient verication of a causal Upper Swabia. A period of lower settlement relationship. And moreover, climatic processes activity is also observable in this data. Here, are highly complex developments in a chaotic the phase seems to begin approximately system. Global processes can result in very dif- years earlier than the estimations based on the ferent local climate and weather conditions. If a 14C data. A possible explanation could be the cooling is observable in arctic ice cores, it does uncertainty of the radiocarbon data, but maybe not necessarily mean that a cooling also takes the same process that caused the drop in the place in central or northern Europe. Conversely, SCDPD of northern central Europe had a dif- today’s global warming could result, for exam- ferent impact within the alpine environment. ple, in a cooling phase in Europe (Petoukhov It is synchronous with the Piora II cold phase & Semenov ). If this is true, then regional (it lasted approximately from – BC changes could also take place without leaving a (Schlichtherle , pp. – ). trace in the global record or the ice core data. is provides us with rst indications con- To establish causality between climatic changes cerning the possible trigger of the phenomenon and demographic developments, it is therefore
−35
Temperature −40 OCH/BO/US CCH WCH
3000
2500
2000
1500 Ring Width
1000
−3900 −3600 −3300 −3000 cal BC Fig. . Availability of dendro dates from Switzerland, the Bodensee and Upper Swabia (after Schlichthe- rle ) compared with d o from the GISP ice core (above) and a local dendro master curve from the Bodensee region.
a prerequisite to obtain a local signal. is is ment intensity in the circumalpine area can be connected with two non-trivial tasks: dening related to the Piora II cold phase. If we con- what is local and procuring good proxies for sult the temperature curve extrapolated from this local signal. the GISP ice core for this period, it is rather Tree ring master curves would certainly rep- inconspicuous (Fig. ): no one would discern resent an optimal local climatic signal. With a cooling event from that data. In contrast, a them not only a real local proxy would be tree ring master curve for the Bodensee region obtained but also the signals themselves would (data Billamboz n.d.) shows a very interesting indeed represent favourable or unfavourable correlation during the observed settlement gap. conditions for plant growth. is is the value As no such data is available for the north, that archaeologists usually like to deduce from we must turn to a dierent proxy. Within the climate proxies (admitting that the physiology framework of the DFG priority programme SPP of trees diers from those of crops). Unfortu- “Early Monumentality and Social Dier- nately, such curves are hard to obtain, at least entiation”, sedimentological analyses were con- for our working area. With one example from ducted at Lake Belau and Poggensee, which are the Bodensee region, it is possible to show the both also known for their importance as pollen value of such an approach. archives for northern Germany. In these ana- As already mentioned, the decreased settle- lyses using microalgae (Dreibrodt et al. ),
SCDPD
−4500 −4000 −3500 −3000 −2500
earthen long barrows
megaliths
secondary use of megaliths
causewayed enclosures
causewayed enclosures, secondary use
oak
openness
Copper imports
Fig. . Combining the available proxies. From top to bottom: SCDPD of the 14C dates of settlements from Northern Germany, Jutland, Scania, Western Sweden (n= ); frequency of monumental burials (Müller , ); frequency of causewayed enclosures (Müller , ); openness of the landscape according to an NMDS and the abundance of mixed oak forest taxa (Feeser et al. , g. ); Copper imports (Müller , ).
“sprunghaft abnehmende Sommertempera- of a regional signal (Feeser et al. , p. turen” (sharply decreasing summer tempera- g. ). e according curve shows that after tures, Dreibrodt et al. , p. ) around an increase in land openness after cal. BC, cal. BC could be detected that initiated a longer a decrease is visible around cal. BC (Fig. phase of colder summers (Fig. ). is phase ). e openness indicators decline while wood- of local climate is in good correlation with the land recovers, as shown by the curve for mixed decreased number of settlement dates. Surely it oak forest taxa, but with a lag of approximately would be oversimplied to think that the colder years. is seems to be a good verication summers would be the direct and only cause for the interpretation that the SCDPD really for the decrease in settlement intensity. Similar indicates a decrease of settlement activity, as the cold phases are also detectable (Dreibrodt et al. human impact on the environment decreases , p. , g. ) that do not correlate with accordingly. relevant archaeological events. Now we can start to combine the SCDPD with the development of other cultural features, as compiled by Müller (, p. ) (Fig. ). Adding additional traces During the time of the potential crisis, the Beyond indications of the demographic change dating rate of the construction of causewayed itself and the possible causes, proxies for the enclosures decreased. Instead, more indications possible eects of the change in population – of their secondary use are recorded. e con- in the form of changes in human impact – are struction of megalithic graves started before also available. Most common for this purpose the possible crisis, but it reaches its maximum is the pollen record. In eastern Schleswig-Hol- at approximately cal. BC. e intensity stein, there are four intensively investigated lakes of construction is steady until cal. BC. (Großer Segeberger See, Poggensee, Lake Seefeld is plateau extends over nearly the whole span and Lake Belau) that oer a good temporal res- of the possible crisis. It is also of special inter- olution. Using a combination of these archives, est that shortly after the drop in the SCDPD it becomes possible to estimate which eects are around , copper imports into the distri- due to local conditions and which rather repre- bution area of the TRB cease. sent general trends. Feeser et al. () carried While causewayed enclosures were not con- out partial recoring of those lakes and revised structed in the same quantity from cal. the AMS chronology with the help of Bayesian BC to cal. BC (as is also true for the models. One result indicated a change in the cli- British Isles, personal communication Roger matic situation between cal. BC and J. Mercer), the already known idea of monu- cal. BC (based on corroded pollen grains, the mental megalithic graves gains inuence and Alnus/Corylus ratio and measurements of loss on importance. It is possible to interpret this as ignition; Feeser et al. , p. and p. , g. a stronger focus on the ancestors as anchors ). But more important with respect to human and stabilization factors in a changing world. impact is a measurement of land openness that Traditional rituals were maintained and prob- was computed using Non-metric Multidimen- ably stabilized the world view of the societies sional Scaling (NMDS). is index is not only of the Funnel Beaker times. Simultaneously, based on Plantago lanceolata – the common we have indications that an exchange network indicator of open land – but also incorporates collapsed: copper imports ceased, which were multiple species and their ratios, and addition- linked to prestige objects that probably had ally correlates the dierent lakes as an example previously stabilized societies. Copper either
lost its importance, or it could not be main- an increase in the import of copper may hint in tained because of changed conditions. the same direction. At the same time during the th century BC, a stabilization of landscape openness can be observed. In conclusion, the Conclusions society seems to have entered a conservation In sum: Beginning with the TRB at approx. phase (K phase) at this stage in time and the cal. BC, a signicant increase in the increasing rigidity and decreasing diversity of SCDPD is visible. It can be expected that this options led to inner tensions that made the whole mirrors the increase in population that fol- social system more vulnerable to external shocks. lows the introduction of agricultural practic- Such an external shock could have occurred es. Around the same time, the introduction of during the th century BC. A climatic change cereal cultivation is likely. Although this had resulted in a breakdown in the economic and not already involved large-scale clearings, indi- probably also in the social sector of a socie- cations of such processes are nevertheless visible ty that had lost its resilience (Ω phase). is in open land indicators (increases) as well as in crisis is indicated by the SCDPD, if we take the mixed oak taxa (decreases). it as a population indicator, as well as by the After a short while, the introduction of earth- decrease of human impact on the landscape. en long barrows took place as the earliest monu- What remained stable was ritual behaviour, mental burials in our working area. Subsequent- whereas imports of copper also ceased. en, ly, according to the pollen data, woodland was after a phase of higher diversity (α phase), a cleared to a substantial degree during the course rise in land openness as well as in the SCDPD of the th century BC. is may be connect- can be noted anew. Again, we observe a society ed to the introduction of the ard (Sørensen & that establishes new traditions and strategies Karg ). Until this point in time, we are and nally shifts to the Single Grave/Corded faced with a society that is searching and estab- Ware society (new r phase). How this trans- lishing its traditions and strategies in view of formation took place must still be integrated a changed cultural and economic base. With into this framework of interpretation. earthen long barrows (monuments) and large- In light of the described investigation, it scale open land (dominating agriculture), ele- becomes clear that it is only possible to merge ments are now present which constitute the TRB individual developments into a full picture society. e advent of these elements marks the and an historical interpretation by combin- beginning of the growth phase of this society ing dierent indicators and proxies. In the (r phase) that is again connected with a rise in case of the crisis during the second half of the population (according to the SCDPD). is is th millennium BC, neither internal devel- accompanied by a narrowing of the available opments nor external factors and inuences strategies for action, because a certain spectrum were singular causes. It rather seems likely that of the given strategies had proven to be success- societal development itself formed the basis for ful (Kirleis & Fischer ). a situation in which an external shock could Increasing rigidity and tension within the inuence the society to such as extent. It is also society probably needed balancing mechanisms. clear that we are confronted with very dierent is could be the interpretation of the fact that phases and practices in the social complex that collective ritual activities, such as the construc- achieves certain coherence as the TRB through tion of megalithic collective burials and cause- the ceramics used. For a characterization of wayed enclosures, became more important. Also this society, the respective internal and exter-
nal conditions as well as the historical situation Kirleis, W., Klooß, S., Kroll, H., Müller, J. . Crop must be considered. Only then is it possible to growing and gathering in the northern German Neo- lithic: a review supplemented by rst new results. Veg- interpret such a complex phenomenon as the etation History and Archaeobotany . DOI: ./ northern central European Neolithic. s-- -. Kirleis, W. & Fischer, E. . Neolithic cultivation of tetraploid free threshing wheat in Denmark and north- Acknowledgements ern Germany: implications for crop diversity and soci- etal dynamics of the Funnel Beaker Culture. Vegetation We would like to thank all those involved in History and Archaeobotany / Supplement, – . the priority programme SPP who made Larsson, M. . Tidigneolitikum i Sydvästskåne: Kro- such an overarching interpretation possible with nologi och bosättningsmönster. Acta archaeologica Lun- their data and analyses, as well as the DFG for densia. Series in °, no. . Lund. their support of the project. Special thanks also Müller, J. . Megaliths and Funnel Beakers: Socie- ties in Change – BC. Kroon-Vordaacht . go to Eileen Küçükkaraca for proofreading the Amsterdam. English text. Petoukhov, V. & Semenov, A. . A link between reduced Barents-Kara sea ice and cold winter extremes over northern continents. Journal of Geophysical Research References , D. doi:./JD . Rick, J. W. . Dates as data: an examination of the Alley, R. B. . e Younger Dryas cold interval as Peruvian pre-ceramic radiocarbon record. American viewed from central Greenland. Quaternary Science Antiquity /. Reviews . Schlichtherle, H. . Bemerkungen zum Klima- und Billamboz, A. n.d. Bodensee - Archaeological Tree Kulturwandel im südwestdeutschen Alpenvorland. In Ring Data. Unpublished Archaeological Tree Ring Daim, F., Gronenborn, D., & Schreg, R. (eds.), Strate- Data. International Tree-Ring Data Bank, IGBPPAG- gien zum Überleben: Umweltkrisen und ihre Bewältigung: ES/World Data Center for Paleoclimatology, NOAA/ Tagung des Römisch-Germanischen Zentralmuseums, NGDC Paleoclimatology Program, Boulder, Colorado, ./ . September . Mainz. USA (ftp://ftp.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/ paleo/treering/ Shennan, S., Downey, S. S., Timpson, A., Edinborough, chronologies/europe/) Files:germ.crn, germ.crn, K., Colledge,S., Kerig, T., Manning, K. & omas, germ.crn, germ.crn,germ .crn, germ . M. G.. . Regional population collapse followed crn, germ.crn. initial agriculture booms in mid-Holocene Europe. Dreibrodt, S., Zahrer, J., Bork, H.-R., Brauer, A. . Nature Communications http://dx.doi.org/. / Witterungs- und Umweltgeschichte während der ncomms . norddeutschen Trichterbecherkultur – rekonstruiert Sørensen, L. & Karg, S. . e expansion of agrarian auf Basis mikrofazieller Untersuchungen an jahres- societies towards the north – new evidence for agri- geschichteten Seesedimenten. In Hinz & Müller . culture during the Mesolithic/Neolithic transition Feeser, I., Dörer, W., Averdieck, F.-R., Wiethold, J. . in Southern Scandinavia. Journal of Archaeological New insight into regional and local land-use and veg- Science. Online September . doi: . /j. etation patterns in eastern Schleswig-Holstein during jas.. .. the Neolithic. In Hinz & Müller . Stevens, C. J., & Fuller, D. Q. . Did Neolithic Hinz, M., Feeser, I., Sjögren, K.-G., Müller, J. . Demo- farming fail? e case for a Bronze Age agricultural graphy and the intensity of cultural activities: an evalu- revolution in the British Isles. Antiquity . ation of Funnel Beaker Societies (– cal BC). Williams, A. . e use of summed radiocarbon prob- Journal of Archaeological Science . ability distributions in archaeology: a review of meth- Hinz, M., & Müller, J. (eds.). . Siedlung, Grabenw- ods. Journal of Archaeological Science . erk, Großsteingrab: Studien zu Gesellschaft, Wirtschaft und Umwelt der Trichterbechergruppen im nördlichen Mitteleuropa. Bonn.
e cultural encounters of neolithization processes A discussion of dierent ways to understand plurality Anders Högberg
Abstract Recent years’ development in archaeometry has led to the writing of new narratives about Neolithization processes all over the world. Dierent forms of DNA and isotope analyses have attained importance as study material for interpretations of people’s patterns of movement and interaction. Often, however, the results of these studies are presented in the framework of a non-problematized and non-theoretical interpretation of cultural encounters. is text proceeds from modern plurality studies. Five models for understanding cultural encounters are discussed. e idea is that ways of thinking about present-day cultural encounters can inspire critical thinking about prehistoric cultural encounters.
Linnaeus University, Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Department of Cultural Sciences, SE- Kalmar, Sweden. [email protected]
’ in archae- retical interpretation of cultural encounters. ometry has led to the writing of new narra- To put it simple, the explanations of the way tives about Neolithization processes all over people met during the Stone Age and how the world (Balter ). Dierent forms of they interacted and perceived each other are DNA analysis and isotope analysis have attained not supported by the empirical evidence pre- importance as study material for interpretations sented in the analyses (Fredengren ). e of people’s patterns of movement and interac- reason is that, although the studies are rooted tion. Many of these studies have made crucial in solid methodological research concerning contributions to reinterpretations of prehistor- complicated analyses which yield new data not ic encounters between groups of people. It is previously available to archaeology (Prescott easy to imagine how the future development ), the data are presented in a framework of this research will serve as a foundation for that lacks a proper knowledge of the diversi- investigations of complex prehistoric migration ty of expressions that can result from people’s processes (Prescott ). cultural and social encounters and interactions Yet, while rened scientic methods have (for the diversity of cultural encounters see, for given archaeology access to new source mate- example, Barnard ; Van Reybrouck ). rial, many studies show weakly constructed is is a problem. Human interaction in the chains of interpretation. Studies presenting, for past is explained in a way that is insucient in example, pioneering results of genomic DNA relation to the knowledge about interaction that analysis (Malmström et al. ; Skoglund et is available in the human sciences. Phenomena al. ) incorporate these results in the frame- such as migration, cultural belonging, cultural work of a non-problematized and non-theo- encounters, and change over a long time from
one (material) cultural expression to another e assimilation model are used as social and economic explanato- e model describes a society that accepts only ry frameworks, even though the studies have one set of shared values, social norms, and not analysed these frameworks (for example, practices. is set of shared values is the core Sørensen & Karg ). is result in a simplis- through which conceptions of the world are tic picture of how cultural encounters between dened. is is done on an essentialist basis, people took place in the Stone Age and also often associated with origin myths or ideas implicitly how they can take place in our own about a national character arising from blood times and in the future (for a discussion see and soil. ose who are not a part of the core Cassel ). must either adapt to it or be excluded from it. But how can one understand cultural e function of cultural heritage in this encounters? is text uses modern plurality model is as a tool for assimilating aliens so that studies to give perspective to these questions. they are admitted to the core, or else marginal- e idea is that ways of thinking about pres- izing or excluding the aliens who are unwilling ent-day cultural encounters can inspire critical or unable to become a part of the core. is thinking about prehistoric cultural encoun- exclusion simultaneously conrms those who ters in general and Neolithization processes are already included, strengthening their inter- in particular. nal cohesion. ey bear a cultural heritage of traditions and norms which are considered to Ways of thinking about how have a value that is given by origin. Cultural present-day societies organize heritage thus has an educational eect, with a cultural encounters socializing role of both including and excluding. e use of cultural heritage is a constant process In a major study of how heritage is used in of assimilation whereby likeness is conrmed our times, Ashworth et al. () have inves- inwards and dierence is manifested outwards. tigated ways in which cultural plurality can is process is given the impression of being be expressed. ey highlight ve models: the eternal and primordial, usually with a mythi- heritage in assimilation model, the heritage in cal beginning and no end. e majority of the melting pot model, the heritage in core+ model, European nation states are typical examples of the heritage in pillar model, and the heritage in this use of cultural heritage; other examples salad bowl/rainbow/mosaic model (Ashworth are the way regionalism or the EU make use et al. , pp. .). In their study the mod- of cultural heritage. els are used as templates to describe dierent ways of handling issues of cultural heritage and diversity, and as a starting point for sys- e melting pot model tematizing and describing examples of the use is model describes societies as melting pots of cultural heritage taken from dierent parts where people of dierent origins are mixed into of the world. In this text I proceed from these something shared and new. ere is no core models in order to clarify the many ways in here to which everyone is supposed to relate. which cultural encounters can be understood. I Instead everyone will blend together and thus would stress that the aim is solely to arouse ideas create new common values, social norms, and about the complexity of cultural encounters, practices around which to unite. not to provide models for the interpretation e function of cultural heritage in this of prehistoric cultural encounters.
model is identity construction, where all those e pillar model involved are expected to lay aside their previous is model views society as consisting of a cultural heritage and instead identify with the number of independent and separate units new one, often a new place and new values. not linked to each other in any way. Together Everyone who agrees to this is included. e each unit supports the structure (for example a process in the use of cultural heritage is tran- state) to which they all belong. e consistent sient in that, once everyone has undergone the idea, however, is that the distinctions should be transformation in the melting pot, the pro- maintained between each cultural unit. cess is over. Processes then often begin when e role of cultural heritage in this model is a core of shared premises is formed and other multifaceted. Each group handles its cultural ways of handling cultural heritage and diversity heritage on its own terms to maintain the cul- take over to clarify processes of inclusion and ture inwards and to mark a clear exclusion of exclusion. European immigrants to the USA others. e use of cultural heritage is a never- are a typical example from history of this use ending process whereby likeness is conrmed of cultural heritage. inwards and dierence is manifested outwards. Typical examples of this model are countries e core+ model where the population is divided into Catholic and Protestant. is model describes societies where there is a harmonious core culture or a dominant cultural heritage and the cultural heritages of a number e salad bowl/rainbow/mosaic of so-called minorities have been added to this. model e value of the core culture is usually repre- is model views society as a framework where sented by a substantial majority with historical disparities in the form of dierent cultures, eth- or political dominance and is viewed as such by nicities, and identities act together and create the minorities. Both the majority culture and a whole without this being at the expense of the minority cultures accept this situation and anyone else. e necessary foundation is an dene themselves on the basis of it. understanding that society consists of complex e function of cultural heritage in this sets of similarities and dierences and that the model is multifaceted, but it usually contains instrumental role of cultural heritage is to assist some form of strengthening inclusion inwards in this. e salad bowl metaphor illustrates in both the majority and the minority cultures. dierent ingredients that have been mixed to is is done through a combination of inward give a specic and unique salad in which each activities and outward exclusion. In this way ingredient still retains its character. e mosaic the instrumental role of cultural heritage inside metaphor similarly emphasizes that each piece each group resembles the assimilation model, is unique in character but together the pieces with the dierence that it does not serve to in a mosaic make up a pattern. e rainbow assimilate but to separate. e use of cultural metaphor emphasizes dierent colours that heritage is a constant process whereby likeness is give a regular pattern in which each colour is conrmed inwards and unlikeness is manifest- distinct but at the transition to the next col- ed outwards. A typical example of this model our there is a gradual merger with no distinct is the minority policy in Sweden. boundary. In these metaphors the bowl, the mosaic pattern, and the rainbow stand for the
society while the salad ingredients, the mosaic competed, but which do not actually analyse pieces, and all the colours of the rainbow are the interaction itself, risk creating a muddled individuals or groups of people represented understanding of cultural encounters in the through cultures, ethnicities, and identities. distant past. is muddled understanding e role of cultural heritage in this model is risks aecting our understanding of cultural multifaceted. It can be inclusive in that everyone encounters today. It is therefore important to is invited to contribute to the cultural heritage. discuss dierent ways of thinking about cul- e focus is on openness by making everyone’s tural encounters in relation to archaeological cultural heritage visible and available. e role interpretations of prehistoric encounters. of cultural heritage can be excluding in that each Translated into the interpretation of Neo- separate group in this model, through its use lithization processes, the assimilation model of cultural heritage, approaches the way that is by far the most common in recent years’ cultural heritage is used in the assimilation presented archaeometry studies (Skoglund et model. e process comprised in this model al. ). Prehistoric groups are regarded as is a constant conrmation of dierences, along cultural units where expressions of materiality with an endeavour to include everyone in the concern identity and ethnicity. Material culture community. However, empirical examples show is used to create archaeologically demarcated that the model is usually a vision or a utopia, cultures and these are then perceived as being while the reality is often that the use of cultural distinct and separate. Terms such as Ertebølle heritage develops into variants of other models. culture, Funnel Beaker culture (TRB), and A typical example is South Africa’s post-apart- Pitted Ware culture (GRK) are well known as heid vision of a “rainbow nation”. both well-deconstructed and well-constructed examples. Translated into a discussion of the time when Ertebølle culture gave way to Funnel Discussion Beaker culture, for instance, this usually con- e ve models presented above are borrowed cerns how one dominant cultural expression from Ashworth et al. () and primarly relat- took over after another or what actually hap- ed to the eld of heritage studies. I have here pened when the former was transformed into used them to show the radically dierent ways the latter in an assimilation process. in which cultural encounters can be organized But what would happen if questions about and understood. e past in the form of cultural the transition between Ertebølle and Funnel heritage is activated in diverse ways in order to Beaker cultures were formulated on the basis create a future which looks dierent in dierent of other models (see Jennbert for the start societies depending on how people think they of a discussion of this kind)? Is it possible to ought to live together. An understanding of investigate this time in terms of a melting pot encounters and interactions based on, say, the model or a salad/rainbow/mosaic model? Or assimilation model diers radically from one was it perhaps a time that could be described based on a salad bowl/rainbow/mosaic model. as dominated by a pillar model, where dier- Cultural encounters are an important issue ences were contained within one and the same in archaeology (Petersson & Skoglund ). shared space? Or an initial encounter according ey are also a burning issue in contemporary to the salad bowl/rainbow/mosaic model that politics (Breslin ). Archaeometry stud- have resulted over a few generations in a soci- ies which claim to investigate and interpret ety that can be described in terms of a melting how people in the past moved, interacted, and pot or a core+ model?
Recent years have seen the publication of ese are all vital questions to be asked. But detailed studies of cultural encounters on the they are not sucient. Migration and inter- island of Öland in the Middle Neolithic (see action consist of so much more than just ideas for example Papmehl-Dufay ; Fornander and techniques moving with or without people ). Analyses of what people ate and how along routes, replacing something existing with they moved show that dierent groups – hunt- something new. Migration and interaction are er-gatherers and farmers – lived separately. constituted by people meeting each other. And People buried in the Pitted Ware cemetery at when people meet, things get complicated. Köpingsvik in central Öland and those bur- Established ways of understanding the world are ied in the megalithic monuments at Resmo in challenged by new thinking. How this is dealt southern Öland show quite distinct life stories with diers radically from group to group, from according to archaeometrical analyses (For- society to society. As Gísli Pálsson has stated, nander ). is is despite the fact that the simple reductionist gene talk is not enough to places are not separated by more than a short understand this: “ e big challenge for anthro- day’s travel on foot or by boat. Do we perhaps pology now is to realign the biological and the have an example here of a pillar model where social on new terms in a nonreductionist fash- people lived culturally separate but with shared ion” (Pálsson , p. S). structures, that is to say, with the geographi- e ambition in this text has been to exem- cal area of Öland and its coast as their com- plify the complexity of cultural encounters. mon everyday reality? Was it perhaps the case With theoretical models taken from ways of that some parts of social life were shared even thinking about how present-day pluralistic though the expressions manifested in material societies can be understood in dierent ways, culture and dietary intake were kept separate? the aim has been to inspire deeper thinking Did this change over time? Would an under- about prehistoric encounters. By pondering on standing of cultural encounters in terms of a the ways in which cultural encounters can take core+ or pillar model lead to more profound place, I hope it may be easier to understand interpretations of this? possibilities and limitations in the questions, Studies of ancient migration often focus methods, and interpretations that archaeology on distribution patterns and migration. In a presents, based on the often amazing data about well-informed comment on the latest ndings Neolithization processes that archaeometry is about Neolithization processes within archae- publishing at an increasing rate. ometry, Michael Balter discusses the potential of the studies for continued investigations of Translation by Alan Crozier questions which have been with archaeology for a long time (Balter , p. ): References But many questions remain: Did farmers them- Ashworth, G. J., Graham, B. J. & Tunbridge, J. E. . selves migrate throughout Europe, or just the Pluralising Pasts: Heritage, Identity and Place in Multi- cultural Societies. London. ideas and techniques of farming? What routes Balter, M. . Ancient Migrants Brought Farming did farmers and farming take as they replaced Way of Life to Europe. Science . the hunter-gatherer societies already present? Barnard, A. . Social Anthropology and Human Ori- Did farming advance in one solid wave, or gins. Cambridge. Breslin, S. . Regions and Regionalism in World Pol- sometimes leapfrog its way past the resident itics. In Beeson, M. & Bisley, N. (eds.), Issues in st hunter-gatherers? Century World Politics. New York.
Cassel, K. . I genernas spår. In Andrén, A. (ed.), sonal Genomics. Current Anthropology , Supple- Förmodern globalitet: Essäer om rörelse, möten och är- ment . (). ran ting under år. Lund. Papmehl-Dufay, L. . Shaping an identity: Pitted Ware Fredengren, C. . Post-humanism, the transcorpo- pottery and potters in southeast Sweden. Stockholm. real and biomolecular archaeology. Current Swedish Petersson, B. & Skoglund, P. (eds.) . Arkeologi och Archaeology (). identitet. Lund. Fornander, E. . Consuming and communicating identi- Prescott, C. . Utfordrer archaeo-science norsk arke- ties: Dietary diversity and interaction in Middle Neolithic ologi? Primitive Tider . Sweden. eses and Papers in Scientic Archaeology Skoglund, P., Malmström, H., Raghavan, M., Storå, J., . Stockholm. Hall, P., Willerslev, E., Gilbert, M. T. P., Götherström, Jennbert, K. . Ertebølle pottery in southern Sweden A. & Jakobsson, M. . Origins and Genetic Leg- – a question of handicraft, networks and creolisation acy of Neolithic Farmers and Hunter-Gatherers in in a period of neolithisation. Bericht der Römisch-Ger- Europe. Science . manischen Kommission. Römisch-Germanische Kommis- Sørensen, L. & Karg, S. . e expansion of agrarian sion des Deutschen Archäologischen Instituts ( ). societies towards the north – new evidence for agri- Malmström, H., Gilbert, M. T. P., omas, G. M., Brand- culture during the Mesolithic/Neolithic transition in ström, M., Storå, J., Molnar, P., Andersen, K. P., Bendix- Southern Scandinavia. Journal of Archaeological Sci- en, C., Holmlund, G., Götherström, A. & Willerslev, ence . http://dx.doi.org/. /j.jas.. .. E. . Ancient DNA Reveals Lack of Continuity Van Reybrouk, D. (). From Primitives to Pri- between Neolithic Hunter-Gatherers and Contempo- mates: A History of Ethnographic and Primatological rary Scandinavians. Current Biology . DOI . /j. Analogies in the Study of Prehistory. Leiden. cub.... Pálsson, G. . Decode Me! Anthropology and Per-
Creolization processes in the later south Scandinavian Neolithic An approach to cultural heterogeneity Rune Iversen
Abstract is paper approaches the cultural heterogeneity of the later South Scandinavian Neolithic. South Scan- dinavia experienced a very uneven development in the course of the rd millennium BC, with a variety of archaeologically dened cultures. is situation has resulted in the application of a “culture-centred” approach by which individual “cultures” have been thoroughly analysed but without the achievement of a coherent understanding of the cultural heterogeneity of the period. is paper questions the application of dogmatic cultural labelling and proposes the use of creolization theory to explain the blurred cultural situation that followed the Funnel Beaker era in eastern Denmark and lasted until the onset of the Late Neolithic when a new period of incipient cultural homogeneity began.
Department of Archaeology, University of Copenhagen, SAXO Institute, Karen Blixens Vej , DK- Copenhagen S, Denmark. [email protected]
Introduction Peninsula consisting of low burial mounds with the beginning of stratied single graves holding stone battle-ax- the Neolithic is dened by the presence of es and cord-decorated beakers (Müller ; domesticated crops and the occurrence of ). Some years later, Carl Johan Becker the Funnel Beaker culture around BC, analysed the contemporary and multifaceted which remained the sole archaeological culture assemblage of nds recovered from eastern Den- throughout the th millennium BC in the mark and introduced the term “the Single Grave region. From around BC we see signi- culture of the Danish Islands” (Becker ). cant changes in the material culture, including e abundance of archaeological cultures new types of pottery, battle-axes, arrowheads, dened within the later part of the south Scan- changed settlement patterns, subsistence eco- dinavian Neolithic has to a wide extent resulted nomic practices and burial customs. ese in a “culture-centred” approach. us, research changes are generally related to the appearance has mainly been focused on individual cultures of new Middle Neolithic “cultures” including and associated aspects such as culture-specic the Pitted Ware culture, the Swedish-Norwe- burial customs, settlement patterns etc. I do gian Battle-Axe culture and the Single Grave not consider such an approach mistaken, but culture covering a Jutland variant and an east standing alone it appears inadequate if one Danish variant. wishes to explain the cultural heterogeneity e term Single Grave culture was intro- of the later Neolithic period, as is the purpose duced by Sophus Müller in in order to of this paper. describe a certain type of burials on the Jutland
Cultural heterogeneity in the rd from around or a little before BC. One millennium BC example is the appearance of the stone pack- ing graves in northern and western Jutland, c. As indicated by some recent 14C dates (e.g. – BC. e stone packing graves show Andersen , p. ; Skousen , pp. similarities to both the wagon burials of the .), the late Funnel Beaker culture coexisted Yamnaya culture of the Pontic-Caspian steppes with the Pitted Ware culture, the Jutland Single and the cattle burials of the Baden and Glob- Grave culture and the Swedish-Norwegian Bat- ular Amphora complexes, including the Złota tle-Axe culture on a regional level for a couple group of southern Poland (Whittle , p. of hundred years during the early rd millen- , pp. .; Johannsen & Laursen ). nium BC. e late Funnel Beaker culture was e disintegration of the Funnel Beaker the dominant material culture group at the culture can furthermore be seen in the dier- beginning of the millennium, with features like entiation of pottery styles such as the north Store Valby pottery and thick-butted A-axes Jutland Ferslev style, the Bundsø/Lindø style of spread across Denmark. However, viewed from the Danish Islands, the Karlsfält/Stävie group a pottery-based perspective, one could ask if the in Scania and the Vasagård and Grødby styles Store Valby phase should be regarded as a part on Bornholm. However, the most far-reaching of the Funnel Beaker complex at all. trend within the late Funnel Beaker pottery e plain bucket-shaped vessels, the thick is the development of the south Scandinavi- and coarsely tempered ware and the scarce an Pitted Ware tradition (M. Larsson ; and simple ornamentation clearly distinguish Iversen ). the Store Valby pottery from the earlier and Material culture changes did not only show far more elegant and elaborate Funnel Beaker in the form of new pottery styles but also in the styles. Artistically we are facing a degeneration occurrence of tanged Pitted Ware arrowheads phase, which in my view mirrors a general and in the shaping of int axes. ick-butted transformation of the late Funnel Beaker soci- int axes appeared from the onset of the rd eties that includes a gradual incorporation of millennium BC and can be divided into two various new material elements. e occurrence chronologically overlapping types (A and B) of the Store Valby pottery is in itself an indi- (Nielsen ). Whereas A-axes are spread cation of this development as it shares some throughout southern Scandinavia and are bucket-shaped vessel types with the western related to Funnel Beaker contexts, B-axes are Globular Amphora group (cf. Davidsen , concentrated in Scania and eastern Denmark p. f.). where they occur on late Funnel Beaker and e downgrading of the visual and stylis- Pitted Ware sites, sometimes together with tic aspects of pottery was not unique to early A-axes. Besides, B-axes are aliated with the rd millennium BC southern Scandinavia technically poorer thick-butted int axe of the and northern Germany but can also be found Single Grave culture. in many other later Neolithic styles, such as ere is no doubt that the B-axes derive Horgen (Switzerland) and Seine-Oise-Marne from the A-axes and that these represent a fur- (northern France/southern Belgium) pottery ther development of the chronological earlier (Whittle , p. ). thin-butted axes. us, the thick-butted int Even though the Store Valby style covered axes are clearly rooted in the Funnel Beaker int most parts of present-day Denmark, we see a tradition. e development of B-axes must be clear disintegration of the Funnel Beaker culture related to the disintegrated late Funnel Beaker
Fig. . Material culture of the early rd millennium BC. Store Valby vessel, tanged arrowhead and thick-butted int axes. After Ebbesen , gs. , ; Davidsen , pl. . Drawing by H. Ørsnes. milieu that appeared in eastern Denmark and mindsets dierent from those of the Funnel Scania during the early rd millennium BC Beaker culture and are thus parts of an increas- (Fig. ). ing disintegration of the Funnel Beaker world. In addition to the artefact types discussed e general impression of the archaeological above, a few scattered nds of early Single record in eastern Denmark in the early rd mil- Grave type battle-axes occurred in east Den- lennium BC is a mixture of dierent cultural mark (Zealand and adjacent islands) as Single elements brought together within the context Grave communities started to appear on the of the late Funnel Beaker culture. Jutland Peninsula from around BC (Glob , gs. – ). Some of the Single Grave beakers found in east Denmark might be con- e shaping of new cultural identi- temporary with the late Funnel Beaker milieu. ties and the choice of terminology Besides, a restricted number of vessels from the A very rich vocabulary exists when it comes to Globular Amphora and Elbe-Havel cultures the description of the fusion of cultural traits are known from southeastern Denmark. Even including: hybridization, syncretism, ethnogen- though these dierent elements can be explained esis, acculturation, assimilation, creolization etc. as single imports, the result of direct exchange Most of this terminology takes its point of in the form of gifts, migration of individuals departure in the description of the European or exogamic relations, they introduce ideas and colonialism in the Americas and the creation of
African-American/African-Caribbean societies also have a native language of their own but in the th and th century AD. as pidgin is learnt by new generations as a pri- Acculturation, assimilation and creolization mary language is becomes a creole (Baptista are among the terms that have been applied in , p. ). archaeological research (e.g. Okun ; L. Larsson ; Webster ; Bergstøl ). I think it is worth considering some of the slight e disintegration of the Funnel dierences associated with the two main terms: Beaker culture acculturation and creolization. At some point I think that the concepts of pidginization and there is a tendency within cultural anthropol- creolization oer very useful frames for under- ogy to use the term acculturation to describe standing the cultural situation in east Denmark asymmetric power relations in which one soci- during the early rd millennium BC. Creoli- ety is dominant in proportion to another. Such zation theory provides us with an approach by a superior-subordinate relationship often leads which we can capture the cultural substance to the assimilation/absorption of the subor- behind an otherwise culturally blurred archae- dinate culture into the dominant one. us, ological record. Creole languages are diversi- acculturation often leads to assimilation (Ember ed and shaped through non-homogeneous & Ember , pp. .). I do not nd that processes involving a range of complex mech- such asymmetric power relations are consistent anisms that are dependent on factors such as with the actual situation we face at the onset the identity of the interacting agents. Similar- of the rd millennium BC and I will therefore ly, cultural creolization is not a unied process leave the acculturation/assimilation terminol- resulting in a single creolized blend (a new nor- ogy out of account. mative culture) but rather in a series of inter- Creolization, on the other hand, is a linguis- acting subcultures (Ferguson , pp. xli .; tic term that describes the blending of two or Webster , p. ; Baptista , p. ). more languages into a new language. Creoli- us, from around BC onwards a series zation also has a hint of the above-mentioned of new material culture trends were obtained asymmetrical power relations as it initially was by the indigenous Funnel Beaker culture in a used to described the emergence of European process I will describe as cultural pidginization, and African mixed languages resulting from which in the course of time resulted in creole the import of African slaves by the European communities. colonial powers. However, the concept of cre- e palisade enclosures of the early rd mil- olization has a historical dimension to it that lennium BC probably played an important role I think is highly applicable when we wish to as social arenas and facilitators of this cultural describe and explain the fusion of cultural traits transformation process. e palisades, in my into new and mixed cultural expressions. opinion, can best be explained as products of Creole languages often emerge from some the Funnel Beaker tradition of constructing kind of pidgin, which is the initial blend of large ritual gathering sites (cf. the earlier cause- two or more parent languages. Whereas creoles wayed enclosures). Traces of early Battle-Axe are dened by being natural languages having and Pitted Ware material culture found in con- their own native speakers, a rich vocabulary nection with the palisades show how people and developed grammar, pidgin is a rudimen- obtained new material elements within an over- tary language that is often limited to certain all Funnel Beaker cultural and ritual framework functions or domains. All pidgin speakers will materialized in the palisade enclosures. us,
the incorporation of new cultural elements was the Funnel Beaker complex nally ceased and not done uncritically as it had to be legitimized Corded Ware/Single Grave inuences became in accordance with old norms and traditions. A predominant in east Denmark. somewhat similar scenario is also visible at the Alvastra Pile Dwelling in Östergötland, Middle Sweden, where Pitted Ware material culture After the Funnel Beakers and lifestyle was adopted within a ritual and From around BC Corded Ware objects constructional Funnel Beaker setting (cf. M. appeared in east Denmark in larger numbers Larsson ; Lagerås ; Brink , pp. than hitherto seen. What we see is neither the .; Browall , pp. .). adoption of the material culture of the Jutland Likewise, the megalithic tombs might have Single Grave culture nor that of the Swedish worked as transformers of culturally alien Battle-Axe culture but rather a mix of the two objects. People placed Pitted Ware tanged combined with few Pitted Ware elements and arrowheads, Single Grave beakers and battle- continued underlying Funnel Beaker traditions. axes in the megalithic tombs and by doing so e material culture that characterizes the they introduced new material forms within a nal Middle Neolithic, c. – BC, in well established setting continuing and accen- east Denmark is primarily thick-butted int tuating Funnel Beaker customs. My view is adzes, late tanged arrowheads (type D) and that the Funnel Beaker worldview, ritual tra- a relatively limited number of Corded Ware ditions, burial customs and social organiza- beakers and Single Grave type stone battle- tion continued relatively unaltered and func- axes. e curved beakers and late battle-axes tioned as a cultural basis during most of the found in eastern Denmark can be compared rd millennium BC. On this foundation new to those of eastern Schleswig-Holstein and material elements were obtained, creating a Mecklenburg-Vorpommern rather than those series of interacting subcultures characterized of the Jutland Single Grave core area of west- by e.g. dierent pottery styles and subsistence central Jutland or Battle-Axe culture Sweden. economic strategies. It is noteworthy that no straight-walled beak- On the basis of the material and cultur- ers, which otherwise account for more than al diversication that took place during the half of the Single Grave funerary pottery on early rd millennium BC, I conceive the late the Jutland Peninsula, have been found in east Funnel Beaker milieu as an expression of an Denmark. Likewise, no Swedish Battle-Axe incipient creolization process or what we can vessels are known from Denmark, showing term cultural pidginization. is is rst and that a separate pottery tradition was created foremost seen in the development of various in east Denmark strictly demarcating the area late Funnel Beaker pottery styles (including from the Jutland Single Grave culture and the the “degenerate” Store Valby style), the B-axe Battle-Axe culture. complex and the incorporation of Pitted Ware Furthermore, we see no signicant increase tanged arrowheads (types A–C) (see Fig. ). in the number of battle-axes in east Denmark, ese material elements were inuenced by, as was the case within the Jutland Single Grave or related to, various cultural groups (Globular area. In east Denmark, the battle-axes are main- Amphora, Funnel Beaker, Pitted Ware) forming ly recorded as stray nds but they also occur in what I conceive as a new rudimentary material wetlands and in megalithic tombs. is nd “language”. It is from this culturally pidginized situation is very unlike that of the Jutland Pen- milieu that new creole communities emerged as insula where battle-axes were part of the grave
goods in more than single graves (Hüb- and self-understanding of a given social group. ner , p. ). e consistency seen in the burial practice What we see is the selective adoption, trans- is also visible in the ritual norms that governed formation and use of new material elements the deposition practice. Flint axes/adzes con- in accordance with underlying Funnel Beaker tinued to be deposited throughout the Middle norms. If we apply the linguistic concepts of Neolithic in east Denmark, showing that the creolization to the situation in east Denmark ritual norms of the late Funnel Beaker culture then the “grammar” (rules of usage, or in cul- were continued. tural creolization the way material things are made, used and perceived) remained principally Funnel Beaker culture whereas the “lexicon” e creolization of south (words, or the artefacts) appears to be Single Scandinavia Grave culture (cf. Ferguson , p. xlii). How- A continued low frequency of stone battle- ever, the Funnel Beaker “grammar”, or norms axes, an almost total rejection of the individual as I will prefer to call it, did not only aect the Single Grave burial custom, continued int way artefacts were use but also to a high degree axe/adze depositions and reuse of megalithic burial customs and deposition practices. tombs clearly show the continuation of old Fun- Burial customs are inuenced by a range of nel Beaker norms throughout the late Middle cultural norms, political strategies and beliefs Neolithic. Not only was the “Funnel Beaker and are associated with various funerary rituals way” actively upheld by the reuse of megalithic and sometimes elaborate architecture (Pearson tombs, it probably also constituted the under- ). When it comes to burial customs too, lying socio-structural backbone of the nal the nal Middle Neolithic societies in east Den- Middle Neolithic societies of east Denmark. mark dierentiated themselves from the rest of e old Funnel Beaker norms governed the south Scandinavia. Compared with more than adoption and rejection of material culture ele- recorded burial sites on the Jutland Pen- ments including types of objects, the restricted insula holding close to single graves, the use of battle-axes, mortuary and depositional handful of east Danish sites with single graves practices and contact networks. seems almost negligible (Iversen ). e reason why east Denmark so conserva- Instead of adopting the Single Grave burial tively upheld the Funnel Beaker norms must be custom, people of east Denmark preferred the found in the area’s old position as “megalithic old megalithic tombs, which indicates a great heartland”, which reached back to the early th deal of consistency concerning mortuary prac- millennium BC when dolmens and passage tice and ritual behaviour. is consistency is graves were constructed in very large num- signicant as the way people choose to bury bers. As the Funnel Beaker culture ceased and their dead is closely associated with cultural new Corded Ware customs gained a foothold practices, heritage and religious beliefs. Ritu- in northern Europe, material elements were als tend to be rather conservative, preserving adopted and transformed through a cultural ways of doing things, which is particularly creolization process creating what has other- true for funerary rites and mortuary practices, wise been termed “the Single Grave culture of even though rapid changes can occur (Pearson the Danish Islands” (cf. Becker ). How- , p. ). us, the active continuation, ever, with a limited number of battle-axes and or change, of burial practice must be regarded the lack of single graves, one can hardly talk as a weighty indicator of the cultural aliation about a Single Grave culture in east Denmark
(Iversen forthcoming). is reasoning brings lent rigid view of prehistoric cultures as closed us to the question of what to call this cultural self-sustained units, each occupying its time expression otherwise known as the Single Grave period and geographical area. With the applica- culture of the Danish Islands. tion of creolization theory is has been possible My view on this question is that nothing to put forward an interpretation of an archae- much is gained by just adding another cul- ological material and a period that has been tural label to the rich collection of Middle poorly understood and appeared fragmentary Neolithic cultures. Instead of “inventing” a and associated with cultural decline. new culture, I think that we should see this At the end of the culturally diversied cultural expression as the result of the creoli- Middle Neolithic, new Late Neolithic mate- zation process described above. is process rial and cultural trends came to inuence south took place in east Denmark and neighbouring Scandinavia, and in the long term created a new areas and was caused by the combination of and far more homogeneous cultural expression strong local identities rooted in the regional known from the Early Bronze Age. position as megalithic Funnel Beaker heart- land and new Single Grave culture inuences. e creolization process was made possible by References an increasing disintegration (cultural pidg- Andersen, N. H. . Die Region um Sarup im Südwest- inization) of the late Funnel Beaker culture en der Insel Fünen (Dänemark) im . Jahrtausend v. Chr. In Dörer, W. & Müller, J. (eds.), Umwelt – during the early rd millennium BC shown Wirtschaft – Siedlungen im dritten vorchristlichen Jahr- by the emergence of the Store Valby pottery tausend Mitteleuropas und Südskandinaviens. Oa-Büch- and associated late local Funnel Beaker styles er . Neumünster. and Pitted Ware elements (see Fig. ). Baptista, M. . New Directions in Pidgin and Creole A somewhat similar creolization process to Studies. Annual Review of Anthropology . Becker, C. J. . Enkeltgravskulturen paa de danske that described for east Denmark can also be Øer. Aarbøger for nordisk Oldkyndighed og Historie . found in other parts of south Scandinavia. Local Bergstøl, J. . Creoles in Iron Age Norway? Archae- communities in eastern Jutland, on Funen, in ological Review from Cambridge (). northeastern Schleswig-Holstein and north- Brink, K. . I palissadernas tid. Om stolphål och skärvor och sociala relationer under yngre mellanneolitikum. ern Mecklenburg-Vorpommern saw much of Malmöfynd . Malmö. the same development. However, these areas Browall, H. . Alvastra pålbyggnad. – års were more inuenced by the overall Corded uygrävningar. Handlingar, Antikvariska serien . Ware complex, or the Single Grave culture of Stockholm. e.g. westcentral Jutland, than east Denmark. Davidsen, K. . e Final TRB Culture in Denmark. A Settlement Study. Arkæologiske Studier V. København. e creolized communities that evolved in Ebbesen, K. . Die jüngere Trichterbecherkultur auf den east Denmark from c. BC were in a wider dänischen Inseln. Arkæologiske Studier II. København. sense aliated with, or at least inuenced by, Ember, C. R. & Ember, M. . Cultural Anthropology. the overall Corded Ware complex but they used th ed. Boston. the new material culture trends in accordance Ferguson, L. . Uncommon Ground. Archaeology and Early African America, – . Washington, London. with old Funnel Beaker traditions. In the old Glob, P. V. . Studier over den jyske enkeltgravskultur. Pitted Ware areas of northeastern Denmark, Aarbøger for nordisk Oldkyndighed og Historie . elements from the Pitted Ware complex and Hübner, E. . Jungneolithische Gräber auf der Jütischen lifestyle were continued. Halbinsel. Typologische und chronologi sche Studien zur Einzelgrabkultur. Nordiske Fortidsminder, Serie B, is scenario presents a culturally blurred . København. and complex picture and challenges the preva-
Iversen, R. . In a world of worlds. e Pitted Ware Larsson, M. . A Tale of a Strange People. e Pitted complex in a large scale perspective. Acta Archaeo- Ware Culture in Southern Sweden. Kalmar Studies in logica . Archaeology . Lund. – . Beyond the Neolithic transition – the “de-Ne- – . e Guardians and Protectors of Mind: Ritual olithisation” of South Scandinavia. In Larsson, M. & Structures in the Middle Neolithic of Southern Swe- Debert, J. (eds.), NW Europe in Transition. e Early den. In Larsson, M. & Pearson, M. P. (eds.), From Neolithic in Britain and South Sweden. BAR Interna- Stonehenge to the Baltic: Living with Cultural Diversity tional Series . Oxford. in the ird Millennium BC. BAR International Series – forthcoming. Was there ever a Single Grave culture . Oxford. in East Denmark? Traditions and transformations in Müller, S. . De jydske Enkeltgrave fra Stenalderen, the rd millennium BC. In Czebreszuk, J., Furholt, efter nyeste Undersøgelser. Aarbøger for nordisk Old- M., Grossmann, R. & Szmyt, M. (eds.), Transitional kyndighed og Historie . Landscapes? Spatial Patterns, Standardised Burials, and – . Sønderjyllands Stenalder. Aarbøger for nordisk Intensied Communication in the rd Millennium cal BC Oldkyndighed og Historie . in Europe: the Globular Amphora, Corded Ware, and Bell Nielsen, P. O. . De tyknakkede intøksers kronolo- Beaker Complexes in Context. Universitätsforschungen gi. Aarbøger for nordisk Oldkyndighed og Historie . zur prähistorischen Archäologie. Bonn. Okun, M. L. . An example of the process of accul- Johannsen, N. & Laursen, S. . Routes and Wheeled turation in the early Roman frontier. Oxford Journal Transport in Late th–Early rd Millennium Funerary of Archaeology (). Customs of the Jutland Peninsula: Regional Evidence Pearson, M. P. . e Archaeology of Death and Bur- and European Context. Praehistorische Zeitschrift (). ial. Stroud. Lagerås, P. (ed.) . Dösjebro: Mötesplats för trattbägarkul- Skousen, H. . Arkæologi i lange baner: Undersøgel- tur och stridsyxekultur. Skånska spår – arkeologi längs ser forud for anlæggelsen af motorvejen nord om Århus Västkustbanan. Lund. – . Højbjerg. Larsson, L. . Neolithic Societies and eir Environ- Webster, J. . Creolizing the Roman Provinces. Amer- ments in Southern Sweden: A Case Study. In Edmonds, ican Journal of Archaeology (). M. & Richards, C (eds.), Understanding the Neolithic Whittle, A. . Europe in the Neolithic. e creation of of north-western Europe. Glasgow. new worlds. Cambridge World Archaeology. Cambridge.
Cultural identity? e Middle Neolithic Pitted Ware complex in southern Scandinavia Kristina Jennbert
Abstract e aim of this short article is to question the archaeological classication of the Neolithic archaeolog- ical cultures, and to raise questions about how to understand the fragmentary material culture in terms of social agency and cultural expression. e settlement of Jonstorp in southern Sweden as a case of the south Scandinavian Pitted Ware complex presents theoretical and methodological implications for the study of economic systems in emerging complex societies. We have problems understanding the time in question. e problems might be in the archaeological material and our classications, in our methods and our ability to understand the past. However, the narrative of the Neolithization and the introduc- tion of animal breeding and cereal production in southern Scandinavia describes a chaotic period with the construction of monuments and enclosures, technological innovations and colonizing the landscape. Does the material culture at the Pitted Ware sites reect encounters between regional cultural identities? Can we talk about clashing cultural identities in altered regional economic systems in Scania, southern Scandinavia and in the rest of Europe? My contribution to the debate involves anthropological theories of economic systems, sociological theories of cultural representation, conict and identity, and above all a critical perspective on archaeological classication.
Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, LUX, Lund University, Box , SE- Lund, Sweden. [email protected]
Introduction ambitious for us to nd answers? Of course, what happened dur- the actual source material gives us limitations. ing the Neolithic? Can we ask questions about Nevertheless, in the following I will discuss cultural identities? Can we talk about clashing the Pitted Ware complex in the Kullen area in cultural identities in altered regional economic northwestern Scania and draw some conclusions systems in Scania, southern Scandinavia and the about researching the Neolithic. One tempting rest of Europe? Did people meet peacefully or question is whether the material culture at the did they end up in violent conict? e aim of Pitted Ware sites reects a regional cultural iden- this short article is to question the archaeologi- tity. e settlement Jonstorp in southern Sweden cal classication of the Neolithic archaeological as a case of the south Scandinavian Pitted Ware cultures, and to raise questions about how to complex will present theoretical and methodo- understand the fragmentary material culture in logical implications for the study of economic terms of social agency and as cultural expression. systems in emerging complex societies. ere is no doubt that we have to work with a very fragmented material record, as the e archaeological classication amount of material that has perished is volumi- nous. We work with oral cultures, today silent. Our shortcomings might also lie in our clas- Perhaps our questions are too naïve, and too sications, in our methods and our ability to
Fig. . e location of Kullaberg in northwestern Scania, south Sweden. Illustration: Maria Wihlborg . understand the past. But it is a deontological right, which chronologically overlaps the divi- responsibility to scrutinize our terminology, sion between MNA and MNB (Malmer ; and the tyranny of our classications, and to Jennbert , ), but also as a part of the realize that the past as modern constructions Funnel Beaker culture (Edenmo et al. ). reects mentality and values in our own time. us, dierent interpretations have evolved A debate has taken place over many decades about the MN archaeological complexes and about the classication of archaeological mate- subsistence strategies. rial related to the Middle Neolithic (MN): the Funnel Beaker culture (farming), the Battle Axe culture (herding), and the Pitted Ware culture e Kullen area and Pitted Ware (hunter gathering) (e.g. Becker ; Malmer sites in eastern middle Sweden ). e material culture in the Scandinavi- A quick look at the distribution of the Pit- an Middle Neolithic (MNA), at the transition ted Ware sites in the Kullen area shows quite between MNA I and MNA V, has been inter- another geographical setting than the Fun- preted as belonging to developments within the nel Beaker sites and Battle Axe sites further Funnel Beaker culture (Edenmo et al. , south in western Scania. In the Kullen area p. ; Iversen , ). e Battle Axe a large number of Late Mesolithic Ertebølle culture follows in MNB. e Pitted Ware is and Middle Neolithic Pitted Ware sites are interpreted as a cultural expression in its own situated on the southern shores of Skälder-
viken. is region in southern Sweden was location must surely have inuenced emerging a post-glacial island during the Neolithic, cultural identities. isolated from the mainland by a wide strait between the present-day Höganäs and Jons- torp (Fig. ). e archaeological sites of the Economic systems Neolithic period have mainly been registered Early in archaeological research, the distinction by surface collection, and by a few excavations between the Neolithic archaeological groups near Kullaberg. Sites of dierent ages very traditionally was explained by economic factors, often share the same location, according to dened in terms of either agrarian or foraging results from the restricted excavations and the economic systems. e polarity between the survey collections (Lidén , ; Althin dierent systems of subsistence goes back to the ; Malmer , , p. ; Jennbert earliest Scandinavian archaeologists (e.g. Nils- , ). son – ; Becker ; Malmer ). e formation of the Pitted Ware complex However, it is too simplistic to argue, as in the is closely connected to coastal areas in south- ongoing debate, that dierent material com- ern Scania as in eastern Middle Sweden (e.g. plexes represent dierent subsistence systems. Carlsson , p. ; Gill ). e Pitted e categorization of “farmers” versus “hunt- Ware culture seems to occur around the Bal- er-gatherers” inhibits rather than increases an tic Sea, and in eastern middle Sweden already understanding of social agency in the Neo- in Early Neolithic (EN I and EN II), and lithic. Unfortunately, the twentieth-century consists of a fairly well dened material cul- categories and the archaeological chronologi- ture (Åkerlund ; Stenbäck ; Larsson cal system have created narrow categorizations ; Papmehl-Dufay ). However, the that generate more problems than constructive concept of Pitted Ware culture is complicat- ideas in nding answers about social agency ed to use in western Scandinavia, and often and cultural identities. In contrast, anthropo- connected to the Funnel Beaker tradition logical and sociological research on economic (Larsson & Olsson ; Strinnholm ; systems that consider social agency expand Iversen ). the analytical concepts. If the understanding e Neolithic Pitted Ware sites in Scania of subsistence strategies is supplemented with are mostly located on the seashore, mainly on concepts such as production, consumption and the northwestern coast (Lidén ; Malmer distribution of goods and services, (e.g. Sahlins ; Jennbert ), the northeastern coast ; Woodburn , ; Godelier ; (Wyszomirska ) and the southeastern coast ; Pryor ), new interpretations may (Strömberg ). Sites are also found in the be formulated. central part of the province, along the shores e Neolithic was a period of major transfor- of the large lake Ringsjön (Althin , p. ). mation of the landscape. e landscape ecology, With the island location in the Kullen area, with the dierent ecological niches, allowed and with the main activities taking place on the for all kinds of economic routines, including beaches, the Jonstorp sites undoubtedly char- farming, shing, herding, hunting and the acterize a maritime economic system. e sea use of resources such as int, clay and perish- opens up the potential for navigation, coloniza- able material. e Jonstorp sites give us some tion, and trade. e sea should be understood clues about economy, but a restrictive emphasis as allowing movement and connections rather on subsistence strategies does not consider all than a barrier for dividing social space. e aspects of the economic system on the shores.
Economic exploitation incorporates both agen- Material culture is not a passive reection cy and structure, and these factors must guide of social reality, but an active component for our interpretations of the sites. Did people visit people to dene themselves in relation to others. the sites in order to get supplies for growing Materiality in itself is as much an active social terrestrial plants, or just to slaughter the catch force as an expression of skill in handicraft and of seals? Or were social factors involved? At technology. As materiality can signal either the Jonstorp sites the archaeological evidence identity and ownership, knowledge and qual- gives some hints as to the economic exploita- ity, but also the behaviour, characteristics, and tion of the landscape and seascape. Fishing and appearance of individuals, so material culture seal hunting, cultivation of wheat and emmer, are to be understood as a social force and vital gathering of wild plants and anthropogenic in the construction of cultural identity (Jones indicators of plant and animal tissues, bones, ; Boivin ; Olsen ; Hodder ). urine, faeces and ashes were found in the cul- In his research Maurice Godelier shows that ture layers. neither kinship relations nor economic relations e sites in the Kullen area were not isolated are sucient to forge a new society. Instead he and separated from the mainland. e archae- argues that political-religious relations weld ological material does not exhibit remoteness, together kin groups into a society with the rather connectivity, integration and contact authority of a territory, its inhabitants, and its with the mainland (Lidén ; Carle ; resources (Godelier ). e artefacts could Malmer , ; Jennbert , ). In in that case function as cultural representations conclusion, the Pitted Ware complex on the in political services. shore at Jonstorp, and in other coastal areas Neolithic pottery and tools could be exam- in Scandinavia, reects a maritime economic ples of this. A compilation of typologically system with knowledge of seafaring and skilled classied Neolithic tools in Scania and their handicraft. Judging by the character of the association with contextual placement in the material culture, the people were also in inter- dierent Neolithic complexes develops the action, whether peaceful or violent, with people issues further (Table ). e nd associations in the adjacent monumental landscape. support the idea that objects circulated during the Neolithic, and closed social groups did not exist. At the Jonstorp sites the following pat- Cultural representation and identity terns can be observed: What about the cultural representation and identity expressed by the material culture found • Associations with Funnel Beaker con- on the Jonstorp sites? Are pottery, int and texts: Pit-ornamented vessel, clay-disc, stone tools, the maritime economic system, thick-butted int A/B- axe, thin-bladed and seashores associated with a special cultural axe, double-edge axe identity? It is not just subsistence strategies that • Associations with Battle Axe contexts: should be understood but also the meaning of in-bladed axe, thick-butted int-axe the material culture. Nowadays, material culture with concave cutting edge, thick-bladed is understood as a conscious expression chal- int axes lenging and remodelling social roles. Material • Cylindrical blade cores, and tanged blade culture can be understood as a set of things arrowhead at Jonstorp are associated with with meanings in a set of practices between the middle Neolithic; arrowheads A-C with members of a society (Hall , p. XVIII). MNA, type D with Battle Axe
Table . Associations of a selection of artefacts and contexts in Middle Neolithic Scania related to Funnel Beaker, Pitted Ware with special presence at Jonstorp sites and Battle Axe contexts (Carlie ; Ström- berg ; Karsten ; Malmer ). EN (Early Neolithic), MN (Middle Neolithic).
Battle Axe Artefact – relative dating Funnel Beaker context Pitted Ware context context Funnel Beaker beaker (EN–MNA) Dwelling, megalith Funnel Beaker, big pit-decorated storage Dwelling, enclosure, wetland vessel (MNA IV–V) Pit-ornamented vessel (MNA) Dwelling, enclosure, wetland Dwelling, Jonstorp Clay disc (EN, MNA) Dwelling Dwelling, Jonstorp Thin-butted flint axe (EN, MNA I–II) Dwelling, wetland, earth grave Thick-butted flint A-axe (MNA III–V) Dwelling, single find, wetland Dwelling, Jonstorp Thick-butted flint B-axe (MNB) Dwelling, Jonstorp Single find, wetland Pointed-butted flint axe with concave cut- Dwelling, single find, wetland ting edge (MNA IV–V) Thin-bladed axe (MNA IV–V, MNB) Dwelling, single find, wetland Dwelling, Jonstorp Earth grave Narrow chisel (EN–MNA, MNB) Dwelling, grave Earth grave Thick-butted flint-axe with concave cutting Dwelling, Jonstorp Single find, edge (MNB) wetland Thick-bladed adzes (MNB) Earth grave Thick-bladed flint axes (MNB) Dwelling, Jonstorp Earth grave Polygonal battle axe (EN) Dwelling, megalith, Single find Stone mace head (EN) Single find Double-edge axe (EN: MNA) Dwelling, megalith Dwelling, Jonstorp Flint halberd (EN, MN) Dwelling, hoard Flat copper axe (EN, MN) Single find, wetland Single find, wetland Battle axe (MNB) Single find, wetland, earth graves Cylindrical blade cores (MN) Dwelling Dwelling, Jonstorp Tanged blade arrowhead (MNA, MNB) Dwelling, megalith, enclosure Dwelling, Jonstorp Dwelling
Hypothetically, the Pitted Ware complex of food crusts were aected by freshwater res- in Jonstorp signals another kind of materi- ervoir eects. e remaining 14C datings point ality than the contemporary or slightly older to a time sequence between , and , Funnel Beaker complex, and the later Battle cal. BC (Fig. ), e.g. between MNA and MNB Axe complex. A blending of dierent things or (Müller ). Of course, it is impossible to qualities characterizes the material culture on say anything about contemporaneity in the the island. However, the dating of the Jonstorp material culture. Judging by the stratigraphy of sites is problematic, as the Ua series 14C datings the excavated units (Jennbert ), however,
Fig. . Calibrated 14C datings from Jonstorp M and M sites. we can assume that several of the objects could the blending of material culture is to consider have been used during one generation or two. social movements, and the encounter of the So, can we talk about artefacts as cultur- southern Funnel Beaker complexes in combi- al representations and identity at the Pitted nation with the Swedish eastern Pitted Ware Ware sites at Jonstorp? We may suppose that complexes. the maritime economic system was a delayed erefore, I choose to classify the Jonstorp return system. In a delayed return system bind- archaeological material as Pitted Ware, because ing commitments and dependencies between of the character of the material culture, espe- people are vital (Woodburn ). e nds cially the pottery, the economic system, and indicate activities such as reuse of polished int the landscape settings. us, the Jonstorp sites axes (Leer ), as well as pottery craft, int express a certain regional cultural identity. Fol- and stone manufacture. Without local int lowing the complexity of the Jonstorp site, I access, the int axes were certainly a desirable understand other Pitted Ware sites with the raw material, for example, for tanged arrow- same complexities in western and southern heads, whose function could have been either Scandinavia as being expressions of blend- as tools for catching seal, or a weapon against ed creolization. e phenomena of blending other people (Jennbert ). might be the consequence of social agency, Work axes in the Pitted Ware are charac- even conicts as clubs, mace-heads, polished terized by the same set of int axes as in the stone- axes are found on the Jonstorp site as on Funnel Beaker and the Battle Axe complexes other Neolithic sites. (Carlie ; Malmer , p. ). Although there are similarities in material expressions in the middle Neolithic complexes, my interpre- Social conicts tation of the material culture and the setting e traditional archaeological classication of the Jonstorp sites leans towards a blended of dierent Neolithic archaeological cultural creolization. One possibility for understanding groups makes it more dicult to understand
social agency and cultural expression. e scien- tal resources was negotiable through the social tic need to sort and classify in unmixed nds agreements (Jennbert ). As I continue try- is understandable, but it has limited the scope ing to understand what these dierent archae- for understanding dynamic social encountering. ological groups stand for in terms of cultural Of course, social encountering has all kinds of representation, conict, and social identity, it dynamics. To simplify in this short article, social seems obvious that there were multiple circum- agency might include peaceful interaction as stances indicating growing social conicts and well as violent conicts. clashing cultural identities in the late MNA. Certainly, there were commitments in the encountering between people in dierent parts of the province, but in what ways? It seems as if Conclusion the warrior ideal was a growing social category When social aspects are integrated into the during the Neolithic, probably already during system of archaeological classication, the the Mesolithic. Artefacts such as clubs, daggers understanding of the fragmentary material of bone and antler, and arrowheads, the buri- culture is broadened and extended. e Neo- als, and the body traumas show the presence of lithic archaeological cultures emerge as complex war and violence during the Neolithic (Sarauw social units, not as isolated units of self-nour- ; Ahlström & Molnar ; Schulting & ishing and evolving social units. Understand- Fibiger ). Likewise, weapons of int, stone, ing the fragmentary material culture in terms and antler were in use, found on dwellings, in of social agency and cultural expression raises graves, and deposited as single nds and in new questions. hoards on dry land or in wetlands. It looks as if e settlement Jonstorp as a case of the social practices included competition between south Scandinavian Pitted Ware complex serve dierent social groups. as a suitable candidate to explore theoretical In addition, several Funnel Beaker places and methodological implications for the study were constructed by building megaliths and of economic systems in emerging complex enclosures (Larsson ; Andersson ; societies. e Pitted Ware sites were situated in Brink ; Müller ). In Scania the river a maritime non-monumental landscape along valleys inland from the coastal regions con- the coasts. e Funnel Beaker and the Battle tained megaliths, enclosures, and settlement Axe sites were located along river valleys with sites (Strömberg ). e Pitted Ware sites the construction of megaliths, cemeteries and are not located in the river valleys, but associat- enclosures. Even if there were similarities in ed with the coasts, and the shores of Ringsjön, the material cultures, dierences, especially in although there is a certain discrepancy in the pottery ornamentation, also indicate diverse geographical use of Scania; the most important social units and identities. e dissimilarity point is that the boundary between the Fun- in the landscape use and geographical settings nel Beaker complex and the Pitted Ware is far of south Scandinavian Neolithic assemblag- from sharp (Strömberg , p. ; Malmer es indicates dierent economic systems and , p. ). social identities. Probably, In the emerging My assumption is that the dierent social social complexity, several Neolithic regional groups during the Neolithic were involved in lifestyles were represented in the landscape. specic spatial routines and traditions. My As a result, the encountering between groups previous hypothesis was that the access to the of people led to competition between groups ecological mosaic with its physical and men- of people.
In conclusion, we still have insucient Brink, K. . I palissadernas tid: Om stolphål och skärvor classication of the Neolithic archaeological och sociala relationer under yngre mellanneolitikum. Malmöfynd . Malmö. assemblages. e analytical complexities in the Carlie, A. . Om gropkeramisk kultur i Skåne, spe- interaction between material culture, economic ciellt Jonstorp. In Adamsen, C. & Ebbesen, K. (eds.), system, landscape setting, geographical location Stridsøksetid i Sydskandinavien: Beretning fra et sym- and cultural identities need to be extended. posium. . –. X. i Vejle. Arkeologiska skrifter e narrative of the Neolithization and the . København. Carlsson, A. . Tolkande arkeologi och svensk forntid- introduction of animal breeding and cereal shistoria: Stenålder. Stockholm. production in southern Scandinavia describes Edenmo, R. . Gropkeramikerna — fanns de? Materi- a chaotic period with the construction of mon- ell kultur och ideologiska förändring. In Larsson, M. uments and enclosures, technological innova- & Olsson, E. . (eds.), Regionalt och interregio- tions and colonizing the landscape. Regarding nalt: Stenåldersundersökningar i Syd- och Mellansverige. Riksantikvarieämbetet Arkeologiska undersökningar. multiple landscape use and consideration of its Skrifter . Stockholm. benets, the maritime landscape increase the Gill, A. . Stenålder i Mälardalen. Stockholm Studies horizon of understanding. e seashore and in Archaeology . Stockholm. wetland areas can be understood as ecological Godelier, M. . e Making of Great Men. Cambridge. – . Community, society, culture: ree keys to under- niches on the margins. But the agency of the standing today’s conicted identities. Journal of the sh and the seals in the seas, like the wild and Royal Anthropological Institute (N.S.) . domesticated animals on land, is as crucial for Hall, S., Evans, J. & Nixon, S. . Representation. social activities and cultural identities, as are nd ed. London. the potential pathways out to the maritime Hodder, I. . Entangled: An Archaeology of the Rela- tionships between Humans and ings. London. landscape. Iversen, R. . In a world of worlds: e Pitted Ware complex in a large scale perspective. Acta Archaeolo- gica , . References Iversen, R. . Transformation of Neolithic Societies: Ahlström, T. & P. Molnar. . e placement of the An East Danish perspective on the rd millennium BC. feathers: Violence among Subboreal foragers from Got- Copenhagen. land, central Baltic Sea. In Schulting, R. & Fibiger, Jennbert, K. . Sites and the Mental Landscape, Stone L. (eds.), Sticks, Stones, and Broken Bones: Neolithic Age in the Kullen district, North-western Scania, Swe- Violence in a European Perspective. Oxford. den. Lund Archaeological Review –. Åkerlund, A. . Human responses to shore displace- – . e sea shore – beyond monumentality: e ment: Living by the sea in Eastern Middle Sweden dur- case of Pitted Ware coastal sites in southern Sweden. ing the Stone Age. Riksantikvarieämbetet, Arkeologiska In Furholt, M., Hinz, M., Mischka, D., Noble, G. undersökningar . Stockholm. & Olausson, D. (eds.), Frühe Monumentalität und Althin, C.-A. . e Chronology of the Stone Age Settle- soziale Dierenzierung : DFG Schwerpunktprogramm ment of Scania, Sweden. Acta Archaeologica Lundensia Vol. . Kiel. :. Lund. Jones, S. . e Archaeology of Ethnicity: Constructing Andersson, M. . Making Place in the Landscape: Identities in the Past and Present. London. Early and Middle Neolithic Societies in Two West Scan- Larsson, L. . A Causewayed Enclosure and a Site with ian Valleys. Stockholm. Valby Pottery at Stävie, Western Scania. Meddelanden Bagge, A. & K. Kjellmark, . Stenåldersboplatserna från Lunds Universitets Historiska Museum – . vid Siretorp i Blekinge. Kungl. Vitterhets-, historie- och New Series Vol. . antikvitetsakademien . Stockholm. Larsson, M. . A Tale of a Strange People: e Pitted Becker, C. J. . Die Mittelneolithischen Kulturen in Ware Culture in Southern Sweden. Kalmar Studies in Südskandinavien, Acta Archaeologica . Archaeology , Report series . University of Lund, Boivin, N. . Material Cultures, Material Minds: e Department of Archaeology and Ancient History. Lund. Impact of ings on Human ought, Society, and Evo- Larsson, M. & E. Olsson. . (eds.) Regionalt och lution. Cambridge. interregionalt: Stenåldersundersökningar i Syd- och
Mellansverige , Riksantikvarieämbetet Arkeologiska Sahlins, M. . Stone Age Economics. London. undersökningar, Skrifter . Stockholm. Sarauw, T. . Male symbols or warrior identities? e Leer J. . Om det litiska materialet från Jonstorp ‘archery burials’ of the Danish Bell Beaker Culture. M och M. Lund. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology . Lidén, O. . Sydsvensk stenålder belyst av fynden på Schulting, R. & L. Fibiger. . Sticks, Stones, and Bro- boplatserna i Jonstorp. I. Skivyxkulturen. Lund. ken Bones: Neolithic Violence in a European Perspective. – . Sydsvensk stenålder belyst av fynden på boplatserna Oxford. i Jonstorp. II. Gropkeramikskulturen. Lund. Stenbäck, N. . Människorna vid havet: Platser och Malmer, M. P. . Jungneolithische Studien. Acta keramik på Ålandsöarna perioden – f. Kr. Stock- Archaeo logica Lundensia in o:. Lund. holm Studies in Archaeology . Stockholm. – . Gropkeramiska boplatsen Jonstorp RÄ, Antikvariskt Strinnholm, A. . Bland säljägare och fårfarmare: Arkiv . Stockholm. Struktur och förändring i Västsveriges mellanneolitikum. – . e Neolithic of south Sweden, TRB, GRK, and Coast to coast book . Uppsala. STR. Stockholm. Strömberg, M. . Siedlungssysteme in südschwedis- Müller, J. et al. . Periodisierung der Trichterbecher-Ge- chen Megalithgräbergebieten, Fundberichte aus Hes- sellschaften: Ein Arbeitsentwurf. www.jungsteinsite.de. sen –. Accessed July . – . A complex hunting and production area. Prob- – . Megaliths and Funnel Beakers: Societies in Change lems associated with a group of Neolithic sites to the – BC. Amsterdam. south of Hagestad. Meddelanden från Lunds Universitets Nilsson, S. – . Skandinaviska nordens ur- Historiska Museum – . invånare: Ett försök i komparativa ethnograen och Woodburn, J. . Hunters and gatherers today and ett bidrag till menniskoslägtets utvecklingshistoria. reconstruction of the past. In Gellner, E. (ed.), Soviet Stockholm. and Western Anthropology. London. Olsen, B. . e Defense of ings: Archaeology and – . Egalitarian Societies. Man, New Series, Vol. the Ontology of Objects. Auckland. , No. . Papmehl-Dufay, L. . Shaping an Identity: Pitted Wyszomirska, B. . e Nymölla project. Meddelanden Ware Pottery and Potters in Southeast Sweden. eses från Lunds Universitets Historiska Museum – , and Papers in Scientic Archaeology . Stockholm. – . Pryor, F. L. . Economic Systems of Foraging, Agricul- tural, and Industrial Societies. Cambridge.
Agency, creolization and the transformation of tradition in the constitution of the earliest Neolithic in southern Scandinavia Mats Larsson
Abstract During the last years a lot of work has focussed on the agricultural transition and the origins of the Neolithic in southern Scandinavia at a broad, inter-regional, rather than regional scale. Consequent- ly, there is broad agreement today that the dispersal of farming into Europe involved both the resident hunting and gathering communities and exogenous farming groups. We also know that for the more widespread adoption of farming, the role of contact between foragers and farmers was very important. But what motivated the transition to farming at a local and regional level? And what processes enabled the transition, and the coeval development of a new cultural tradition to occur? It is my belief that caus- es and motivations operating at the regional level may well have been dierent from more general and diuse conditions operating at broader geographical scales. In this article I will chiey concentrate on the development of the earliest TRB, the Oxie group, and try to comprehend at a regional scale the transition from hunting-gathering to farming in south Scan- dinavia. An important feature is the application of the theory of structuration and agency as a way of elucidating the course of this transition.
School of Cultural Sciences, Linnaeus University, Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Department of Cul- tural Sciences, SE- , Kalmar, Sweden. [email protected]
A change is gonna come: names taken from important sites like Oxie, Neolithization in south Scandinavia Volling, Svenstorp and so forth (M. Larsson – an introduction ; Madsen & Petersen ). most frequently discussed issues in It was also obvious that the Oxie and Svens- Scandinavian archaeology is Neolithization and torp groups, to some degree at least, were con- what caused it. I will focus on what followed: temporaneous (M. Larsson ). e radio- the regionalization and the local groups with a carbon datings of these two groups were placed focus on the earliest ones, the Oxie, Svenstorp between and BC (M. Larsson ; and Mossby groups. Rudebeck , p. ). During the s When Carl Johan Becker in presented there was some discussion regarding the oldest his three eponymous groups A, B and C he saw of these groups: Oxie. e present author has them as chronologically separated and as a result suggested that on purely typological grounds of migration. When new archaeological results the Oxie group ought to be the oldest (M. started to emerge during the s and s, Larsson ). Several new radiocarbon dates other possibilities were discussed, and in both from Almhov in Malmö and elsewhere corre- Denmark and Sweden new chronologies were spond well with the ones mentioned above, launched, resulting in regional groups with – BC (Rudebeck , p. ). It is
, obvious to my mind that that the Oxie group is for the sites with large numbers of pits like the oldest, and the homogeneity of its accom- Svenstorp and Månasken in southwest Scania panying material culture over a large area of (M. Larsson , ). e pits are often south Scandinavia might be taken as evidence layered, meaning that they were actually recut for a rapid change and transformation along and reused. Large amounts of ints debris are old contact routes. found in the pits, but also obviously unused Previously uninhabited inland areas like the implements such as ake axes, ake scrapers inner part of Scania were settled by Neolith- and in some cases even complete axes and ves- ic communities, as indicated by the distribu- sels (M. Larsson ). tion of pointed-butted int axes. If we look As has long been recognized, there is a close at the distribution of these axes it is clear that resemblance between the int industry of the the majority of these axes have been found in late Ertebølle culture and the early TRB cul- the western part of Scania (Jennbert ; ture. e ake axes, for example, are similar. Sørensen & Karg ). e distribution of Although the ake axes in the TRB culture are the pointed-butted axes illustrate a rather dense smaller and somewhat cruder in appearance, inland habitation during the Early Neolithic. the anity is still close. Other implements that ey seem to concentrate in regions with light, appear in the earliest TRB are, for example, easily worked arable soils. Based on typolog- transverse arrowheads. ese are also very sim- ical characteristics, pointed-butted axes were ilar in shape and technique to the ones found divided into three distinct types. e major- on Ertebølle sites. ity are stray nds. eir typology and place- What does all this have to do with the Oxie ment within the Early Neolithic I period is group? To try and explain this we have to go supported by several radiocarbon dates from back to the Ertebølle culture once more. Already settlement contexts. e dates supports the in the s Peter Vang Pedersen demonstrat- typology originally proposed by P.O. Nielsen ed that it was possible to see regional groups (). Large and systematic production and in the late Ertebølle on Zealand. ese were distribution of these axes is revealed by numer- distinguished by specic items in their mate- ous concentrations of pointed-butted axes close rial culture. to the int mines at Stevns, in Eastern Zealand, It is at this point that structuration theory and Södra Sallerup on the outskirts of Malmö. can be eective: At a regional and communi- e pointed-butted int axes are typical of the ty level individual and collective motivations Oxie group. ere is nevertheless some scant – reasons and justications for doing things – evidence for pointed-butted axes in the Svens- must have been formulated into strategies by torp group but not in either the Volling or the people who had a certain level of knowledge Mossby group (Madsen & Petersen ; M. about their social and natural environment – Larsson ; ). “knowledgeable social actors”. e outcomes As noted by Magnus Andersson (, p. of such strategies must have been contingent ) in his work in western Scania, there are on and validated by structural principles and few if any traces of Mesolithic habitation at dialectical social relationships within which the Early Neolithic inland settlements. Sev- such a community operated. eral of the earliest Neolithic settlements also We can look at some important issues in the had a distinct location in the landscape. ey debate using the above statements: were situated on ridges or small hills in the (a) Settlement shift. Abandonment of earlier undulating landscape. is is especially true Ertebølle permanent settlements (and their bur-
ial sites) and their replacement by single home- from central Europe expanding into this area. steads. for example, Mossby and Dagstorp. In e new material culture consists of point- this there was also an element of deliberate ed-butted axes, jade axes, battle axes, short- social agency aiming at transformation of the necked funnel beakers, clay discs and copper Ertebølle structural code, i.e. structural prin- (Sørensen ). In this we might see more ciples = houses. Changes in subsistence altered inuences from the Michelsberg and Baalberg the structural conditions under which the new cultures area than previously believed. subsistence could operate. New settlement areas If we go along with this notion we can, for were coming into use. example, mention that Rowley-Conwy () (b) e lithic industry. Changes through has suggested that pioneering farmers expanded agency and routine practice can be also detected to the north by leapfrog movement that would in the int work. We can here detect inuenc- suggest sporadic immigration. es from both Neolithic groups in continental What Sørensen, and Rowley Conwy, propose Europe as well as regional Mesolithic tradi- is a cultural dualism with migrating farmers tions. is implies the following: () contin- moving inland and hunter-gatherers still liv- uation of routine practice in the manufacture ing at the coast. is is how we might explain of stone tools, () selective adoption of Neo- the early TRB sites with the large number of lithic elements in tool types such as polished pits. is was a part of the intentional transfor- axes and sickle blades, but also stone tools such mation of the landscape that begins with the as battle axes. Neolithic. e linear way of building during (c) Pottery. e same process of retention this period has often been interpreted as a link of routines and institution of change applies between the Linearbandkeramik long-houses to ceramics: TRB vessels resemble in shape and the long barrows (cf. Hodder ; Bradley and form pottery like Rössen but above all ). e oval Funnel Beaker houses should Michelsberg pottery, but motifs are dierent, probably be seen in the light of this discussion. and somehow similar to those of the decorat- If we accept this notion we might also see the ed Ertebølle pottery. People retained an earlier rounded houses/huts as a lingering Mesolithic Neolithic form and shape for practical reasons, trait. Richard Bradley has recently ( ) stated but allowed the imposition of a new symbol- that a Mesolithic world view probably existed ic code – a hunter-gatherer one – through a and we might turn this argument around and deliberate act of enculturation, through agen- state that a Neolithic world view also existed cy. Unlike shape or form, decoration became of course. In this oval or trapezoid structures an emblematic statement by hunter-gatherers were preferred. turned farmers, who by this symbolic shift Another way of documenting a cultural dual- adopted the Neolithic ceramics as a part of ism is by performing DNA analysis. e burial their cultural identity. site of Ostorf in northern Germany was orig- If we scrutinize the above statements, from inally interpreted as a hunter-gatherer enclave where did people get the incentive to change surrounded by agrarian societies, because the their way of life? We have the late hunter-gath- individuals had a high intake of aquatic resourc- erers, of course, but what else? Recently Lasse es (Lübke et al. pp. .; Schulting Sørensen has argued that the dierent material p. ). However, three burials contained culture which occurs in southern Scandinavia, Palaeolithic/Mesolithic haplogroups U and that is, the TRB, at the beginning of the th U a, while four other burials contained Neo- millennium BC indicates migrating farmers lithic haplogroups J, K and Te (Bramanti et
, al. , p. ). e individuals at Ostorf is what might have happened after a couple of illustrate a rare example of hunter-gatherers centuries; the incoming farmers blended with and possible farmers, who may have integrated the hunter-gatherers living in the coastal areas. with each other. e outcome of this is probably the movement In this context a study by Skoglund et al. from the inland down to the coastal areas. At (), in which the DNA of early farmers this time in history we also see the development (TRB) from Gökhem passage grave at Fal- of dolmens, sometimes incorporated into the bygden were compared to individuals belong- older long barrows. In this way a whole new ing to the Pitted Ware Culture (PWC) found TRB developed with a more stable settlement that individuals from the two contexts show structure, long-houses and a more developed starkly dierent genetic signatures, with the agricultural economy. Neolithic hunter-gatherers being outside the Possibly this also represents a shift from kin- variation of modern-day humans but most ship-based to household-based societies (Levi- closely related to populations from the Baltic Strauss , p. ), where the house consti- area today, whereas Neolithic farming indi- tutes a “corporate body holding an estate that viduals were most closely related to people reproduces itself through the transmission of from places like the Netherlands and France, its name, goods, and titles” (Hodder & Cess- but Greece and Sardinia as well (Skoglund et ford ). Humans were entangled in social al. ). relations, but it is also important to stress the is might indicate that the farmers in Fal- connection between people and place. As Ian bygden belonged to a primarily northwest Euro- Hodder ()recently said, “the focus has pean farming tradition. ese results suggest changed from how things make society possible that migration from southern Europe catalysed to the thing itself and its multiple connections”. the spread of agriculture and that admixture in is means that society and material culture the wake of this expansion eventually shaped the are co-entangled. genomic landscape of modern-day Europe. is is of course interesting regarding the Michels- berg culture that is strong in these areas. Conclusions How then could we understand this devel- What I have tried to show in the above is how opment? complex the situation has become. We cannot Single cultural traits in the form of an arte- say any more that there is no evidence for migra- fact category are in fact a material resource tion of people during the period of Neolithiza- that may have been drawn into a variety of tion around BC. e evidence is of course strategies. You could say, in the words of John still scanty and in the case of Falbygden hard Barrett ( , p. ), that “ e material world to really grasp. Closer collaboration between acts as a storage of cultural resources”. scientists working with DNA and archaeolo- e term “creolization” might be useful in gists would be recommended. If we bring into this context. It refers to a process whereby men the equation the material culture associated and women actively blend together elements of with the earliest TRB then the evidence for dierent cultures to create a new culture. Cre- cultural dualism is strong. To understand the olization is perceived as a more active process development between c. – BC a term and one that involves, by denition, a give and like creolization might be useful to understand take between peoples of diverse cultural tradi- how men and women actively blend together tions (Cohen & Toninato , pp. .). is elements of dierent cultures to create a new
culture might be a way in trying to understand Man and landscape during the late Mesolithic and the development at this point. early Neolithic in Scania, southern Sweden. In Hårdh, B., Jennbert, K. & Olausson, D. (eds.), On the road: Studies in honour of Lars Larsson. Stockholm. Levi-Strauss, C. . e Way of the Masks. London. References Lübke, H. Lüth, F. & Terberger, T. . Fishers or far- Andersson, M. . Skapa plats i landskapet: Tidig- och mers? e archaeology of the Ostorf cemetery and mellanneolitiska samhällen utmed två västskånska dal- related Neolithic nds in the light of new data. Berichte gångar. Acta Archaeologica Lundensia, Series in °, der Römisch-Germanischen Kommission . No. . Stockholm. Madsen, T. & Petersen, J. E. . Tidligneolitiske anlæg Barrett, J. C. . Fields of Discourse. Reconstituting ved Mosegården, Østjylland: Regionale og kronologiske a Social Archaeology. Critique of Anthropology. (). forskele i dansk tidligneolitikum. Kuml / . Becker, C. J. . Mosefundne lerkar. Aarbøger for nor- Nielsen, P. O. . Die Flintbeile der frühen Trich- disk Oldkyndighed og Historie. terbecherkultur in Dänemark. Acta Archaeologica . Bradley, Richard. . e signicance of monuments: on Petersen-Vang, P. . Chronological and regional varia- the shaping of human experience in Neolithic and Bronze tion in the Late Mesolithic. Journal of Danish Archa- Age Europe. London. eology . Bramanti, B., omas, M. G., Haak, W., Unterlaender, Rowley-Conwy, P. . Westward Ho! e spread of M., Jores, P., Tambets, K., Antanaitis-Jacobs, I., Haidle, agriculture from Central Europe to the Atlantic. Cur- M. N., Jankauskas, R., Kind, C. J., Lueth, F., Terber- rent Anthropology . ger, T., Hiller, J., Matsumura, S., Forster, P. & Burger, Rudebeck, E. . I trästodernas skugga: monumentala J. . Genetic discontinuity between local hunter- möten i neolitseringens tid. In Nilsson, B. & Rudebeck. gatherers and central Europe’s rst farmers. Science . E. (eds.), Arkeologiska och förhistoriska världar: Fält, erfa- Cohen, R. & Toninato, P. (eds.) . The Creolization renheter och stenåldersplatser i sydvästra Skåne. Malmö. reader: studies in mixed identities and cultures. London. Schulting, R. . Mesolithic-Neolithic Transitions: An Hodder, I. . e Domestication of Europe. Oxford/ Isotopic Tour through Europe, In Pinhasi, R. & Stock, Cambridge. J. T. (eds.), Human Bioarchaeology of the Transition to – . Entangled: An Archaeology of the Relationships Agriculture. London. Between Humans and ings. London. Skoglund, P., Malmström, H., Rhagavan, M., Storå, Hodder, I. & Cessford, C. . Daily Practice and Soci- J., Willerslev, E., Gilbert, M. T. P., Götherström, A., al Memory at Çatalhöyük. American Antiquity ,. Jakobsson, M. . Origins and genetic legacy of Jennbert, K. . Den produktiva gåvan. Acta Archaeo- Neolithic farmers and hunter-gatherers in Europe. logica Lundensia : . Lund. Science . Larsson, M. . Tidigneolitikum i Sydvästskåne: Krono- Sørensen, L. . Farming new lands in the North: logi och bosättningsmönster. Acta Archaeologica Lun- e expansion of agrarian societies during the Early densia :. Lund. Neolithic in Southern Scandinavia. In Larsson, M. & – . e Early Neolithic Funnel Beaker Culture in South- Debert, J. (eds.), NW Europe in transition: e Early West Scania, Sweden. British Archaeological Reports Neolithic in Britain and South Sweden. British Archa- International Series . Oxford. eological Reports International Series . Oxford. – . e Early and Middle Neolithic Funnel Bea- Sørensen, L. & Karg, S. . e expansion of agra- ker Culture in the Ystad Area: Economic and Social rian societies towards the North – new evidence for Change – BC. In Larsson, L., Callmer, J. & agriculture during the Mesolithic/Neolithic transition Stjernquist, B. (eds.), e Archaeology of the Cultural in Southern Scandinavia. Journal of Archaeological Landscape. Acta Archaeologica Lundensia :. Lund. Science . – . I was walking through the wood the other day:
, Animal husbandry and social identities during the Neolithic in southern Sweden Ola Magnell
Abstract Animal husbandry and social identities in Scania, south Scandinavia, during the Neolithic have been studied based on the frequency of animal bones (NISP). Cattle were the most important livestock to the humans on the Funnel Beaker sites. Dierences in the amount of wild game indicate regional dierences in subsistence and identities between southwest and northwest Scania. A change in animal husbandry is evident during the Middle Neolithic B with a larger diversication. Pitted Ware sites are characteristic, with a high frequency of wild game and an almost complete absence of cattle and sheep. During the Late Neolithic the importance of sheep seems to increase. To what extent Neolithic pigs represent wild boar or domestic pigs is also discussed.
National Historical Museums, Odlarevägen , SE- Lund, Sweden. [email protected]
Introduction cance of cattle, sheep and pigs is fundamental in the Neolithic? e big news for understanding the Neolithic. Most zoo- of the Neolithic was livestock along with agri- archaeological studies of the Neolithic in south culture, which resulted in a dierent way of life, Scandinavia, however, have been site-specic causing social and cultural change. ere were and more synthesis of the animal husbandry is of course several other changes in the Neolithic needed. Following a study of animal husbandry in south Scandinavia, with the building of mon- during the Neolithic published in , a few uments, polished int axes and new forms of studies have dealt with dierent regions, such ceramics, but the factor that enabled and pushed as Västergötland and Mälardalen (Ahlfont et these changes can be traced to the signicance al. ; Sjögren , pp. .; Bäckström of livestock and agriculture. Animal husbandry ; Hallgren , pp. .). Studies based and agriculture resulted in demand to control on analysis of isotopes have also resulted in new land. Animals also became property possessed evidence of the movement of Neolithic livestock by specic persons and groups of people, unlike (Sjögren & Price ). During the last hunted game during the Mesolithic, and a kind years several excavations and analyses of faunal of wealth causing social change (Russell ; remains from Scania, the southernmost region Marciniak , pp. f.). e livestock and in Sweden, have made it possible to study ani- agriculture most likely also enabled popula- mal husbandry in more detail. is study aims tion growth and a more sedentary lifestyle, but at describing the development of animal hus- were also the forces that resulted in a change of bandry and the importance of hunting, based the landscape, which became more open and on the abundance of dierent livestock and wild altered by humans (Price & Gebauer , pp. animals in faunal remains from Neolithic sites. .; Regnell & Sjögren ). e signi- Further, the study aims at considering regional
Fig. . Map of Southern Sweden and sites used in the study. . Jonstorp, . Saxtorp SU , . Löddesborg, . Skjut- banorna A, . Bunkeostrand :, . Almhov, Hylliestation, Hylliepalissaden, Elinelund A & B, Lindängelund , . Hindby kärr, Lockarp B, . Ängdala int mines, Södra Sallerup H, . Räv- grav, . Bredasten, . Sjöholmen, . Hunneberget, . Nymölla III, Nymölla I, . Siretorp. and cultural dierences in relation to animal aected the abundance of dierent species and husbandry and hunting. resulted in bias towards animals with larger robust bones, such as cattle. e sites are also of dierent character; some are settlements Material and methods where the bones mainly were found in pits, e study is based on samples from while on other sites the bones mainly originate Neolithic sites and four Late Mesolithic sites from cultural layers. Two sites are palisaded in Scania and western Blekinge in southern enclosures and three are ritual depositions in Sweden (Fig. , Table I). e quantication wetlands. Because the archaeological contexts, of dierent species of livestock and wild game taphonomic conditions and sample sizes dier has been based on bone samples with a num- between the sites it would be expected that the ber of identied specimens (NISP) over . frequency of animals is aected by these factors Sample size varies from to NISP with to some extent. It is thus important to focus a median of (Table I). on the general trends rather than single sites e small sample sizes of some of the sites with divergent composition of fauna. are problematic, and it can be discussed to what Faunal remains from dierent chronological extent the quantication of faunal assemblag- phases of the Almhov and Hunneberget sites have es with NISP about is representative. e been divided into dierent samples. e dating preservation of bones and the taphonomy of of faunal assemblages is based on radiocarbon faunal remains also dier a great deal between dating and the median of 14C datings is used dierent sites. Certain samples have well-pre- as an approximation of the dating of the sites. served bones, while others mainly consist of Hunting and the frequency of wild game are burned bones and teeth. is may also have based on bones from mammals. In the quanti-
Table I. NISP of livestock and mammalian wild game from Neolithic and Late Mesolithic sites in Scania and Blekinge ordered according to dating. e column “Pigs” includes both wild boar and domestic pigs. Note that dogs and antlers of cervids are not included in the table. Based on the following references: Bredasten (Magnell ), Nymölla III (Wyszomirska ), Skjutbanorna A (Jonsson, E. ), Löd- desborg (Jennbert ; Hallström ), Ängdala int mines (Rudebeck ; Nilsson ; Hadevik ), Almhov (Vretemark ; Jonsson, L. ; Hadevik ), Saxtorp SU (Nilsson & Nilsson ), Hunneberget (Magnell ; Andersson ), Rävgrav (Larsson ; Andersson ), Hindby kärr (Nilsson ; Hadevik ), Elinelund A & B (Sarnäs & Nord Paulsson ), Lindängelund (Boethius ), Nymölla I (Edenmo et al. ; Mannermaa & von Moscinsky ), Södra Sallerup H (Nilsson ; Hadevik ), Sjöholmen (upper layer) (unpublished data), Siretorp (Dahr , Edenmo et al. ), Hylliepalissaden (Jonsson ; Brink & Hydén ), Hylliestation (Vretemark ; Brink & Hydén ), Lockarp B (Eliasson & Kishonti ), Jonstorp (Edenmo et al. ; Olson ), Bunkeostrand : (Magnell ; Brink et al. ).
Cattle Sheep/goat Pigs Wild game total Bredasten 1334 870 2204 Nymölla III 1 31 136 168 Skjutbanorna 1A 11 5 54 70 Löddesborg 7 44 197 248 Ängdala flint mines 50 24 24 98 Almhov – EN I 178 39 154 56 427 Saxtorp SU9 246 90 78 11 425 Hunneberget – EN 85 36 50 61 232 Rävgrav 933 504 1209 89 2735 Almhov – EN II–MNA 51 6 13 15 85 Hindby kärr 184 47 144 9 384 Elinelund 2B 314 14 59 4 391 Hunneberget -. MNA 142 69 74 63 348 Lindängelund 4 383 74 254 3 714 Nymölla I 73 11 744 848 1676 Södra Sallerup 15H 371 43 52 1 467 Sjöholmen (upper layer) 3 21 103 127 Siretorp 73 15 81 1219 1388 Hylliepalissaden 84 104 166 31 385 Hylliestation 39 7 41 2 89 Lockarp 7B 30 17 43 1 91 Jonstorp 4 24 118 146 Bunkeflostrand 20 108 12 70 210 Elinelund 2A 78 48 5 5 136
Fig. . Frequency (NISP) of wild game (left) and cattle (right) at Late Mesolithic and Neolithic sites from southern Sweden (Scania and Blekinge). TRB: Funnel Beaker culture, PWC: Pitted Ware cul- ture, EBK: Ertebølle culture, LN: Late Neolithic.
cation antlers from deer have been excluded, likely represent domestic animals. As noticed since these specimens could originate from shed in earlier studies, this indicates that the trans- antlers and consequently not hunted animals. formation from hunter-gatherers to farmers Due to the problems in dierentiating wild was a fast process taking place within a few from domestic pigs, especially juveniles and generations in this region (Price & Gebauer fragmented bones, pigs have been treated as , p. ; Sørensen & Karg ). one category. is means that wild boar is not On Funnel Beaker sites no clear change in included among the wild game from Neolithic the frequency of wild game over time can be sites, but the importance of wild boar will be noticed, and sites with very few bones of wild discussed. From the Late Mesolithic sites all game are from both the Early Neolithic and the bones of suids have been assumed to be from Early Middle Neolithic (MN A), c. – wild boar since no osteometric data or kill-o BC. During the Late Middle Neolithic (MN patterns indicate the presence of domestic pigs B), c. – BC, a shift occurs with a large during this period in southern Sweden. proportion of wild game on sites associated with the Pitted Ware culture (Fig. ). It should be noted that the Pitted Ware sites are situated in Results peripheral areas of the region at the Blekinge e transition from the Mesolithic to the Neo- coast, northwestern, northeastern and central lithic is evident in the relatively low frequency Scania. It has been debated whether these sites of wild game of the Early Neolithic (EN) sites, should be associated with the Pitted Ware cul- c. – BC, in comparison with the Late ture or not (Edenmo et al. ). At least the Mesolithic sites (Fig. ). However, the exclusion subsistence based on sealing, shing, keeping of of pigs and wild boar means that the frequency pigs and hunting on these sites is typical of the of wild game at the Neolithic sites is too low, Pitted Ware culture in Eastern central Sweden but as discussed below, most of the pigs most (Edenmo et al. , pp. ). A dierence at
Fig . Mammalian wild game on Neolithic sites from Scania and Blekinge based on occurrence of bones of dierent taxa. some of the sites from Scania, in comparison followed by roe deer; these species occur on to central Sweden, is the high amount of red and respectively of the Neolithic deer on the sites Nymölla I and Sjöholmen. sites. Due to the diculties in separating wild is most likely represents regional and eco- boar from domestic pigs it is likely that the logical dierences in wild game populations. occurrence of wild boar was higher, compar- e Funnel Beaker site Hunneberget from able to that of roe and red deer. Seals are also northeastern Scania has a higher proportion of common and are found on of the sites. It wild game (EN: , MN A: ) in compari- was harp seal and grey seal that were common- son with most sites from the southwestern parts ly hunted, more rarely ringed seal. Among the of the region (median: EN: , MN A: ), fur animals, wild cat is the most common on indicating regional dierences in the importance of the sites, but beaver and otter are also of hunting. Hunneberget is the only Funnel relatively frequent (Fig. ). Beaker site with large bone assemblages (NISP: On the primarily Late Mesolithic sites of Löd- EN: , MN: ) from northeastern Scania, desborg, Skjutbanorna A and Nymölla III a few but considering the fairly large sample sizes, the bones and teeth from cattle have been found in high frequency of wild game indicates that hunt- the otherwise typical Mesolithic fauna (Jennbert ing was more frequent at this site than at sites ; Wyszomirska : Jonsson, E. ). in southwestern Scania. is possibly reects an Unfortunately, no radiocarbon datings of these impoverishment of the wild game population in early cattle are available. Eorts to date the cattle the southwest already during the EN, caused by teeth from Skjutbanorna A and Nymölla III a higher population density of humans in this have been unsuccessful due to poor preservation area. Finds such as the high concentration of of collagen. It is uncertain whether these nds dolmens at Döserygg and int mines in Södra of cattle represent intrusions of younger date Sallerup represent sites in this area which most or an early transitional stage of cattle herding. likely gathered large groups of humans, which e high proportion of cattle on sites from had an impact on the landscape and fauna. EN and MN A indicates the signicance of Red deer was the most important wild game, cattle for the Funnel Beaker culture (Fig. ). On
Fig. . Frequency (NISP) of sheep/goat (left) and (wild and domestic) pigs (right) from Late Mesolithic and Neolithic sites from southern Sweden (Scania and Blekinge). TRB: Funnel Beaker culture, PWC: Pitted Ware culture, EBK: Ertebølle culture, LN: Late Neolithic. sites from the MN B, however, a clear decrease be interpreted as a response to a more open is noticed. is can be explained by the very landscape with more grassland, but also as an low presence of cattle bones on sites of the Pit- eect of changes in animal husbandry practices, ted Ware culture (Fig. ). e low proportion possibly inuenced by the Battle Axe culture. of cattle at the palisaded enclosures dating to After cattle, pigs were the most important MN B also shows that cattle seem to have been animal at most Neolithic sites in Scania, but of minor importance at these sites. e site a large variation is noticed between dierent Elinelund A has a high proportion of cattle sites (Fig. .). During the MN an increased bones, comparable to the Funnel Beaker sites, diversication seems to occur on sites with indicating that cattle at Late Neolithic settle- either a high or a low proportion of pigs. On ments once again became important animals. the Pitted Ware sites pig are in all cases the pre- Sheep and goat are less frequently found dominant livestock, but on the coastal sites of in comparison to cattle on most sites (Fig. ). Jonstorp and Siretorp pig bones are relatively It is also evident that sheep were of greater few in comparison with seals. On the latest sites importance than goats in those cases where the frequency of pigs is strikingly low (Fig. ). identication of the two ovicaprids has been How large proportion of the pigs were wild possible. Sheep occur on more sites than goat boar or domestic pigs is important to consid- and are also more numerous on all sites. As er. Osteometric analyses show that wild boar with cattle, a very low occurrence of bones does occur, but that most of the Neolithic from sheep/goat is characteristic of the Pitted pigs are smaller than the Mesolithic wild boar, Ware sites. e high proportion of sheep from indicating that a large proportion of the pig the palisaded enclosures, and especially at the bones probably are from domestic pigs (Fig. sites Bunkeostrand : and Elinelund A, ). e mean length of the lower third molar indicates a possible change in livestock practices of Mesolithic wild boar from Scania is . during the Late Neolithic (Fig. ). is could mm, while a signicant decrease to . mm is
Fig. . Size of the lower third molar in Mesolithic and Neolithic pigs from Scania. Based on Nilsson & Nilsson (), Jonsson ( ), Magnell ( ), Hindbygården (Nilsson ), Lindängelund (Boethius ), Andersson, C. (), Nymölla I (unpublished). evident on the Early Neolithic site of Almhov. to estimate the proportion of wild boar, meas- On MN A sites from southwestern Scania a urements above mm have been used as a limit further decrease can be noticed to a mean of between wild boar and domestic pigs. Based on . mm. On the Pitted Ware site of Nymöl- this, of the pigs from Almhov were wild la I the mean of the third molar is . mm. boar, and this would mean that the frequency of e decrease is most likely explained by the wild boar was , which is similar to the fre- presence of domestic pigs, even though other quency of red deer. A similar calculation of the explanations cannot be excluded. e large EN faunal remains from Nymölla I results in and Pitted Ware pigs are probably the result wild boar out of the pig bones and a frequency of cross-breeds between wild boar and domes- of wild boar of , which can be compared tic pigs. It could be interpreted as evidence with the frequency of red deer of . is is a of early domestication, but should rather be crude estimate of the amount of wild boar, but seen as breeding between introduced domestic it gives reasonable quantications in relation to pigs and wild boars. e decreased size in pigs red deer based on the frequency of wild boar during the MN A in southwest Scania can be and red deer of the Mesolithic sites. interpreted as a decrease in breeding with wild In conclusion, the frequency of wild game boar due to a decreased wild game population on several sites would be at least about or a change of pig husbandry. e larger size of higher with wild boar included. However, on pigs from Nymölla I in northwest Scania could sites with a very low frequency of other wild be seen as an indication of a larger population game it could be expected that the frequency of wild boar in this area. e age distribution of wild boar also was low. of pigs from most Neolithic sites with many animals killed between . and years indicates a characteristic slaughter and kill-o pattern Conclusions of domestic pigs rather than hunting of wild It is important to consider that the frequencies boar (Mannermaa & von Moscinsky ; of animal bones are not a simple reection of Boethius ). the economy and animal husbandry practice However, some of the Neolithic pig bones of the Neolithic, but the are also expressions of most likely originate from wild boar. In an eort social identities and ritual practices (Marcin-
iak ; Russell ). Several of the faunal substantial since it is based on a larger data set. assemblages in this study are sites such as large Further, it reveals the complexity of the animal feasting sites, depositions in wetlands and pali- husbandry and the signicance of animals for saded enclosures. e slaughter of livestock and social identities during the Neolithic. consumption of meat during the Neolithic were probably to a large extent associated with ritual feasts on particular occasions at special places. References It is obvious, however, that certain aspects of Ahlfont, K., Guinard, M., Gustafsson, E., Olson, C. & the faunal remains also represent local envi- Welinder, S. . Patterns of Neolithic farming in Sweden. Tor . ronmental conditions. e high frequency of Ahlström, T. . Underjordiska dödsriken. Göteborg. seals from Jonstorp and Siretorp is explained by Andersson, C. . Bi, lamm och äsk. En osteologisk the fact that the sites were situated by the sea analys av djurhållningen vid den neolitiska lokalen Räv- on islands during the Neolithic. Other aspects grav. Unpublished Master’s thesis, Lund University, Lund. such as the minimal presence of cattle and sheep Andersson, M. . Kustslättens mötesplatser. Stockholm. Bäckström, Y. . Människor och djur i rörelse. from Pitted Ware sites are not reections of En kritisk granskning av förutsättningarna för the environment, but rather an expression of säsongsbedömningar av mellansvenska stenåldersma- identity and intentional distinction from the terial utifrån benfynd. In Stenbäck, N. (ed.), Stenåldern Funnel Beaker settlements. e high frequen- i Uppland. Uppdragsarkeologi och eftertanke. Arkeologi E Uppland. Uppsala. cy of cattle on Funnel Beaker sites in Scania, Boëthius, A. . Lindängelund – en osteologisk analys together with ritual depositions of bones in om oer och gropar. Reports in Osteology : . Lund pits and wetlands, indicates the importance of University. Lund. cattle in the subsistence, and probably also in Brink, K., Kishonti, I. & Magnell, O. . On the the social identity of these groups. However, shore: Life inside a palisade enclosure and cultural change during the Middle Neolithic B in South-east animal bones from passage graves in Västergöt- Scandinavia. Current Swedish Archaeology . land indicate that pigs rather than cattle were Brink, K. & Hydén, S. . Citytunnelprojektet. Hyllie the more important animals in the mortuary vattentorn – delområde och Palissaden – delområde . rituals of the Funnel Beaker culture (Ahlström Rapport över arkeologisk slutundersökning. Rapport ). e faunal remains show that the tran- . Malmö Kulturmiljö. Malmö. Dahr, E. . Benmaterialet från boplatskomplexet vid sition from hunter-gatherers during the Late Siretorp. In Bagge, A. & Kjellmark, K. (eds.), Stenålders- Mesolithic to herders of cattle and farmers in boplatserna vid Siretorp i Blekinge. Stockholm. the Early Neolithic was rapid in Scania. e Edenmo, R., Larsson, M., Nordqvist, B. & Olsson, E. faunal remains reveal local dierences within . Gropkeramikerna – fanns de? Materiell kultur och ideologisk förändring. In Larsson, M. & Ols- the region between the southwest and northwest son, E. (eds.), Regionalt och interregionalt: Stenålders- in the importance of wild game. is is possi- undersökningar i Syd- och Mellansverige. Stockholm. bly a reection of human population density Eliasson, L. & Kishonti, I. . Öresundsförbindelsen. and the impact on wildlife populations, but Lockarp B. Rapport över arkeologisk slutundersökning. could also be explained as local traditions with Rapport . Malmö Kulturmiljö. Malmö. Hadevik, C. . Trattbägarkulturen i Malmöområdet: dierent social identities as either hunters or En sammanfattning med fokus på byggnader, gravar farmers. e cultural complexity of the MN B och rituella gropar. In Hadevik, C & Steineke, M. could also be traced in the faunal remains, with (eds.), Tematisk rapportering av Citytunnelprojektet. a higher diversication in animal husbandry Rapport över arkeologisk slutundersökning. Malmö and consumption patterns during this period. Kulturmiljö. Malmö. Hallgren, F. . Identitet i praktik: Lokala, regionala is study does to large extent conrm earli- och överregionala sociala sammanhang inom nordlig er studies and interpretations, but it is more trattbägarkultur. Uppsala.
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e Neolithic house as a procurement, production and consumption unit e case of the Late Neolithic at Çatalhöyük Arkadiusz Marciniak
Abstract e essay aims to discuss the pattern of acquisition, production, and consumption strategies applied by inhabitants of the Neolithic house by using high-resolution archaeobiological data. ey provide a signi- cant insight into the character and mechanisms of social change in the Neolithic, in particular in the light of hypotheses implying that signicant social transformations in the Central Anatolian Neolithic involved a shift from the non-kin-based communal and collective organization to a more individualized mode of life, leading to the emergence of autonomous house units and individual farmsteads. ese developments will be exemplied by sketching some changes taking place in the Late Neolithic at Çatalhöyük, Central Anatolia.
Institute of Prehistory, Adam Mickiewicz University, Św. Marcin , PL- - Poznań, Poland. arek- [email protected]
Introduction munal organization to nuclear and autono- e house has played and continues to play mous households inhabited by the kin-based a key role in Neolithic studies. It is usually family or extended family (Düring & Mar- debated in terms of its physicality, in particular ciniak ; Hodder ). However, these size, architectural elaboration, monumentality, claims are hardly based upon systematically in-built structures, etc. e other dominant analysed datasets; they extrapolate individual mode sees in the house a primordial cultural observations to larger processes and are not asset in creating and shaping Neolithic group- satisfactorily justied. is lack of in-depth ings. e nature and character of social entities understanding of a complex nature of social inhabiting the house have been less intensively groupings in the Neolithic is largely due to debated and often treated as unquestionable. excessive focus on monumental architecture Similarly, a range of actions aimed at physically and burial practices, which, important as they maintaining the arguably family-based group, are, cannot possibly deliver rm and solidly along with everyday activities performed in grounded evidence to grasp the character of the house, were either treated as obvious and these pivotal social developments. self-explanatory or left aside as uninteresting. Hence, the chapter aims to focus on the Recent developments in the social archae- Neolithic house as the unit of acquisition, pro- ology of the Neolithic provide a growing body duction, and consumption. e recognition of evidence indicating that social arrangements of these variables provides important insight in subsequent periods were much more diverse into the nature of social groupings inhabiting and complicated than previously thought. the house and ultimately the nature of social ese ranged from dierent forms of com- changes in the Neolithic. ese goals are now
, more achievable than ever before due to signi- ; Marciniak & Czerniak ; Hodder & cant methodological advancements in Neolithic Pels ). e Early Neolithic groups were studies. ese comprise integrated studies of the believed to live in clusters of approximately settlement micro-stratigraphy, often linked to to individual buildings, constructed the application of Bayesian modelling, the rec- directly adjacent to one another. e super- ognition of formation processes, and advanced imposed houses were constantly reused and scientic methods including stable isotopes, reoccupied through centuries, indicating the lipids and aDNA on a wide range of materials sustainability of this social organization. e from systemically sampled contexts. group buried their dead underneath the house e aim of the chapter is to discuss the oor and platforms. In some buildings, as signicance of the mode of acquisition, pro- many as individuals were interred. e duction, and consumption for understanding Early Neolithic house was pretty standardized. social changes in the Neolithic. is will be It was built of mudbricks and had neither exemplied by the analysis of their character windows nor doors. It was accessed from the in the Late Neolithic house at Çatalhöyük, roof in its southern part, which also served central Anatolia, as revealed by the results of as a chimney It had one main room, usually high-resolution archaeobiological data. e divided into two parts. Its southern part had observed changes in the house’s existence will hearths and ovens and served for everyday be scrutinized vis-à-vis a hypothesis implying activities, including manufacturing, tool mak- the beginning of individualized social organiza- ing and food preparation. e northern part tion in the Late Neolithic at the expense of its had platforms along the walls under which communal character in the preceding period. fully eshed bodies were interred. e walls, platforms, and oors were systematically plas- tered over and the walls were often decorated. e transformative character of e house often had one or two side rooms changes at the end of the Neolithic used for storage (Hodder b). at Çatalhöyük e spatial arrangements of buildings, along e site of Çatalhöyük is located on the Konya with asymmetric distribution of art, burials, and Plain in southwestern Turkey. According to paraphernalia, indicate that individual houses the chronological scheme of James Mellaart were distributed amongst the members of the ( ), it was occupied in distinct horizons neighbourhood community rather than owned labelled XII to . e sequence as a whole can by specic families (Hodder a). Evidence be dated to approximately – cal. BC for units occupying discrete residences in which (Bayliss et al. ; Cessford ; Marciniak, they performed most of their domestic activities Czerniak ; Marciniak et al. a). e is problematic. Moreover, individual clusters early levels, dened by Mellaart as Levels XII– appear not be kin-based but made up of genet- VI, are dated to the Early Neolithic. A major ically unrelated people, as revealed by dental shift arguably occurred in Level VI around the phenotypes of those buried underneath house middle of the th millennium cal. BC, and the oors (Pilloud & Larsen ). following period is known as Late Neolithic. However, the nature of this non-kin-based Recent dynamic studies of the Near Eastern communal and collective organization of the Neolithic provide ample evidence of signi- Early Neolithic groups is dicult to grasp. One cant changes in social and religious domains in viable possibility implies a clustered neighbour- the Late Neolithic (e.g. Düring & Marciniak hood (Özbaşaran ). Individuals inhabiting
neighbouring houses were characterized by a Marciniak ; Marciniak & Czerniak ; considerable identity and diered from similar Marciniak ). contemporaneous groupings. Hence, a single ese signicant social changes may not have house served the needs of such a community remained without consequences for subsistence rather than of a specic family. Individual hous- practices. One would expect that the processing es possibly retained some autonomy, as implied of plant and animal products by inhabitants by remains of domestic activities in a majority of these increasingly more autonomous house- of them. Acquisition, production, and storage holds became specialized and intensied while were organized by the group. e other possible procurement, production, and consumption- interpretation indicates a “house society” (see related activities became individually con- Borić , Gonzalez-Ruibal ). Follow- trolled. As recently argued by Hodder (), ing the original idea of Lévi-Strauss, the term a “techno-economic complementarity” was “house” refers to larger entities beyond a lineage increasingly achieved. Unfortunately, the econ- or extended family and inhabited by ever-mov- omy and subsistence of these groups have hardly ing individuals and social groupings. Hence, been recognized to date due to a lack of solid they might have been occupied by hereditary empirical studies of a range of materials from occupants, their cognates, agnates, and non-re- individual houses. A ne-grained approach to lated individuals (see Gillespie ). ey their study, advocated in the current project at performed the production, everyday tasks, and Çatalhöyük, provided access to the character ceremonial activities in and around multiple of procurement, production, and consump- houses (Souvatzi ). tion strategies of these groups. I would argue e demise of communal organization cer- that they provide much more solidly grounded tainly had far-reaching consequences for the insight into the character of the group’s activ- Neolithic mode of life. As indicated by a grow- ities than the building architecture. is will ing body of evidence, it was replaced by more further contribute to an in-depth understand- individual and heterogeneous arrangements, ing of broader social changes in that period. which eventually led to the emergence of auton- omous house units and individual farmsteads (Byrd ; Düring & Marciniak ; Mar- e Late Neolithic house ciniak & Czerniak ; Marciniak ). It at Çatalhöyük became a locus of a more independent and more e results of the recently completed excava- self-sucient social group. ese changes are tions of the upper strata at Çatalhöyük car- inferred by transformations in house architec- ried out in the TP Area revealed a signicantly ture, spatial organization, and burial practices. dierent character of houses in the last Houses were no longer placed in clusters; they years of the settlement occupation. ey were were much larger and composed of a number much bigger and made of a series of small, cell- of units around a big living room. Burials were like spaces surrounding a larger central “living no longer placed underneath the oor and the room” with no symbolic elaboration. ey no platforms. Further developments in the regional longer formed neighbouring clusters. Houses scale involved the occupation of dierent eco- lacked intramural burials, which were replaced logical zones, the emergence of numerous sites by a special burial architecture (Marciniak and of dierent size and decreasing house size, all Czerniak , ). of which indicates the presence of a dynami- Most houses in the TP sequence were occu- cally developing local population (Düring & pied for one generation only. is challenges
, an admittedly largely speculative estimation of – years as the average life of the house. Instead, houses in subsequent generations may have shifted across the neighbourhood area, which implies that the sequential development of superimposed clusters of dwellings ceased (Marciniak et al. a). Altogether, four solid houses, one light struc- ture and one open space made up a roughly - year long occupational history in the TP Area. e most distinct category of houses comprise a large and carefully designed dwelling structure Fig. . Çatalhöyük East, TP Area, Building . (B. , B. & ). All three of them had similar Photo: Jason Quinlan. size, internal layout, and distinctive solid oors made of white pebbles, which appear only in the nal centuries of the mound occupation. was erected in this very place. Similarly to ey were constructed at the beginning and their predecessors, it was reconstructed a couple the end of the TP Area’s stratigraphic sequence of times. e latest oor was made of white and separated by a solidly built house (B.), pebbles set into a solid calcareous matrix. e light dwelling structure (B.) and open space building was almost devoid of any internal (B.) (Marciniak et al. a). features except for a square oven placed in its e oldest Late Neolithic house in this area central part. It also did not have standing walls, was Building , which went out of use around indicating that it was not backlled following cal. BC (see details of chronology of sub- its abandonment. sequent occupational events in Marciniak et al. e period of some – years between a). It was an approximately m struc- the abandonment of Building and the con- ture with only one re installation and plat- struction of Building witnessed dierent form. It was reconstructed a number of times. occupation. Building was built shortly after e uppermost oor was made of numerous the abandonment of B. (Fig. ). It was sig- white pebbles mixed with silt. No individuals nicantly smaller (approx. m) than its pre- were interred in the building. e walls were decessor and was composed of four distinct not preserved, implying a lack of deliberate rooms built piecemeal and without internal inlling. A very similar structure (B. ) was features. In contrast to all three large buildings constructed after only about – years in described above, it was deliberately abandoned the very same area (Fig. ). It was built on the and backlled. It appears to be the very last time midden and inll deposits making up the open that this distinctively Early Neolithic practice area. It lacked any inbuilt features except for was performed at the settlement. e follow- the centrally placed square oven built direct- ing dwelling structure, Building , was built ly above one of the re installations from the directly above B. immediately after its dem- preceding open space. e walls were also not olition. It repeated its size, shape, and internal preserved, indicating a lack of a deliberate aban- layout. It was composed of an open space to donment practice. B. was used for a single the north, probably surrounded by walls, and a generation. Immediately after its abandonment hut-type construction, with a light roof, to the around cal. BC, the almost identical B. south. e open space was intensively used, as
Fig. . Çatalhöyük East, TP Area, Plan of Building . Drawing: Marek Barański. indicated by numerous hearths. is character Procurement, production, and of occupation continued in the next phase. e consumption in the Late Neolithic area became an open space on the accumulating house at Çatalhöyük midden (B.). However, it appears to have Intensive studies of a wide range of datasets been occupied, at least temporarily, as implied unearthed in the TP Area make it possible to by ve re installations. When the open area formulate some preliminary results as regards went out of use, a solid B. was built. the regimes of procurement, production, and Changes in the house layout and its use are consumption of groups inhabiting dierent indicative of a continuous transformation of types of houses in the nal centuries of the set- the Çatalhöyük community that began around tlement occupation (see more Marciniak et al. – cal. BC (Marciniak and Czerniak b). Some of them will be discussed here. , ). ey involved a gradual disasso- e Late Neolithic marks a signicant ciation of domestic, ritual, and burial domains, change in clay and wood procurement strat- previously integrated with the house premises. egy. Çatalhöyük is located on the Çarşamba is in turn redened regimes of acquisition, alluvial fan formed by the eponymous river production, consumption, and reproduction as it enters the Konya plain from its south- performed by the dierently organized social ern fringes. As argued by Doherty (), an entities inhabiting the house. Early Neolithic landscape was made of small streams connecting numerous shallow pools. e dark backswamp clays, carefully sourced from the thicker deposits that formed the Pleis- tocene channels around the mound, were used
, for mudbrick production. e Late Neolith- ment pattern, in terms of territory denition ic brought about a shift to the exploitation and possibly also allocation of land use rights of redeposited ne colluvium located directly (Asouti b). around the settlement as well as lower alluvium In more general terms, changes in clay and areas (shallow pools) in between drier grounds. wood procurement strategies between Early Backswamp clay as well as marl and Pleistocene and Late Neolithic can best be characterized as deltaic sediments were no longer exploited. a shift from exploiting high-quality resources Even more pronounced changes occurred derived from selected parts of landscape and in wood procurement, as recognized by study requiring joint communal eorts at the expense of in situ preserved charcoal across the settle- of a wide range of poorer quality resources ment (Asouti b). e beginning of Early closer to the settlement as a means of meeting Neolithic is characterized by a dramatic rise the needs of smaller groups. of deciduous oak and later juniper charcoal A shift in production strategies between values. Both trees comprised an important Early and Late Neolithic is well manifested in element of diverse semi-arid woodlands on the sheep husbandry and herd management prac- lower upland zone and the hills surrounding the tices, as revealed by studies of oxygen isotopes Konya plain – km away from the settle- in sequential intra-tooth enamel samples and ment. e collection and transport of a large dental microwear on the occlusal surface of volume of timber to the site entailed consider- the same teeth (Henton ). Early Neolith- able logistic complexity and probably involved ic husbandry was characterized by a standard combined eorts of larger social groups. May birth season of sheep, which is in syn- e wood procurement strategy changed chrony with optimal resources in the region. completely towards the end of the Çatalhöyük It further involved long-distance sheep herding occupation. e signicance of oak and juni- and reliance on winter pasture, as indicated per declined radically and they were replaced by dirty and later dry brous foods. e Late by the narrow range of riparian taxa includ- Neolithic husbandry was of a largely dierent ing elm, ash, hackberry, and Salicaceae. is character. It is manifested by a shift in sheep may represent the switch of wood-gathering birth to March taking the breeding herds out activities from the surrounding uplands to the of synchrony with resources. Keeping young locally available riparian vegetation. Long-dis- lambs close to growing crops, however, is argu- tance trips aimed at procuring these resources ably more convenient for mixed farmers. is were abandoned. is pattern is unrelated to signicant change implies that arable resources climate-induced changes in woodland com- and fodder availability were now satisfactory to position and oak and juniper availability and overcome losses arising from breaking natural can only be explained by changes in the fuel resource synchrony. Equally signicant were and rewood economy of the site (Asouti & changes in pasture location in the Late Neolith- Heather ). As revealed by the Eski Acigöl ic. ey involved summer herding on the plains pollen record (Roberts et al. ), both oak or in nearby river valleys while longer-distance and juniper did not disappear from the lower herding remained minimal. is is another upland zone at that time. is strictly localized manifestation of integrated arable economy. wood procurement strategy in the Late Neo- is shift to exploitation of the areas adjacent lithic, replacing spatially extensive subsistence to the settlement was only possible because the procurement systems in the preceding peri- farmers were able to keep animals during winter, od, is indicative of a full-scale wood manage- as indicated by the increase in soft food in the
form of fodder. Changes in sheep husbandry tered bucrania were recorded, and the age and in the Late Neolithic – involving a high degree sex distribution is now dominated by females of arable/pastoral integration and dependence, and more subadults, which appears to indicate which required a range of advanced managerial a genuine shift. Overrepresentation of adults skills, such as controlling the breeding cycle, in sheep/goats mortality proles may indicate keeping herds near growing crops, and provid- changes in herding practices and a switch to ing dry fodder – required exibility and inte- the use of dairy products (Twiss et al. ). gration in labour scheduling, which could have possibly been achieved by a more fragmented household-based society (Henton in press). Final remarks e Late Neolithic at Çatalhöyük brought As very briey sketched in this chapter, the about equally signicant changes in consump- application of a wide range of high-resolution tion and display modes. It became largely idi- archaeobiological data made it possible to rec- osyncratic and diverse, as compared with the ognize the procurement, production, and con- highly structured and repetitive mode in the sumption pattern in and around the Neolith- preceding period. Timber in the Early Neolithic ic house. As these activities are at the core of was consumed in the structured way. Vertical any group’s existence, this should potentially juniper posts were used for ttings set against contribute to an in-depth understanding of the walls that might have served some symbolic the character and mechanisms of major social and/or decorative purpose, lacking an obvious change in the Neolithic, in particular the demise structural function. A diverse woody ora was of communal organization and emergence of a utilized as fuel, including a signicant compo- more individualized mode of living. nent of oak, used also as timber. Changes in As the presented examples have amply the Late Neolithic involved a shift to the nar- shown, changes in the procurement strategies rower range of riparian taxa. It was accompa- between Early and Late Neolithic involved nied by changes in architectural practices and a shift from the exploitation of high quali- construction techniques which, unrelated to ty resources from selected parts of landscape wood availability, were less timber-dependent at the expense of diverse resources of poorer than the preceding period (see Asouti a, quality closer to the settlement. is is particu- b). larly evident in a shift to summer herding in e consumption of animal products also areas adjacent to settlement at the expense of witnessed important changes. e Early Neo- longer-distance herding. is move facilitated lithic is characterized by signicantly dierent easier access to fodder and triggered the prac- consumption of cattle vis-à-vis sheep/goat. e tice of keeping animals in the house compound former was of special signicance and mainly during winter. Similar changes occurred in used for ceremonial purposes, as manifested by consumption, moving from a highly structured feasting debris and bucrania set for the decora- and repetitive pattern to a more diverse mode. tion of the house interiors. e latter were used e recognized changes in the procurement, for ordinary food consumption; their bones production, and consumption pattern provide were by far the most abundant faunal remains valuable insight into the nature of a major found in middens and lls used as a primary change in the course of the Neolithic involving location for dumping consumption debris. a shift from some kind of communal organiza- Special treatment of cattle was signicantly tion (house society, neighbourhood communi- less common in the Late Neolithic. No plas- ty) requiring collective labour to more auton-
, omous house units performing individualized tantly, they provided necessary conditions for and diverse activities. Life in the Early Neo- the appearance of strong, self-ecient, and lithic was concentrated in and around clusters exible agricultural communities occupying a of elaborated houses that were set to establish range of dierent ecological settings. Hence, historical and ritual ties. ese large groupings it is possibly not surprising that these signif- organized acquisition, production, and possibly icant social changes in central Anatolia coin- consumption. is typically Neolithic system cided with the spread of farming into adjacent came to an end some time after the middle of areas. Paradoxically, the very foundations of the th millennium cal. BC and were gradually this process have never been thoroughly and replaced by smaller, less permanent and more systematically scrutinized. Hence, explicit and self-sucient houses. ey initially developed ne-grained studies of practical and mundane as an intrinsic component of the Early Neo- aspects of dwelling in the Late Neolithic house lithic neighbourhood system and eventually can provide signicant insight into this funda- contributed to their demise. mental social change in the Near Eastern and is process may have ultimately led to European Neolithic. the emergence of individual farmsteads con- trolling storage and production. ey appeared to become self-sucient, shorter term, and References more focused on consumption and the control Asouti, E. a. Woodland vegetation, rewood man- of production (Souvatzi ) and increasingly agement and woodcrafts at Neolithic Çatalhöyük. In Hodder, I. (ed.), Humans and Landscapes of Çatalhöyük: more ecient in managing their own resources Reports from the – Seasons, Volume . Cotsen and inter-relations. Inhabitants of the emerging Institute of Archaeology. Monumenta Archaeologica households had to accommodate the higher . Los Angeles. level of managerial and organizational skills – b. Charcoal in the Late Neolithic Çatalhöyük. in arable and husbandry-related activities. is Unpublished manuscript. Asouti, E. & Hather, J. . Charcoal analysis and the increased autonomy of the household, along reconstruction of ancient woodland vegetation in the with the dominance of a domestic mode of Konya Basin, south-central Anatolia, Turkey: results production and consumption, contributed to a from the Neolithic site of Çatalhöyük East. Vegetation durable and successful economy in which crop History and Archaeoobotany . Bayliss, A., Brock, F., Farid, S., Hodder, I., Southon J. & and livestock husbandry were closely integrated Taylor, R.E. . Getting to the bottom of it all: A and intensively managed. e increasingly more Bayesian approach to dating the start of Çatalhöyük. pronounced household ownership and auton- Journal of World Prehistory (). omy may itself be linked to more intensive use Borić, D. . First Households and “House Societies” of animals and plants. e ultimate outcome of in European Prehistory. In Jones, A. (ed.), Prehistoric Europe: eory and Practice. Oxford. these processes, as revealed by anthracological Byrd, B. . Public and private, domestic and cor- studies, were riparian woodlands around the porate: the emergence of the southwest Asian village. settlement being converted into completely American Antiquity . managed and distinctly anthropogenic habitats. Cessford, C. Absolute dating at Çatalhöyük. In ese signicant changes provided solid Hodder, I. (ed.), Changing materialities at Çatalhöyük. Reports from the − Seasons. Cambridge. foundations for large-scale developments far Doherty, C. Sourcing Çatalhöyük’s Clays. In beyond the settlement or even the region. A Hodder, I. (ed.), Substantive technologies at Çatal- largely homogeneous landscape exploitation höyük: Reports from the – Seasons, Volume . in the Early Neolithic were fragmented and Cotsen Institute of Archaeology. Monumenta Archae- ologica . Los Angeles. replaced by its dierentiated use. More impor-
Düring, B. & Marciniak, A. . Households and com- Marciniak, A. & Czerniak, L. Social transformations munities in the central Anatolian Neolithic. Archaeo- in the Late Neolithic and the Early Chalcolithic periods logical Dialogues (). in central Anatolia. Anatolian Studies . Gillespie, S. D. . Lévi-Strauss: Maison and Société à – . Çatalhöyük unknown: e late sequence on the Maisons. In Joyce, R. A & Gillespie, S. D. (eds.), Beyond East Mound. In Matthews, R. & Curtis, J., Proceedings kinship: Social and material reproduction in house soci- of the th International Congress on the Archaeology of the eties. Philadelphia. Ancient Near East. Volume I, Mega-cites & mega-sites: Gonzalez-Ruibal, A. . House societies vs kin- e archaeology of consumption and disposal, landscape, ship-based societies: an archaeological case from Iron transport and communication. Wiesbaden. Age Europe. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology Marciniak, A., Barański, M. Z., Bayliss, A., Czerniak, L., (). Goslar, T., Southon, J. & Taylor, R. E. a. Frag- Henton, E., , e combined use of oxygen isotopes menting times: interpreting a Bayesian chronology and microwear in sheep teeth to elucidate season- for the late Neolithic occupation of Çatalhöyük East, al management of domestic herds: the case study of Turkey. Antiquity (). Çatalhöyük, central Anatolia. Journal of Archaeologi- Marciniak, A., Asouti, E., Doherty, C. & Henton, E. cal Science, . b. e nature of household in the upper level at – In press. Domestic herd management in the closing Çatalhöyük: Smaller, more dispersed and more inde- years of Çatalhöyük East, elucidated through the pendent acquisition, production and consumption unit. combined use of oxygen isotopes and microwear in In Assembling Çatalhöyük, in Hodder, I. & Marciniak, sheep teeth. In Marciniak, A., & Czerniak, L. (eds.), A. (eds.). Leeds. Late Neolithic at Çatalhöyük East: Excavations of the Özbaşaran, M. . e Neolithic site of Musular, upper levels in the Team Poznań Area. Cotsen Institute of Central Anatolia. Anatolica . Archaeology. Monumenta Archaeologica. Los Angeles. Pilloud, M. A. & Larsen, C. S. . “Ocial” and Hodder, I. a. e leopard’s tale: revealing the mysteries “practical” kin: Inferring social and community struc- of Çatalhöyük. London. ture from dental phenotype at Neolithic Çatalhöyük. – b. is old house. Natural History Magazine ( ). American Journal of Physical Anthropology (). – . From diusion to structural transformation: the Roberts, N., Reed, J., Leng, M. J., Kuzucuoğlu, C., changing roles of the Neolithic house in the Middle Fontugne, M., Bertaux, J., Woldring, H., Bottema, East, Turkey and Europe. In Hofmann D., & Smyth, S., Black, S., Hunt, E. & Karabıyıkoğlu, M., J. (eds.), Tracking the Neolithic house in Europe – sed- e tempo of Holocene climatic change in the eastern entism, architecture and practice. New York. Mediterranean region: new high-resolution crater-lake Hodder, I. & Pels, P. . History houses: A new inter- sediment data from central Turkey. e Holocene . pretation of architectural elaboration at Çatalhöyük. In Souvatzi S. G. . A social archaeology of households Hodder, I. (ed.), Religion in the emergence of civilization: in Neolithic Greece: An anthropological approach. Cam- Çatalhöyük as a case study. Cambridge. bridge. Marciniak A. . Communities, households and ani- Twiss, K., Martin, L, Pawłowska K. & Russell N. . mals: Convergent developments in central Anatolian Animal Bone. In Çatalhöyük Archive Report. online and central European Neolithic. Documenta Praehis- http://www.catalhoyuk.com/archive_reports/ / torica . ar _.html. [Accessed June ].
, Burial in the Swedish-Norwegian Battle Axe Culture: questioning the myth of homogeneity Deborah Olausson
Abstract Archaeologists are caught in the force-eld between the particular and the general. An example of this dilemma can be seen when we examine how burial customs in the Swedish-Norwegian Battle Axe Cul- ture have been described. Mats P. Malmer emphasized the general in his extensive study Jungneolithische Studien from . He measured and described the evidence and applied numerous quantitative and statistical manipulations to arrive at a picture of normal (in the statistical sense) behaviour. Although examples of investigations of Battle Axe Culture burials which emphasize the particular over the general do exist, Malmer’s picture of homogeneity remains largely unchallenged. e aim of this short presenta- tion is to examine the evidence from the currently known Battle Axe Culture burials in Scania in regard to Malmer’s postulate of homogeneity. In many respects the results conrm Malmer’s conclusions, while in others our new data and/or a dierent analytical approach call for a redenition of some of the postulates.
Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, LUX, Lund University, Box , SE- Lund, Sweden. [email protected]
Introduction and aim Malmer’s approach, emphasizing the general in the force- over the particular, was typical for the move- eld between the particular and the general. ment which came to be known as processual An example of this dilemma can be seen when archaeology. Scientic method, hypothesis test- we examine how burial customs in the Swed- ing, and the use of quantitative and statistical ish-Norwegian Battle Axe Culture have been methods characterized this approach. In their described. Mats P. Malmer emphasized the gen- analyses of Battle Axe Culture burials, Chris- eral in his extensive study published in . topher Tilley ( ) and Helena Knutsson Jungneolithische Studien was a denitive work ( ), who used an approach characterized in which he attempted to collate all known by compilation and analysis of statistical data, empirical evidence for the Swedish-Norwegian can be said to comprise further examples. Battle Axe Culture. He measured and described e reaction to this, which came to be the evidence and applied numerous quantita- known as post-processual archaeology, espoused tive and statistical manipulations to arrive at emphasizing the particular over the general. a picture of normal (in the statistical sense) Looking again at studies of Battle Axe Culture behaviour. us, although he acknowledged burial, During ( ) and Berggren & Brink anomalies, his primary aim was to discover pat- () are two examples using this type of terns and regularities in the empirical record. approach. Ebba During carried out an oste-
ological analysis of three of the burials from e.g. age and sex of buried individuals (Johanson the Lilla Bedinge cemetery. Her analysis illus- & Mårtensson ; Persson ; During trated the highly complex nature of the burials ; Arcini ; Jantsch & Ranåker ) and yielded a picture of great variety in burial and isotope analyses can shed light on dietary practices. Archaeologists Åsa Berggren and and health issues (Lidén et al. ; Fornander Kristian Brink applied a practice perspective ). In most cases I will use Malmer’s pos- in their analysis of three Battle Axe Culture tulates as my starting point. burials from the Malmö area in . rough detailed study of each aspect of the materi- al record they were able to suggest the order Methods and material of events involved in the funerary rituals for I have compiled a database of burials contain- these burials. Such an approach allows us to ing skeletal remains in Scania ascribed to the understand complexity and variation in buri- Battle Axe Culture. Information has been culled al practices; variation which undoubtedly was from published sources, the most important signicant for the people who carried out the being Malmer ; ; ; Winge ; ceremony (Berggren & Brink , p. ). Edenmo ; Lagergren ; Brink ; In spite of the exceptions described in the Berggren & Brink ; and Fornander . preceding paragraph, I maintain that Malmer’s In cases with bones from multiple individuals weighty tome from , with its emphasis in one grave I have listed each individual as one on homogeneity, still inuences our under- case. Cases from Malmer’s original list ( ) standing of the Swedish-Norwegian Battle Axe where a single artefact is considered to represent Culture (cf. Larsson , p. ). Malmer a burial are not included. e database con- himself remained true to the tenants of his tains examples of graves containing bones book throughout his career, as is evident in interpreted as one individual; of these are his discussion of the Battle Axe Culture in e listed in Malmer ( ). Finds included are Neolithic of South Sweden. TRB, GRK, and STR only those found in association with the bur- (Malmer ), published ve years before ied individual(s); nds in the lling are not his death. Here he writes: “ e professional- included. Grave structures were not included ly investigated or otherwise well documented in the analysis. grave nds nevertheless paint an unambiguous Burials are located in most of Scania with the picture of strictly regulated, conservative burial exception of the northwest quadrant, see Fig. . customs, …” (Malmer , p. ). Of the burials which could be archaeologi- e aim of this short presentation is to exam- cally dated, four belonged to Malmer’s period , ine the evidence from the currently known to period and to period or . Organ- Battle Axe Culture burials in Scania in regard ic material from burials has been radiocar- to Malmer’s postulate of homogeneity. If we bon dated. e earliest C date is ± focus on variation rather than similarity when BP (N. Hyllievång A ; Ua-; Brink we look at the whole population, we can search , p. ) and the latest is ± BP for correlations which may enable us to nd (Vellige, RAÄ ; Ua- ; Söderberg ). new aspects of the norms of burial practice but at a ner level of detail. Recent archaeological activity provides an augmented empirical basis Number of individuals in the burial for testing Malmer’s conclusions and osteologi- Malmer denes the most common type of Bat- cal analyses have provided new information on tle Axe grave in the following way:
- : Fig. . Map of Scania showing the distribution of the burials in the database.
Flat-earth graves containing one or two skel- category. Table conrms that single burials etons in exed position together with objects are by far the most common form in Scania. belonging to the Battle Axe Culture, either However, they are not unique; six burials con- lacking a subterranean structure or with such tain two individuals and at least four contain a structure consisting exclusively of unworked more than two. stones with an average length of to cm Kastanjegården Anl. contained the (Malmer , p. ; my translation). remains of a woman whose age at death was years and two children aged – years. As Malmer points out ( , p. ), the ey were laid in what was interpreted as the denition contains an element of circularity remains of a wooden con. Two pots, seven because only burials containing material cul- amber beads, one int axe, four int blades, ture identied archaeologically as belonging to two scrapers and ve int akes were found in the Battle Axe Culture will be placed in this association with the skeletal remains (Winge
Table . Number of individuals per burial, in those burials where traces of skeletons permitted a deter- mination. Number of individuals Number of cases One individual 57 Two individuals 6 More than two individuals 4 Total 67
; Johanson & Mårtensson ; Persson East Southeast North West South ; During ). Burial at Dösjebro appears to have contained three to four individuals, including a child. Gravegoods were comprised of four pots, two battle axes, three int axes, four int blades, four amber beads and an amber ring (Lagergren , pp. .). Lilla Bedinge grave contained the remains of three adult males and two infants. e males were placed in a sitting position and the chil- dren lay between two of the adults. e only gravegood consisted of a bone needle. Mal mer suggested grave represents remains from a human sacrice (Hansen , pp. .; Malmer , p. ). A burial at Uppåkra attributed to the Battle Fig. . Position of the face for individuals. Axe Culture contained a cranium from an adult and teeth from two children (Söderberg & Pilz Williams , p. ). east, ve were facing southeast, three were fac- ing north, and two were facing west and south, respectively (Fig. ). e conclusion here is that Body placement and position of regarding both body placement and position the face of the face, Malmer’s observations are true in Malmer maintains that there were strict con- the majority of cases; however, some deviation ventions for body placement in single and was apparently permissible. double graves. According to him, the deceased is always buried lying in exed position on his/ her side with knees drawn up, and the face e relationship between the of the deceased always faces east, never west biological sex of the individual (Malmer , p. ). and other burial characteristics Body placement could be determined for In the absence of biological sexing of individ- individuals. Certainly this study corrobo- uals in burials, Malmer proposed a hypothesis rates that the crouched posture was preferred, stating that weapons signify male burials while with in this position. However, six of jewellery signies females. He dened weapons the individuals () registered in the pres- at battle axes, antler daggers, pointed antler ent study were placed in a supine position in weapons, and projectile points. As conrmation the grave and four () in a sitting position. for his hypothesis he lists the artefacts accom- ree of the seated individuals are from the panying three osteologically sexed individu- same burial, Lilla Bedinge grave (Malmer als. In grave , Linköping Bergsvägen, the , p. ). male was associated with a battle axe and an e direction the individual was facing could antler dagger, the female with jewellery made be determined for individuals in the data- of amber, copper, or bone. Grave at Lilla base. irty-four of them () were facing Bedinge contained a biologically determined
- : Burial content for osteologically sexed individuals 6 Male Female 5
4 Number 3
2
1
0 Flint axe Flint blade Battle axe Pottery Worked bone Unworked Metal Worked antler Unworked Amber bone antler Burial content Fig. . Burial content for osteologically sexed individuals.
male accompanied by a pointed antler weap- p. ; Olausson , p. ). However the on. Further conrmation, according to Malm- rule of thumb rests on shaky empirical ground, er, is that both weapons and jewellery never as the sex determinations cited are in some occur in association with the same individual cases osteological but in others based on grave (Malmer , pp. .; , p. ). Pot- goods. tery, bone awls, int blades and scrapers, and Today osteological sex determinations are unworked bone can occur in association with available for individuals from Battle Axe both males and females. is is also true for burials in Scania; males and seven females. int axes, but they are more common in male Are the above postulates conrmed if we use burials, according to Malmer ( , pp. only osteologically determined sexing? f.). Knutsson’s statistics, where the individual’s e battle axe, sometimes considered the sex was determined by osteology or by grave symbol of masculinity par excellence, occurs content, indicated that battle axes only occur in only one osteologically sexed burial in the in male burials, but that jewellery can be found database, a male. Data concerning the total in both male and female burials (Knutsson contents of osteologically sexed burials are , p. ). shown in g. . Pottery occurs in association Although Malmer does not identify prin- with three males and ve females. Flint blades ciples governing the relationship between sex have been found in association with ve male and body position, a consensus regarding this and the same number of females. Unworked relationship is evident in published accounts. bone was associated with two male individu- is dictates that for individuals placed in als, while bone awls (worked bone) were found exed position, those lying on their left side in association with three male skeletons and are males, while right side indicates females ve females. ese data all conrm Malmer’s (Andersson et al. , p. ; Knutsson , hypothesis. However, amber beads were pres-
Side position of osteologically sexed individuals
6 Male Although much of the contents of these tombs Female is poorly documented, he nevertheless con- 5 cluded that Battle Axe culture was present in a very large number of them (Malmer , 4 p. ). Malmer suggested that Battle Axe arte- facts associated with the tombs should be
3 interpreted as burial remains, although he
Number also pointed out that we lack examples of undisturbed Battle Axe burials in any mega- 2 lithic tomb (Malmer , pp. .; , p. ). e evidence is ambiguous, since the 1 contents of the tombs have been disturbed, destroying any contextual information which 0 Le side Right side may have enabled us to identify burial activi- Side position ty. In a recent article (Olausson ) I have published the results of a re-examination of Fig. . Side position, when known, of osteologically sexed individuals. Twelve individuals total. the evidence from Scania. I concluded that there is little convincing evidence that the arte- facts found in and around megalithic tombs ent in three male burials as well as two female are remains of disturbed Battle Axe Culture burials, in contradiction to his model which burials. Rather, I suggest that in most cases the predicts that jewellery will only be present in nds can be ascribed to ceremonial behaviour female burials. In conclusion, for all variables not necessarily related to mortuary practices, except amber beads, Malmer’s predictions for perhaps in connection with ritual destruction preferences in grave goods included in male or (Olausson ). female burials, respectively, are conrmed even when only osteologically sexed individuals are Interment vs. cremation and human considered. bones outside of the primary grave e rule of thumb regarding a relationship e typical burial form for Battle Axe Culture between biological sex and side position is not is interment, according to Malmer ( , p. corroborated when strictly osteological sexing ). However, he also describes six possible is applied, however. Fig. shows the side posi- cremation burials, one of which lies in Scania: tion for of the sexed individuals. Six of Västra Hoby (II). is was one of four BAC the eight individuals placed on the left side are burials lying in a linear arrangement but it was males, as predicted, but two are females. Nor somewhat damaged before Hansen arrived in is there correspondence between female , making the contextual information dif- sex and burial on the right side. cult to interpret. Hansen rst suggested that the cremated human remains belonged to an Battle Axe burials in dolmens and Iron Age secondary burial intruding into the passage graves BAC burial (Hansen , pp. .). However, in his article he revised this interpreta- In his original publication ( , Tab. ), tion in light of subsequent nds of cremation Malmer quantied the presence of Battle Axe burials from the Late Neolithic, suggesting artefacts in association with megalithic tombs. that the cremated bones, Battle Axe pottery
- : and burnt int axe belonged to a Battle Axe e structure includes a trench with some burial (Hansen , pp. f.). In his dis- pits lled with charcoal, pottery, stone tools and cussion Malmer commented that most aspects cremated bones. Human bones from at least of the burial context in which the cremated seven individuals of both sexes and all ages have bones were found, such as the size and shape been identied in the pits. e Turinge mortu- of the pit, the stone packing, and the position ary house is interpreted as a decarnation house of many of the gravegoods, follow the typical where the bodies were stored before the bones BAC pattern. His conclusion, however, was that were burned (Larsson , p. , p. ). it is unlikely that the cremation is a Battle Axe While nothing similar to the Turinge mortuary Culture burial. In support of this he cited the house has yet been found in Scania, I mention other known Battle Axe Culture burials, it as an illustration of alternative treatment of none of which contain cremations (Malmer human remains in BAC context. , pp. f.). Here again he emphasizes It would appear from these examples that, homogeneity over dierence. once again, some deviations from what might Lilla Bedinge grave represents a radi- have been regarded as normal practice were cal departure from the single burial norm as present. Indeed, given the limited number of described by Malmer. Osteologist Ebba Dur- buried individuals, it is obvious that other forms ing subjected the remains to intensive scrutiny, of post-mortem treatment were being practiced. allowing us to understand some of the compli- Perhaps we should be applying more eort to cated practices carried out. She identied the nding evidence for them. remains of at least individuals in connection with the grave. e primary burial contained a supine female whose age at death was . Her Finding what we are looking for left humerus was shorter and less robust than In the above discussion I have ignored both her right and both bulae had osteitis. ree chronology and chorology and concentrat- skull fragments and one wisdom tooth from an ed on the contents of the burials. e aim adult were also found in the primary grave. On has been to test the validity of archaeologists’ and above a stone packing overlying the prima- somewhat stereotypical view of Battle Axe ry burial lay a collection of human bones. Five Culture burial as rigid and formalized. Mats crania were also part of the inventory (During P. Malmer’s denitions have been instrumen- ; Malmer , p. ). tal in forming our thinking about Battle Axe In a recent article, Åsa M. Larsson reported on Culture burial. ey are based on empirical a search for examples of secondary burial prac- examples but tend to emphasize homogeneity. tices in the Middle Neolithic (Larsson ). Using his denitions causes us to ignore pos- She describes the V. Hoby case but also men- sible cases which fall outside them. In almost tions one other possible example from Scania all cases classication as Battle Axe Culture at Löderup no. . Here a hearth containing relies on type fossils dened as BAC, so that burnt human and animal bones and possible burials lacking such objects will not be part BAC potsherds was found in a feature containing of the data set. a wooden cist (Larsson , p. ). She has Malmer emphasized characteristics which not limited her search to features interpreted as unite the burial practice; in this short article graves, however. e so-called mortuary house I have tried to dissolve some of the rigidity excavated at Turinge parish in eastern middle in order to investigate how much variation is Sweden is attributed to the Battle Axe Culture. present. In many respects the new data conrm
Malmer’s conclusions, while in others our new Skåne, Vellinge Socken, Kv Skolan, RAÄ . UV-Syd, data and/or a dierent analytical approach Lund. cause us to redene some of the postulates. Berggren, Å. & Brink, K. . För levande och döda – begravningsritual och social identitet i yngre stenålder. Conning sexing to osteological analysis of the In Nilsson, B. & Rudebeck, E. (eds.), Arkeologiska och skeleton, rather than using assumed cultural förhistoriska världar. Malmö. norms to sex burials, has shown that previ- Brink, K. . I palissadernas tid. Malmö. ous assumptions regarding a correspondence During, E. . En osteologisk och antropologisk between left or right side and biological sex undersökning av tre skelettgravar från Bedingegravfältet. do not hold. Amber beads are associated with In Larsson, L. (ed.), Stridsyxekultur i Sydskandinavien. Lund. both males and females. A renewed look at Edenmo, R. . Gylleundersökningarna. Riks- Battle Axe presence in megalithic tombs in antikvarieämbetet Rapport :. Stockholm. Scania failed to conrm Malmer’s suggestion Fornander, E. . Dietary diversity and moderate that tombs were used for burial by the Battle mobility – isotope evidence from Scanian Battle Axe Axe Culture. While the majority of the skel- Culture burials. Journal of Nordic Archaeological Sci- etons have been placed in exed position, ence . Hansen, F. . Några enmansgravar från stenåldern. there are also examples of placement on the Fornvännen . back or in a sitting position. Interment in a – . Gravundersökningar i sydligaste Skåne. Medde- pit containing a single individual is conrmed landen från Lunds Universitets Historiska Museum . as the most common choice, but others are – . En märklig skånsk brandgrav. Fornvännen . possible and there are examples of both burnt Jantsch, A.K. & Ranåker, M. . Stridsyxekulturen – and unburnt human bones outside of the pri- en humanosteologisk studie i en bioarkeologisk kon- text. C-uppsats, Lund. mary burial context. Johanson, G. & Mårtensson, K. . De odontologis- Burials constitute expressive arenas for con- ka fynden från gravarna vid Kastanjegården, Fosie. In veying social identity (cf. Berggren & Brink Winge, G. (ed.), Gravfältet vid Kastanjegården. Malmö. , p. ). Looking in more detail at how Knutsson, H. . Slutvandrat? AUN Uppsala. mourners have arranged the contents of the Lagergren, A. . Stridsyxegravfält och kommu- grave will reveal patterns which undoubtedly nikation. In Lagerås, P. (ed.), Dösjebro mötesplats för would have been signicant to them. In such trattbägarkultur & stridsyxekultur. UV-Syd, Lund. Larsson, Å.M. . Secondary Burial Practices in the an analysis the particular as well as the general Middle Neolithic. Causes and Consequences. Current are of interest. Swedish Archaeology . Lidén, K., Eriksson, G., Nordqvist, B., Göterström A. & Bendixen, E. .“ e wet and the wild followed by Acknowledgements the dry and the tame” – or did they occur at the same I would like to thank Åsa Berggren and Kristian time? Diet in Mesolithic-Neolithic southern Sweden. Antiquity vol. no. . Brink for comments on an earlier version of the Malmer, M.P. . Jungneolithische Studien. Bonn/Lund. paper, and Anders Gutehall for the illustrations. – . Stridsyxekulturen i Sverige och Norge. Lund. – . e Neolithic of South Sweden: TRB, GRK, and STR. Stockholm. References Olausson, D. . Båtyxan – stridsyxekulturens sigill. In Andersson, G., Welinder, S. & Westeson, Å. . Barn- Högberg, A. (ed.), Artefakter – arkeologiska ting. Lund. domens gränser under mellanneolitikum. In Johansen, – . e “mental” in monumental. Battle Axe Culture B. & Welinder, S. (eds.), Arkeologi om barn. Occasional in megalithic tombs in southern Sweden. In Furholt, papers in archaeology , Uppsala. M., Hinz, M., Mischka, D., Noble, G. & Olausson, D. Arcini, C. . Osteologisk bearbetning av skelettmatria- (eds.), Landscapes, histories and societies in the northern let från Kv Skolan, Vellinge. In Söderberg, B. (ed.), European Neolithic. Bonn.
- : Persson, O. . Skelettfynden från anläggning , fanstorps kommun, Uppåkra socken, Stora Uppåkra : Kastanjegården, Fosie. In Winge, G. (ed.), Gravfältet och :, RAÄ . Lund. vid Kastanjegården. Malmö. Tilley, C. . An Assessment of the Scanian Battle-Axe Söderberg, B. . Skåne, Vellinge Socken, Kv Skolan. Tradition: Towards a Social Perspective. Scripta Minora RAÄ . UV-Syd, Lund. Regiae Societatis Humaniorum Litterarum Lunden- Söderberg, B. & Pilz Williams, B. . Uppåkra . sis, Lund. Forsknings- och seminarieundersökningar Skåne, Staf- Winge, G. . Gravfältet vid Kastanjegården. Malmö.
A tale of the tall A short report on stature in Late Neolithic–Early Bronze Age southern Scandinavia Anna Tornberg
Abstract Human stature as a measurement for evaluating physical status is used by the World Health Organiza- tion (WHO) as well as bioarchaeologists. e reason for this is that only about depends on genetic factors, while depend on the environment. Bad living conditions decrease stature in a population. is paper aims to make a short review of earlier reports on stature in Late Neolithic–Early Bronze Age Southern Scandinavia and to provide some new data. It is clear that stature in Late Neolithic–Early Bronze Age Scandinavia was very high, equal to modern statures.
Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, LUX, Lund University, Box , SE- , Lund, Sweden. [email protected]
Introduction tural smorgasbord, giving more possible out- the transition to agriculture in come (nutrition). central Europe there seems to have been a decline Human stature can tell us a great deal about in health (Meiklejohn et al. ; Papathanasiou health in a population, since it is aected by ; Larsen ; Wittwer-Backofen & Toma both genetic and environmental factors. About ; Meiklejohn & Babb ; Mummert et of an individual’s stature is considered al. ). ere is no notable change within to be genetic and about is considered as the south Scandinavian record (Bennike ) dependent on environmental factors (Philips & following this event. is is possibly linked to a Metheny ; Carmichael & McGue ), dierent adaptation to agriculture (e.g. Richards such as the amount of nutrition and diseases ; Cramon-Taubadel & Pinhasi ; Isem (Silventoinen et al. ; Carson a; Car- & Fort ). However, there are interesting son b). reports of indicators of good health, such as high Human stature is not a static, nor a line- statures in the Late Neolithic southern Scan- ar matter through history, but has uctuated dinavia (Brøste ; Gejvall ; Bennike through the ages, with high statures suggesting ), a time when farming should be seen as good physical status (Arcini , pp. f.). fully established and anchored as subsistence. is can of course be dependent on genetic One might speak of the Secondary Products factors as well, but is shown to correlate well Revolution (Sherratt ), when new ideas with poorer or better living conditions, with and technological innovations (i.e. using cattle the highest statures at present (Arcini , pp. also for milk and traction, not only for carcass f; Statistiska Centralbyrån ). Stature, products, and the use of e.g. ards) lead to the along with other anthropometrical parameters, possibility to further benet from the agricul- is also used by the World Health Organiza-
tion (WHO) as an indicator of physical sta- their model from measurements of deceased tus (WHO ), further emphasizing the US soldiers from the Korean War. eir regres- strong correlation to human health. Stature sion formulae are divided between Afro-Amer- adapts quickly to environmental factors and icans and individuals of European descent and changes can be shown in matters of a gener- could be calculated using all long bones, but ation (Silventoinen et al. ; Heijmans et preferably the maximum length of the femur. al. ), therefore average statures over time e long bones of the lower limb are more can be used as a good health indicator, given accurately linked to living stature than are that no large resettlements have taken place in the long bones of the arm regardless of regres- the area of study, then being more aected by sion model. e problem with the Trotter and genetic factors. Gleser model is that bioarchaeologists seldom New, interesting results are sometimes analyse individuals from present populations. achieved by putting on retrospective goggles. People from the south Scandinavian Neolithic is could be viewing old research with a new and Early Bronze Age dier both in period of pair of eyes or examining old, forgotten, phys- time and geographic location from the male ical material, or both. Combining these two soldiers being measured in the s. Body retrospective approaches can be used as a foun- proportions do dier between populations, dation for several new research focuses and serve and so there might be an advantage in using as an overview of available data. e aim of this regression models that are non-dependent article is to gather both old and some new data on population. Two models that are popu- for evaluating joint information about stature lation-non-dependent and therefore suitable in the Late Neolithic as well as to discuss this for assessing stature in unknown populations data as a health parameter. such as in the Neolithic or Bronze Age are presented by Sjøvold () and Formicola ( ). In my research I primarily use Sjøvold’s Methods for assessing stature model for stature assessment, mainly due to ere are several methods for assessing stature the population non-dependency and a good in past populations. Most of them are based reputation for the accuracy of regression, not on calculations from long bones, but there is underestimating the stature of short individ- also a possibility to take measurements in the uals or overestimating tall individuals. eld. Measurements in situ at the excavation ere is no current standard for what method are preferable if possible and leave the least bias to use when calculating human stature. Dier- (Petersen ). In situ measurements, how- ent researchers have dierent preferences as well ever, require extremely well preserved bones, as having been professionally active in times since measurements are taken from above the with dierent methods in fashion. is could highest point of the skull to the most distal cause bias when data are compared and is one point of the talus (ibid.), unfortunately mak- of the pitfalls when comparing research over ing it impossible in most cases. a vast period of time. It is therefore crucial to e most commonly used methods for be clear about what method is used, and also estimating stature from skeletal remains are what elements have been measured. If this is based on linear regressions, although through done, any of the above methods may be applied. dierent mathematical formulae. One of the However, uncalculated measurements of long most commonly used methods is the one by bones are generally preferable since they are Trotter and Gleser ( , ). ey made easily compared and not aected by errors in
any regression formulae. Because not all long uncal. BP, LuS and LuS ) (Torn- bone measurements were available in the ear- berg ), a secondary burial in a passage lier publications referred to in this article, this grave remade into a gallery grave of Öllsjö no. option had to be ruled out, since comparisons , Skepparslöv parish, at-earth graves from between localities and publications thereby Snorthög, Lilla Isise parish, dating to early Late would have been unmanageable. Neolithic (c. – cal. BC) (UB- , In this paper I will give values for the Trotter UB- ) and a gallery grave at Ängamöllan, and Gleser model for Europeans as well as the Vä parish, dated to the Early Bronze Age (c. Sjøvold non population-specic model. For the cal. BC) (UBA- , UBA-). skeletons analysed by the author, maximum Some re-measurements of the Dragby material, length measurements have been taken on all Skuttunge parish in central Sweden, previously complete long bones. If present, the femur is analysed by Gejvall, have also been made and used for calculating stature. If both femurs evaluated by the author. are measurable the mean of the measurements Stature in the south Scandinavian Late Neo- was used, otherwise the maximum length of lithic–Early Bronze Age – old and new examples the measurable femur was used (Arcini ). By summing up earlier data on the topic and renewing it with recent data, further insight as well as more empirical data are gathered in this Material paper, giving opportunities for further inter- e available data concerning stature in Late pretations of general health. Neolithic southern Scandinavia mainly come Unfortunately, Swedish Late Neolithic data from three dierent sources, Kurt Brøste’s book for stature are scarce in published literature. about prehistoric man in Denmark ( ), Nils Gejvall ( ) analysed a Late Neolithic gal- Gustav Gejvall’s analysis of the skeletal material lery grave from Dragby, situated in Uppland, from the gallery grave in Dragby, Skuttunge central Sweden. He reported almost extreme- parish in central Sweden ( ) and Pia Ben- ly high statures, with mean statures of . nike’s dissertation about palaeopathology in cm for males and . cm for females, the Danish skeletons ( ). Brøste and Bennike number of individuals being (eight males analysed the same skeletal material, deriving and females). It should be noted, however, from several localities in Denmark, though that not only femurs could have been meas- using dierent methods for calculation, giving ured since not enough measurable femurs are somewhat divergent results. erefore only available in the material – that is, if all of the Bennike’s more modern results are used in this original material was available for me and not paper. lost in recent times. Because the material is e new data of Late Neolithic and Early commingled due to burial custom it is also Bronze Age stature derives from the author’s problematic to assess each element to sex. It current research on diet and health in south- is therefore hard to sort out small males from ern Scandinavia as well as from a pilot project large females, possibly biasing the results fur- conducted in the summer of , also by the ther. In my analysis of the Dragby material I author (Tornberg ). e results are based found only seven measurable femurs, notably on individuals from Scania, southern Swe- divided into three longer femurs and four sig- den, and consist of mound in Abbekås, Skiv- nicantly shorter. It is reasonable to believe arp parish (grave ), which is dated by 14C to that the three shorter and also more slender the Late Neolithic ( ± and ± femurs originate from female individuals and
Table I. Mean stature in Scanian Late Neolithic.
the longer, more robust femurs are those of ities, especially considering female stature. e male individuals. is is my assumption when mean statures, cm for males and – discussing stature by sex in this paper further. cm for females, correlate very well with the Standardized metric sex determinations of the mean statures reported by Bennike ( ), even femoral head, as suggested by Garvin (, pp. though the male statures in the Scanian exam- f., and references cited there) and recently ple are a couple of centimetres higher. Both by Spradley and Jantz (). have not been male and especially female statures are several applied in this study due to current lack of ref- centimetres shorter in the Scanian material erences on postcranial metric sex assessments than in the central Swedish material reported in Scandinavian Neolithic skeletal assemblag- by Gejvall ( ). is discrepancy does not es. My measurements when dividing the three occur in my re-measurements of the same cen- longest femurs from the four shortest femurs tral Swedish material as already noted above, in the Dragby material instead suggest mean where the Dragby males have a mean stature statures of . cm for males and . cm of . cm instead of . as reported by for females using Sjøvold’s model. at diers a Gejvall. is means mean male statures lower great deal from the statures reported by Gejvall than in the Scanian and Danish Late Neolith- in the s. Instead, the statures based on ic examples. However, the new measurements re-measurements correspond quite well to the for female stature ( . cm) in the Dragby Danish Late Neolithic, where Bennike ( , material conrm Gejvall’s reported high statures p. ) reports statures of . cm for males ( . cm), signicantly distinguishing them and . cm for females ( males and from female statures in Scania and Denmark females, using Trotter and Gleser’s model for ( – cm). e dierence between Gejvall’s the femur). measurements and my own is not signicant e new data from Scania indicate statures and possibly a result of dierent regression for- during the Late Neolithic similar to earlier mula. e mean statures are remarkably high, investigations from Denmark and central Swe- almost as high as in present-day Sweden, where den. Table I shows the mean statures in whole mean statures are . for males and . centimetres in the dierent localities and as a for females (Statistiska Centralbyrån ). whole. e table is divided both by sex and Only during the Early Roman Iron Age did by regression formula. It shows that the mean the statures reach the same height as in the statures are slightly dierent between the local- Late Neolithic (Arcini , pp. f).
Fig. . e spread of individual statures in whole centimeters for males and females accord- ing to Sjøvold’s () model.
Naturally, the shortest and the tallest individ- on the use of dierent regression formulae, uals dier from each other, both among males where Sjøvold’s formulae actually give higher and among females (Fig. ), the shortest and statures for tall individuals than that of Trotter tallest male being cm and cm respec- and Gleser, nor do I think that Gejvall measured tively and the shortest and tallest female being the bone incorrectly. What I do believe could cm and cm. However, a majority of be the cause is a probable inclusion of meas- the male individuals are clustered in the span urements of other long bones than the femur, – cm and the females – cm. known to give dierent, and also less reliable is is to be expected and is probably a hint values for calculations. is also explains why of genetic variation. Gejvall was able to nd so many more meas- urable individuals than I could. e need for more data is obvious but is Discussion increasing day by day. e eort is also well e aim of this article was in one part to gather spent for evaluating Late Neolithic–Early both old and some new data regarding stature Bronze Age stature in relation to health con- in the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age sidering the very interesting data available. It and in another part to evaluate and discuss this seems conclusive that the stature of Late Neo- data in relation to health. e eort to join old lithic individuals are high with means statures and new data together is well spent considering for males and females being approximately the very sparse amount of data that has been cm and cm respectively. is could present up to date. Some of the old data also be compared to Danish Middle Neolithic data needed revision through newer methods. It is where statures are – cm shorter for males unclear why Gejvall’s reported statures dier so and cm shorter for females (Bennike , pronouncedly from my own calculations. I do p. ). Both old and new investigations of Late not believe that this dierence can be blamed Neolithic–Early Bronze Age skeletons suggest
similar statures that all are almost as high as increase in stature cannot be denitely exclud- the present day. is is to be considered quite ed. However, it seems less likely since, in an remarkable considering the welfare in western ongoing study, I can nd no evident dierence societies today. It is evident that something in stature, or other parameters for evaluating quite revolutionary happens in the Late Neo- physical health, between individuals inhumed lithic, providing one of the highest statures in in dierent grave construction during the Late human history. Neolithic–Early Bronze Age. It is also possible, Further, it seems clear that the high statures but maybe less likely, that the high statures are a of the Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age are not result of large migrations and exchange of pop- a local matter, but consistent over a larger area ulation, giving one with a new biological basis from central Sweden in the north to, at least, for stature. Even though it is highly probable Denmark in the south. High statures and good that there was increased mobility during this health can probably be linked to a number period, an exchange of population nds little of factors in society, not forgetting the rising support in the archaeological record. knowledge and possession of metal and a possi- Of course more data are needed for inter- ble agricultural intensication. New agricultural preting health in the Late Neolithic and Early practices and technical innovations such as the Bronze Age, regarding both stature and other ard, the labour from draught animals to pull it health-indicating parameters. Still, current data and perhaps the use of manure, made it pos- show signs of good living conditions during the sible to cultivate larger areas and thereby feed period. Certainly, investigations of human stat- more people. Further, the genetic possibility ure should be discussed in relation to archae- to digest milk is also linked to an agricultural ological and other bioarchaeological evidence intensication and might be one reason for the when trying to address questions about subsist- high statures in the Late Neolithic, providing ence and the impact on human health, which the growing population a good base for calci- was beyond the scope of this article. um and vitamin D, components proved to be Investigating stature is only one method closely linked to skeletal growth. for discussing health status in a past popu- Recent studies of aDNA and lactase persis- lation, although it is a very important one, tence (LP) suggest that the high ability to digest giving information sensitive to change over milk in Scandinavia is connected to the larger shorter time spans. A large quantity of data opportunity to survive starvation in history if is of absolute necessity and is insucient at one could do so (Sverrisdóttir et al. ). How- present. New data are being registered con- ever, the question of where, when and how the tinuously making it possible to interpret the LP gene occurred and spread is currently hotly results from a more solid base and compare it debated and under research, but with results to other health-indicating analyses, nuance and still quite inconclusive, with a variety of dif- deepen the understanding of human health in ferent indications (e.g. Bersaglieri et al. ; the last part of the Stone Age and the rst part Burger et al. ; Enattah et al. ; Itan et of the Bronze Age. al. ; Malmström et al. ; Vuorisalo et al. ). is theme also lay outside the area References of research in this specic paper. Arcini, C. . Åderförkalkning och portvinstår: Välfärds- e possibility that changes in mortuary sjukdomar i medeltidens Åhus. Riksantikvarieämbetet practices, with a higher degree of social strat- Arkeologiska undersökningar Skrifter . Stockholm. ication in the graves, are the reason for the Bennike, P. . Palaeopathology of Danish Skeletons. A
Comparative Study of Demography, Disease and Injury. with prenatal exposure to famine in humans. Proceed- Copenhagen. ings of the National Academy of Science of the United Bersaglieri, T., Sabeti, P. C., Patterson, N., Vanderploeg, States of America . T., Schaner, S. F., Drake, J. A., Rhodes, M., Reich, Isem, N. & Fort, J. . Modelling the eect of Mes- D. E. & Hirschhorn, J. N. . Genetic Signatures of olithic populations on the slowdown of the Neolithic Strong Recent Positive Selection at the Lactase Gene. transition. Journal of Archaeological Science . American Journal of Human Genetics . Itan, Y., Powell, A., Beaumont, M. A., Burger, J., om- Brøste, K. . Prehistoric Man in Denmark: A Study as, M. G. . e Origins of Lactase Persistence in in Physical Anthropology. Vol. . Stone and Bronze Europe. PLoS Computational Biology ( ). Ages. Copenhagen. Malmström, H., Linderholm, A., Lidén, K., Storå, J., Burger J., Kirchner M., Bramanti B., Haak W., omas Molnar, P., Holmlund, G., Jakobsson, M. & Göther- M. G. . Absence of the lactase-persistence-asso- ström, A. . High frequency of lactose intolerance ciated allele in early Neolithic Europeans. Proceedings in a prehistoric hunter-gatherer population in northern of the National Academy of Science of the United States Europe. BMC Evolutionary Biology : . of America . Meiklejohn, C., Schentag, C. T., Venema, A., Key, P. Carmichael, C. M. & McGue, M. . A cross-sec- . Socioeconomic change and patterns of pathol- tional examination of height, weight, and body mass ogy and variation in the Mesolithic and Neolithic of index in adult twins. Journal of Gerontology: Biological Western Europe: some suggestions. In Cohen, M.N. Science. :B. & Armelagos, G.J. (eds.), Paleopathology at the Origins Carson, S. A. a. Demographic, residential, and of Agriculture. Orlando. socioeconomic eects on the distribution of nine- Meiklejohn, C. & Babb, J. . Long Bone Length, Stat- teenth-century African-American stature. Journal of ure and Time in the European Late Pleistocene and Early Population Economy . Holocene. In Pinhasi, R. & Stock, J. T. (eds.), Human – b. Demographic, Residential, and Socioeconomic Bioarchaeology of the Transition to Agriculture. Chichester. Eects on the Distribution of the Statures of Whites Mummert, A., Esche, E., Robinson, J., Armelagos, G. J. in the Nineteenth-Century U.S. Mathematical Popu- . Stature and robusticity during the agricultural lation Studies . transition: Evidence from the bioarchaeological record. Cramon-Taubadel, N. & Pinhasi, R. . Craniomet- Economics and Human Biology . ric data support a mosaic model of demic and cultur- Papathanasiou, A. . Health Status of the Neolith- al Neolithic diusion to outlying regions of Europe. ic Population of Alepotrypa Cave, Greece. American Proceedings of the Royal Society of Biological Science. Journal of Physical Anthropology . Enattah, N. S., Trudeau, A., Pimeno, V., Maiuri, L., Petersen, H. C. . On the Accuracy of Estimating Auricchio, S., Greco, L., Rossi, M., Lentze, M., Seo, Living Stature from Skeletal Length in the Grave and J. K., Rahgozar, S., Khalil, I., Alifrangis, M., Natah, by Linear Regression. International Journal of Osteo- S., Groop, L., Shaat, N., Kozlov, A., Verschubskaya, archaeology . G., Comas, D., Bulayeva, K., Mehdi, S. Q, Terwilliger, Philips, K. & Matheny, A. P. . Quantitative genetic J. D., Sahi, T., Savilahti, E., Perola, M., Sajantila, A., analysis of longitudinal trends in height: preliminary Järvelä, I. & Peltonen, L. . Evidence of Still-On- results from the Louisville Twin Study. Acta Geneticae going Convergence Evolution of the Lactase Persistence Medicae et Gemellologiae . T- Alleles in Humans. e American Journal of Richards, M. . e Neolithic Invasion of Europe. Human Genetics . Annual Reviews in Anthropology (). Formicola, V., Franceschi, M., . Regression equations Sherratt, A. . Plough and pastoralism: aspects of the for estimating stature from long bones of Early Holo- secondary products revolution. In Hodder, I., Isaac G. cene European samples. American Journal of Physical & Hammond, N. (eds.), Pattern of the Past: Studies in Anthropology . Honour of David Clarke. Cambridge . Garvin, H. M. . Adult Sex Determination: Methods Silventoinen, K., Kaprio, J., Lahelma, E., Koskenvuo, and Application. In Dirkmaat, D. C. (ed.), A Compan- M. . Relative eect of genetic and environmental ion to Forensic Anthropology. Chichester. factors on body height: dierences across birth cohorts Gejvall, N. G. . Skelettmaterialet från Dragby hällkis- among Finnish men and women. American Journal of ta. TOR IX. Public Health . Heijmans, B. T., Tobi, E. W., Stein, A. D., Putter, H., Sjøvold, T. . Estimation of stature from long bones Blauw, G. J., Susser, E. S., Slagboom, P. E., Lumey, L. utilizing the line of organic correlation. Human Evo- H. . Persistent epigenetic dierences associated lution .
Spradley, M. K. and Jantz, R. L. . Sex estimation on measurements of stature taken during life and of in forensic anthropology: skull versus postcranial ele- long bones after death. American Journal of Physical ments. Journal of Forensic Sciences (). Anthropology . Statistiska Centralbyrån (SCB) . Vi växer på bredden. Vuorisalo, T., Arjanmaa, O., Vasemägi, A., Taavitsainen, [online] Available from: http://www.scb.se/Pages/Arti- J.-P., Tourunen, A., Saloniemi, I. . High Lactose cle____.aspx. [Accessed September ]. Tolerance in North Europeans: A Result of Migration, Sverrisdóttir, O. O., Timpson, A., Toombs, J., Lecoeur, Not In Situ Milk Consumption. Perspectives in Biology C., Froguel, P., Carretero, J. M., Arsuaga Ferreras, and Medicine . J. L., Götherström, A. & omas, M. G. . Direct WHO. . Physical status: the use and interpretation estimates of natural selection in Iberia indicate calcium of anthropometry. Report of a WHO Expert Committee. absorption was not the only driver of lactase persistence World Health Organization Technical Report Series. in Europe. Molecular Biology and Evolution. ; . Tornberg, A. . Diet, Health and Agriculture. e Wittwer-Backofen, U. & Tomo, N. . From Health Late Neolithic-Early Bronze Age Example of Abbekås, to Civilization Stress? In Search for Traces of a Health Southern Sweden. Lund Archaeological Review. Transition During the Early Neolithic in Europe. In Trotter, M. & Gleser, G. . Estimation of statures Bocquet-Appel, J.-P. & Bar-Yosef, O. (eds.), e Neo- from long bones of American Whites and Negroes. lithic Demographic Transition and its Consequences. American Journal of Physical Anthropology . Dordrecht. – . A re-evaluation of estimation of stature based
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Frydenlund – Early Neolithic settlement and “barkaer” structures in the Sarup area Niels H. Andersen
Abstract As part of the Sarup Project, an Early Neolithic site was excavated at Frydenlund, km east of Sarup, revealing a settlement covering an area of about m, together with extensive nds dating from TN Ic, c. BC. On the settlement were the remains of one, or possibly two, houses of Mossby type which had been demolished and covered by two barkaer structures. One (structure A) comprised a large stone pavement, while the other (structure B) was a post-built enclosure standing in a trench. Both had a façade trench at their western gable, and in each of these stood three cm wide planks thought to have extended as much as m above ground level. In the middle of barkaer structure B was a plank-built cist containing diverse grave goods. e cist had been placed directly over the remains of a house which, shortly before, must have been demolished and removed. No burial feature was found in barkaer struc- ture A, but several artefacts suggested some form of similar deposition. e large nds assemblage from the site is presently under analysis.
Moesgaard Museum, Moesgaard Allé , DK- Højbjerg, Denmark. [email protected]
, Museum, in collab- and megalithic monuments such as dolmens oration with Odense City Museums, began and passage graves. An area of approximately x archaeological excavations on a sandy prom- km around the Sarup site was selected for the ontory near the village of Sarup in southwest study, thereby including a range of landscape Funen. ese resulted in the uncovering of types such as the coastal zone, watercourses two causewayed enclosures in which post-built with wetlands and hilly terrain. Prior to the fences and system-ditches had framed areas study, the only records from the area were of of several hectares. e earlier of the two – two scheduled megalithic graves, a dolmen and named Sarup I – was established during the a stone cist, two damaged megalithic structures Fuchsberg phase, c. BC; i.e. the time and a Neolithic settlement. when dolmens were constructed. e second Since , detailed reconnaissance of the enclosure – Sarup II – was established during area has been carried out, involving eld-walk- the Klintebakke phase, when passage graves ing over cultivated elds, and private archaeo- were built. logical collections, often on farms, have been Following conclusion of the excavations recorded and nd sites noted. Maps of the area, in , it was decided to initiate a series of both old and new, have also been examined landscape studies in order to understand the (Andersen ). A m series of cores was landscape in which these two extraordinary obtained for pollen analysis from sediments monuments functioned. e aim was to locate in the lake Sarup Sø by GEUS (the Geologi- possible traces of contemporaneous settlements cal Survey of Denmark and Greenland); m
– “” of these sediments represented the Neolithic subsequent excavation, carried out by trowel, period (Rasmussen et al. ). revealed traces of a large number of features Hundreds of new sites were found and and structures. Of these, a series of Early Neo- recorded around Sarup; of particular interest lithic structures in particular prompted much were the traces of settlements dating from deliberation and several changes in excavation the Funnel Beaker culture and more than strategy. First in autumn , after four long demolished megalithic structures. Over the excavation campaigns, was it possible to close course of excavation campaigns, investiga- the excavation. e material recovered from tions were carried out of parts of three settle- the site is very extensive and post-excavation ments, megalithic structures – some of which analysis is still in progress. As a consequence, overlay the remains of settlements with house only preliminary results and conclusions can sites – and the Frydenlund complex, which will be presented here.1 be dealt with in more detail below. On opening up the rst excavation areas, it became apparent that the surface was densely covered with large numbers of stones. It was Frydenlund clear that some of these formed parts of struc- About km east of Sarup, on a horizontal tures, while others appeared to be the result plateau providing a commanding view over of windfalls lifting stones in the subsoil up the Hårby river valley, lay a circular elevated to the surface. A total of more than , area of about m in diameter and . m in nds, primarily of Early Neolithic date, have height. Reconnaissance on this area revealed a been recorded and plotted-in on the excava- quantity of potsherds dating from the Funnel tion surface. ese nds have not as yet been Beaker culture, together with a large number subjected to detailed analysis. of eldstones. e landowner informed us that To date, it has been dicult to interpret many cartloads of stones had previously been all of the many stone structures present, some removed from the site. A magnetometer sur- of which overlap with each other, and others, vey of the elevated area revealed that it was due to extensive stone removal, appear badly surrounded by a ring of kerbstones, m in damaged. An interpretation will be attempted diameter, and inside this were several anomalies nevertheless. attributable to stone structures. On the face of Two basis structures were identied, termed it, this could suggest that we were dealing with A and B, which corresponded in form to those the remains of a large passage grave. However, uncovered in the s at barkaer (Glob , it was perplexing that the structure was so large, ; Liversage ). e latter constituted a and that there were no remains of sandstone series of burial structures, placed within elon- ags or concentrations of re-cracked int on gate constructions, which appeared to overly the surface, as these nds usually characterize settlement remains. Inspired by similar struc- the site of a demolished megalithic structure. tures found in England, these structures are In spring , an area of m was usually referred to as Early Neolithic long bar- uncovered, exposing parts of a ne ring of rows (Madsen ; Kristiansen ; Larsson kerbstones and some of the mound ll within ; Midgley , pp. –; Hansen ). this. ese kerbstones probably represent the However, this term is rather unfortunate as in remains of a large Early Bronze Age barrow. A only few cases do these structures represent the possible central grave feature inside this bar- remains of actual long barrows, and we rarely row had been removed years ago. However, know much about their extent and date relative
Fig. . e surface beneath the stone pavements at Frydenlund, with traces of two possible two-aisled house sites – framed in blue. Red lines mark traces of a possible rectangular construction. e small dots show the location of Early Neolithic nds and the brownish-red patches indicate the position of daub. Fewer nds in the southeast could be due to removal of material for the Bronze Age barrow. to the burial features. As a consequence, the – ). e same deposits were found to con- term used here is barkaer structure, which is a tain numerous nds, and a preliminary mapp- more neutral description and refers to the fact ing showed that these were evenly distributed that these are complex structures, possibly not across the excavated area (Fig. ). covered by a mound, corresponding to those e presumed house site in structure A was found at the barkaer site. apparent as a series of stake- and postholes, con- stituting the wall, as well as a row of slightly larger postholes running through the middle Frydenlund’s earliest structures of the structure. is was presumably the site with house remains of a two-aisled house with a length of m, a Beneath the stone pavements, numerous fea- width of . m, and covering an area of m. tures corresponding to pits and presumed e uncertainty with respect to this house site postholes were recorded. It was possible to is due to the fact that the presumed wall posts identify some of the postholes as belonging could be of later date, having formed part of an to a house site, possibly two, of Mossby type enclosure around the stone pavements which (Nielsen , pp. –; Larsson , pp. later came to cover the structure (see below). In
– “” favour of the house theory is, however, the fact about . m outside the eastern gable evidence that a quantity of daub, albeit often in quite of leaching was observed in the subsoil. e small pieces, was found around the structure, latter can be interpreted as traces left by roof especially to the south. Remarkably, traces of run-o and, consequently, an indication of the a rectangular structure were discovered inside extent of the roof overhang. the house site (Fig. ). e majority of the nds thought to be asso- In the western part of the house site in struc- ciated with the occupation of these houses cor- ture A, a thin layer of cultural deposits was respond to those seen in the nds assemblages uncovered, overlying some small, shallow pits. from Stengade house I (Skaarup ) and Already under excavation, the presence of a from Siggeneben Süd (Meurers-Balke ). quantity of charred grain was recognized here On completion of the current analyses, it is and this was later conrmed by the otation expected that the Frydenlund site will be able of a large number of soil samples. A prelim- to make a signicant contribution to our under- inary analysis of this assemblage, carried out standing of the artefact inventory associated at Kiel University by Professor Wiebke Kirleis with the end of the rst phase of the Early and Elske Fischer, shows a lot of cereal grains, Neolithic (TN Ic). threshing remains and wild plant species. Out of rachis segments, could clearly be identied as originating from tetraploid free Frydenlund’s monumental structures threshing wheat (Triticum durum Desf.) or e presumed house site in area A was sub- macaroni/rivet wheat, which so far was not sequently covered by one or more stone pave- identied for any Funnel Beaker context yet ments in the form of up to three layers of stones. (Kirleis and Fischer ). Due to the removal of stones in modern times, Five samples of charred grain and charcoal these stone pavements were only partially pre- from this possible house area were dated by the served. However, it appears they were laid with- AMS 14C Dating Laboratory at Aarhus Univer- in the area delimited by the presumed wall posts sity to c. – BC (AAR - ; for house A. e stone pavements appear to AAR ). Two dates for the same materi- have originally been very carefully laid (Fig. ). al produced at Kiel University gave results of In the centre of the structure, between the – BC (KIA and ). At stones, an intact thin-butted axe, the sherds of the time of writing, it has not proved possible a funnel-necked vessel and some amber beads to discover the reason for the marked dierence were found. ere was no trace of a burial struc- in the dates produced by the two laboratories. ture, but the area has suered heavy damage e remains of the house in structure B were due to stone removal. initially very dicult to recognize because the Towards the west, the western half of struc- subsoil here was very gravel-rich, relative to the ture A terminated in a robust façade con- situation at structure A, which was located on struction which showed traces of three radi- ne, sandy soil. Moreover, parts of the house ally-cleaved planks, placed in a . m deep site had been destroyed in connection with the trench (Fig. A ). construction of the ring of kerbstones for the Structure B (Fig. ) had, in its later phase, Bronze Age barrow. e house in structure B a somewhat dierent construction in that an had been . m long, . m wide and covered oval enclosure was built around the house site, an area of m. In the northeastern part there made up of posts set in a roughly . m deep were traces of rows of smaller posts and stakes trench. is enclosure measured x m and
Fig. . In structure A, a stone pavement more or less covered the area under which lie traces of a pos- sible house construction (Fig. ). In the western part were two façade structures, one comprised of three radially-cleaved posts or planks placed in a deep trench (A ) and, to the south of this, a structure with two round posts (A and A ). lay completely parallel to barkaer structure A, of stones (A). Unfortunately, this had been but located . m to the south. To the west, destroyed by stone removal and lacked nds the enclosure had a façade trench containing which could provide clues as to its function. three radially-cleaved planks, exactly as seen Grave A (Fig. ) had comprised a small in structure A (see below). In the enclosure’s plank-built cist, with two planks (now decayed) eastern gable there was a gap in which a large, approximately m long and cm wide at each almost cuboid stone had been placed. Another side. e base of the grave took the form of a stone, tall and slender, had stood directly inside ne surface of rounded cobblestones, – cm the western façade. in diameter. e cobbled area was rectangular in form and measured . x . m. is cobbled surface had sunk a little at each end, because the Inhumation grave A in barkaer soil here was soft at the time of construction. structure B It was precisely here that the central roof-bear- In the middle of the enclosure, between the ing posts of house B had previously stood. e traces of the two central postholes in house site grave structure must therefore have been built B, was an inhumation grave, referred to here as shortly after the house had been demolished and A (Fig. ). To the west of this lay a quadrat- the large posts pulled up, leaving uncompacted ic stone pavement comprised of several layers soil in the postholes. On excavation, sections
– “” Fig. . e later phases of structure B, during which the area of the former house site was framed by an elongate enclosure with a robust façade to the west and an opening to the east containing a large stone. A burial structure (A ) had been positioned in the middle of this, and immediately to the west was a quadratic stone pavement (A). through the postholes revealed an hourglass a tent-like structure. However, an analysis by form and this can be interpreted as showing Gordon Nobble showed that the two posts were that the posts had been rocked back and forth oset relative to each other and could there- in order to loosen them before being pulled up. fore not have formed part of the actual grave Inhumation graves such as A are often structure. A similar situation is seen in burials encountered in barkaer structures and are such as those at Fussell’s Lodge and Hadden- referred to as inhumation graves of Konens ham (Noble , p. ). Fussell’s Lodge has Høj type, after an intriguing structure found on given rise to a much used interpretation and the Djursland peninsula (Stürup ; Madsen illustration, whereby the large posts originally ). It has been assumed that these structures carried a platform on which corpses were laid represented a burial with a tent-like superstruc- out for skeletonizing, and after the posts had ture, as it was presumed that the large postholes rotted away the resulting eshless bones were at the ends of the grave had formed part of the laid in a wooden burial cist, constructed in the actual grave construction, with the posts car- same place (Scott ). rying a horizontal ridgepole. is interpreta- e best explanation relative to an inter- tion was questioned by David Liversage who, pretation of grave structure A comes via in , suggested that rather than a tent-like Preben Rønne’s excavation in – of a structure there was a plank-built cist with stur- barkaer structure at Bygholm Nørremark, on dy posts at each end (Liversage , ). the western outskirts of Horsens. In the east- Many grave structures corresponding to A ern part of this structure lay an inhumation have been found in England. One of the better grave, which had been positioned between the known is Wayland’s Smithy, where traces of postholes of a two-aisled house that had been radially-cleaved posts were found at the gables demolished prior to construction of the grave of an inhumation grave. In , the excavator, (Rønne , p. ). In contrast to the situation R. J. C. Atkinson, interpreted these as part of at Frydenlund, only few artefacts were found at
Fig. . Grave A in structure B. Here the rectangular grave base can be seen, surrounded by large stones which supported the (now decayed) planks (shown in brown). Red marks the position of two postholes which were part of the earlier house site B. It can be seen that the postholes are slightly oset relative to one another. On the grave base there were three intact int axes (marked in blue), an amber bead (red- brown), a couple of transverse arrowheads (between the axes on the left – to the west), a collared ask (violet), three at stones (cross-hatched) and some patches of ne clay (vertically-hatched). the site, leading Rønne to interpret the house In two cases, the dolmen chamber was located as some kind of ceremonial building, in which directly between the postholes for roof-bearing the inhumation grave constituted the nal act. posts in a two-aisled house (Andersen , Observations at both Bygholm Nørremark p. , g. ). and Frydenlund therefore demonstrate that rough studies of inhumation graves un- these inhumation graves were placed where, covered during other excavations, it can be seen shortly before, a house had stood – a house that the large posts at each end often stand oset which, moreover, must have been intentional- relative to one another, as seen for example at ly demolished. e absence of charcoal at the Flintbek (Mischka , p. , g. ). One can house sites is an indication that they were not speculate whether excavators have overlooked burned. eir removal must have taken place the stake- and postholes which could show no more than a year prior to construction of that these inhumation graves were located in the grave, otherwise the earth in the postholes the remains of two-aisled houses. Early Neo- would have become compacted such that the lithic house sites can be dicult to recognize, ends of the grave oor would not have sunk. as the postholes rarely contain much topsoil. e numerous nds from Frydenlund suggest, Furthermore, these houses were intentionally furthermore, that the house could have formed demolished and removed, as seen at Fryden- part of a settlement. Similar house sites have lund, leaving no remains of decayed posts in been found beneath megalithic structures in the the postholes. Sarup area, i.e. during excavations at Damsbo. It is an intriguing discovery that burial struc-
– “” tures such as plank-built cists and dolmens were plank. Close to the axe lay some sherds from a constructed in places where, shortly before, collared ask, which unfortunately had been houses had stood and, moreover, that these destroyed in connection with establishing the burial structures were positioned between the kerbstones in the Bronze Age. Some strange central pair of roof-bearing posts. All the house at stones, referred to as “pizza stones”, had sites in the Sarup area are located in settlements stood up against the planks at the head end areas with large numbers of artefacts. ese and by the left foot. settle ments appear to have been abandoned e deceased must be presumed to have and the houses demolished in connection with been male, and it is not impossible that the the establishment of burial structures. arrowheads in his chest region were the cause Inhumation grave A at Frydenlund can be of death, i.e. he was shot with arrows. However, interpreted as a plank-built cist with two sets is also possible that the arrowheads had sim- of planks at each side and one at each end (Fig. ply lain in for example a small pouch, because ). e thereby framed grave base was about beside them were a couple of very red stones, . m long and just less than cm wide. e about cm in diameter. planks stood in a roughly cm deep furrow In , a very similar grave containing two and decayed in situ. As they decayed, objects skeletons was excavated in Lohals on the island from the grave chamber slipped partly down of Langeland. Here too, an axe was found in into the trench/furrow, suggesting that these the shoulder region, with further examples by objects must have stood up against the side the right foot and in the pelvic region. Between planks. e cist was probably closed with a the two skulls lay the sherds of a collared ask large plank which, in turn, was covered with (Skaarup , pp. f.) a layer of hand-sized stones. e three int axes had been slightly resharp- Despite very careful excavation of the grave, ened, suggesting that the deceased could possi- using wooden spatulas and with subsequent o- bly have been an active woodcutter! It is remark- tation of the soil, no traces of the deceased, for able that graves are often found in the Early example tooth enamel, were found. However, Neolithic barkaer structures in which an entire it is presumed that there was only one person corpse, or possibly several as at Bygholm Nør- in the grave and that they lay with their head remark and Skibhøj, appears to have been bur- to the west. It was here that two thin-butted ied (Rønne , p. ; Madsen , p. ). int axes were found with their edges facing Conversely, we still lack clear evidence for the outwards. In between them, and slightly to the burial of entire corpses in the rst phases of the south in the chest region of the deceased, lay dolmens; the preserved nds show that only two int transverse arrowheads. One of them parts of corpses were deposited here (Eriksen had its edge facing towards the east, i.e. away & Andersen , chapter ). from the head, so any arrow shaft present must have lain over the deceased’s head. Roughly in the middle of the grave, by the northern Façade trenches edge – possibly by the deceased’s left hip, was Elongate trenches are often found at the east a large hour-glass-shaped amber bead, perhaps gable of barkaer structures. ese trenches a belt fastener. In the southeastern part of the constituted the foundations for sturdy planks grave, presumably by the deceased’s right foot, which stood several metres above ground level yet another int axe was discovered. is had and clearly marked the structure in the terrain slipped down into the furrow below the decayed (Madsen , pp. – ; Kaul , pp.
–). At Frydenlund, in contrast, there were end of – cm. ese large planks must have very prominent façade trenches at the western been split from an oak trunk with a diameter end of the two barkaer structures, A and A of approximately . m and, consequently, (Figs. and ). ere were no traces of façades a circumference of about m. If we assume to the east, and the fact that they were locat- that the planks were cm in their outer part, ed to the west here shows that they must have then half a trunk would have produced six been intended to be seen from a great distance, planks. We cannot of course know whether all which was only possible with this location. six planks came from the same oak trunk, but e two façade trenches at Frydenlund are their uniform shape and dimensions mean that very similar, although with one dierence: that this is likely. Moreover, it is remarkable that the in A , structure A, was cut into layers of gravel planks in coeval inhumation grave A had and sand, whereas that in A , structure B, was more or less the same dimensions, and that this cut into solid clay soil. It is remarkable that both is also true of the two posts associated with the trenches were of the same length, i.e. about . underlying house; the latter must, however, be m, but had very dierent depths. Trench A , slightly earlier in date. in structure B, cut into clay, had a depth of only e fact that the planks in façade trench A . m, although some of the top had been dug were placed in a . m deep foundation trench away in connection with the construction of and were stabilized using at least tonnes of the Bronze Age barrow. Trench A , cut into stones leads to the conclusion that they must gravel and sand, was dug to a depth of . m. have stood very tall. It is possible that they Both trenches had been lled with a large extended above the surface by as much as three number of stones, up to kg in weight. In times the depth of the trench, i.e. . m. Each the trench A , structure A, it is estimated plank would then have had a length of m that more than tonnes of stone were used in and a weight of some . tonnes. It is not cer- stabilizing the posts, or rather planks. Trench tain that the planks in trench A would have A was cm wide and had almost vertical been of the same length, as we do not know the sides, whereas trench A was, due to the loose original depth of the trench. However, this is soil, m wide uppermost, with a step halfway possible, given that the trench was dug in solid down, where the width was halved clay soil, had a couple of tonnes of stabilizing In the northwestern end of trench A lay stones and probably a depth of at least . m. a roughly m diameter stone, which could e above evidence shows that the Early have stabilized the plank standing here. Partly Neolithic barkaer structures were monumen- under the stone lay sherds from part of a fun- tal in scale and their construction must have nel-necked vessel and in another place there involved the gathering of large numbers of was a fragment of a thin-butted axe. people. Great eorts must have been involved in In the trenches, traces could clearly be seen rst nding an oak tree with a virtually straight of the decayed planks which had remained trunk at least m in height and . m in in situ. In trench A , the planks had been diameter. In order to fell the tree int axe heads positioned up against the eastern side of the would, in advance, have had to be produced trench, whereas in trench A they were placed and mounted. en the oak trunk had to be virtually in the middle of the narrow trench. cleared of branches and split using wedges to ree radially-cleaved planks had been placed produce six planks. ese had then to be trans- in each trench. ese were triangular in form, ported to the already dug façade trenches, in with a width of cm and a thickness at one which they were raised into a vertical position
– “” and stabilized using several tonnes of stones. References e earliest monumental structures were truly Andersen, N. H., . Sarupområdet på Sydvestfyn i impressive! slutningen af . årtusinde f.Kr. In Schülke, A. (ed.), Immediately south of façade trench A in Plads og rum i tragtbægerkulturen. Nordiske Fortids- structures A and A (Fig. ) there were minder, Series C, Bind . København. Stendysser. Arki- two posts placed in a stone feature. e west- Eriksen, P. & Andersen, N. H., . tektur og funktion. Århus. ernmost post was supported by a cm high Glob, P. V. . Barkær. Danmarks ældste Landsby. stone on one side and pile of boulders of cor- Nationalmuseets Arbejdsmark . København. responding height on the other. Here too, we – . De dødes lange huse. Skalk , no. . Højbjerg. have a remarkable and intriguing structure. Hansen, C. H. . Tidligneolitiske gravanlæg i Dan- mark – udefra, oppefra og indefra. Brudstykker af en helhed: Specialer i forhistorisk arkæologi og fra Københavns Universitet. København. Conclusion Kaul, F. . Neolitiske gravanlæg på Onsved Mark, e preliminary results of the Frydenlund Horns Herred, Sjælland. Aarbøger for Nordisk Old- excavation presented here show that we are kundighed og Historie . København. Kirleis, W. & Fischer, E. . Neolithic cultivation dealing with a very complicated site; rst there of tetraploid free threshing wheat in Denmark and was a settlement, comprised of one, perhaps northern Germany: implications for crop diversity two houses. Subsequently the remains of these and societal interaction of the Funnel Beaker Culture. houses were covered with two barkaer struc- Vegetation History and Archaeobotany (Suppl ). tures. ese two latter were very dierent in Berlin, pp. - . Kristensen, I. K. . Storgård IV. An Early Neolithic form; one comprised a stone-covered area, Long Barrow near Fjelsø, North Jutland. Journal of whereas the other was framed by a post-built Danish Archaeology , . Odense. fence placed in a trench. Both structures had Larsson, L. (ed.) . Monumentale gravformer i det their western gable marked with a plank-built äldsta bondesamhället. Lund. Larsson, M. . Mot en ny värd: Yngre stenålder i Sve- façade of perhaps as much as m in height. rige, – f.Kr. Lund. Intriguingly, a plank-built cist was found in Liversage, D. . Træbyggede grave fra den ældste the post-enclosed structure, and it is evident bondestenalder: Udgravninger ved Lindebjerg. Natio- that the cist was positioned in the remains nalmuseets Arbejdsmark . København. of a house which had been demolished and Liversage, D. . Barkær: Long Barrows and Settlements. Arkæologiske Studier, Volume IX. København removed shortly before. Madsen, T. . Earthen Long Barrows and Timber Structures: Aspects of the Early Neolithic Mortuary Translated by David Earle Practice in Denmark. Proceedings of the Prehistoric Robinson and Anne Bloch Society . London. Madsen, T., . Høje med træbyggede kamre. In Hvass, S. and Storgaard, B. (eds.), Da klinger i Muld… Århus. Notes Meures-Balke, J. . Siggeneben-Süd. Ein Fundplatz der frühen Trichterbecherkultur an der holsteinischen e excavation was funded by Moesgaard Museum Ostseeküste. Oa-Bücher . Neumünster. (FHM ) and the Danish Agency for Culture Midgley, M. S. . e Megaliths of Northern Europe. (-../FHM-). Oxford. e Frydenlund Project has its own blog which Mischka, D. : Flintbek LA , biography of a monu- can be followed on: http://frydenlundsarup.word- ment. In Furholt, M. et al. (eds.), Megaliths and Iden- press.com. tities: Early Monuments and Neolithic Societies from the Atlantic to the Baltic. Bonn. Nielsen, P. O. . De ældste langhuse: Fra toskibede til treskibede huse i Norden. Bebyggelseshistorisk tids- skrift .
Noble, G. . Neolithic Scotland: Timber, Stone, Earth Sharples, N. & Sheridan, A. (eds.), Vessels for the Ances- and Fire. Edinburgh. tors: Essays in Honour of Audrey Henshall. Edinburgh. Rasmussen, P., Bradshaw, E., Andersen, N. H., . Skaarup, J. . Stengade: Ein langländischer Wohnplatz Et nyt forskningsprojekt og et overraskende fund af mit Hausresten aus der frühneolithischen Zeit. Langelands laminerede søsedimenter. Geologi – Nyt fra GEUS . Museum. Rudkøbing. København. – . Yngre Stenalder på øerne syd for Fyn. Rudkøbing. Rønne, P. . Høj over høj. Skalk . Højbjerg. Stürup, B. . En ny jordgrav fra tidligneolitisk tid. Scott, J. G. . Mortuary structures and megaliths. In Kuml . Århus.
– “” Megaliths and timber structures in northeast Scania, Sweden Anders Edring
Abstract In an area with several megalithic monuments and timber structures was excavated on the Kris- tianstad plain in northeast Scania. e stone and timber structures were part of a large Neolithic buri- al site located at the edge of a large ridge. e architectural design of the site shows that the structures had been spatially separated, which can be seen as an indication of diverse functionality. It is suggested that dierent generations of timber structures evolved from single structures and semicircles into more traditional timber circles during the Neolithic. e site of Skepparslöv is seen as a miniature of a larger Neolithic landscape where activities of ritual character were closely connected to natural features in the surrounding landscape.
Sydsvensk Arkeologi AB, Box , SE ‐ Kristianstad, Sweden. [email protected]
Introduction tianstad plain has shown that the Neolithic northeast Scania, in the monuments are situated below the ridges and southern part of Sweden, is characterized by a the bedrock hills (Edring ). plain with several lakes and rivers. Large ridg- In an archaeological excavation took es and highland areas to the north and south place on the slopes of the Nävlinge ridge delimit the area. A number of hills of bedrock (Edring ). is archaeological site, Skep- are signicant features in the landscape, and parslöv, is situated immediately below the ridge, large stones and boulders cover the hillsides in an area with several megalithic monuments. and the hills of bedrock. During thousands of years the transgressions and regressions of the e megaliths Baltic Sea have made a signicant impact on the landscape. In the Neolithic period the sea e megaliths were situated along the slope of rose approximately – metres above the pres- the ridge (Fig. ). Stones and impressions of ent sea level and a large bay divided the plain. removed stones were frequent in the area. e Modern agriculture and drainage projects dur- rst construction to be located and excavated ing the nineteenth and twentieth centuries have was a stone circle with a central large boulder changed the landscape dramatically. which had traces of modern breakage. e stone e Kristianstad plain is one of ve areas in circle was about ten metres in diameter. Most Scania with concentrations of Neolithic mon- of the stones were preserved and traces of the uments such as dolmens and passage graves missing stones were clearly visible. Imprints of (Strömberg ; Tilley ). A study of the larger stones were documented and a segment of Early and Middle Neolithic period of the Kris- smaller stones was interpreted as the preserved
Fig. . e excavated areas and the megaliths and other features at the Skepparslöv site. parts of a oor in a megalithic chamber. Several structure could not be established; however, it stones and traces of removed stones, forming a must have been at least metres long and north–south orientated rectangular structure metres wide. e remaining parts of the struc- ( x metres), surrounded the chamber and ture consisted of larger stones at the edges and the stone circle. in the centre of the structure. After the removal irty metres to the south, a second accu- of a foot of shifting sand, an accumulation of mulation of stones was detected. is structure smaller stones was discovered. In this area three was orientated east–west and had a rectangular large stone impressions were documented, pos- form. e length was approximately metres sibly traces of a megalithic chamber. and the width metres. In the centre of the e three megalithic structures were all structure there were some larger stones and rectangular. All three constructions had large several stone impressions. stones or clearly visible traces of removed stones Another megalithic structure was excavated in their central parts. e meagre amount of in the northern part of the area. is rectangular artefacts and the absence of burials were com- structure stretched outside the excavation area mon features in all three features. e shape of and was destroyed during the building of a road the structures, the construction of large stones over years ago. e original length of the in the central part and the artefacts, although
, Fig. . e enclosure, the megaliths and the fen in area . Note the two rows if pits enclosing the area with clayey soil. scarce, indicate that the megalithic structures Soil studies revealed that the pits almost were the remains of dolmens. exactly surrounded an area with clayey soil. ere were some small accumulations of occupation deposits, pits and postholes in the An enclosure and a fen enclosed area, but these features did not seem South of the megalithic structures, several man- to form any recognizable pattern. e excava- sized pits were arranged in two parallel rows, tion of the layers and the pits did not result in forming an oblong arch-like shape (Fig. ). Soil any artefacts or other materials that gave any and charcoal samples were collected from the clues as to what kind of activity took place features, and an analysis of charcoal of pine- within the enclosed area. tree from one of the pits was dated to ± To the east there was a large dried-up fen BP (Ua- , – σ cal. BC). is where a part of a burnt int axe indicated ritual result does not correlate with the Early Neolith- activities in and around the fen. ic pottery found in the pits. e pits had been dug at the foot of the ridge and they seemed to follow the outline of the rectangular stone structure of the dolmens.
Fig. . e timber structures in area (above). e single timber structures and timber circle (left) and the recessed structure (right).
Timber structures Soil samples were analysed from the depos- its and a carbonized hazelnut was dated to Approximately one hundred metres south of ± BP (Ua- , – σ cal. the megalithic structures, a number of large pits BC) and a piece of charcoal of hazel from the and postholes were concentrated in two small bottom of the deposit was dated to ± areas with sandy soils (Fig. ). In the eastern part BP (Ua-, – σ cal. BC). there was an oval area with occupation depos- When the layers had been removed, sev- its. An analysis of the int technology found eral postholes became visible. ey formed a in the deposits shows that it can be dated to pattern similar to an Early Neolithic type of the Early or Middle Neolithic (Högberg ). house called “Mossby houses”. ese houses e int material corresponds well with the were two-aisled structures with two to eight pottery that dates to the Early Neolithic or the roof-bearing posts (Artursson et al. , p. transition between the Early and the Middle ). e posts in the walls formed an oval Neolithic. Bones from the deposit were scarce structure with a length that varied from to and mostly burnt, but the few identied frag- metres and a width varying from to . ments are from cattle and sheep/goat/roe deer metres. ere are some dierences in the pro- (Boëthius ).
, portions between Mossby houses and the cur- large semicircle with an opening to the north. rent structure. Unlike the Mossby houses, the ere were eight “post pits” in the construc- latter had been recessed into the ground in a tion. eir size varied from to . metres large pit or a natural recessed area. Outlining in diameter and their depth from . to . the central timber structure (that of the shape metres. Two of them were interpreted as large of a Mossby house), there were some postholes postholes. e others contained postholes at the forming a larger oval structure. ese posts bottom of the pits. e depth of the postholes symmetrical position indicates that they are varied from . to . metres, excluding the part of a construction coherent with the cen- depth of the pits. e two largest pits in the tral timber structure. southern part of the semicircle contained about Forty metres to the west of the recessed tim- pottery sherds and the same amount of ber structure, in another sandy part of the area, worked ints. Only seven of the sherds were there were several oval pits and postholes. One decorated, originating from Early Neolithic of the pits, × . metres in size, was surround- funnel beakers. Among the pottery there were ed by several postholes. In the centre of the also pieces from a clay disc. pit, below . metres of lling, was a posthole e int from these two “post pits” consisted with a depth of . metres. A polished int of two types of int – one local type (Kristian- ake and an Early or Middle Neolithic pottery stad int) and one that was imported from the sherd were found in the pit. southern part of Scania or Denmark (Seno- A similar structure was discovered ten metres nian int). e pits contained both types of to the south. is pit was . × . metres in int, but one contained some polished pieces size and surrounded by six postholes forming of int and the other burnt ints. ere were a rectangular structure. Several sherds decorat- also some pieces of red at stones in both pits. ed with vertical or horizontal lines of two-ply ese red stones had been processed, but they cord, dated to the Early Neolithic, and parts were not tools or implements of production of a polished int axe or chisel were found in (Högberg ). A similar red stone was found the pit. In the bottom of the pit there was a in one of the other “post pits” in the semicircle. posthole with an impression of a pointed pole. is other pit contained only single sherds of e pole penetrated layers of sand deep into undecorated pottery and ve of the eight pits the ground before reaching more stable clayey contained burnt pieces of int. soil. e depth of the posthole suggests that the Soil samples from the llings of the pits and pole must have been of considerable height. A the postholes were analysed. Charcoal from hypothesis is that the pits in these two features birch from the largest pit was dated to ± were dug in order to raise large timber-poles. BP (Ua-, – σ cal. BC) and a Soil samples from the llings of the pit and charred grain of naked barley (Hordeum vul- from one posthole belonging to the structure gare var. nudum) from the posthole was dated were analysed. Charcoal of ash-tree from the to ± BP (Ua-, – σ lling was dated to ± BP (Ua-, BC cal.). Charcoal of birch from one of the – σ cal. BC) and charcoal of ash- pits, interpreted as a large posthole, was dated tree from the posthole was dated to ± to ± BP (Ua- , – σ BP (Ua-, – σ cal. BC). cal. BC). Within the area of the two timber structures e two rst samples correlate with the there were several other large pits with post- pottery in the pits and with the results of the holes. ese “post pits” formed a twelve-metre radiocarbon analyses from the recessed timber
structure to the east ( ± BP, Ua- , been interpreted as gathering places with cer- – σ cal. BC), but also from a sample emonial functions or as places to prepare the from the pit in one of the timber structures dead before burial in megalithic tombs (Ander- ( ± BP, Ua-, – σ cal. sen , p. ; Svensson , p. ). On BC). ough the radiocarbon datings from the these sites there are also remains of what can be site show that a Mesolithic “breeze” is contin- described as regular settlement activities, but uously present, there are no artefacts or settle- also of activities of more ceremonial character ments know at the site or from the surrounding (Nielsen , p. .; Svensson , pp. area. Most of the radiocarbon dates, the pottery .). ese sites could have been multifunc- and the worked int indicate, however. that the tional, and were probably used for economic, semicircle dates to the Early Neolithic. administrative, social and spiritual purposes (Andersson , p. ). ere are only a few artefacts that can be e architectural setting of the site used for interpreting the activities that took e archaeological remains of the megaliths place at the site of Skepparslöv. A fragment of and timber structures are a part of a larger a burnt int axe and potsherds deposited in Neolithic burial site. e existence of mega- the former fen indicate ritual activities. Axes lithic monuments in the area has been known or parts of axes and pottery deposited in fens for quite some time and in the s, a pas- and bogs are generally interpreted as evidence sage-grave and a cist were excavated only a of ritual activities (see Karsten ; Kock hundred metres to the north (Bagge & Kaelas ; Berggren ). Fragments of burnt ; Magnusson ). axes are also a common feature in Neolithic In a meadow southwest of the excavated ritual contexts (see Larsson ). dolmens, there is a visible dolmen. e dol- e timber structures were located between men was built a few metres from a large boul- the excavated dolmens and the preserved dol- der with several glacial potholes. Large stones, men in the meadow. It is likely that the tim- boulders and areas with outcrop dominate the ber structures were related to the megalithic hillsides of the Nävlinge ridge and some of the structures and that they were signicant fea- boulders have potholes. tures of the Neolithic burial site. e spatial Looking at the architectural design in a larg- separation of monumental structures, those er perspective, it is clear that the megalithic built of stone and those built of timber, was structures had been placed in an arched line most probably intentional, indicating areas below the Nävlinge ridge. e chamber of the with diverse function. It can be questioned, passage-grave and two of the chambers of the however, whether the semicircle at Skepparslöv excavated dolmens are aligned. is is probably was a timber circle of the same type as those not a coincidence, but not all the megalithic excavated in the British Isles, Germany and structures in the area correspond to this pattern. the Netherlands (see Bradley ; omas Below the ridge and the megaliths there is an ; Gibson ). ere are, however, some area with dried-up fens and a number of pits Scandinavian examples of timber circles on the and postholes. Two rows of pits enclosed an sites of Vasagård, Risbebjerg and Grødbygård area of clayey soil. ere are Neolithic sites in on Bornholm, Denmark (Nielsen ; örn the south of Scandinavia with similar structures ). ese structures are connected to activ- of pits and ditches (Larsson ; Andersen ities dated to the later part of the Middle Neo- ; örn ). ese sites have primarily lithic A. Similar circles have been excavated at
, Fig. . e timber circles at Fjälkinge.
Fjälkinge, ten kilometres east of Skepparslöv e single post-pits surrounded by postholes (Edring ). Of the three timber circles at in Skepparslöv could have been contemporary Fjälkinge, the largest was ten metres in diameter with the semicircle, but they could also repre- and the two smaller ve metres (Fig. ). ese sent another phase of the timber monuments. timber circles, like those on Bornholm, are e single posts in the semicircle could have dated to the later part of the Middle Neolithic been erected separately, but with the purpose A (Edring ). One interesting observation of creating a complete construction. Maybe we is that the remains of what was interpreted as are looking at dierent generations of timber a dolmen were excavated eighty metres north- structures that evolved from single structures east of the timber circles at Fjälkinge. Another and semicircles into more traditional timber interesting observation is that an enclosure of circles during the Neolithic. Sarup type was discovered within one hun- e recessed timber structure forty metres dred metres northeast of the circular timber to the east of the semicircle has some similar- structures at Vasagård on Bornholm (Kaul et ities to Early Neolithic houses, and the arte- al. ). In contrast to the timber circles on facts found in the structure can be described Bornholm and at Fjälkinge, the semicircle at as a material that is normally found on Neo- Skepparslöv is dated to the Early Neolithic. lithic settlements. Activities on and around
Fig. . e Kristianstad plain with megaliths and depositions. a Neolithic burial site would normally have the enclosure. at the two rows of pits in the gathered a lot of people. e recessed structure enclosure seemed to follow the outline of the may have been used as a temporary dwelling, rectangular shapes of the megalithic structures but it could also have played a part in cere- is an indication that they were dug with this monial practices in connection with burials relationship in mind. e absence of artefacts or commemorations. and material suitable for radiocarbon dating in e timber structures, the megalithic struc- the three dolmens excludes an interpretation tures and the pits that formed the enclosure of the temporal relation between them and could have existed simultaneously. e dec- the enclosure. However, dolmens were gen- orated pottery and most of the radiocarbon erally built during the late part of the Early dates from the timber structures indicate the Neolithic or in the rst part of the Middle same date. e same types of decorated pots- Neolithic period. herds were also found in a couple of pits of
, e Neolithic landscape of side close to a large boulder, between the pas- the Kristianstad plain sage-graves and the hill. On the hillsides are several boulders and some of them have glacial During the Neolithic period a bay covered large potholes. Due to glacial activity some boulders parts of the Kristianstad plain (Fig. ). e have been placed on top of each other, and this Neolithic burial site at Skepparslöv was situated makes them similar to dolmens. is phenom- between the Nävlinge ridge and the bay. Studies enon of rock formations and boulders with a of the geographical distribution of megalithic strong resemblance to megalithic tombs and monuments have shown that they were often their connection to Neolithic sites has previ- sited along communication routes, e.g. rivers ously been noted at sites in the British Isles or streams (Tilley , Parker Pearson et al. (Bradley , p. ). ). From the Skepparslöv site and along Below another large hill of bedrock in the the ridge north there are two other dolmens. area of Råbelöv, northeast of Fjälkinge, there are About one kilometre to the east there are three megalithic monuments, two dolmens and several megalithic monuments on the other a passage-grave (Bagge & Kaelas ; Edring side of the bay in the Fjälkinge area. e area ). In the area there is a large farm, and of Fjälkinge was part of a large island, sepa- about thin-butted int and stone axes have rated from the mainland by the bay and large been recovered in the process of agricultural adjacent lakes in the north. e Skepparslöv work on the estate. On the hills, as in Skep- site was strategically located for passages to the parslöv and Fjälkinge, there are large boulders north, along the ridge, and to the east, across on the hillsides. A couple of kilometres to the the bay to the island. north of Fjälkinge, in the Kiaby area, several Studying the location of dolmens and pas- Neolithic sites have been excavated. Sherds sage-graves, Neolithic stray nds, settlements from pedestal bowls were discovered on one and ritual depositions on the Kristianstad plain, of the sites; the pedestalled bowl is a type of we see that they are predominantly concentrat- vessel that is primarily found in and around ed to four areas: Skepparslöv, Fjälkinge, Råbelöv megalithic tombs. North of these sites there and Kiaby (Edring ). Among these areas is a hill of bedrock with several large boulders the Fjälkinge area is the one with the most and rock formations. In the area between the numerous Neolithic remains. e site with Neolithic sites and the hill there is a bog and the three timber circles and the remains of a some old fens – previously parts of the great dolmen has already been mentioned, but there lakes in the area – where several thin-butted are also two other dolmens and at least three axes have been discovered. e connection passage-graves in the area. e passage-graves between ritual deposits and water, islands, hills are situated below a large hill of bedrock that is and megalithic structures has been noted in a signicant feature on the Kristianstad plain. Denmark (Koch ). Koch’s study of Neo- is hill was located in the centre of the island. lithic pottery from Danish bogs has showed that e high status of the Fjälkinge area is clear- the deposited pots were often placed close to ly shown by the concentration of Early and the shore in what was open water at the time, Middle Neolithic copper at axes (Larsson often where a stream entered a lake or where , p. ). Most of these axes have been two watercourses met (Koch , p. ; interpreted as ritual deposits (Oldeberg ; Bradley , p. ). A number of the bog pots Karsten ; Klassen ). Two of the axes in present-day Denmark were found directly were found on the southern slope of the hill- opposite some prominent islets or hills, and
there were also megalithic tombs in the same Bradley, R. . e Signicance of Monuments: On the area (Koch , p. ). Shaping of Human Experience in Neolithic and Bronze Age Europe. London. e concentration of megalithic tombs below – . An Archaeology of Natural Places. London the hills of bedrock, the ritual deposits in bogs Edring, A. . Berget i backens skugga: Det sociala land- and beside large boulders close to these sites, skapet på Kristianstadsslätten under tidig- och mellanneo- sometimes between the megalithic structures litikum. University of Lund, Institute of Archaeology. and the hills, form a pattern. On the Kristian- Report Series No. . Kristianstad. – . Öllsjö :, Skepparslöv sn, Skåne: Arkeologisk stad plain the hills clearly had a central signi- slutundersökning . Sydsvensk Arkeologi AB. Rap- cance to the people during the Early and Middle port : . Malmö. Neolithic period, perhaps as places signifying Gibson, A. . Stonehenge and Timber Circles. Stroud. the coming together of heaven and earth. As a Högberg. A. . Analys av sten- och intmaterial. miniature of the larger Neolithic landscape on In Edring, A. (ed.), Öllsjö : , Skepparslöv sn, Skåne: Arkeologisk slutundersökning . Sydsvensk Arkeologi the Kristianstad plain, the megaliths, the timber AB. Rapport : . Malmö. structures and the enclosure at the site of Skep- Karsten, P. . Att kasta yxan i sjön: En studie över parslöv have been organized in relation to the rituell tradition och förändring utifrån skånska neoli- hill and its natural features. Activities of ritual tiska oerfynd. Acta Archaeologica Lundensia. Series in °, No. . Lund. character connected to burial ceremonies took Kaul, F. Nielsen, F.-O, Nielsen P.-O. . Vasagård og place at the timber structures, the megalithic Rispebjerg: To indhegnede bopladser fra yngre stenal- tombs and the enclosure and in the fens. e der på Bornholm. Nationalmuseets Arbejdsmark . connection between natural features and mon- Klassen, L. . Frühes Kupfer im Norden: Untersuchung- uments is important for our perception of both en zu Chronologie, Herkunft und Bedeutung der Kupfer- funde der Nordgruppe der Trichterbecherkultur. Århus. individual sites and the surrounding landscape. Kock, E. . Neolithic Bog Pots from Zealand, Møn, Lol- land and Falster. Det konglige nordiske oldskriftselskab. Nordiske Fortidsminder. Serie B. Vol. . København. References Larsson, L. . A Causewayed Enclosure and a Site Andersen, N. H. . e Sarup Enclosures: e Funnel with Valby Pottery at Stävie, Western Scania. Med- Beaker Culture of the Sarup site including two causewayed delanden från Lunds Universitets Historiska Museum camps compared to the contemporary settlements in the area – . New Series Vol. . and other European enclosures. Sarup vol. . Moesgaard. – . Brännoer: En tidigneolitisk fyndplats med Andersson, M. . Skapa plats i landskapet: Tidig- och brända intyxor från södra Skåne. In Larsson, L. & mellanneolitiska samhällen ut med två västskånska dal- Wyszomirska, B. (eds.), Arkeologi och religion. Univer- gångar. Acta Archaeologica Lundensia. Series in °, sity of Lund, Institute of Archaeology. Report Series No. . Stockholm. No. . Lund. Artursson, M., Linderoth, T., Nilsson, M.-L. & Svens- Larsson, M. . Tidigneoltikum i Sydvästskåne: Kronologi son, M. . Byggnadskultur i södra och mellersta och bosättningsmönster. Acta Archaeologica Lundensia. Skandinavien. In Svensson, M. (ed.), I det neolitiska Series in º, Nº. Lund. rummet. Stockholm. Magnusson, M. . ree Late-Neolithic Graves in Bagge, A. & Kaelas, L. . Die Funde aus Dolmen und East Skåne. Meddelanden från Lunds Universitets His- Ganggräbern in Schonen, Sweden. II: Die Härade Gärds, toriska Museum IV, –. Albo, Järrestad, Ingelstad, Herrestad, Ljunits. Stockholm. Nielsen, P. O. . Limensgård and Grødbygård: Settle- Berggren, Å. . Till och från ett kärr: Den arkeolo- ments with house remains from the Early, Middle and giska undersökningen av Hindbygården. Malmöfynd Late Neolithic on Bornholm. In Fabech, C. & Ring- . Malmö. tved, J. (eds.), Settlement and Landscape: Proceedings of Boëthius. A. . Osteologisk analys av benmaterialet a Conference in Århus, Denmark, May – . Århus. från Öllsjö : – Skepparslövs socken, Kristianstad län, Parker Pearson, M., Cleal, R., Marshall, P., Needham, Skåne. Uppdrag Osteologi Institutionen för Arkeologi S., Pollard, J., Richards, C., Ruggles, C., Sheridan, A., och Antikens Historia Lunds Universitet. Reports in omas, J., Tilley, C., Welham, K., Chamberlain, A., Osteology :. Lund. Chenery, C., Evans, J., Knüsel, C., Linford, N., Martin,
, L., Montgomery, J., Payne, A. & Richards, M. . nicant Places Dug and Read by Contract Archaeology. e Age of Stonehenge. Antiquity . Riksantikvarieämbetets förlag. Skrifter No. . Malmö Strömberg, M. . Siedlungssysteme in südschwe- omas, J. . Understanding the Neolithic: A revised dischen Megalithgräbergebieten. Fundberichte aus Hes- second edition of Rethinking the Neolithic. London. sen /, Jahrgang / . Wiesbaden. Tilley, C. . A Phenomenology of Landscape: Places, Svensson, M. . e Second Neolithic Concept: Paths and Monuments. Oxford. – BC. In Andersson, M. Karsten, P. Knarr- – . e Dolmens and Passage Graves of Sweden: An ström, B. & Svensson, M. (eds.), Stone Age Scania: Sig- Introduction and Guide. London.
e Hamremoen enclosure in southeastern Norway An exotic glimpse into the process of Neolithization Håkon Glørstad and Steinar Solheim
Abstract e article presents an Early Neolithic site from southernmost Norway called Hamremoen. Here, the Museum of Cultural History excavated the remains of an enclosure in –. is part of Norway has little solid evidence of agrarian activity from the Early Neolithic. Instead it looks like the forager way of life was sustained. e appearance of an enclosure in such a context is important for our understanding of the whole process of Neolithization or the cultural transformation that took part in Northern Europe at the beginning of the Neolithic. A short phase of occupation took place in the beginning of the fourth millennia and four succeeding use phases have been identied. e pottery at the site shows inuence from several regions of the Early Neolithic TRB culture. e pottery style is however locally developed. e ceramics and the enclosure reveal crucial aspects of the acculturation process. eir presence can be explained as the arrival of new people with new ideas and customs in southern Norway at the beginning of the Neolithic. Although their presence did not alter the fundamental structures of subsistence in the area, new ideas and new technologies were nevertheless introduced, demonstrating alterations in cos- mology or worldview. e new worldview demonstrates a wider horizon, the importance of far-reach- ing social networks and new ideas about representation and time. Such changes could have been more intrinsic for the process of Neolithization than new subsistence strategies, not just in southern Norway, but also in northern Europe at large.
Museum of Cultural History, University of Oslo, Box St. Olavs plass, N- Oslo, Norway. [email protected]/[email protected]
Life in the backwaters of world has not made a strong impact on the general history development of the prehistoric world until the grand overview of the the Vikings as the rst people of history were prehistoric world, one always feels humble sailing on all the oceans surrounding Europe as a Norwegian. It seems as if all of the sig- (Cunlie ). nicant inventions and developments took ere are actually benets in being mar- place far from Norway. e best to hope for ginalized. is position allows for new and is to be included as a fringe on the maps dis- surprising discoveries to be made, because cer- playing European developments. In everyday tain phenomena might be more visible in the archaeology this is not a problem because it fringes than in the core. is could also be true is quite clear from the archaeological sourc- for our understanding of the introduction of es that even though Norway is a European agriculture in Scandinavia or the process of periphery, people have been able to live here Neolithization during the th millennium BC. for the last , years. Admittedly, this life is article presents an Early Neolithic site
Fig. . e location of the Hamremoen site in south Norway. e map also displays the distribution of stray nds from the early Neolithic TRB complex in south Norway (black dots). e line around the concentration of nds around the Oslo ord area denotes the traditional interpretation of the impact of the TRB complex in Norway. e dierent vege- tation zones are displayed as a background. TRB nds are closely associated with the boreonemoral vegetation zone of eastern Norway. e nemoral vegetation zone found in the southernmost part of the country has very few nds. e conditions for agriculture in this latter vegetation zone is however comparable to Denmark. (Source data for vegetation: miljostatus.no. Source data for TRB: Glørstad ).
agriculture are poor in comparison to a Euro- pean scale. In this respect, it is not surprising that Norwegian archaeology has demonstrat- ed that people were dependent upon marine from southernmost Norway called Hamremoen resources, starting from the rst colonizers in (Fig. ), where the Museum of Cultural His- BC until the commencement of metal tory conducted excavations of an enclosure in using societies in BC. e transition to –. is region has little solid evidence the Neolithic in Norwegian archaeology, tak- of agrarian activity from the Early Neolithic. ing place – BC is therefore not pri- Instead it looks like the forager way of life was marily a change in subsistence (Prescott ), sustained. e appearance of an enclosure in but dened by changes in artefact inventory such a context is important for our understand- and technology (Olsen ; Nærøy ; ing of the whole process of Neolithization or Glørstad ). the cultural transformation that took part in A closer and more historically sensitive northern Europe at the beginning of the Neo- approach will, however, reveal a much more lithic. e site has provided crucial information complicated pattern. e southeastern brim about the mechanisms of transmitting culture of Norway has nemoral vegetation and arable and knowledge. conditions comparable to Denmark (Fig. ). During the Stone Age, this favourable climat- ic zone encompassed a much larger area of Norway and agriculture southern Norway (Høeg ). Here weak In the stories about the evolution of agrarian evidence of Early Neolithic agriculture has been societies, Norway certainly deserves its periph- established in pollen diagrams (Høgestøl and eral position. With only three per cent arable Prøsch-Danielsen ). e presence of cereal land and having the entire landmass situated pollen and pollen from Plantago lanceolata in north of the th latitude, the conditions for Early Neolithic bog horizons is still a much
disputed theme and many researchers seem cal sources is a continuation of the hunter-gath- to reject this as solid evidence of early agricul- erer way of life, with the sea as the backbone tural activity (Prescott ; e.g. Lahtinen and of subsistence and occupational life. Contem- Rowley-Conwy ). As of today, no rm poraneous to the invention and spread of TRB evidence, such as fossilized and charred grains pottery in the south and central Scandinavia, or bones from domesticated animals, has been pottery craft also became a part of the cultural dated to the Early Neolithic in Norway. Such repertoire of the coastal population in southern evidence does however exist close to today’s Norway. e adoption of pottery craft clearly Norwegian border, in Bohuslän, western Swe- displays that technological changes took place at den (Sjögren ). Bohuslän is tightly inter- the transition to the Neolithic. Other changes woven, both culturally and communicatively, in tool technology are also well documented. with the Oslo ord area during the Stone Age, is demonstrates that the changes that took and should be considered as part of the same place c. BC were not only a question of cultural/social sphere. As such, it is highly likely diusion of new artefacts from agrarian com- that evidence of Early Neolithic farming will munities to hunter-gatherers. ese material be discovered in areas surrounding the Oslo changes appear to have been far reaching, and ord in the future. In addition, the Oslo ord they seem to have been intimately involved in region is the only region in Norway where the cultural and social developments that took the material culture of the south Scandinavi- place further south. an TRB complex is present in some quantity Why then, did foragers adopt pottery for and variation (Østmo ; Glørstad ). processing food at the same time as the TRB If agricultural activity was to limited societies complex and agriculture was established in living in the Oslo ord area, what then with the south and central Scandinavia? A tentative people and societies in the rest of the nemoral answer could be that pottery itself, as well as landscapes? Are we observing the activity of two the making of food in such vessels, was a sig- dierent ethnic communities – immigrating nicant element in the Early Neolithic social farmers in the east and indigenous hunters and fabric. Whether it was grains, milk, meat or gatherers in the rest of the country? sh that was prepared in the vessels was per- Fundamentally, the analyses and possible haps not of signicant importance. As such, the solutions to these problems depends on the situation could be quite similar to Christmas status of two loosely connected ontologies; with traditions throughout western Europe today, social evolution to social history at one level and where dierent dishes are served for Christmas the relation of agriculture to the Early Neolithic day/eve. e pan-European feature is, how ever, Funnel Beaker Culture (TRB) on the other. to celebrate Christmas with a special meal. is Let us be more specic. In the grand evo- celebration unites western Europe societies lutionary perspective, perhaps it makes sense more than the dierent receipts divide them. to analyse the Early Neolithic of Norway as a In order to proceed with this argument, periphery of the fundamental economic change some kind of ritual or more precisely, com- that took place at the Continent. But then, munal use of pottery must be specied. is what process did actually take place along the is clearly demonstrated in the TRB complex Norwegian coast in the Early Neolithic? How where pots are ritually deposited in bogs and can this enlighten the process of Neolithiza- lakes, in burials contexts in votive pits and in tion in general? enclosures (Andersen ; Koch ; Hall- What is clearly displayed in the archaeologi- gren ; Whittle et al. ).
Fig. . e location of the Hamremoen site in Vest-Agder County, Kristi- ansand municipality.
Fig. . Simplied overview of the excavation.
A question then arises, is there any evidence Today, the site is situated eleven m a.s.l., at for ritual or communal use of pottery in the a mighty riverbank. e River Topdal trans- Norwegian Early Neolithic? Apart from some ports large quantities of ne sediments and shards of early Middle Neolithic TRB pottery sand, creating an unstable and shifting pen- found in front of a megalith in the southeastern- insula at the estuary. is process has devel- most part of the country (Østmo ), no such oped continuously from the end of the Ice nds were previously known. In , however, Age until today. a new type of site was found in Kristiansand e excavation of the site revealed a distinct municipality, Vest-Agder County (Sundström large scale (at least by Norwegian standards) et al. ; Glørstad & Sundström ). layout of ditches. Most likely, one long ditch or several shorter ditches organized along the same line delimits an area of approximate- e Hamremoen site – general ly square metres facing the river to the presentation north (Fig. ). e system of ditches was dug Hamremoen is located on the south side of the into the sand at the prehistoric tip of the pen- estuary of River Topdal, close to Kristiansand insula. It was crescent-shaped and probably in southernmost region of Norway (Fig. ). very visible when travelling by a dugout canoe
Fig. . Top: e OxCal plot shows probability distribution of modelled radiocarbon dates from the cultural layer at the Hamremoen site. e modelled radiocarbon dates estimates activity start between – cal. BC and end at – cal. BC ( probability). Below: Probability distribution showing estimated duration of activity at Hamremoen using Span analysis in OxCal .. along the coast or up the river. Posts or walls that the posts detected were at least partially of wood and stones along the northern side of connected by walls of wood or branches. the ditch enhanced the layout created by the e site was exposed to wind and waves crescent-shaped ditches. Observations made coming from south and southwest. Storms and during excavation supports the interpretation strong waves have at several occasions ushed
over the ditches and into the enclosed space suggests that the site was used for a shorter behind. e site has been restored or rebuilt time span than previously assumed (Glørstad at least four times after such events. Finally, & Sundström ). However, stratigraphic the site was buried by sand and abandoned. observations indicate that the activity envelopes at least four rebuilding phases of the site. To summarize, it looks like the site was used at Determining the length of the several occasions within a time span of a few occupation phase at Hamremoen hundred years. Ten 14C-results date the site to – BC. e 14C-datings t very well with the artefact assemblage, containing tanged points, cylin- e Pottery of the Hamremoen site drical blade cores and pottery where the clay Pottery is a new kind of technology and inven- is tempered with coarse grained granite and tory of the Early Neolithic in southern Norway burnt at a low temperature. and is introduced simultaneously as the TRB e radiocarbon dates indicate a time span pottery is invented and spread to central Scan- for the use of Hamremoen from – dinavia and the Baltic Region. e pottery from cal. BC (Fig. ). However, the actual occupa- Hamremoen will be dealt with in greater detail tional phase is most likely shorter. By applying as we believe that understanding the pottery is Bayesian statistics, an attempt has been made to decisive for understanding the whole site, the narrow the time span of the occupation phase relation to the TRB complex and the question and date the use of the site more precisely (e.g. of farming as initially discussed. Bronk Ramsey ; Bayliss et al. ). Bayes- Pottery is the main artefact category found at ian devices in OxCal . were used to create a Hamremoen. Approximately ten kilos of pottery site phase model, and the ten Early Neolithic were collected during the excavation, compared radiocarbon dates from the cultural layer were to only gram of int artefacts ( piec- grouped within a single-phase model. es). e pots were decorated, mainly with cord e model indicates that the Neolithic occu- impressions around the rim and neck. A few of pation of the site started in – cal. the pots were almost intact and the majority of BC and ended in – cal. BC ( them were probably deposited as complete ves- probability). e dating of the cultural layer sels. Most shards were found in dense clusters covers most of the rst half of the Early Neo- and are interpreted as collapsed, single pots. lithic period in the region and the modelled e pottery is of coarse-tempered goods with radiocarbon dates indicate that the site was in cord impressions on the neck and rim, a rounded use for some – years. bottom section and a dened neck, but no abrupt To obtain further information about the transition from the neck to the belly. is vessel duration of the occupation we used the OxCal type is very typical from the Early Neolithic in span function to measure the time dierence eastern middle Sweden where they are considered between the estimated start and end phases as part of the TRB complex (Hallgren ). In (cf. Wicks et al. ). is suggest that the Norway, they traditionally belong to the Early activity associated with the cultural layer could Neolithic, from about BC (Olsen ; have taken place within a period most likely Glørstad ; ; Østmo ). Sites with lasting between and years ( .) such pottery have been found along the Nor- with a . probability of it occurring in wegian coast, at foraging and shing sites in the between an interval of and years. is prehistoric nemoral zone.
TRB pots from Denmark, for instance type in Eva Koch’s classicatory system (Koch ). e vessel shape also bears some similarities to Koch’s type I and III. An interesting dierence concerning the Hamremoen vessel and the types , I and III is that the relative height of the neck compared to the height of the belly is much larger on the Hamremoen pot than on the Danish pots. e belly represents only of the height of the neck, while on the -types from Denmark the belly section represents or more of the neck section, measured vertically. In this respect, the proportion of the Hamremoen pot bears much more resemblance to the funnel beakers of Koch’s type VI (Koch , p. ). e Hamremoen pot diers from the typical proles of the vessels from the TRB complex of eastern middle Sweden in that the latter Fig. . One of the best preserved pots from the pots are wider around the belly than at the rim Hamremoen site. e vessel shape follows the design (Hallgren , p. ). of TRB pottery, especially the funnel beakers, the e ornamentation is very dierent from style is however locally developed. Koch’s type and I. is does not make it exclusive in a TRB context as the composi- Usually, the pottery left on open-air sites is tion and decor elements are quite common in very fragmented. e shape and exact size of the TRB culture. e ornaments are created the vessels are therefore seldom determined. e by twisted cords pressed into the wet clay in extraordinary situation at Hamremoen allows nine horizontal lines on the neck. e lines us to study quite intact pots. Fig. illustrates are ended towards the shoulder by a section one of the best preserved pots. Some details of short, vertical lines of twisted cord. ese in its shape and composition deserve some latter lines are organized in pairs with open further comments. e vessel shape follows areas dividing them. e rim is decorated by the design of TRB pottery, especially the fun- short, crossing impressions with twisted cord. nel beakers. In prole, the neck is shaped as is way of decorating pots is very similar to a concave line. e splayed rim section gives the TRB tradition in eastern Middle Sweden the neck a funnel-shape and the pot an overall (Hallgren , pp. – ), in addition open V-shaped prole. e neck/belly transi- to having close parallels to the material from tion is consistently accentuated in a horizontal other Early Neolithic sites in southern Norway line. e shoulder is only slightly curved. e (Glørstad ). widest part of the belly is close to the shoul- To summarize, the most complete pot from der. e lower part of the belly is curved and Hamremoen has a strong resemblance to the goes into a convex base which is quite small TRB pottery found in other parts of Scan- in comparison to the orice. dinavia. However, no perfect match can be Similar vessel shapes can be found in the early found with any other pottery group within the
Fig. . Preliminary reconstruction of the Hamremoen site in the early Neolithic. e shape of the landscape is only tentative. e reconstruction is based on eld observation, the geological interpretation of the formation process and the present shape of the landscape.
TRB area. Aspects of the pottery form resemble ing diet. Traces of lipids from terrestrial ani- Koch’s type from south Scandinavia, as the mals, plants and marine species were detected decoration points toward the eastern Middle in the ware (Isaksson ), but no decisive Sweden and south Norway, while the relative conclusion can be drawn whether the food was proportions of the pot resembles other types of domesticated or not. Marine lipids strongly TRB pots from south Scandinavia. erefore, indicate that the diet included sh or other we conclude that this pottery is an indigenous wild, marine animals. tradition developed inside the framework of As mentioned, a distinct cultural layer was TRB design. detected inside the ditch surrounding the site. e layer was in average – centimetres thick. It consisted of clayish soil, infused with e use of the pottery and its charcoal, other organic debris and large quan- relation to the dierent site tities of re cracked stones. Towards the south- elements at Hamremoen west and the ditch, the layer was horizontally e conditions for preservation of organic divided into three sub-layers. By studying the remains were poor at the site and the ecofacts proles in the ditch and the cultural layer, it provided no signicant information concern- could be concluded that the layer was divid-
ed into four separate occurrences, due to sev- position, by being situated on a peninsula in eral occasions of the inux of sand from the the river mouth and the distinctive architecture, southwest. us, only the southwestern part make the site a landmark when travelling by of the layer was covered with sand. During boat along the coast or the river to the upland these occasions, the layer had been recreated areas (Fig. ). by adding a new ground cover of mixed clay. is area was used in large scale cooking In the areas where the clayish layer was con- activities, if we are to judge from the huge tinuously exposed, it grew in thickness. In the quantities of re cracked rocks found at the areas where the layer was covered with sand, site. It is tempting to think that the pottery too the original extension of the layer was recreated was part of the preparation of meals. above the sand. From this one can conclude In sum, the site seem to be an enclosure for that the original extension of the cultural layer the gathering of many people, not as a part of was of signicance and that it was recreated the ordinary, domestic life, but as a place for when the site was destroyed by wave deposit- special (annual?) occasions. e site itself can ed sand dunes. e second conclusion is that be considered as a monument. e construc- the layer itself was of importance. It cannot tion of it seems to be a deliberate attempt to be considered as a random accumulation of make something outstanding of everyday life debris from settlement activities. e clayish and with its structured architecture and layout, substance must have been brought to the site Hamremoen is very dierent from contempo- in order to make an eect inside the ditch. raneous settlement sites in southern Norway. e eect was partial in that a deviating colour ere must have been some mission integrat- and texture from the surroundings was creat- ed in the construction of the site concerning ed within the secluded area, thus making the materializing an idea of a new type of society site appear like a dark crescent surrounded by or a new form of social cult with reference to a ditch and perhaps walls in an environment similar constructions in societies further south. with light sand and water. is act of deliberate materialization of mem- e relationship between the layer and the ory, events, ideas or history is very dierent pottery is noticeable as it was only in connec- from the social manifestations known from the tion with this layer that pots were found. A Mesolithic of Norway. It is therefore tempting possible interpretation is that the pottery ves- to conclude that Hamremoen is a local variant sels have been left in a near complete state at of a widespread social ritual including commu- the top of the layer and was shattered by the nal gatherings, feasting and creation of mon- storms sealing o parts of the site with sand. umental architecture created through inspira- tion from other parts of Europe. Expanding the Christmas metaphor, which was initially A ritual site presented, the site could be interpreted as a Hamremoen is in our opinion a ritual site pan-European Neolithic tradition reshaped comparable to the enclosures or ditch sites into a local design and custom. of the TRB complex (Glørstad & Sundström ). A ditch and perhaps a wall delimit a crescent-shaped area. Within the boundaries Discussion of the ditch, a dark, clayish oor covered the Judging from the radiocarbon dates, we have area, which distinguished the area from the reasons to claim that the site represents a rel- light and sandy surroundings. e strategic atively short phase of usage at the beginning
of the Early Neolithic. What does this short e main communication lines followed the event, in archaeological relations, represent in coast and the area is characterized by shel- regards to the Norwegian prehistoric context? tered and convenient coastal communication In our opinion this case study gives us a unique lines where lakes and rivers connect the coast insight in what the process of Neolithization and signicant parts of the rich inland areas. was about. It was not primarily about agricul- South and west of this area a very dierent ture or food production and not necessarily coastal environment is present, with a much an overt strive for power or prestige either. more exposed coastline and a dierent kind Judging from the Hamremoen evidence the of landscape. e Late Mesolithic of Viken Neolithic dened a new idea about commu- is characterized by the well-dened Nøstvet/ nicating memory through monumentaliza- Lihult complex. e communication patterns tion of a collective commemoration. Pottery are quite intense in this period, where appar- was part of this complex and it is tempting to ently large quantities of goods are exchanged think that the vessels were used for cooking at in small-scale networks (Glørstad ; cf. these occasions. Zvelebil ). If Claude Levis-Strauss ( ) was right in During the last six centuries of the Late claiming that society is dened by the exchange Mesolithic the stable Nøstvet/Lihult complex of spouses (or women, as he puts it), words is gradually replaced by a much more indis- and gifts, then one may imagine that pottery tinct inventory of artefacts. e subsistence was spread along the Norwegian coast by the patterns, however, seem to be a continuation exchange of people with knowledge of this craft of the Nøstvet strategies. is nal period of (Hallgren ; Olsen ). In this network, the Mesolithic is characterized by more wide- new ideas about situation and representation spread communication patterns, intensication were also communicated. e recreation of a of big game hunting and the introduction of local style inside the TRB repertoire certainly transverse projectile points of int, undoubtedly indicates the movements of people into south- inspired by similar traditions in south Scandi- ern Norway, not just artefacts. e locally devel- navia (e.g. Andersen ; Fischer ). We oped style, however, also demonstrates that have previously interpreted this development as large-scale migration into the area did not take an intensication of interregional communica- place. On the contrary, the fact that several local tion, most likely based on task group activities styles developed indicates that only a limited connected to hunting and an exchange motivat- number of people, knowing the craft of pottery ed by prestige (Glørstad ; Solheim ). entered the local societies, but not enough to is extended network seems to be trans- ensure the sustainment of a strict foreign style. formed at the transition to the Neolithic. e One can ask why only pottery and the mon- transformation could partially be explained umental contextualization of its use were intro- by the adding of a new social component to duced to southern Norway at the beginning of the existing repertoire of exchange, namely the Neolithic. e Late Mesolithic in southern the exchange of marriage partners from more Norway is characterized by a relatively tight remote areas. Consequently, new ideas and new integration of the area in networks stretching types of craft could have been exchanged along from Halland in Sweden to Lista in Norway the same channels. Apparently, agriculture was ( e area is more or less the same as the land- not an essential part of this exchange system. scapes the Vikings termed Viken or “ e Bay”. Why then, were monumental assembly places e area constituted a unity in this period too.) and pottery of importance?
As discussed, pottery is useful when process- this craft are among the few preserved for ing dierent kinds of food. e use value of this archaeological examination. craft could therefore easily have been acknowl- Finally, there is the question of the mean- edged along the Norwegian coast. Pottery may ing of the enclosure. e tradition of build- have been introduced as part of a new ritual ing enclosures is widespread in northwestern meal or as part of a new consumption ideolo- Europe and it covers a long time span, from the gy and/or practice where the way of processing nal LBK expansion in the th millennium to food was important and the actual ingredients the peak of the TRB tradition in the middle of of the dish were of secondary importance. For the th millennium. A reoccurring theme in the crafters of pottery, the technology could also the interpretation of the European enclosures have been acknowledged as something connect- is that they were erected as a device to com- ing them to their place of origin or their local memorate important events or deeds (Jensen community. Polished int axes, imported raw ; Whittle et al. ). e work of Whit- materials etcetera would have been considered tle et al. () has suggested an existence of a as exotic goods with a remote place of origin. long-lived tradition for constructing memorial Contrary to this, pottery represented some- monuments at the Continent, connecting the thing uniting the exotic and the familiar: Even LBK and TRB tradition. us, the new wave though it was a new type of object and a hall- of enclosure building in the fourth millennium mark of an exotic society, it could easily have represented a renaissance movement of an old been produced locally. and maybe almost forgotten tradition of the No doubt, the Norwegian pottery is locally rst continental European farmers. We adhere produced. Analysis of Early and Middle Neo- to such an interpretation, based on an evalua- lithic wares in south Norway have demon- tion of the Hamremoen enclosure. strated that pottery usually are made of local ere are a few examples throughout the clays, but produced according to the same craft Old World that foragers experience some great tradition as in the TRB complex (Hulthen events or revelations that called for the erec- ). It is therefore tempting to claim that tion of monuments. Such monuments are pottery was the transcending gift of auence for instance the ornamented stone pillars at par excellence. In so far as the craft was given Göbekli Tepe in Turkey from the epi-Palaeo- in the shape of a spouse, pottery could be lithic (Schmidt ) and the Giant Church- produced in large quantities of locally avail- es (megastructures) in Bothnia from the Late able raw materials. As such, it represented a Neolithic (Nunez ). ese monuments materialization of the unity of the local and occur at very dierent times and places but the exotic and the productive potential of this still they might represent similar responses to alliance. Pottery represented a materializa- important events in history. We think that tion of the same productive and reproductive the Hamremoen enclosure represent a similar unity as the marriage. e gift in the shape monumental response to an important histor- of a spouse was therefore a gift of a modus of ical event. is event was not the introduction prosperity and not just an opus, as pointed out of agrarian production techniques per se but a long time ago by several ethnographers (e.g. signicant extension of the social horizon. It Levi-Strauss ). It goes without saying could be that the monument at Hamremoen that pottery was only one of several aspects in was erected by people coming from far away such a gift economy. It is however of signif- – from agrarian societies in south Scandina- icant importance because the products from via or Germany, and just like the recreation
of pottery craft at the site, the enclosure was Sites such as the Hamremoen enclosure are also build according to the local prerequisites, rare examples where this process can be studied still as something fundamentally new, a portal with some precision because the cultural setting between the local and the foreign. contrasts the changes with clarity and because In such a perspective the Hamremoen site the conditions for preservation allows for stud- captures crucial aspects of the process of Neoli- ying in detail a very limited time slice in pre- thization. e site shows us the allure, and at the history. e emancipation from the ever-last- same time, the fragility in the development in ing discussion about the role of agriculture in question. A new idea about society, cosmology the Neolithization process also highlights the and/or history was created in the beginning of historical vectors in the course of events. us, the th millennium. Here, a weave between the one can understand why the hunter-gatherer local and the exotic was at the core. e mean- societies also were transformed around ing and the transformative force in this social BC. Such is the benets of being in the back- alteration were, however, dependent upon the waters of World history. It is in such fringes volume and robustness in the social relations that history demonstrates its importance to the as well as the local setting. In the southernmost evolution of man, culture and society. part of Norway this alteration apparently meant no signicant change in subsistence. e pro- cess of Neolithization is more likely considered References as a new awareness of the world involving new Andersen, N. H. . Sarup: Befæstede kultpladser fra partners and customs. In the shape of the pot- bondestenalderen. Jysk Arkæologisk Selskab. Højbjerg. Andersen, S. H. . Flade, skælhuggede skiver af Brovst- tery and in the erection of the enclosure one type. Fremstillingsteknikken af de tidligste tværpile i can glimpse that these new ideas concerned the Jylland. KUML . productive potential of uniting the local and Bayliss, A., van der Plicht, J., Ramsey, C. B., McCormac, the exotic as a new modus of being. G., Healy, F. & Whittle, A. . “Towards genera- e TRB complex is in general characterized tional time-scales. e quantitative interpretation of archaeological chronologies”. In Whittle, A., Healy, F. by heterogeneity and hybridization ( omas & Bayliss, A. (eds.), Gathering time: Dating the Early ; Midgley ). What is observed at the Neolithic enclosures in Southern Britain and Ireland. Hamremoen site is therefore not very dierent Vol. . Oxford. from what can be deduced from north Euro- Bronk Ramsey, C. . Bayesian analysis of radiocarbon dates. Radiocarbon . pean evidence in general. It is already stated, Cunlie, B. . Europe between the oceans: emes many years ago, that the south Scandinavian and variations: BC–AD . New Haven. pottery styles are signicantly dierent in the Fischer, A. . Food for Feasting? In Fischer, A. & dierent landscapes at the same time (Madsen Kristiansen, K. (eds.), e Neolithisation of Denmark: & Petersen ). e same heterogeneity can years of debate. Sheeld. Glørstad, H. . Neolittiske smuler: Små teoretiske og also be observed in the creation and layout of praktiske bidrag til debatten om neolittisk keramikk og the European enclosures (Whittle et al. ). kronologi i Sør-Norge. Varia . Universitetets Old- We think that this heterogeneity is an essen- saksamling. Oslo. tial part of the “new” Neolithic of the fourth – . Svinesundprosjektet. Bind . Oppsummering av millennium, simply because the core of this Svinesundprosjektet. Varia . Fornminneseksjonen. Universitetets Kulturhistoriske Museer. Universitetet new social development was an idea about i Oslo. Oslo. the productive potential of this state of being. – . Nære ting fra en ern fortid: Samfunnsliv i stein- Life could only prosper by uniting the familiar alderen for år siden. Oslo. with the exotic. – . e Northern province. e Neolithisation of
Southern Norway. In Glørstad, H. & Prescott, C. Olsen, A. B. . Kotedalen – en boplass gjennom (eds.), Neolithisation as if history mattered: Processes år: Fangstbosetning og tidlig jordbruk i vestnorsk stein- of Neolithisation in North-Western Europe. Mölndal. alder. Vol. I. Bergen. – . e structure and history of the Late Mesolithic Østmo, E. . e northern periphery of the TRB: societies in the Oslo ord area – BC. Mölndal. Graves and ritual deposits in Norway. Acta Archaeo- Glørstad, H. & L. Sundström . Hamremoen – an logica (). enclosure for the hunter-gatherers? In Furholt, M. et al. – . Auve: En fangstboplass fra yngre steinalder på (eds.), Landscapes, histories and societies in thenorthern Vesterøya i Sandeord. I. Den arkeologiske del. Norske European Neolithic. Bonn. Oldfunn XXVIII. Oslo. Hallgren, F. . Identitet i praktik: Lokala, regionala Prescott, C. . Was there really a Neolithic in Nor- och överregionala sociala sammanhang inom nordlig way? Antiquity . trattbägarkultur. Kust till kust-böcker . Uppsala. – . History in prehistory – the Later Neolithic/Early Høeg, H. I. . Skogens innvandring. In Jacobsen, H. Metal Age, Norway. In Glørstad, H. & Prescott, C. & Follum, J.-R. (eds.), Kulturminner og skogbruk. Biri. (eds.), Neolithisation as if history mattered: Processes Høgestøl, M. & Prøsch-Danielsen, L. . Impulses of of Neolithisation in North-Western Europe. Mölndal. agro-pastoralism in the th and rd millennium BC Schmidt, K. Göbekli Tepe – the Stone Age Sanc- on the south-western rim of Norway. Environmental tuaries: New results of ongoing excavations with a Archaeology. Special issue (). special focus on sculptures and high reliefs. Documenta Hulthén, B. . On Ceramic Technology during the Sca- Praehistorica XXXVII. nian Neolithic and Bronze Age. eses and Papers in Sjögren, K.-G. . Neolitisering i Västsverige: En North-European Archaeology . Stockholm. översikt over källäget. In Kaul, F. & Sörensen, L. Isaksson, S. . Analys av organiska lämningar i kera- (eds.), Agrarsamfundenes expansion i nord: Symposium mik från den tidigneolitiska lokalen Hamresanden, på Tanums Hällristningsmuseum, Underslös, Bohuslän, Kristiansand, Norge. In Sundström, L., Darmark, K. .– . maj . Nordlige verdener, Nationalmuseet Henriksen, M. and Isaksson, S., Rapport fra arkeo- København. logiske utgravninger på ID , Hamremoen av Solheim, S. . Lokal praksis og fremmed opphav: Haugen, / ,, Kristiansand commune, Vest-Agder. Arbeidsdeling, sosiale relasjoner og dierensiering i Museum of Cultural History. Oslo. østnorsk tidligneolitikum. esis (Ph.D) University Jensen, J. . Danmarks Oldtid. Stenalder, – of Oslo. f.Kr. København. Sundström, L., K. Darmark, M. Henriksen and S. Isaks- Koch, E. . Neolithic bog pots from Zealand, Møn, son . Rapport fra arkeologiske utgravninger på Lolland and Falster. Nordiske Fortidsminder Serie B. ID , Hamremoen av Haugen, / ,, Kris- Vol. . København. tiansand commune, Vest-Agder. Museum of Cultural Lahtinen, M. and Rowley-Conwy, P. . Early farming History. Oslo. in Finland: Was there cultivation before the Iron Age omas, J. . Rethinking the Neolithic. New Studies ( BC)? European Journal of Archaeology (). in Archaeology. Cambridge. Lévi-Strauss, C. . e elementary structures of kin- Whittle, A., F. Healy and A. Bayliss . Gathering time: ship. London. Dating the Early Neolithic enclosures of Southern Britain Madsen, T. & Petersen, J. E. . Tidligneolitiske anlæg and Ireland. Oxford. ved Mosegården: Regionale og kronologiske forskelle i Wicks, K., A. Pirie & S. J. Mithern . Settlement tidligneolitikum. KUML . Årbog for Jysk Arkæo- patterns in the Late Mesolithic of western Scotland: logisk Selskab. e implications of Bayesian analysis of radiocarbon Midgley, M. . TRB Culture: e rst farmers of the dates and inter-site technological comparisons. Journal European plain. Edinburgh. of Archaeological Science . Nærøy, A. J. . Chronological and technological Zvelebil, M. . Mobility, contact, and exchange in changes in Western Norway – BP. Acta Archa- the Baltic Sea basin – BC. Journal of Anth- eologica . ropological Archaeology (). Nunez, M. : All Quiet on the Eastern Front? In Knutsson, H. (ed.), Coast to Coast – Arrival. Coast to Coast-book . Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, Uppsala University.
Occupy time! e construction of design and monuments in Tiefstich central Europe
Johannes Müller
Abstract Besides the reconstruction of high-precision chronologies for single sites, the construction of precise time scales for stylistic developments enables archaeologists to answer questions about regional developments. e dimension of change in stylistic developments, in monument use and in environmental changes on a generational scale brings us nearer to the prehistoric individual: We start to talk about memory culture and involvement from generation to generation. Here, a case study from north central Europe – the Altmark region – is used to disentangle aspects of memorizing (on the household level) and monumentalization (on a supra-household level) in TRB Europe: two dierent social institutions occupy time in dierent ways.
Institut für Ur- und Frühgeschichte, Johanna-Mestorf-Str. - , D- , Kiel, Germany. johannes. [email protected]
Research questions area of the Altmark (Fig. ). e investigation of scientic dating leads to a precise chronology of the typological methods, a shift from analyses of the devel- development, which then enables us to answer opment of material culture, settlement pat- the following questions: terns and ritual activities on supra-regional and regional scales was initiated to enable detailed . Is the development of stylistic elements con- detections of processes and stages of local tinuous or are signicant deviations visible sites and local activities, e.g. the implemented which might hint at changes in the memory Bayesian approach on radiometric dates main- culture of the non-literate communities? ly addresses individual sites and combines the . Are there detectable, signicant breaks or results into stories about regions (cf. Whittle accelerated developments in the production, et al. ). An additional approach, which distribution and consumption of material has been developed in recent years, returns to culture? “quantitative typology”: statistical gradients on . What can be assumed about the quantities the similarities of artefacts or assemblages are of depositional processes in dierent spheres combined with absolute chronological dates of society? and time developments modelled in depth. . Do individual sites reect the overall devel- As a result, every pot or assemblage used in opment, as visible in the comparison with the analyses could be assigned to an individu- Lüdelsen ? al time probability (Hinz and Müller, ). With such possibilities in mind, I would Methods and database like to analyse the stylistic development in one distinctive stylistic area of the north central To quantify the typological development of sites European TRB societies: the Tiefstich pottery with “Tiefstich pottery of Altmark type” (Preuss
Lüdelsen Düsedau Haldensleben
Walmstorf
Lüdelsen
Fig. . e distribution area of Altmark Tiefstich. e distribution is marked with respect to the pha- ses: Lüdelsen ( – BCE), Düsedau – ( – BCE) and Haldensleben – ( – BCE). Sites mentioned in the text are mapped: Lüdelsen; Walmstorf.- e sites are the selection of assemblages, where vessels with more than one decoration type and a fully reconstructed vessel shape were found (graphic: Holger Dieterich, CAU Kiel).
3 KIA-41750: 3640-3530 cal BC KIA-43282: 3640-3530 cal BC KIA-49352: 3630-3380 cal BC 2 KIA-40006: 3500-3370 cal BC Gd-10166: 3490-3100 cal BC Bln-3552: 3370-3110 cal BC Bln-4209: 3490-3110 cal BC 1
1. EV KIA-49343: 3080-2930 cal BC 0 KIA-39355: 3020-2920 cal BC KIA-39355: 3020-2920 cal BC Düs 3 Hal 1 KIA-39346: 3080-2930 cal BC -1 Düs 2 Hal 2 Hal 3 Düs 1 Hd-19045: 2920-2890 cal BC Hal 4 -2 Lüd
KIA-35043: 3630-3380 cal BC -3
-4
-5
-6
-7
-8
-9
KIA-35043: 3630-3380 cal BC 2. EV -10 -7 -6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3
Fig. . Correspondence analysis (CA) of Tiefstich pots according to decoration motifs. 14C-dates and stratigraphies (arrows) indicate the chronological meaning of the sequence, which is reected in Fig. (cf. Tiede et al. in press). e phases and sub-phases are marked (graphic: Holger Dieterich, CAU Kiel).
Phase BCE Characteristic ceramik shapes Characteristic decoration types 3650
Lüd 134134 402402 22 26 2526 25 Lüdelsen 3600
1212 2828 104104 22 26 25 Düs 1 22223
276276 320 274274 284284 212 321 7373 4 3525
Düsedau Düs 2 113113 134134 136136 23236 3425 277277 274274 284 232 25 212 321 7373 4
Düs 3 132132 13636 138138 33232 334334 335335 33336 125 274274 284284 232 212 321321 140140 33 4 3350
Hal 1 1616 111111 11313 12929 13434 223223 234234 322322 336336 125 274274 284 232 108 212 201 110 140140 33 4 3250
1414 11111 113113 129129 13232 134134 223223 Hal 2 18 125 274274
321321 32324 331331 332332 335335 336336 33338 339339 282 301 108 31 201 110 140140 33 4
Haldensleben 3175 Hal 3 11111 132132 134134 33131 332332 335335 33636 339339 624624 3025 314314 301 108 31 201 110 140140 33 4 Hal 4 111 113 132 134 221 232 234 323 332 334 335 336 2900 302 308 322 324 31 201 110 140 33 4 Fig. . e general development of Tiefstich pottery of the Altmark group, resulting from CA. e abso- lute chronology is gained from Non-Metric Multidimensional Scaling (NMDS), processing a linear time span on the basis of available 14C-dates (cf. Tiede et al. in press).
), Correspondence Analyses (CA) were used dealing with a valid chronological gradient in in a recent study (Tiede et al. in press). As many the CA analyses (Fig. ). In consequence, the of the Tiefstich sites do not resemble closed units assemblage groups were identied as chron- but are rather features used for a longer time (e.g. ological phases. We label them in relation to megalithic burials), well-preserved ceramic pots sites: Lüdelsen, Düsedau – and Haldensleben were chosen as the closed unit for the analyses. –. e typological backgrounds of Düsedau Typological classication was carried out on the and Haldensleben correspond to the two dis- basic assumptions of NoNek (north European tinct Tiefstich horizons which Preuss identied Neolithic Ceramic, an open-access recording years ago (Preuss ). system, www.nonek.uni-kiel.de (Mischka ). Both by using the linear chronological Overall, individual pots with more than one gradient of Non-Metric Multidimensional decoration pattern were classied and used in Scaling (NMDS) analyses as well as the posi- the CA. As a result, by using cluster analyses, tion of individual 14C-dates on the matrix, dierent stylistic groups were articially sepa- an absolute chronological model could be rated in the resulting matrix, judging from the developed for the phases (Tiede et al. in values of the st and nd eigenvalues. Context press). Mapping and statistics about spatial analyses identied radiometric datings that and further developments are now available are associated with individual pots. Furthermore, to verify hypotheses. stratigraphies of pots were identied. Both After identifying the precise chronological stratigraphies and 14C dates prove that we are development of Tiefstich ceramic styles in the
40 2,0 decoration shapes decoration shapes ceramic shapes ceramic shapes
30 1,5
n 20 1,0 n/vessels
10 0,5
0 0
3000 3200 3400 3600 3000 3200 3400 3600 BCE BCE Fig. . e development of the sum of pot shapes and Fig. . Relative quantity of pot shapes and decora- decoration types. Despite the small number, statis- tion types (divided by the quantity of pots). While tically signicant tendencies are indicated: increases the low diversity around c. BCE is due to the in absolute variability c. – BCE in cont- small number, the general tendency of a decrease in rast to reduced absolute design variability after c. variation is statistically signicant (graphic: Holger BCE (graphic: Holger Dieterich, CAU Kiel). Dieterich, CAU Kiel).
Altmark region, individual sites were analysed decoration variety is one tool to identify pro- in relation to the general pattern. To this end, cesses of knowledge transfer. On a linear time both individual site reports and the reconstruc- scale, for example, shifts in the rate of changing tion of activities at early rescue excavation sites ornament patterns reect the ups and downs were used. in the institutional transfer from one genera- Above all, we take household-produced tion to the next. ceramics with their design systems as a proxy With respect to Altmark Tiefstich pottery, for the transfer of knowledge from one gener- design variation is extraordinary (Fig. ). From ation to the next and within communities. For funnel beakers with only few plastic elements, instance, changes indicate breaks in the mem- for instance lled triangles near the rims, to orizing of household or communal principles various forms of vertical engravings and zig- or divergences between households and sites zag decorations, the number of both ornament in the use of design in expressing old, new and types and pot shapes increased from c. – changing identities over certain spatial levels. BCE (Fig ). Interpreting the observation, the increase could be explained by households which deal with a growing complexity of tasks Results associated with the societal spheres in which pottery is used. In addition, the rising number . Continuous knowledge transfer of decoration designs could hint at an evolving e reconstruction of the development of the necessity to express household identities via design of household-made ceramics with their individual sign systems.
20 20 burials domestic sites causewayed enclosure Altmark Tiefstich Walmstorf
15 15
10 n 10 n per 25a interval 5 5
0 0
3650 3450 3250 3000 3000 3200 3400 3600 BCE BCE Fig. . e absolute rate of deposited pots, calculated Fig. . e absolute quantity of deposited pots in for -year steps. A higher deposition (and proba- domestic sites, burials and causewayed enclosures. bly production) rate is visible for the nd century While dierences around BCE are due to the BCE both in general for Tiefstich sites and for the small number, the general pattern of similar depo- Walmstorf enclosure (graphic: Holger Dieterich, sition rates independent of site types is displayed CAU Kiel). (graphic: Holger Dieterich, CAU Kiel).
In contrast, the relative quantity of pot shapes the observation that in an NMDS analysis the and decoration types (calculated on the basis of rate of stylistic change stays quite low (Fig. ). the quantity of produced [or deposited] ceram- ics) leads to a dierent interpretation (Fig. ). e . Development of production and number of ceramic shapes remains stable over deposition about years, while the relative number of Nevertheless, the quantity of deposited pots, decoration types continuously decreases. Obvi- which might be taken as a proxy for the pro- ously, the complexity of social practices in which duction rate of ceramics, shows signicant dif- ceramics were involved did not change over many ferences (Fig. ). e overall number of pots centuries, but rather followed a centuries-long increases on a signicant level around c. pattern that was traditionally grounded within BCE. Further dierences in the quantities can- the communities. Furthermore, as longer-lasting not be veried statistically because of the small TRB communities were present in the Altmark, overall number recognized. In combination a decrease of ornament variation might indicate with the observation about the continuous an increase in stability: e common method gures of ceramic designs, rates of production of the Altmark societies to distinguish separate and deposition are apparently not linked to households by design clusters (here using house- changes in social practices in which ceramics hold-produced pottery) became increasingly are involved. e steep increase appeared at a obsolete, as the social roles within social practices time at which (judged by ceramic design and were increasingly embedded in the memorized ceramic shapes) the Tiefstich society was in a ideology. In line with such an interpretation is stable mode.
N
number of sherds per 0,50m²
0 0 20m 1–2 3–4 5–9 179 249 10–19 20–29 30–39 40–49 50–79 0–399 80–119 00–600 120– 180– 25 4 Fig. . Ground plan of the long mound and passage grave Lüdelsen , Altmark (Demnick et al. in press; Müller , g. ). e distribution of ceramics indicates depositional areas around the mound.
Obviously, the density of sites in the core both domestic and ritual consumption of Tief- Altmark area must have increased at a sim- stich items. ilar moment in time, which would indicate Drawing such a general picture from one a population increase. Furthermore, the area aspect of material culture bound to house- in which Altmark-Tiefstich pottery was used hold production (ceramics and their contexts) also increased immensely. us, the produc- leads to the question whether the steady ow tion/deposition rate of Altmark Tiefstich pots of information exchange from generation to would point to a population increase and an generation without important interruptions opening of networks to further neighbouring is also valid on other societal levels. communities that would explain the huge dis- tribution area of Altmark-Tiefstich. . Common memories In my opinion, in addition to activities on the . Societal spheres and depositional household level, monuments and communal processes sites play a signicant role in the transforma- e little data available indicate that, in gen- tion of knowledge and norms from one gen- eral, the quantities of known, well-preserved eration to the next in non-literate societies. pots from burials, domestic sites, or causewayed Gatherings at the places of the ancestors serve enclosures follow a similar pattern (Fig. ). as opportunities for the rememorization of Except perhaps during the Düsedau phase, communal knowledge. In such a sense, the increases and decreases in the quantity of pots chronological development of architectural from settlements are generally mirrored in a activities and depositions at such sites could same manner in megaliths, at graves, and in be analysed with respect to our introductory the enclosure of Walmstorf (cf. Fig. ). us, questions. One example of an Altmark mon- it seems to be clear that not many changes ument is appropriate for this purpose. are visible in the production, distribution and Lüdelsen , a long mound with a passage
0 0 0 79, grave, . m in length, m in width and 80, 78, still measuring . m in height, is one of the 336,00 largest monuments of the Neolithic Altmark area (Figs. and ). Intensive excavations of north the site took place in and , result-
ing in a model of the monument history and 335,00 the depositional processes associated with it (Fig. ) (Demnick et al. in press; Diers and 6 5 Demnick ). 5 1 1 2 2 334,00 3 Phase (layers / [> BCE; activities 3 on [ – BCE]) Actually, the rst phase of activities at the site is bound to the creation of a non-megalith- 333,00 ic long mound at the location of an already slightly elevated ridge within the landscape. e rst mound builders used weakly sorted, uvio-glacial sand with inclusions, which was 332,00 deposited at the locality during the Saalian gla-
ciation. ey particularly selected this materi- KIA-49350: 90-245 calBC KIA-49349: 970-1030 calBC
al, which is lighter in colour than other locally 331,00 KIA-49352: 3635-3375 calBC available materials, to construct the m wide, m long and about m high mound. e building activities occurred after the place-
ment of a gravel fundament layer. e raising 330,00 of mound was possibly accomplished in two stages (layers and ). Activities on top of the
rst mound can be associated with small res 1 1 2 3 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 and the digging of shallow pits. ese ritual 329,00 activities took place between / and 073 / BCE. e construction of the long 6 mound marks one or two peaks of activities, probably before BCE, if we use the aver- 328,00 age probability of the earliest “restorms” on the mound (c. BCE). Dierent postholes are also associated with these activities. 327,00
Fig. . e stratigraphy of Lüdelsen (selec- KIA-49344: 9145-8745 calBC ted prole) enables the reconstruction of
dierent monumental phases (Demnick et 326,00
al. in press). After a non-megalithic long KIA-45621: 5541-5322 calBC
mound the construction was changed into a KIA 41752: 2879-2635 calBC south
megalithic long mound with a passage grave KIA-49345: 3335-2935 calBC (graphic: Holger Dieterich, CAU Kiel). 325,00 KIA-49343: 3100-2915 calBC
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 23 23 23 23 23 23 23 23 24 24
331
330
329
327
326
N
325
04m
Fig. . Lüdelsen with vessel on the ground in the forecourt. e spatial distribution of single pot sherds reects the throwing down from one top position into the forecourt (Demnick et al. in press).
Phases (layer [ – BCE]) and e megalithic construction involved Phase (megalithic phase [ – BCE]) kerbstones for the resultant megalithic mound, A rebuilding in the form of a second long mound orthostats and capstones for the passage took place between / and / grave, as well as dry-stone masonry of spandrel BCE. e mound was elevated to a height of at type and many boulders for the chamber oor. least m above ground level. Silty-sand depo- Burnt granite was produced and used as a sec- sitions of dierent types were used as a build- ond oor layer. At least some postholes are also ing material. During construction, res blazed associated with this phase. e depositional again, discovered in the form of a small replace. processes within the chamber are dicult to e orthostats of the passage grave were evaluate, as in dierent subsequent phases most dug into mound . e same is also true for parts of the chamber were cleared. the blocks of the megalithic kerb. It is still also possible that mound and the megalithic Phase (depositional processes [ – architectural features were constructed during BCE]) one single building process. In the rst case, In the forecourt of the passage grave to the Phase (the megalithic phase) dates between south of the monument, dierent amounts of / and / BCE, in the sec- ceramics and other items were found. e dis- ond case as Phase . Both datings are possible tribution of the sherds of ve dierent vessels as they overlap in a statistical sense. indicates that they had been placed on top of
● 1
● ● ● ● ● ● ● 0 ● ● ●
-1 MDS score
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-2
rate of stylistic change
-3600 -3500 -3400 -3300 -3200 -3100 -3000 -2900 BCE Fig. . Visualization of the rate of Tiefstich stylistic change (base: decoration types shapes) plotted accor- ding to their NMDS score vs. absolute date (Tiede et al. in press). e black dotted line shows a non- linear estimation (LOESS) of the development. e shaded area represents the steepness of the LOESS model, interpreted as speed of change. e low but continuous development is visible (graphic: Holger Dieterich, CAU Kiel). some boulders and toppled down later (Fig. deconstructed megalithic architecture. While ). e destruction of these pots took place the monument was obviously used in a dier- already during phase . e time span ranges ent way, activities ceased around / from / to / BCE. BCE and were resumed again with Bronze Age activities not earlier than / BCE. Phase (destruction and reconstruction [– BCE]) At a moment in time, which we would like to set Interpretation around BCE, the chamber was emptied, Actually, the depositional processes at the single burials with Globular Amphorae were probably site of Lüdelsen display a dierent rhythm of inserted, the dry-stone masonry was taken out activities than that which is in general terms and a third mound layer was constructed on top detectable, e.g. in the overall ceramic devel- to raise the height of the monument. Clearly, opment. First of all, mound building started the design and use of both the monument and abruptly at some moment before BCE. the chamber shifted. e mound structure for Activities on top of the mound lasted for about collective burials with megalithic appearance generations, contemporaneous with the devel- became a huge mound for single burials and a opment of the Lüdelsen style. e construction
of a second mound, most likely associated with Occupying time: dierent the megalithic phase of the site, probably took institutions at work place around BCE. As the megalithic kerb of the long mound follows the old non-meg- e determination of the rate of change in alithic layout of the earthwork, continuity in the design of movable material culture, which tradition is visible together with a radical change was produced in households, and the rate of of the meaning: e passage grave strengthens change in the design of a monument display the collectiveness of the ancestors; the forecourt quite dierent patterns: renews the general worshipping. e act of worshipping followed a new prin- . a ow of continuous stylistic change, which ciple – creating pots and destructing pots; even reects no problems or breaks in the distri- the number of depositions increased in con- bution of knowledge between generations trast to former phases. e increase in ritual of households, describes the basic pattern on activities, manifested in moveable items, is con- which the Tiefstich societies rested. temporary with the overall observed increase . a radical change in architectural eorts asso- in pottery production. ciated with monuments, probably indicating e third important moment of monument ritual/ideological transformations within the development is represented by the destruc- monument-building societies. tion of the megalithic meaning: e dry-stone masonry was deliberately destroyed, a further e dierences might demonstrate the dierent raising with an earthen mound, which did not rhythms of Tiefstich households and a ritual acknowledge the former megalithic borders, institution of the Tiefstich communities. Times was constructed, the chamber was cleared and changed dierently: either embedded in the burials of single character (?) were obviously stabilized household communities or reecting introduced. In general, interest in the place clear dierences in long-lasting ideological and was lost after a while. ritual patterns, which changed dramatically on To summarize: Lüdelsen displays clear- specic occasions. e dierent institutions cut events of construction and destruction, at work might reect dynamics which are also megalithic and non-megalithic: (a) > indicated by the change of social space within BCE “Earth and the long mound”, (b) the landscape. BCE “Megalithic boulders and collective bur- ial space”, (c) BCE “Earthen destruction References and individuals” might label the radical changes Demnick, D. & Fritsch, B. & Müller, J. in press. Lüdelsen of the concept, visible in the architecture. is . In Fritsch, B. & Müller, J. (eds.), Megalithlandschaft is not the story of slight alterations leading to Altmark . Bonn. change. It is the story of radically occupying Dibbern, H. . Das Albersdorfer Grabenwerk – eine place and time: the time of the ancestors. mehrphasige Anlage mit ritueller Funktion. In Hinz, M. & Müller, J. (eds.), Siedlung, Grabenwerk, Grosssteing- Such strong events of change are also visible rab: Studien zu Gesellschaft, Wirtschaft und Umwelt der at other ritual places: the Tiefstich causewayed Trichterbechergruppen im nördlichen Mitteleuropa. Bonn. enclosure of Walmstorf, the megalith of Lüdels- Diers, S. & Demnick, D. . Megalithlandschaft in der en or even the enclosure of Dieksknöll (Tiede westlichen Altmark: Mittelneolithische Siedlungsmus- et al. in press; Demnick et al. in press; Dib- ter einer Kleinregion mit Großsteinanlagen. Archäologie in Sachsen Anhalt. Sonderband . bern, ) Hinz, M. & Müller, J. . e Absolute Speed of
Change: Multidimensional Scaling and Innovation Tiede, H., Grünewald, T., Hinz, M., Demnick, D. & Rates. Archaeometry , DOI:./arcm.. Müller, J. in press. Feinchronologie der altmärkischen Mischka, D. . NoNeK – ein Aufnahmesystem für Tiefstichkeramik – ein Modell. In Fritsch, B. & Müller, steinzeitliche Keramik Nordmitteleuropas. Bericht der J. (eds.), Megalithlandschaft Altmark . Bonn. Römisch-Germanischen Kommission, ( ( )). Whittle, A., Healy, F. & Bayliss, A. . Gathering time: Müller, J. . Megaliths and Funnel Beakers: Societies dating the early Neolithic enclosures of southern Britain in Change – BC. Amsterdam. and Ireland. Oxford. Preuss, J. . Die altmärkische Gruppe der Tiefstich- keramik. Berlin.
Transforming place and architecture through cremation Cremation traditions at the third millennium BC monument complex at Forteviot, central Scotland Gordon Noble and Kenneth Brophy
Abstract is chapter will reect on one of the key discoveries of the authors’ research excavations conducted at Forteviot in lower Strathearn, central Scotland, between and . Investigations here have revealed an extensive complex of late Neolithic monumentality and burial including a giant late Neolithic pal- isaded enclosure and a range of associated henges, timber structures and burials dating to the period – cal. BC. e catalysis for the creation of this extensive monument complex on a landscape scale may have been the establishment of a cremation cemetery at Forteviot where a minimum of individuals were placed in the ground accompanied by bone pins and a handful of other grave goods in the early centuries of the rd millennium cal. BC. In the centuries following the establishment of the cremation cemetery at Forteviot, the aforementioned timber and earthwork enclosures were constructed, some encircling the cemetery; episodes of monument creation and burial continued into the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age. At Forteviot we can perhaps identify these activities as ways in which subsequent generations attempted to control access to an important ancestral shrine and burial ground.
Archaeology, School of Geosciences, University of Aberdeen, St. Mary’s, Elphinstone Road, Aberdeen, AB UF, Scotland, UK. [email protected]
Archaeology, School of Humanities, Gregory Building, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G QQ, Scotland, UK. [email protected]
Introduction inspiration for elaborate monument building of the rd mil- and prolonged acts of remembrance over a lennium cal. BC an extensive and unusual Late millennium. Neolithic cremation cemetery was established e Late Neolithic period in Scotland, at Forteviot, central Scotland. is place would between about and BC, was a subsequently emerge as one of the most elabo- period where large-scale monumentality was rate monument complexes created in Scotland relatively commonplace, with the construc- during the Neolithic (Noble & Brophy a; tion of hundreds of circular and sub-circular Noble & Brophy b). is chapter repre- enclosures of earth, timber and stone. ese sents a preliminary exploration of the signi- include timber circles, henge monuments and cance of the cremations at Forteviot, examining some early stone circles, but also a small num- who was buried at this site, and the ways that ber of so-called palisaded enclosures (Barclay the establishment of the cremation cemetery at ; Noble ; Millican ). e ve Forteviot may have both been a catalysis and timber palisaded enclosures identied thus far
Fig. . Location map showing Forte- viot and the other palisaded enclosure sites in Scotland.
(Fig. ) appear to represent the larg- est construction projects undertaken in Scotland at this time, conspicuous materialisations of Late Neolithic ide- ology. In terms of scale they are on a par with the “super-henges” of southern England (such as Avebury and Durring- ton Walls) and have close similarities in scale, date and character with a series of palisaded enclosures found in south- ern Scandinavia (Svensson ; Brink et al. ; Noble & Brophy b). Radiocarbon dates from excavations at the Scottish and Scandinavian examples suggest that these monuments were construct- to our work. Our investigations commenced ed in the period c. – cal BC, the last in as part of the Strathearn Environs and centuries of the Neolithic period. It is likely Royal Forteviot (SERF) Project with major then, that these extravagant monuments were excavations in – (Driscoll et al. ). a nal ourishing of large-scale monumentality e Forteviot palisaded enclosure measures in Scotland’s Neolithic (see Needham ), about m in diameter, with a sub-circu- and although evidence for the function of these lar plan de ned by an irregular boundary of enclosures is limited, they would have been spaced postholes; other features within and places that could easily have hosted gatherings around this massive enclosure include three of large numbers of people and likely served henges, two timber circles, a series of pennanu- a range of roles. lar enclosures and pit features. Our excavations at Forteviot focused on the entrance avenue of the palisaded enclosure, stretches of the north- e Forteviot complex ern and eastern sides of the enclosure perimeter, e Forteviot complex survives only as crop- two of the henge monuments, a timber circle marks, and was discovered from the air during and a double-ditched enclosure (see Noble & Cambridge University (CUCAP) reconnais- Brophy a; Brophy & Noble ). ese sance ights into Scotland in the early s (St excavations have allowed us to construct one Joseph ). ese and subsequent sorties have of the most comprehensive dating sequences revealed that the site was dominated by a large for a late Neolithic to Early Bronze Age cer- palisaded enclosure in association with a wide emonial landscape in Britain, demonstrating range of pennanular and circular enclosures, that Forteviot remained a place of ritual and large pits, and a range of other features (Fig. commemoration for over a millennia, with the ), none of which had been investigated prior earliest key component seemingly the crema-
Fig. . Transcription of the cropmark complex at Forteviot; the location of the cremation cemetery within henge is marked on the plan (drawing prepared by Lorraine McEwan). tion cemetery (see Table for a summary of as the heart of the monument complex, with- dating of the main monuments). in a large henge monument (henge ) located inside the palisaded enclosure. We excavated nine discrete cremation deposits in , some e late Neolithic cremation clustered within cut features, and an extensive cemetery spread of dispersed cremated material was found e earliest major phase of activity that we have scattered throughout silt spreads that were evi- identied at Forteviot appears to have been the dent across much of the western henge interi- establishment of a late Neolithic cremation or. ( e true extent of the cemetery is unclear cemetery located at what we could characterize due to disturbance related to early medieval
Table . Outline chronology of the cemetery and subsequent enclosing monuments at Forteviot (the dates are based on Bayesian modelling (at sigma).
Monument Date Artefact associations Cremation Cemetery 2975–2755 cal. BC Bone pins, leaf shaped arrowhead, accessory vessel Palisaded Enclosure 2780–2485 cal. BC n/a Timber Circle 2620–2475 cal. BC n/a Henge 1 2385–2230 cal. BC Beaker pottery activity within the henge’s eastern half.) e and maintained – the levels of cremation clear- dead were placed into small pits, probably con- ly involved an ecient pyre technology and tained within organic vessels or bags given the plentiful rewood was used to ensure burning discrete arrangement of some of the deposits for an extended period at high temperatures (Fig. ). Some of the burials were seemingly in (Leach , pp. .). association with a stone setting of some kind; A few objects were found in association in one feature where cremations were concen- with the cremations. As many as nine bone trated the base of what appears to be a snapped pins were found, each with a cylindrical pro- standing stone surviving in its socket was found (Fig. ), while other cremations may have been placed within an empty stone hole. It seems likely, then, that the cremation cemetery was established soon after the decommissioning of a stone circle or setting, with the empty sockets a particular focus for burials. Analysis by Stephany Leach () has iden- tied a minimum of individuals amongst the sample of cremation deposits excavated at Forteviot, of them adults and the remainder subadults (the very young and very old were not represented). Both gracile and robust bones are present, suggesting the remains of both males and females were interred. Remarkably, it seems few of the burial deposits represented single individuals: amongst the remains there were recurring nds of mixed adult and child cremations with matching numbers of adults and children identied. e material remains of the dead were also obviously highly impor- tant to the mourners. Nearly all the cremations included very small bones indicating the careful and meticulous collection of remains from the Fig. . Excavation of one of the discrete cremation pyre site. e pyres had also been well made deposits (Photo: SERF).
Fig. . Broken standing stone in situ (Photo: SERF).
le and a rounded, bulbous tip where present. Discussion: Forteviot as a long-term ese pins have a strong association with the focus for burial and ritual largest, and perhaps earliest, burials and are e cremation cemetery at Forteviot is the burnt, so it is likely that the pins formed part earliest dated element of the overall monu- of funerary ensemble, placed on the pyre with ment complex with the exception of a few the deceased (Leach ). Sherds of a small scattered pits and other ephemeral features, pottery vessel were recovered from a crema- and it seems likely that this cemetery can help tion deposit found within the possible empty us shed light on the origins of this major late stone socket (Alison Sheridan pers. comm.). Neolithic monument complex. ese founding burials may have allowed a lineage to emerge whose kin subsequently played important roles
in the development of the ceremonial complex lithic would have been played out with bones in the centuries that followed. Certainly the in tombs. ese histories and genealogies may demographic evidence from the analysis of the have helped legitimize particular social and mortuary population supports this, the mixing political constitutions at this particular junc- of adult and child remains perhaps undertaken ture in prehistory (Lewis , p. ) which to underline a familial closeness in death. e in turn established the conditions for a major repeated occurrence of mixed adult and child ceremonial centre to develop and thrive. cremations found at Forteviot is unusual. In e nature of the cremations at Forteviot, the an analysis of over prehistoric cremation origins of the monument complex as a ceme- burials McKinley has found only were of tery, and connections with standing stones and more than one individual (McKinley ). In a hengiform enclosure, closely mirror that of this respect, it seems likely that the mixed cre- Stonehenge. Work by the Stonehenge River- mations at Forteviot were part of a very delib- side Project (Parker Pearson et al. ; Parker erate statement of relatedness. And the nature Pearson ) suggests that Stonehenge began of these deposits also suggests cremation was life as an extensive late Neolithic cremation very much a public and visceral process, both cemetery associated with a circle of standing during and after the event. stones. Over cremation burials have been In order to allow for repeated deposition of recovered from Stonehenge to date leading to mixed adult and child cremations it seems likely estimates that perhaps – individuals had that remains of individuals were curated over been buried at the monuments over a period time to allow mixing of remains at the time of of years or more underlining the role of nal deposition. Strategies for this may have Stonehenge as a long-term focus for cremation varied. Most of the cremated remains had a and remembrance. A preliminary study of the fresh appearance suggesting that remains had demography of the burials at Stonehenge (Park- been picked from the cremation pyres soon er Pearson et al. ) has concluded that the after burning, but the bone fragments found cremations were possibly from a single family in one area of the cemetery had a “bleached” or lineage, leading to the conclusion that the or weathered appearance suggesting that in Stonehenge cemetery may have been found- this case the remains may have lain exposed ed by a ruling elite whose hereditary hold on for some time before being collected. Delayed power was secured through a monopoly on collection may have been one way of ensuring subsequent monument building at Stonehenge. co-burial of dierent individuals, but the gen- ere are closer, if less spectacular, paral- erally fresh remains may also suggest that cre- lels in Scotland. A recent National Museums mations were kept safe in containers (perhaps of Scotland programme radiocarbon dating those they were eventually buried with) prior material from historic excavations has suggested to being mixed with another cremated indi- that other late Neolithic monument complexes vidual’s remains at a later date. Whether the started life as high status cremation cemeteries, individuals at Forteviot were related or not, it albeit on a smaller scale. One is Cairnpapple is in the very act of co-mingling remains and Hill in west Lothian, where recent dating of a depositing at the same place in the landscape, bone pin associated with cremation deposits that we can witness the ways in which burial has suggested that the rst phase of this long- may have been used to materialize particular lived ceremonial and burial monument was a genealogies or histories of the dead, a form of cremation cemetery perhaps established slightly manipulating the dead that earlier in the Neo- earlier than Forteviot (± BP (SUERC-
, – cal. BC ( .)); Sheridan of these sites. e bone pins at Forteviot for et al. , p. ). e cremations at Cairn- example, nd close parallels in bone “skewer” papple were also found in relation to a stone pins found at Stonehenge. Similar pins have setting; seven possible stone sockets in a cove- also been found at Cairnpapple Hill, Dorches- like setting were found during Stuart Piggott’s ter-on- ames and Duggleby Howe. e pins excavations (Piggott ). irteen cremation suggest the dead were dressed in particular ways deposits in total were found from this early for the cremation events and the pins may even phase of Cairnpapple which, like Forteviot, have been part of a formal dress worn by key subsequently became a timber circle, a henge people in the establishment of these special plac- and nally a Bronze Age cemetery. es that became major late Neolithic monument Recent dating of cremation deposits from an complexes. e careful preparation of the pyres extensive series of monuments at Balfarg/Bal- at Forteviot and the meticulous collection of birnie in Fife has resulted in a similar sequence. remains may be other indicators of the status of Here, dating of bone (not possible at the time the interred (McKinley , p. ; McKin- of the original excavations in the s) from ley ). What is also striking is that much of a number of cremation deposits from within this may have been happening at the same time the sockets of Balbirnie stone circle suggests – the cremations at Forteviot, Balfarg, Cairn- that once again that the catalyst for this major papple and Stonehenge for example appear to rd millennium BC monument complex was be broadly contemporary – perhaps inaugurat- the establishment of a cremation cemetery in ed in the th century cal. BC, a period when association with standing stones. is is one of other major transitional events were happening the earliest elements of a complex that grew to across Britain, including the emergence of the include a series of timber structures and earth- so-called Grooved Ware complex. work enclosures in the rd millennium BC. e cremations, like those at Forteviot, consisted of both adults and children, and date to the st Conclusions to th centuries cal. BC – broadly contem- Lineage and ancestry are major sources of memo- porary with those at Forteviot (Gibson ). ry and power in traditional societies, and through At least other late Neolithic cremation acts of building, control over this resource can cemeteries of similar character are known across be materialized and redened (Lewis ). At Britain – these include some of the greatest cer- Forteviot the establishment of a cemetery appears emonial complexes of the period – Duggelby to have played a key role in the creation and Howe in Yorkshire, the Priddy Circles in Som- evolution of a major monument complex that erset and Dorchester-on- ames in Oxfordshire endured for almost a millennia. And variations (Parker Pearson et al. ). If all of these were on this trajectory are evident at a number of cemeteries of particular lineages or families it other major monument complexes across Britain. may indicate the emergence of particular fam- Both omas (, p. ) and Jones ( , ilies or groups rising to power and dominating p. ) have linked the establishment of these particular key river valleys at the beginnings of kinds of cemeteries to the development of new the third millennium BC. And there are perhaps networks of contact between dispersed yet pivotal direct links between at least some of these sites high status kin groups in the later Neolithic. e in the way the dead were displayed and trans- monuments that followed on from these cem- formed on the funerary pyre suggesting more eteries could be viewed as expressions of power than just a trend or fashion lies at the origins created by a select group of social institutions
that were not working in isolation, but shared References regularities in terms of political structure and Barclay, G. J. . e ‘henge’ and ‘hengiform’ in Scot- the material orchestration of power (Renfrew land. In Cummings, V. & Pannett, A. (eds.), Set in , p. ; Bradley ). stone: new approaches to Neolithic monuments in Scot- At Forteviot, this place, initially used for land, Oxford. e Prehistory of Britain and Ireland. the placing of cremations in the ground in the Bradley, R. . Cambridge. th century BC, perhaps in association with Brink, K., Kishonti, I. & Magnell, O. . On the a stone circle or setting, became increasingly shore: life inside a palisaded enclosure and cultural monumentalized through time, with a nested change during the Middle Neolithic B in southern series of monuments built in relation to what Scandinavia. Current Swedish Archaeology . Brophy, K. and Noble, G. . Henging, mounding would have become an increasingly ancient and blocking: the Forteviot henge group. In Gibson, (and perhaps mythical) burial site. e drag- A. (ed.), Enclosing the Neolithic: Recent Studies in Bri- ging of giant tree trunks to create the palisaded tain and Europe. British Archaeological Reports Inter- enclosure may have been undertaken to mark national Series . Oxford. in monumental form the place of the cemetery. Driscoll, S. T., Brophy, K. & Noble, G. . e Strathe- arn Environs and Royal Forteviot Project (SERF). Anti- is boundary established an arena for large quity Project Gallery.
Noble, G. . e Neolithic of Scotland: timber, stone, Renfrew, C. . Introduction: peer polity interaction earth and re. Edinburgh. and socio-political change. In Renfrew, C. and Cherry, Noble, G. & Brophy, K. a. Ritual and remem- J. F. (eds.), Peer polity interaction and socio-political brance at a prehistoric ceremonial complex in central change. Cambridge. Scotland: excavations at Forteviot, Perth and Kinross. St Joseph, J. K. . Air reconnaissance: recent results Antiquity . . Antiquity . Noble, G. & Brophy, K. b. Big enclosures: the later Sheridan, A., Bradley, R. J. B. and Schulting, R. . Neolithic palisaded enclosures of Scotland in their Radiocarbon dates arranged through National Muse- northwestern European context. European Journal of ums of Scotland Archaeology Department during Archaeology .. /. Discovery and Excavation Scotland . Parker Pearson, M. . Stonehenge. London. Svensson, M. . Palisade enclosures: the second gene- Parker Pearson, M., Chamberlain, A., Jay, M., Marshall, ration of enclosed sites in the Neolithic of northern P., Pollard, J., Richards, C., omas, J., Tilley, C., Europe. In Gibson, A. (ed.), Behind Wooden Walls: Welham, K. . Who was buried at Stonehenge? Neolithic Palisaded Enclosures in Europe. British Archa- Antiquity . eological Reports International Series . Oxford. Piggott, S. . e excavations at Cairnpapple Hill, omas, J. . Understanding the Neolithic. London. West Lothian. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland .
e proper way of dwelling at the Early Neolithic gathering site of Almhov in Scania, Sweden Elisabeth Rudebeck and Stella Macheridis
Abstract e Early Neolithic (c. – BC) site of Almhov, located in southwestern Scania, Sweden, is interpret- ed as a gathering and feasting site, subsequently transformed into a burial site with ancestral monuments. e focus of the article is on the pit pairs and pit clusters at the site, and on the dierential distribution of artefacts and animal bones within them, thereby touching upon more general topics such as material culture patterning, structured deposition and the categorization of animals during the Early Neolithic.
Sydsvensk Arkeologi AB, Erlandsrovägen , SE- Vintrie, Sweden. elisabeth.rudebeck@sydsven- skarkeologi.se
Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, LUX, Lund University, Box , SE- Lund. [email protected]
Introduction dated to the earliest phase of the Early Neo- in southwestern Scania lithic (EN I), c. – BC. Among the was excavated by Malmö Heritage in – features were about pits as well as traces , as part of the City Tunnel Project, which of four façade structures with adjacent buri- cleared the ground for the new railway around als and two dolmens (Gidlöf et al. ). Of the city of Malmö (Figs. & ). Ten hectares the pits, around were dated to the earliest of topsoil were cleared by excavators, revealing phase of the Early Neolithic. One façade struc- pits and burials from the Early to the Middle ture had traces of a ploughed-out long barrow Neolithic and longhouses from the Late Neo- to the west of the façade. e Early Neolithic lithic–Early Bronze Age and the Early Iron artefacts, which were mainly found in the pits, Age (Gidlöf , ; Gidlöf et al. ; include approximately kilos of worked Brink ). e features were located on a int and int tools, kilos of pottery, low hillock, about metres AMSL. From kilos of used and worked stone and kilos this level the terrain sloped gently towards of animal bones. the west and east. To the east of the site there e abundance of pits and the large amount was once a bog which was articially drained of artefacts and animal bones distinguishes in modern times. e distance from Almhov Almhov from other known sites from the ear- to the coast during the Early Neolithic was liest Early Neolithic (cf. Fig. ). Most known about . kilometres. sites from this period in Scania and adjacent Of the roughly Early and Middle Neo- areas appear to have been much smaller (Lars- lithic features on the site, the majority were son ; Malmer ; Andersson ;
Fig. . Map of Almhov with all features from the Early Neolithic and early Middle Neolithic. e longhouse northeast of the pit con- centration was dated to the Early Neolithic II – Middle Neolithic A.
Fig. . Aerial photo of Almhov during the excavation in . Photo: Perry Nordeng.
Fig. . Diagram showing the amount of various categories of int tools from Almhov and other well- known sites from the Late Mesolithic (Löddesborg area & ) and Early Neolithic in western Scania and from the early TRB site Siggenben-Süd in Schleswig-Holstein. Sources: Löddesborg, Jennbert ; Oxie no. (surface collection), Svenstorp, Skabersjö :, Stolpalösa and Bellevuegården, Larsson ; Siggeneben-Süd, Meuers-Balke ; Kristineberg feature A (occupation deposit below two long bar- rows), Rudebeck & Ödman .
Fig. . Pit pairs and pit clusters at Almhov. Black: pits analysed as to contents and shown in g. ; grey: probable pit pairs/clusters, not excavated; unlled: partly excavated pits, not included in the analysis. e façade structures with burials are shown in blue and the two dolmens are shown in grey.
Rudebeck , with cited references). is and animal bones in the pit pairs and pit clusters may partly be due to the delimitation of the at Almhov. e main purpose is to consider the excavated areas, and in the case of Oxie no. structure of the dwelling, waste management the nds were collected from the surface, and possible categorizations of animals and but it is clear that Almhov-type sites were not animal body parts during the earliest phase of common. Based on analogies with anthro- the Early Neolithic. pologically and archaeologically ascertained feasting sites from dierent parts of the world (Dietler & Hayden ; Twiss ), Rude- Pit patterns beck () has interpreted Almhov as a gath- Although not all pits at Almhov were excavat- ering and feasting site. ed, it was estimated that roughly pits were In this paper we discuss the possible signi- from the Early Neolithic (Gidlöf et al. ; cance of patterns in the distribution of artefacts Gidlöf ). At least were placed in pairs
Fig. . Photo of the excavated pit pair P (pits and ). Photo: Karina Hammarstrand Deh- man, Malmö museer. and occasionally in clusters with three pits. e clusters reveals that one pit in each pair/clus- pairs and clusters were dispersed across the site, ter contained the vast majority of pottery, int but with a concentration on the perimeter of akes, int tools and animal bones, while the a roughly circular area, measuring about other (or the other two) was either devoid of metres across. e following analysis is based nds or contained considerably less (Fig. ). on excavated pits, making up pairs and On average, the pit with the majority of arte- four clusters with three pits in each (Fig. ). facts within each pair/cluster contained e remaining pits were either not excavat- of the animal bones (weight), of the pot- ed or only partly excavated, and were therefore tery (weight), of the int akes (number) not included in the analysis. and of the int tools (number) (Rude- e pits varied in size and depth, from one beck ). to roughly three metres across, and from . e amount of pottery in the pits varied to . metres in depth (Fig. ). Most of them between a few grams and almost kilos. e contained two or three layers, and the artefacts minimum number of pots was estimated for and bones were mainly found in the top layer, pits and was shown to vary between one thus reecting activities adjacent to the pits. and . A majority of pits contained sherds Radiocarbon analyses of organic material from from – vessels. Vessels with a rim diameter pits and the type of pottery and worked int of less than centimetres were slightly over- from the pits indicate that most of them were represented at Almhov, possibly indicating a backlled – cal. BC. focus on drinking. e rst basic analysis of the pairs and Pottery from pits was analysed as to
Feature no & type Dated material Lab no. BP Cal. BC Associated Red deer (2 σ) pottery style bone and antler A19098, pit Animal bone* Ua-21474 5415±110 4460-3980 Oxie - A19049, pit Cereal Ua-21383 5065±60 3970-3710 Oxie x A25594, pit Hazel nut shell Ua-21385 5055±70 3980-3690 Oxie x A39833, posthole in Hazel nut shell Ua-21384 5045±45 3960-3710 MN A (one sherd) - hut 13 A6b (FU), pit Cereal Ua-17156 5000±95 3980-3630 Oxie x (A6) A1942, pit Cereal Ua-32530 5000±40 3950-3690 Oxie x A61 (FU)/A39437, Cereal Ua-17158 4990±70 3950-3650 - - posthole in façade 1 A27048, pit Pig bone Ua-22166 4960±50 3940-3640 Oxie? - A32422, pit Cereal Ua-32532 4940±40 3800-3640 Oxie x A3748, pit Cereal Ua-23873 4930±45 3800-3640 Oxie - A35862, pit below Cereal Ua-32533 4910±45 3790-3630 Oxie - Dolmen 1 A31888, pit Cereal Ua-32531 4880±45 3770-3530 Oxie x A1854, pit Cereal Ua-21382 4780±50 3660-3370 Svenstorp, in top - layer A300 (B), façade 5? Cereal Ua-33027 4660±40 3630-3350 Svenstorp - A437, burial** Human bone Ua-18757 4635±70 3650-3100 Svenstorp - A13529, a well below Cattle bone Ua-22167 4605±50 3550-3100 Oxie x Dolmen 2 A11772, pit Cereal Ua-21380 4575±55 3520-3090 Svenstorp/ - Bellevuegård A2210, posthole in Cereal Ua-21329 4570±55 3510-3090 Svenstorp – MN A - house 12 A18958, burial by Human bone Ua-21333 4495±45 3360-3020 Svenstorp? - façade 3 Fig. . Diagram of pits in pairs and clusters (P, K etc., cf. g. ), grouped together and with each artefact g. ), grouped category of pits in pairs and clusters (P, K etc., cf. (number of int akes, . Diagram Fig. to facilitate comparison, order In number of int tools, pottery of animal bones) in per cent for each pit within pair/cluster. and weight weight order: been arranged in the following and the pit pairs/clusters have each artefact categorythe bars representing been piled on top of each other, have similar pairs/clusters, to the right. Each artefactone bar with per - by category to the far left, increasingly is represented the most dissimilar pair, from potterybones, the of contained left, far the akes to int K, the pair of the all in almost and pit tools int and Hence, pit. each for centages the pit pair K. from
Table I. Dated Early Neolithic and early Middle Neolithic (MN A) features at Almhov with associated pottery styles and presence (x) / absence (-) of red deer bone and antler. Dates based on charcoal are excluded. * = burnt bone from cattle, sheep or pig; ** = this burial was located to the westernmost part of Almhov, outside of the central area shown in g. . FU = pits excavated during the trial excavation.
Feature no & type Dated material Lab no. BP Cal. BC Associated Red deer (2 σ) pottery style bone and antler A19098, pit Animal bone* Ua-21474 5415±110 4460-3980 Oxie - A19049, pit Cereal Ua-21383 5065±60 3970-3710 Oxie x A25594, pit Hazel nut shell Ua-21385 5055±70 3980-3690 Oxie x A39833, posthole in Hazel nut shell Ua-21384 5045±45 3960-3710 MN A (one sherd) - hut 13 A6b (FU), pit Cereal Ua-17156 5000±95 3980-3630 Oxie x (A6) A1942, pit Cereal Ua-32530 5000±40 3950-3690 Oxie x A61 (FU)/A39437, Cereal Ua-17158 4990±70 3950-3650 - - posthole in façade 1 A27048, pit Pig bone Ua-22166 4960±50 3940-3640 Oxie? - A32422, pit Cereal Ua-32532 4940±40 3800-3640 Oxie x A3748, pit Cereal Ua-23873 4930±45 3800-3640 Oxie - A35862, pit below Cereal Ua-32533 4910±45 3790-3630 Oxie - Dolmen 1 A31888, pit Cereal Ua-32531 4880±45 3770-3530 Oxie x A1854, pit Cereal Ua-21382 4780±50 3660-3370 Svenstorp, in top - layer A300 (B), façade 5? Cereal Ua-33027 4660±40 3630-3350 Svenstorp - A437, burial** Human bone Ua-18757 4635±70 3650-3100 Svenstorp - A13529, a well below Cattle bone Ua-22167 4605±50 3550-3100 Oxie x Dolmen 2 A11772, pit Cereal Ua-21380 4575±55 3520-3090 Svenstorp/ - Bellevuegård A2210, posthole in Cereal Ua-21329 4570±55 3510-3090 Svenstorp – MN A - house 12 A18958, burial by Human bone Ua-21333 4495±45 3360-3020 Svenstorp? - façade 3
typological traits (pits in K and K are vertical decoration on the belly, is also pres- excluded because they were only partly exca- ent. e pottery types were distributed in the vated; cf. Fig. ). Oxie type pottery, charac- following way: terized by folded rims with round or simple dragged impressions around the rim, is the • in ten pairs/clusters both/all pits (Σ = ) con- most abundant. However, Svenstorp type pot- tained only Oxie type pottery tery, characterized by cord impressions, an • in eight pairs one pit (Σ = ) contained only increasing number of motifs on the rim and Oxie type pottery while the other pit con-
Fig. . Map with pit pairs/pit clusters (black), hypothetical post pairs indicating huts or tents (red dots), façade structures with adjacent burials (blue), dolmens (dark grey) and other Early Neolithic or early Middle Neolithic features (light green).
tained pottery that was not typologically ing the Early Neolithic, although the Svens- identiable torp type pottery may have been slightly later • in ve pairs one pit contained only Oxie type (Larsson ), and () both pottery styles pottery (Σ = ) and the other only Svenstorp were produced by the same group of people, type pottery (Σ = ) but the Svenstorp type pottery was used in, and • in one pair one pit (Σ = ) contained only possibly produced for, ritual contexts (Koch Svenstorp type pottery and the other pottery ). e evidence from Almhov supports that was not typologically identiable both interpretations: Svenstorp type pottery • in two pairs, both pits (Σ = ) contained only seems to have appeared later, c. cal. BC, Svenstorp type pottery and it was associated with burials to a larger extent than the Oxie type pottery (Table I). Traditionally, there are two interpretations con- Moreover, there was a clear association cerning the two types of pottery: () the two between Oxie type pottery and remains of red styles signify a possible dual organization dur- deer at the site. Bones and antlers from red deer
occurred in of the pits with Oxie type it is not possible to verify this interpretation, pottery but only in one of the ten pits with there is evidence of ten similar posthole pairs at Svenstorp type pottery. other Early Neolithic sites in the vicinity, and e dierences in backll between the pits postholes in a pair at the nearby site Elinelund in each pair and cluster suggest a functional B have been dated to the Early–Middle Neo- dierence between the pits, one being used lithic (Sarnäs & Nord Paulsson ). for refuse and the other for storage. e pits that were backlled with the bulk of the waste indicate a spatial association with craft produc- Almhov and the int mines at tion, butchering, cooking and consumption. Södra Sallerup Based on identiable rim sherds, these pits on Evidence from the int mining site at Södra average contained sherds from pots. We Sallerup, about kilometres or one hour’s interpret these as refuse pits. e pits with less walk – northeast of Almhov, reveals various waste contained on average sherds from connections between the sites. e earliest int pots. Moreover, pots with wider rims, – mines are of the same date as the pits at Alm- centimetres across, were more frequent in these hov, and ve excavated posthole pairs adjacent pits. e presence of fewer and larger pots and to the mines have been interpreted as traces of less waste indicates that these pits were used for huts or tents (Rudebeck ; Nielsen & Rude- storage and that they were backlled at a later beck ). e association between the sites stage than the refuse pits, possibly just before is evident also from the fact that the majority the site was abandoned (Rudebeck ). of the roughly pointed-butted axes from Almhov were made of Senonian int of the same type as the mined int. Moreover, blanks Posthole patterns for pointed-butted axes were clearly produced Traces of dwellings adjacent to the pits were not in the mining area (Rudebeck , ; systematically searched for during the excava- Jansson ; Högberg ) and axes of the tion. However, traces of a longhouse from the same type, and of the same type of int, were Early Neolithic II–Middle Neolithic A were also produced at Almhov (Gidlöf et al. ). found northeast of the pit concentration (Fig. ; Table I) (Gidlöf et al. ). Of the rough- ly postholes that were documented at Dispersal patterns of animal bones Almhov, some were excavated. Most of in pit pairs and pit clusters them belonged to longhouses from later periods e animal bone assemblage dated to the Early (Gidlöf et al. ). During the post- excavation Neolithic from Almhov amounts to some analysis it was discovered that many of the unex- kilos, making it the largest bone collection cavated postholes appeared in pairs, usually – from the Early Neolithic in south Scandina- metres apart, and sometimes up to metres via (Rudebeck ). About one third of the apart. ese hypothetical post pairs, in all about mammal bones have not been possible to iden- pairs, were located on the periphery of the tify as to species and body parts. e pits Early Neolithic activity area, often in proximity included in the analysed pairs/clusters (cf. to the pit pairs and pit clusters (Fig. ). Rude- Figs. & ) contained about kilos, beck () has suggested that these postholes fragments, of animal bones, thus constituting may have been traces of small huts or tents, of the animal bones from Early Neolithic connected to the pit pairs/clusters. Although features at the site. e animal bone distribu-
Group Characteristics Cattle Red deer Sheep/goat Pig A One bone-free pit. Cranial frag- In 3 pit pairs. Al- In 5 pit pairs. In 3 pit pairs. Never the (9 pairs; 19 pits) ments exclusively ways together with only species. appear in 6 pit domestic species, pairs. in one case with cattle only. B Both pits contained In all 3 pit pairs, In 2 pit pairs. Once In 2 pit pairs, In 2 pit pairs. Never the (3 pairs; 6 pits) the same number 4 pits. Cranial opposing cattle once in both only species. of species. fragments appear and once together pits of a pair. exclusively in one with cattle. Only of the pits in one represented by pair twice. antler or postcra- nial fragments. C One pit with one The only species In 2 pit pairs. Only The only In 2 pit pairs. Never the (3 pairs; 6 pits) species, the other in two cases. Cra- represented by species in only species. with three or more nial and postcra- antler or postcra- one pit. species. nial fragments. nial fragments. Cattle Red deer Sheep/goat Pig D Both pits contained Cranial fragments In 4 pit pairs/ In 5 pit In all pairs/clusters, in (7 pairs; 16 pits) the same species, in all pits; exclu- clusters. Most pairs/clus- 7 pits. Never the only Fig. . Distribution of fragments and weight of bones from the most abundant species in pits, making but in one of the sively in 5 pits commonly the ters, in 7 species. up pit pairs and pit clusters ( pits in ve pairs/clusters shown in g. are excluded in the diagram, pits one of the spe- (including antler “excluded” species pits. Never cies was excluded. and loose teeth). in one or more pits the only due to the absence of bones or the atypical species representation). of a cluster. species. tion in the pit pairs/clusters has been studied illustrated in g. . Also a few fragments of in an attempt to discern possible dierential horn and red deer antler, making up some treatment of dierent species and dierent of the fragments and of the weight of the body parts (Macheridis b). bones from this species, have been excluded, With the exception of K, K and K , since antler counts also included tools. With all pit pairs/clusters contained bones that were this in mind, cranial fragments can still be con- identied as to species in at least one of the pits, sidered a majority, together with long bones, and the distribution of these showed some gen- metapodials and phalanges. Cranial fragments eral characteristics. e pair K and the cluster of cattle are the most abundant amongst the K are excluded from the analysis because of identied specimens. Fragments from the rib their unusual species representation, diering cage and the pelvic region and vertebrae are from the average (Macheridis b:). Fig. largely underrepresented in all four species. e illustrates the distribution of the most abundant underrepresentation of spongious elements is species from the pits: cattle, red deer, pig and most probably a consequence of taphonomic sheep/goat (including loose teeth, horns and destruction. Unfortunately, a more thorough antlers). e following analysis focuses on these taphonomic analysis has only been partly done species. Among cattle and sheep/goat cranial elsewhere (Jonsson ; Macheridis b). fragments, especially loose teeth, dominate, due Beside these overall characteristics, the distri- to taphonomic factors. erefore loose teeth bution of animal species and body parts (sim- are excluded from the anatomical distribution plied here to cranial/postcranial categories)
Table II. Pit pairs/clusters divided into groups, based on the distribution of bone from cattle, red deer, pig and sheep/goat, and body parts (n= fragments).
Group Characteristics Cattle Red deer Sheep/goat Pig A One bone-free pit. Cranial frag- In 3 pit pairs. Al- In 5 pit pairs. In 3 pit pairs. Never the (9 pairs; 19 pits) ments exclusively ways together with only species. appear in 6 pit domestic species, pairs. in one case with cattle only. B Both pits contained In all 3 pit pairs, In 2 pit pairs. Once In 2 pit pairs, In 2 pit pairs. Never the (3 pairs; 6 pits) the same number 4 pits. Cranial opposing cattle once in both only species. of species. fragments appear and once together pits of a pair. exclusively in one with cattle. Only of the pits in one represented by pair twice. antler or postcra- nial fragments. C One pit with one The only species In 2 pit pairs. Only The only In 2 pit pairs. Never the (3 pairs; 6 pits) species, the other in two cases. Cra- represented by species in only species. with three or more nial and postcra- antler or postcra- one pit. species. nial fragments. nial fragments. D Both pits contained Cranial fragments In 4 pit pairs/ In 5 pit In all pairs/clusters, in (7 pairs; 16 pits) the same species, in all pits; exclu- clusters. Most pairs/clus- 7 pits. Never the only but in one of the sively in 5 pits commonly the ters, in 7 species. pits one of the spe- (including antler “excluded” species pits. Never cies was excluded. and loose teeth). in one or more pits the only of a cluster. species.
in and between the pit pairs and pit clusters Apart from the pattern of one bone-free pit shows some general patterns. Based on species in the pairs (group A), the strongest pattern is representation, the features can be divided into the exclusive presence of cranial fragments (also four groups (Table II). e most common dis- including loose teeth) in many of the pits. is tribution is pit pairs within which one pit con- can be seen in group A, where the pit which tained all of the bones (group A). Group D is contained bones almost always contained cra- dicult to interpret, since the pattern seems to nial fragments only. ese scattered cranial be more random, and is not discussed further. bones were often very fragmented and few in e analysis shows that cattle bones were the each pit (Jonsson ). A possibility is that most common. In pits with only one identied these fragments do not represent butchering species, it was almost always cattle (Macheridis waste, but swept-down fragments of skulls or b:). at the bone-free pits often also crania on display adjacent to the pits, simi- lacked artefacts of int and pottery implies a lar to the display of horned cattle skulls on practice in which the way waste was managed Michelsberg sites in central Europe (Lichter reects cultural behaviour (cf. Fig. ). e lling & Weber ). at animal skulls had a spe- of pits clearly followed a certain order concerning cial signicance is supported by other features dierent types of waste, and animal bones were at Almhov. One example is one pit (A ; assessed according to the categorization of species Table I) which contained eleven juvenile pig and body parts (cf. Marciniak , p. ). mandibles (and no other bones), interpreted
Fig. . Anatomical distribution in pits included in pit pairs and pit clusters. Antler and horn frag- ments as well as loose teeth are excluded. Bones from each body part are shown in percentage of the total number of fragments from the respective species. as a ritual deposition (Welinder et al. , p. et al. , p. ; Marciniak , p. ). ). Another example is the deposition of a However, a closer look at the species distri- red deer antler in a façade structure below one bution in the pit pairs/clusters does not fully of the dolmens (Rudebeck ; Macheridis rearm the conclusion. Red deer is the second a). Both skulls and antlers are regarded as most abundant species. When red deer bone particularly signicant and powerful symbols did occur with bones of domestic species, it was in many cultures (e.g. Larsson ; Schulting always together with cattle bone. erefore, it ; Harrod , pp. .; Schulting & is problematic to assume a dualism without Richards ; Nilsson , p. ), strength- recognizing the possibility of a more complex ening these arguments. As mentioned above, a categorization concerning large ungulate species detailed taphonomic analysis with regard to the (Macheridis b:; cf. James ). His- degree of e.g. weathering and gnawing is lack- torical evidence reveals that this may have been ing. Such an analysis could test this hypothesis the case. In Ireland red deer had a special role further, in terms of handling and exposure of during the Early Middle Ages. It was designat- the bones before deposition. ed as ag allaid, i.e. wild cattle, which together In a correspondence analysis of the distribu- with iconographical material show that this tion of animal species in Early Neolithic pits animal had a liminal status in the sense that it at Almhov (not only pits in pairs and clusters), belonged to both the “wild” and the “domestic” one pattern was that bones from red deer did sphere. is also meant that the animal had a not usually coexist with bones from domestic social signicance as it resembles cattle, which species (Welinder et al. , p. ). e is tame, but was also seen as dierent, as it is a dierential distribution of cattle and red deer wild species (Soderbergh , p. ). Eth- in the pits indicates a possible dualism in the nographic examples tell of similar perceptions. categorization of these animals (cf. Welinder Among the Ethiopian Konso, it was permitted
to eat deer, or rather horned animals, because ), is a characteristic of ritual activities, the they resembled cattle, sheep and goats (Hall- argument here is that the “structured deposi- pike , p. ). Hence, rather than pre- tion” at Almhov did not derive from actions supposing a mere wild–domestic dichotomy concerned with the lling-in of pits as a ritual between red deer and cattle during the Early practice, but from cultural norms of dwelling. Neolithic, the evidence from Almhov indicates On the other hand, to the extent that social that the categorization of the species may have gatherings and feasting per se may be consid- been more complex and possibly similar to the ered as rituals, the site may be characterized as ones presented in the examples above. a ritual site. Rituals produce waste and things are used for practical purposes also in connec- tion with rituals (Bradley ). Concluding remarks concerning Hence, rather than trying to pinpoint sites, pit patterns at Almhov pits and depositions as either ritual or quo- We interpret Almhov as a gathering and feasting tidian, based on the level of structure among site which was occupied by early farmers who features and artefacts, it is important to assess were also exploring the local int resources. possible reasons for the observed patterns in During the gatherings each camping unit raised each case. Clearly, the pit pattern and the dif- tents or huts and dug a couple of pits along ferential distribution of artefacts and animal the fringes of a roughly circular area. One pit bones within the pits at Almhov should be seen was used for dumping waste from butchering, as evidence of cultural norms at some level. cooking and craft, while the other was used It is unlikely that the intention was to create for storage. e camping units probably had pits with rubbish and pits without rubbish animal skulls, preferably skulls of horned ani- as a ritualized practice. It may be argued that mals, on display adjacent to the pits, possibly the dierent llings of the pits were simply a signifying group identity, available resources, result of the pits having had dierent functions. particular skills or other socially signicant However, this does not exclude the normative assets and abilities. signicance of this dierence, but only transfers it to the cultural norm of constructing pits with dierent functions as a proper way of dwelling. Discussion Inspired by the discussion of structured depo- Acknowledgement sition and other related concepts initiated by Duncan Garrow (), we would like to reect anks to Åsa Berggren, Lars Larsson and Deb- briey on material culture patterning at Alm- orah Olausson for valuable comments on pre- hov. e most evident pattern is that the bulk vious versions of the manuscript. of the artefacts and bones had been deposited in one of the pits in each pair/cluster. e pits References were probably backlled by deliberate actions Andersson, M. . Making Place in the Landscape: as well as by natural processes, overall result- Early and Middle Neolithic Societies in two west Sca- ing in a pattern with a high level of structure. nian valleys. Lund. However, although the actual lling-in of the Bradley, R. . Ritual and Domestic Life in Prehistoric pits may be regarded as evidence of “highly for- Europe. London & New York. Brink, K. . Gårdarna på Almhov – Senneolitikum malized, repetitive behaviour”, which, following och Äldre Bronsålder kring Hyllie Mosse. In Hadevik, Colin Richards and Julian omas ( , p.
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e diversity of settings Ritual and social aspects of tradition and innovation in megalithic landscapes Almut Schülke
Abstract is article aims to investigate ritual and social traditions and innovations as reected in the megalithic monuments. e basis is a case study from Zealand, Denmark, one of the areas in the TRB north group with the highest amount of megalithic tombs. Dierent aspects of the dolmens and passage graves in northwest Zealand are compared, like their architectural forms and expressions, the work input into the dierent monument types, the mode of burying the dead, the distribution and the number of the tombs. is analysis shows that the dolmens are manifold in architectural expression and thus must have had dierent ritual functions. In contrast, the architectural forms of the passage graves are more homogene- ous. Aspects of outer expression (mound) and the principle of accessibility resemble traits of the open dolmen chambers, but they also show innovations such as elaborate architecture and more space for many collective burials. A comparison of the number and spatial setting of the tombs shows that the numerous dolmens are widely distributed, while the much fewer passage graves seem to be placed more central- ized in somehow regular distances from each other. But there are also marked concentrations of several passage graves close to each other. It is argued that the stone architecture of the dolmens was innovative and that these tombs were built gradually, nally covering vast parts of the study area. By contrast the upcoming of the passage graves seems to reect an intentional introduction of new ways of burying the dead with innovative architecture, death ritual and spatial setting with a clear element of centralization. e challenges that are connected to a social interpretation of these graves are discussed with regard to the societies building the tombs, the people buried there and the living society using the tombs.
University of Oslo – Museum of Cultural History, Postboks , St. Olavs plass, N- Oslo, Nor- way. [email protected]
Introduction e main function of the megalithic con- “’ new in the Neo- structions is, from our modern perspective, as lithic?” can be addressed on dierent levels. In a depository for the dead and a place of burial. this article it is understood as asking for inno- Consequently, an analysis of TRB society on vations that can be observed in the Neolithic the basis of megalithic monuments is in the period. I will discuss aspects of tradition and rst part a study of the development of burial innovation on the basis of one of the main practice and the cult and ritual related to it. cultural expressions of the TRB North group However, the megalithic graves as assembled – the megalithic tombs. To explore ritual and and place-bound constructions have count- social developments, the dierent main types less levels of meaning related to material and of the monuments and their spatial setting and non-material aspects, both relating to the spot distribution will be compared to contribute to but also reaching beyond. ey are carriers of a better understanding of TRB burial practice many dierent social and ritual aspects. and society in southern Scandinavia. e megalithic monuments of the northern
group of the TRB are unevenly distributed northern Germany, modern excavation has (Fritsch et al. ). e monument types dier brought to light numerous destroyed tombs from region to region and dierent chronolog- (e.g. Andersen ; Andersson & Walle- ical developments are observed (e.g. Schuldt bom ) and has at the same time shown ; Sjögren , p. .; Paulsson ; how complex single monuments can be, often Mischka ). An analysis of regional devel- containing many tombs (e.g. Steens ; opments can help in understanding the com- Mischka ). Hence, in our case the dating plicated overall picture. In the following I will relies mainly on the typology of the structures present a study of the northwestern part of recorded above ground. However, northwest- the island of Zealand, the largest of the Dan- ern Zealand provides an extraordinary basis ish islands. Seen in a northern European per- for a general analysis, with diversied but also spective, this area is amongst those with the classiable material (for a more comprehensive biggest covering density of megalithic tombs. study see Schülke forthcoming). However, a closer look shows that the distri- e megalithic monuments consist of two bution of the monuments is varied and they main types: dolmens ( certain, question- occur as dierent megalithic landscapes. With able) and passage graves ( certain, ques- the aim to formulate both challenges and pos- tionable). ey show both similarities and dif- sibilities that lie in the material, the following ferences in their architectonical expression and questions should be pursued: What dierent their use, which challenges a discussion of their types of megalithic monuments exist? How are relationship to each other. Radiocarbon dating they distributed? And which aspects of ritual and nds from the tombs conrm that in the and social life can be discussed on the basis of study area the passage graves are built later than the material? Which aspects of tradition and the dolmens (see below). innovation can be observed? e dolmens are characterized by a cham- ber built of orthostats and one covering stone. However, they show signicant varieties. In the Dierent megalithic monuments – study area they can be classied into three main dierent burial practices: e case- types according to their chamber form and study area northwestern Zealand size: the closed rectangular dolmens are stone e northwestern part of the island of Zealand cists built of four orthostats with a chamber is geographically varied. It is characterized by length of up to . m. e other two types have moraine ridges, extended coastal areas with chambers of up to . m length (measures for both at beaches and clis as well as an inland the study area): the open rectangular dolmens intersected by watercourses and wetlands. A (mostly built of three orthostats, plus either maximum transgression caused higher sea levels a threshold stone or two entrance stones, or in the Early Neolithic (Hede ). both, in one of the narrow ends) and the open In this roughly x kilometre area more polygonal dolmens (with hexagonal chamber than megalithic tombs are recorded. ir- form built of ve orthostats and a threshold ty-six monuments have been excavated; almost stone or two entrance stones or both in one of none with modern methods. Consequently, the narrow ends) (Schülke forthcoming). e source critical factors like the representation of chambers are often surrounded by a long or a the known monuments both regarding their round mound, which is lined by kerbstones, number and their form have to be considered. or they occur as free-standing dolmens with or In other parts of southern Scandinavia and without just a small mound. e few remains of
burials from the chambers give evidence of both ger than those of the dolmens, with oblong single burials and burials of a few individuals stone chambers of at least . m in length (for in one chamber. Only a few grave goods are the study area), built of almost human-height documented, most of which are single ceramic orthostats, at least three huge covering stones vessels (lugged asks, dating to EN II). I have and a side entrance with a roofed passage. eir discussed elsewhere (Schülke , p. .) mode of building is sophisticated with many that the dierent types of the dolmen chambers constructional details like drystone walling, illustrate dierent concepts of burying the dead, int packing and closing stones and is there- either closing the dead o (closed chambers) fore believed to be conducted by specialists or, in case of the open monuments, facilitating (Hansen , .). e chambers had a contact between the living world and the dead vault-like character and functioned as collec- individual(s) buried in the chamber. Also the tive graves, where many individuals or parts dierent chamber types might illustrate dier- of individuals were buried in one chamber, ent types of interment procedures: in a closed using dierent deposition practices (Midgley rectangular chamber the body of the dead per- , p. .), as the nds from the study son was most likely buried from above, while area conrm. Together with the bodies, various in a monument with an opening, the body objects were deposited, like richly ornament- was supposedly brought in through the side ed ceramics, amber beads, and tools made of opening (Schülke forthcoming). It must have bone and stone. is form of distinct collec- been a dierent experience to visit graves with tive burial is of a dierent character than the an opening, constituting a sort of façade, com- burying of a few individuals side by side in a pared with those that were completely locked stone cist, which is observed from some of the and covered with mounds (Midgley ). dolmen chambers. e passage graves were e chronological relationship between these accessible through a door and it was possible dierent types and concepts is not fully under- for a grown up person to move around in the stood thus far (Schülke , p. .). ere chamber. e tombs are covered by a mound, are also signs that this might dier from region their outer expression in many ways resembling to region. For the Danish material it is gen- the open (polygonal) dolmen chambers with erally agreed that the dolmens are older than round mounds. In the study area there is found the passage graves, dating mainly to EN II, c. the phenomenon of the double passage graves: – BC (Schülke , p. with two chambers are built side by side, often with further literature; for the denition of peri- one shared orthostat, with passages oriented ods see Schülke , p. ). But there are in the same cardinal direction, covered by one dierent opinions on whether the closed rec- mound (Dehn & Hansen ). Radiocarbon tangular dolmen chambers are older than the dating conrms that the passage graves are rectangular dolmens with openings (Nielsen built in MNA I/II, c. – BC (Dehn ; Ebbesen , f.; Midgley , p. & Hansen , p. . with dates from the ). e polygonal chambers can be dated to study area; Paulsson ). EN II and MNA I (Ebbesen , f.) and Noticeably there can be observed sharp dis- thus are partly contemporary with the early tinctions but also similarities between the dol- passage graves, while they seem to belong to mens and the passage graves. e dolmens are the earliest types in other regions (Kaelas , more diverse in their architectural expression p. .; Mischka ). than the passage graves and illustrate several e chambers of the passage graves are big- principals of burying and commemorating
Fig. . e distribution of the dolmens in the study area. Voro- nois (black lines) show statisti- cally calculated regions with a monument at each centre. Høj- demodel (DHM), m net: © Kort&Matrikelstyrelsen.
Fig. . e distribution of the pas- sage and double passage graves in the study area. Also here Voronoi mapping was used (see Fig. ). Geographical source: see Fig. .
the dead. While the sealing of stone tombs is a special trait for the time of the dolmens (closed rectangular chambers), the aspect of the accessibility of the graves through an open- ing or door marks similarities in death ritual between the open dolmens (both rectangular and polygonal) and the passage graves. is is amongst other things expressed in the similar outer impression of the open dolmens with mounds and the passage graves (Schülke , p. f.). A clear distinction from the dolmens, the open dolmen chambers are an innovative and thus an innovation, is the sophisticated element with regards to their architecture, the architecture of the passage and double passage burial rituals used, and their outer impression. graves, together with constructional details like However, it is not to be entirely ruled out that the passage and its placement with regard to the closed and open chambers existed side by the chamber. Also, the dierence in the num- side from the beginning. In any case the ritual ber of the tombs is striking, with the number aspect of the accessibility of a grave chamber of passage graves being lower than of that is at least as old as EN II. us for the Middle of the dolmens. Neolithic passage graves the most outstanding It can be concluded that the dolmen cham- innovations are the size and the layout of the bers, most of which are dated to EN II, are chamber, the sophisticated way of building the heterogeneous in architecture and possibility of monument, the access through a roofed passage use. Much points to a continuous development and the lower number of monuments. Also the from closed to open burial monuments, where custom of collective burial is developed further
with the passage graves, especially with regard e question is how the distribution of the to the higher number of individuals buried in dierent types of tombs should be interpreted. the same tomb. e theory that the tombs reect a splitting up of land and demarcating areas belonging to one settlement or economic unit has been forwarded e spatial distribution of the tombs (e.g. Renfrew , p. ., Strömberg , In the following, the tombs are mapped in p. .). However, this concept of megalithic order to distinguish between the dolmens (Fig. tombs as a direct reection of dierent sized ) and the passage and double passage graves settlement has also been questioned. Argu- (Fig. ). e conducting of a Voronoi mapping ments that are brought forward to support this was chosen for a better illustration of the spatial critique are that the tombs’ topographical and distances between the dierent monuments. numerical relation to each other might point e dolmens are distributed almost area- to a more complex organized society (Sjögren wide (Fig. ). However, clear concentrations , p. f.) and that the tombs are too une- can be observed in the form of alignments or venly distributed to represent one settlement clusters, but also solitary monuments. Some each (Hinz ). Also the probable dierent areas, like west of Tissø, appear to be almost social meaning of dierent graves types with monument-free. e longest distance between individual burials and more centralized col- two dolmens is about . km, the shortest just lective graves has been stressed as argument a few metres. against this theory (Sharples ). e passage graves and double passage In the Danish literature these topics have graves are evenly distributed across the study not been discussed in detail. Instead the meg- area, but are placed further inland than the alithic phase has been described as reecting dolmens (Fig. ). e longest distance between a segmentary tribal society. However, there is two graves is about km. However, there can disagreement about the character of this society be observed concentrations of graves at the end as either egalitarian or hierarchically organized of the Kalundborg Inner Fjord around Rørby, (e.g. Skaarup , p. f.; Andersen , Værslev, and Ubby. f.; Jensen , .; Ebbesen , Most striking are the dierent numbers of .). A change from a dispersed to a more cen- dolmens and passage graves, a phenomenon tralized settlement pattern at the end of EN which also can be observed in other Danish II has been observed (Nielsen ). It seems regions. e map of the dolmens, which rough- contemporary with the change in burial archi- ly covers the phase of EN II (Fig. ), evokes tecture from dolmens to passage graves as also the metaphor of the “explosion”, especially seen in the study area. considering the non-existence of stone mon- In the remaining part of the article I will uments in the preceding EN I (Schülke , discuss aspects that are relevant for a social and .). us the building of the megalithic ritual interpretation of the spatial patterning of dolmen chambers within EN II, a period of megalithic tombs in the study area. about years in length, can be called inno- Connected to this is the question whether vative, with vast parts of the land being marked the number and distribution of the dierent with monuments for the rst time. e distri- types of tombs might reect dierent settle- bution of the passage graves, which covers the ment patterns from dispersed (one dolmen period MNA I/II (Fig. ), shows a decrease in per settle ment unit) to more centralized (one stone-building activity. passage graves for one village community).
e dead and the living dolmens for example, it can be assumed that they, containing grave chambers for individual e number and distribution of the megalithic burials, were built according to “needs” such tombs in northwestern Zealand points, on a as the death of a person. is would naturally rougher scale, to a regular and marked area- result in a more irregular building sequence, wide erection of the dolmens throughout EN slowly aggregating a growing number of monu- II and to some sort of “centralization” with the ments in an area. Unlike the dolmens, the erec- passage graves in MNA I/II. To better under- tion of the passage graves as collective graves stand possible social and ritual mechanisms might not be bound to the death of a single that might have guarded the development of person to the same extent. e similar con- the erection of the tombs, simple statistical struction of some of the passage graves would analyses were conducted. As will be shown, speak for a rather contemporaneous “anticipa- they should rst of all be seen as a thinking tory” erection aiming at providing future burial tool to better understand both who was bur- space. At least a certain proportion of the tombs ied in the tombs and the living society which might have been constructed at around the used the tombs as burial spaces. same time, marking a deliberate and planned As there are no indications, either from nd 14 change in burial practice and ritual. It might material from the dolmens or from C dat- be presumed that there was an intensive and ings, that there are dolmens that were built at innovative building phase of passage graves in the same time as the passage graves from the the beginning of MNA I, with signicantly study area, it was assumed that the dolmens fewer later buildings in the course of MNA I/II. date to EN II and the passage graves to MNA Also, some thoughts on the work input into I/II. To determine the minimum number of the dierent monuments should be put forward: monuments erected on average in each period, the building of a dolmen chamber was surely the number of monuments that can be ascribed easier than building the chamber of a passaged each period (EN II: dolmens; MNA I/II: tomb. e latter had to be constructed by experts passage graves) was divided with the length after a clear set of rules (Hansen , .). of each period (EN II: years, MNA I/II: However, the work input for the building of years). is resulted in the average amount the mounds that were covering the dolmens, of monuments built per year (. dolmens/ and here especially the long mounds that often year corresponding to dolmens/century; were surrounded by almost head-high kerb- . passage graves per year, corresponding to stones, ought not to be underestimated. While passage graves/century, the double passage the construction of passage graves demanded graves counting as one grave). On average about know-how and the thorough choice of building two dolmens per year were built, while a new materials (Dehn & Hansen ), the building passage grave was erected around every sixth of dolmens, and especially their long-mounds, year. us the social “event” of erecting a dol- demanded access to raw material. It also required men seems to have been much more “ordinary” the disposition of a bigger spot of land that than that of erecting a passage grave. could be used for building the site, as well as While these gures give an impression of the a considerable working force to transport and density of events, there are source critical points bring into place the building material. It can- that have to be taken into consideration. It is not thus be stated with certainty that the work rather unlikely that dolmens and passage graves input for the building of a dolmen actually was were erected in regular intervals. Regarding the lesser than that of a passage grave. Rather it was
of a dierent character and included dierent However, these calculations show that the tasks. Because the number of dolmens exceeds number of burials, even in an area with a dense the number of passage graves, it can be assumed distribution of tombs, is far too low to represent that the total investment in monument build- a whole population buried in dolmens and pas- ing was much higher in the EN II than in the sage graves. is is even clearer when involving later time of the passage graves. the land area of the study area which consists of As a next step, it was calculated how many approximately square kilometres. Calculat- persons might have been buried in the monu- ing how many persons on average were buried ments. is was undertaken with minimum and per century per square kilometre, based on the maximum numbers, based on evidence from the numbers in table I, one comes to the following study area. From excavations conducted around results: . persons (passage graves with bur- the year , there were many bone and skull ials), . persons (dolmens with one burial), nds from the chambers reported (Schülke forth- . persons (dolmens with three burials) or coming). For the dolmens it was estimated that . persons (passage grave with burials) per at least one and a maximum of three persons square kilometre per century. ese numbers were buried per chamber. For the passage graves might represent a “real” prehistoric situation, it was operated with a minimum of four and a with only parts of the society being buried in maximum of fty persons buried per chamber. the megalithic tombs. Other researchers have is resulted in a minimum of and a max- argued that most of the Funnel Beaker pop- imum of buried individuals per century ulation is not visible in today’s archaeological for the dolmens, and in a minimum of and record from the tombs, which would make a maximum of buried individuals for the it most likely that the major part of the dead passage graves per century (Table I). were buried elsewhere, e.g. in at-graves with- From this it is dicult to conclude whether out grave goods (Woll , p. ., Midgley the numbers of individuals buried in the graves , p. f.). But considering questions of were higher, lower or almost the same in EN representation and the fact that almost none of II and MNA I/II. e gures might point to a the graves were excavated with modern meth- slight increase in the number of people buried ods, it could also be that the numbers of buried in the passage graves compared to the dolmens. persons from the megalithic tombs would be But at the same time, a constant amount or much higher if we rst could know the com- even a decrease of the burials in the passage plete amount of dolmens and passage graves in graves cannot fully be ruled out. the study area, and secondly if the megalithic
Table I. Number of dolmens and passage graves with estimated number of buried individuals altogether and with estimated amount of burials per century.
Dolmens Passage graves (p.g.) Number 364 35 + 16 double passage graves = altogether 67 p.g. chambers Length of period 200 years (3500–3300 BC) 300 years (3300–3000 BC) Estimated number of Minimum 1 burial/dolmen: 364 Minimum 4 burials/p.g.: 268 buried individuals Maximum 3 burial/dolmen: 1092 Maximum 50 burials/p.g.: 3350 Estimated average num- Minimum 1 burial/dolmen: 182 Minimum 4 burials/p.g.: 89 ber of burials per century Maximum 3 burial/dolmen: 546 Maximum 50 burials/p.g.: 1117
Fig. . e Røsnæs peninsula with dierent types of dolmen chambers, passage graves and settlements that are dated to EN II and MN A I. No settlements from MN A II are known. Geographical sources: Lakes and wetlands: Danmarks jordarter – © GEUS: Digitalt kort over Danmarks jordarter :, (); watercourses: AIS – Miljø- og Energiministeriet, Areal Informations System ( –); con- tour lines: © Kort&Matrikelstyrelsen (Målestok : ,) (). long mounds, which in other areas have been challenges that we are faced with, when inves- shown to house several graves, were investigat- tigating these monuments. ey deal with the ed for possible other graves (compare Mischka aspect of “centralization” that is represented ; Steens , p. .). irdly, it might in the distribution of the passage graves, in be that more than fty persons were buried per contrast to the broader placement of the dol- passaged tomb (Sjøgren this volume). ese mens. What is getting centralized? And what do critical reections show that the calculations the concentrations of passage graves indicate? on the number of buried individuals must be To engage with these questions, two dierent taken with caution, and that they only can be micro-landscapes that serve as good examples a beginning of a discussion on the ritual and for a discussion of distribution patterns in the social dimensions connected to the tombs. study area are to be presented. Lastly, a closer look at the distribution of More than fty dolmens are situated on the the megalithic tombs shall illustrate further Røsnæs peninsula (Fig. ). Some settlements
Fig. . e area around Rørby, Værslev and Ubby with dolmens and passage graves and settlements from MN A I. No settlements from MN A II are known. Sources: see Fig. and landscape model (Fig. ). are known from EN II and are placed in close distribution of the passage graves compared to vicinity of the rectangular dolmens. A huge the dolmens could support the theory that the amount of the settlements and tombs were passage graves served as “burial centres”, and erected along the watershed on the Røsnæs functioned as new, collective burials for bigger ridge, which is up to metres high and that more centralized settlements. still today functions as a road. It is tempting e second example shows another pattern: to interpret the distribution of the dolmens on the hilly ridges around the early Neolithic as reecting a continuous development of the bay of the Kalundborg Inner Fjord (Fig. ), monumental landscape, which over time lead megalithic graves occur in clusters and lines. to the formation of a distinctive road, with the ere are more than twenty passage and double rectangular closed dolmens being the oldest, passage graves, a number that is much higher followed by the rectangular open and later the than on Røsnæs when seen in relation to the polygonal dolmen chambers. Another pos- dolmens. A few settlements dating to MNA I sibility would be that the dierent dolmen are known, two of them in direct vicinity to a types were erected side by side through time. passage grave. Furthermore, there are three areas In contrast, there are only four certain passage with concentrations of passage graves (Værslev, graves (one of them a double passage grave) Rørby, Ubby). At Ubby, for example, a cluster which lie in rather regular distance from each of four passage and two double passage graves other (– kilometres apart). e number and forms a ritual landscape with the tombs lying
less than a hundred metres from each other. ridors. Moving along the graves must have e distribution of several passage graves lying played an important ritual and social role. e close to each other does not t with the the- questions remain: who built, who buried, and ory of one passage grave being a centralized who was interred and commemorated in the burial place for one bigger settlement, at least dolmens? Did the single monument belong to not when assuming that the tomb was placed a household or a family, marking their land and close to the settlement. Rather, it should be being maintained by them, or were the graves considered that there might have been other more common places, where individuals that modes of structuring death ritual and monu- played an important role within society were ment building, and of burying and being buried interred – or both? e fact that many of the in the passage graves. ese might be related to graves seem to lie close to roads indicate that the importance of certain areas with religious the tombs and the individuals buried in them signicance, as for example a place continuity were commemorated by a wider society. to older graves, as is the case for Ubby, where e passage graves give evidence of a delib- two nearby dolmens indicate ritual place con- erate innovative centralization of burial space, tinuity and tradition, or to other events that breaking with traditional principle for the estab- are dicult to grasp archaeologically. Still, the lishment and the ritual use of burial places as question remains who has been buried in the seen in the dolmens. e distribution of the passage graves that lie so close to each other, passage graves shows dierent patterns, which and from which criteria were the individuals makes their interpretation dicult. First, there that were buried in one of the graves chosen are areas where the passage grave seems to be a to be buried there? centralized burial place, perhaps for one bigger more centralized community. Secondly, looking at the areas with clusters of graves, it seems as Concluding remarks if their location was not mainly governed by e following can be concluded about social the aliation to a certain settlement placed and ritual tradition and innovation on the basis close by, but for example, to ritual aspects con- of the analysis of the megalithic tombs in the nected to the area where they were erected and study area. It embraces both aspects of life which had to do with ritual continuity, or with and death. other events that we do not grasp yet. As for e impact of the dolmens on the land- the dolmens, the question is: who was interred scape seems to be, at rst sight, enormous. in the grave, which persons were chosen to be However, presuming a gradual emergence of buried in the same chamber after which crite- the stone-built tombs within in a two-hun- ria, but also who maintained and had access dred-year period speaks for a gradual change of to the graves? the landscape, leading to a marked long-term For a discussion of the “marking of land” impact. e dolmen chambers and mounds through the megalithic monuments, it is impor- witness of a strong need to commemorate the tant whether only a part of society or whether dead and to mark their memory in the living everybody was buried there, as well as in how landscape. Even though the monuments mark far this might have been handled dierently for land as static buildings, the aspect of “move- the two types of tombs and at dierent times. ment” is an important part of the tombs as Are we dealing with an equal or a stratied they in many cases seem to be built to mark society? Who built the tombs and for whom? or to give rise to roads or communication cor- We thus can conclude that the shift in the
distribution of the monuments illustrates inno- the related population. In Furholt, M., Lüth, F. & Mül- vations concerning the ritual use of land, which ler, J. (eds.), Megaliths and Identities. Early Monuments and Neolithic Societies from the Atlantic to the Baltic. need not necessarily have been connected to rd European Studies Group Meeting th– th of May certain settlement units. It will also be a future at Kiel University. Frühe Monumentalität und matter of discussion how the people who erect- soziale Dierenzierung Band . Bonn. ed the megalithic tombs were organized socially Jensen, J. . Danmarks Oldtid. Stenalder .– . and ritually, and how they managed the land f. Kr. København. Kaelas, L. . Dolmen und Ganggräber in Schweden. both in social and ritual terms. Zusammenfassende Übersicht. Oa , ( ). Liversage, D. . Neolithic Monuments at Lindebjerg, North-West Zealand. Acta Archaeologica . Acknowledgement Madsen, T. . Earthen Long Barrows and Timber Many thanks to Deborah Olausson for very Structures: Aspects of Early Neolithic Mortuary Practice in Denmark. Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society . useful comments on my manuscript. Midgley, M. S. . e Megaliths of Northern Europe. London/New York. – . Who was who in the Neolithic? In Furholt, References M., Lüth, F. & Müller, J. (eds.), Megaliths and Iden- Andersen, N. H. . Kult og ritualer i den ældre bon- tities: Early Monuments and Neolithic Societies from destenalder. KUML . the Atlantic to the Baltic. rd European Studies Group – . Sarupområdet på Sydvestfyn i slutningen af . Meeting th– th of May at Kiel University. årtusinde f. Kr. In Schülke, A. (ed.), Plads og rum i Frühe Monumentalität und soziale Dierenzierung tragtbægerkulturen: Bidrag fra Arbejdsmødet på Natio- Band . Bonn. nalmuseet, . september . København. Mischka, D. . e Neolithic burial sequence at Andersson, M. & Wallebom, B. . Döserygg and Flintbek LA , north Germany, and its cart tracks: a the Skegrie Dolmens: New Light on the Megalithic precise chronology. Antiquity . Graves in South-West Scania, Southern Sweden. In – . Round, Oval or Rectangular? e Shape of Tumuli Bakker, J. A., Bloo, S. B. C. & Dütting, M. K. (eds.), Covering Funnel Beaker Burials – Some Old Ideas Revi- From Funeral Monuments to Household Pottery: Cur- sed. In Bakker, J. A., Bloo, S. B. C. & Dütting, M. K. rent Advances in Funnel Beaker Culture (TRB/TBK) (eds.), From Funeral Monuments to Household Pottery: Research. Proceedings of the Borger Meetings , e Current Advances in Funnel Beaker Culture (TRB/TBK) Netherlands. BAR International Series . Oxford. Research. Proceedings of the BorgerMeetings , e Dehn, T. & Hansen, S. I. . Doubleness in the Con- Netherlands. BAR International Series . Oxford. struction of the Danish Passage Graves. In Ritchie, Nielsen, P. O. . Flint Axes and Megaliths – the Time A. (ed.), Neolithic Orkney in its European Context. and Context of the early Dolmens in Denmark. In Cambridge. G. Burenhult (ed.), e Archaeology of Carrowmore: Dehn, T. & Hansen, S. I. . Birch Bark in Danish Environmental Archaeology and Megalithic Tradition at passage graves. Journal of Danish Archaeology . Carrowmore, Co. Sligo, Ireland. eses and Papers in Ebbesen, K. . Danske Dysser – Danish Dolmens. North-European Archaeology . Stockholm. København. – . Causewayed Camps, Palisade Enclosures and Cen- – . Danmarks Megalitgrave. Bind ,. Vordingborg. tral Settlements of the Middle Neolithic in Denmark. Fritsch, B., Furholt, M., Hinz, M., Nelson, H., Schae- Journal of Nordic Archaeological Science . rer, G., Schiesberg, S. & Sjögren, K.-G. . Dich- Paulsson, B. S. . Scandinavian Models: Radiocarbon tezentren und lokale Gruppen – Eine Karte zu den Dates and e Origin and Spreading of Passage Graves Großsteingräbern Mittel- und Nordeuropas. Availa- in Sweden and Denmark. In Jull, A. J. T. (ed.), Procee- ble from: www.jungsteinsite.de [Accessed Octo- dings of the th International Radiocarbon Conference. ber ]. Radiocarbon , Nr. –. Hansen, S. I. . Jættestuer in Danmark. København. Renfrew, C. . Before Civilization: e Radiocarbon Hede, S. U. . Prehistoric settlements and Holocene Revolution and Prehistoric Europe. London. relative sea-level changes in north-west Sjælland, Den- Schülke, A. . e Social Use of Space during the mark. Bulletin of the Geological Society of Denmark . Early Neolithic in Northwest Zealand. In Glørstad, Hinz, M. . Who for whom? Ritual architecture and H. & Prescott, C. (eds.), Neolithisation as if History
Mattered: Processes of Neolithisation in North-Western Sjögren, K.-G. . “Mångfalldige uhrminnes grafvar…” Europe. Lindome. Megalitgravar och samhälle i Västsverige. Gotharc series – . ree concepts of burying the dead – dierent B. Gothenburg Archaeological eses No. , Coast types of megalithic monuments and their ritual and to Coast-Books Nr. . Göteborg. social signicance. In Hinz, M., Furholt, M., Mischka, Skaarup, J. . Yngre stenalder på øerne syd for Fyn. D., Noble, G. & Olausson, D. (eds.), Landscapes, His- Meddelelser fra Langelands museum. Rudkøbing. tories and Societies in the Northern European Neolithic. Steens, J. . Die neolithischen Fundplätze von Ras- Frühe Monumentalität und soziale Dierenzierung torf, Kr. Plön: Eine Fallstudie zur Trichterbecherkultur . Bonn. im nördlichen Mitteleuropa am Beispiel eines Siedlungs- – forthcoming. Social space – ritual nodal point: A study raumes. Universitätsforschungen zur Prähistorischen on the Funnel Beaker Culture of Northwest Zealand, Archäologie . Bonn. Denmark, with special focus on megalithic monuments. Strömberg, M. . Ingelstorp: Zur Siedlungsentwicklung Schuldt, E. . Die Mecklenburgische Megalithgrä- eines südschwedischen Dorfes. Acta Archaeologica Lun- ber: Untersuchungen zu ihrer Architektur und Funk- densia Series in °, No. . Bonn/Lund. tion. Beiträge zur Ur- und Frühgeschichte der Bezirke Woll, B. . Das Totenritual der Frühen Nordischen Rostock. Schwerin und Neubrandenburg . Schwerin. Trichterbecherkultur. Bonn. Sharples, N. . Individual and Community: e Changing Role of Megaliths in the Orcadian Neolithic. Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society .
News from Frälsegården Aspects of Neolithic burial practices Karl-Göran Sjögren
Abstract e passage grave at Frälsegården in Falbygden, western Sweden, was excavated in –. In spite of damage and ploughing, this constitutes the most well-documented bone material from a Scandinavian megalithic tomb. In this paper, I summarize the analyses done so far on this bone material, and discuss implications for the interpretation of burial practices in megalithic tombs. e presence of a number of whole or partially articulated skeletons was one of the most signicant results of the excavation. ese range from almost complete skeletons to partial articulations. In addition, there is a mass of disarticulated bones but also some bones that seem to have been treated dierently, such as a skull group and a couple of bone packages. It is suggested that most of the bones result from primary burials and subsequent disarticulation, but there are also indications of a change in burial practice, and the occurrence of special treatment could perhaps result from alternative, parallel practices.
Department of Historical Studies, Gothenburg University, Box , SE- Gothenburg, Sweden. [email protected]
Two models enclosures have been suggested to have been by Magnus Bruzelius localities for primary deposition and deeshing ( ) and Bror Emil Hildebrand ( ), the of human bodies (Andersen ). dominant view of burial practices in Scandina- Another view has suggested that burials in vian passage graves has been that of secondary megalithic chambers were primary. is was burial and deposition of deeshed bones. already suggested by Lindgren for the passage is “ossuary hypothesis” was given new grave at Axvalla Hed (Lindgren ). In later life by Christopher Tilley and Michael Shanks research such views have been expressed by ( ). ey saw burial practices as ideo- scholars such as Märta Strömberg (), Pia logical, whereby social contradictions could Bennike ( , ) and Torbjörn Ahlström be denied or masked just as well as being (, ). In their view, the chaotic appear- demonstrated or emphasized. In this process, ance of the bones could be explained by factors a major result was the dissolution of individ- such as taphonomic loss, disturbance by later uality through practices of dismemberment activities, and removal of some skeletal parts. and redeposition of human bones. Mortu- Basic problems in deciding between these ary practices thus involved the creation of an hypotheses are the lack of detailed docu- anonymous collective of ancestors and con- mentation of the bones from older excava- cealed real social relations. tions, and the poor preservation in many In later research, several authors have tombs. e recently excavated passage grave expressed similar ideas. For instance, Sarup-type at Frälsegården in Falbygden constitutes an
e Swedish tombs occur in two dis- tinct types of landscape. In Scania, Hal- land and Bohuslän, they are found close to the coast. Especially in Bohuslän they are very close to the Neolithic shoreline and were built in a strongly marine envi- ronment. e second group of tombs is found in the inland area of Falbygden. Here, a concentration of at least tombs coincides with one of the very few areas in the region where the bedrock consists of limestone and slate instead of Pre- cambrian rocks. erefore, conditions for the preservation of bones are quite good. Falbygden has several distinctive fea- tures. e diabase-capped plateau moun- tains have characteristic proles visible over large areas. e at, limestone pla- teaus below them are fertile agricultural lands. e vegetation is dierent from Fig. . Map of megalithic tombs in Falbygden. that of the surrounding areas and con- tains several unusual species. us, the Falbygden landscape has a number of exception, and I will outline some of the results properties that set it o from the surroundings. from the ongoing study of the human bones In most directions, it is also clearly bounded. from this site. e Falbygden tombs show a regular pattern in their architecture. e predominant type is the symmetrical, rectangular passage grave (only Background two dolmens are known). A limited number At least dolmens and passage graves are of tombs have other chamber forms, such as known in Sweden, but especially in the south trapezoid, D-shaped, oval or round. In addi- a large number of tombs have been destroyed tion to the regularity, they are also large. Mean during the last two centuries. ese tombs were chamber length is about m, and the largest built ca. – BC cal., i.e. the transition tombs have chambers up to m in length. between the early and the middle Neolithic Roof block size varies considerably, but some periods, in the cultural setting of the Funnel blocks have been estimated at about tons. Beaker (TRB) culture. e building of mega- Chambers are surrounded by stone and earth lithic tombs seems to be virtually simultaneous mounds, usually some – m in diameter, over a large area including northern Germany, but examples up to m occur. Denmark, Sweden and even southern Nor- In the period –, a large number way (Persson & Sjögren ; Sjögren ; of chambers were excavated by scholars like Midgley ). Bror Emil Hildebrand, Oscar Montelius and
¡ Fig. . e Frälsegården tomb during excavation.
Gustaf Retzius. Later, systematic surveys were gular, approximately . x . m large, with carried out by Karl-Esaias Sahlström among a roughly m long passage, and construct- others. e passage grave at Rössberga was ed of limestone slabs. Traces of dry walling of excavated in (Cullberg ), and from slate slabs were found in several places along the s on further excavations were carried the walls. Within the chamber a number of out (Bägerfeldt ; Persson & Sjögren ; sections partitioning the chamber were found. Sjögren ). Sections were not found in the central part of the chamber, however, only in the northern and southern parts. If the central part of the e Frälsegården passage grave chamber was open, the number of sections is tomb was excavated in – (Ahl- could have been at most –. ström , ; Sjögren ). Most of the e passage was divided up by thresholds in chamber stones had been removed c. , at least two places, suggesting internal door- and the site had been ploughed over since. ways. e chamber had been surrounded by a In spite of this destruction, the construction mound, about m in diameter. could be documented and a large amount of In the chamber a compact, roughly cm bone material collected. thick bone layer with more than frag- e tomb was found to have been rectan- ments of bone was found. Most of the bones
and other nds were measured individually with again in contrast to PWC individuals from a total station, and recorded in a GIS database Gotland (Skoglund et al. ; Skoglund et together with the osteological determinations. al. ).
Analyses e human bones e human bones from Frälsegården have been More than bones and bone fragments subject to a number of analyses. Osteology have been recorded. Many of these are severely (species, bone element, sex, age, trauma, tooth fragmented, so that only bones could be morphology) has been analysed by Torbjörn identied to species and bone element. Most of Ahlström (Ahlström , ). Ongoing the bones are from humans, only animal studies concern retting and pairing of certain bones have been recorded in contrast to bone types, as well as identication of individ- human bones. uals (Sjögren & Ahlström in prep.). Statistical e osteological analysis indicates that a spatial analyses of some bone elements have minimum number (MNI) of individuals been published by Ahlström (). were deposited in the chamber (Sjögren & Ahl- A substantial number of bones have been ström in prep.; an MNI of was suggested in 14C-dated. At present, dates are available, Ahlström but has now been revised). As some published in Sjögren ( ) and Ahl- this is fragmented and partly destroyed mate- ström (). rial, this is most certainly an underestimation. A series of δ13C and δ15N analyses on col- Based on the number of paired and unpaired lagen in order to study Neolithic subsistence talus bones, the most likely number of indi- were performed by Hinders (). Sjögren viduals (MLNI) has been calculated, arriving and Price () performed δ13C determina- at buried people. Although this is a more tions on tooth enamel. realistic estimate, we do not know how many e mobility of the Neolithic population people are not represented by any talus bone has been studied by means of strontium and at all, so the actual number may be higher. sulphur isotopes (Sjögren, Price & Ahlström e overall bone density is shown in g. ; Hinders ). . A marked concentration of bones is to be e degree of bacterial breakdown of bone seen within a roughly m2 large area in the structure (histology) has been studied by om- centre of the chamber, in front of the passage. as Booth, Sheeld University (unpubl.). e density decreases towards the gable ends, Samples from Frälsegården have also featured particularly to the south where ploughing has in studies of ancient DNA. ree out of four cut though much of the bone layer. No such individuals were shown to have the allele for explanation can be given for the decreasing adult lactase tolerance, in contrast to individ- bone density in the northern part, however, as uals from the Pitted Ware culture on Gotland the remaining ll layer here was thicker than (Malmström ). Six individuals have been in the middle of the chamber. classed for mtDNA haplotypes, showing con- e degree of fragmentation was also vari- siderable variation on the maternal side (Malm- able. Bones in the upper parts of the bone layer, ström ; Skoglund et al. ; Skoglund and in the southern end, were more fragment- ). Nuclear DNA from four individuals has ed, while those in the bottom of the layer and been shown to have greater anity to modern to the north were surprisingly well preserved. south Europeans than to north Europeans, e dates on human bones are summarized
¡ Bentäthet Antal/kvm =< 50 50,01 - 100 100,01 - 500 500,01 - 750 750,01 - 1 000 1 000,01 - 1 250 1 250,01 - 1 500 1 500,01 - 1 750 1 750,01 - 2 000 2 000,01 - 2 250 2 250,01 - 2 500 2 500,01 - 2 750 2 750,01 - 3 000 3 000,01 - 3 250
0120,5 m
Fig. . Frälsegården, tomb plan with bone density. in g. . Doubles, laboratory errors and sam- ploughed away, this number will have to be ples from other bones than femurs have been doubled. is could be enough for a small excluded, leaving dates representing dierent resident population to have buried all or most individuals. e dates are tightly clustered in the of their dead. period c. – cal. BC. e period of use is thus quite short compared to other dates from Falbygden, as well as to other tombs with several Articulations and individuals datings, such as Rössberga and Resmo. Perhaps e presence of a number of whole or partially this is part of the explanation for the compara- articulated skeletons is one of the most signif- tively well preserved skeletons in this chamber. icant results of the excavation at Frälsegården, A rough calculation indicates that on average as well as a quite unexpected one given the about persons per generation were buried, destruction of the chamber. Already during if we assume an even frequency during excavation, a number of articulated body parts years, a generation length of years and were noted, such as stretches of vertebrae, rib buried people. If half of the bones have been cages, hands, lower arms, legs and foot bones
Site Falbygden Frälsegården
0,20
0,15 P
0,10
0,05
0,00 -4000 -3000 -2000 -1000 0 1000 BC/AD cal Fig. . Summary diagram of 14C dates on femurs from Frälsegården, compared to all dates on human bones from Falbygden. in connection. Notably, also labile joins were als. A total of sets of articulated bones have preserved in several cases, for instance phalan- been identied. ges attached to the metatarsals or mandibles ese range from almost complete skeletons attached to skulls. ese are the bones most to partial articulations, in some cases with just easily detached and therefore most likely to be a few connected bones. It is possible that some lost during secondary manipulation of bodies, of the identied individuals in reality belong such as relocation or handling during second- to the same skeleton, but when this cannot ary burial practices. Some of these individuals be demonstrated clearly, we have preferred have been described in preliminary publications to keep them apart as separate “individuals”. (Ahlström , ; Sjögren , ). Most probably, further individuals could be Working on the osteology database together discerned by continued analysis. with the GIS database and the geo-referenced e articulations are concentrated in the photos, it has been possible to extend the num- central part of the chamber, especially close to ber of articulated individuals, and also to revise the western chamber wall. is is also where and complement already identied individu- all the well-preserved individuals were found,
¡ Fig. . Photo of individual B during excavation. e cranium has already been removed. with one exception only. Together with the burial in the earliest phase or that the area was absence of sections in this area, and the dis- cleared at some point and the bones rearranged. tribution of certain artefact types and animal bones, this supports the idea of a functional dierence between the central area and the Individual B areas towards the gables. As an example of the well-preserved skeletons Further, there is some suggestion of order in I will present individual B in more detail (g. the positioning of the well-preserved skeletons, ). is almost complete skeleton has been as they seem to lie either along the western identied as a woman, – years old. It is the chamber wall or perpendicular to the chamber most well-preserved of the individuals found, axis. As far as body positions can be discerned, and also one of the last burials, according to contracted positions seem to be predominant, the 14C datings of a femur ( – cal. in some cases with strongly exed limbs. One BC, s, Ua- and – cal. BC, possibility, suggested by Ahlström (), is s, UBA- ). that the bodies were originally sitting up. She was found in the centre of the chamber, Despite the relatively late datings of the right in front of the passage. e skeleton was well-preserved skeletons (see below), only very found in the bottom of the bone layer with few bones were found underneath them, sug- just a few other bones beneath it, belonging to gesting either that this area was not used for three dierent individuals. Under these bones,
Fig. . Stratigraphic position and 14C datings of indviduals in the chamber centre. Bold- face datings are considered more reliable. there was a thin limestone slab, on which the molar from this individual is . , well upper body rested. e slab rested directly on outside the range for the local geology in Fal- the chamber oor; only a single amber bead bygden. She must therefore have spent her early was found under it. years in an area with an older bedrock. e exact As found, the skeleton was lying on its back, origin cannot be pinpointed, but such values perpendicular to the chamber axis with the head can be found in the Precambrian gneiss areas towards the west. Arms and legs were heavily of western Sweden outside Falbygden. exed. Both arms were tightly bound up against the torso, suggesting binding or wrapping. e left leg was similarly tight against the torso, Stratigraphy and dating while the right leg was strongly exed at the A number of the individuals can be related strati- knee but pointed perpendicularly to the body graphically. is relates to their current position, and was folded over the left one. e vertebrae and does not take into account the possibility of and the rib cage were well preserved, but the recent or prehistoric disturbance or relocation. vertebrae were dislocated at some points. e Comparing stratigraphic position with the pelvis was also somewhat disarticulated. Most datings, the overall impression is that these two of the foot bones were in place, but only a few series are consistent with each other, although of the hand bones. e skull and the mandible with a few contradictions which could indicate were still in place, as well as the atlas and axis. relocation of bones ( g. ). Here, it must be Several pathological conditions were noted remembered that 14C-dating is relevant to the in her right scapula and clavicle, as well as car- death of the individual, not necessarily to its ies on a number of teeth. placement at the location found. If a consist- e 87Sr/86Sr value on an upper left rst ency between datings and stratigraphical order
¡ can be demonstrated, this argues against a sig- envisage a change from secondary burial dur- nicant amount of relocation of these individu- ing an early phase to primary burial in a later als, particularly when the articulations contain phase, but it could also be a question of less labile connections. Relocations would then only dramatic changes such as the introduction of be possible very shortly after death. Converse- wrappings or other procedures aecting the ly, lack of consistency suggests that bodies or disarticulation process. body parts have been rearranged, within the A dierence in treatment is supported by chamber or coming from the outside. the histological analysis performed by omas Retted bones as well as the study of paired Booth (). He studied the degree of break- foot bones lend further support to the impres- down, caused by endogenous bacteria, in thin sion of a low degree of relocation. e great sections from a series of femurs. A clear pat- majority of rets and paired foot bones were tern was found, in that disarticulated femurs found within cm distance. were more severely degraded than femurs from It is possible to use the dated sequences for articulated skeletons. In both cases the degree Bayesian calibration. ese calculations suggest of breakdown was quite strong, however. that most of the well-preserved individuals is kind of breakdown occurs shortly after died within a quite short time span at about death and is dependent on the length of time BC cal. A few individuals could have soft tissues are attached to the bones, so that been buried somewhat earlier, in the period a low degree of breakdown indicates rapid – BC cal. deeshing (for instance, outdoor exposure) while high degree of breakdown indicates a more drawn-out process. Articulated and disarticulated bones In the Frälsegården femurs, the results suggest If the articulated individuals seem to represent a relatively long period of soft tissue remaining a rather short time interval, the question arises on the disarticulated bones, while the process whether this also applies to the large numbers seems to be halted for the articulated ones. e of disarticulated bones. Datings on articulat- reason for the dierence is not quite clear, but ed femurs compared to disarticulated ones do perhaps the best explanation is a change in treat- indeed suggest that there is an early phase of ment of the bodies within the chamber. use, represented only by disarticulated bones. While most of the bones could have result- While it is dicult to pinpoint exactly the ed from the deposition and subsequent dis- start of the burial sequence, it seems safe to articulation of primary burials, there are some assume that the chamber was in full use at – instances that suggest other practices. BC cal., i.e. – years before the In at least two cases tight bundles or pack- interment of most of the articulated individuals. ages of disarticulated bones were found. ese ere are at least two ways to interpret this could be bones redeposited within the cham- pattern. e rst is that all burials were per- ber, but could also have been introduced into formed as primary burials, where complete the chamber already in this form. bodies were put inside the chamber. e dis- A similar argument can be made for the group articulation would then be a result of natural of three skulls found in the northern part of decomposition in combination with distur- the chamber. Skull groups are recorded from a bance and rearrangement during later use. number of older excavations, but the problem e other possibility is that a change in bur- is to date the actual collection into groups, as ial practice occurred. For instance, we could 14C dating only gives you the date of the death
of the individual. So far, it has not been possi- linkages, certainly a forceful legitimation tool, ble to determine whether the skulls belong to and those people in possession of recognized any of the skeletons within the chamber or not. genealogical knowledge would have been in a Individual C is the only identied individual socially central position. from the northern part of the chamber. It has It is hard to generalize about Neolithic bur- been identied as a woman, – years old. ial practices, partly due to problems of pres- e bone fragments attributed to this indi- ervation and uneven archaeological study, but vidual belong mainly to the torso, but extremi- also because of the complexity of the practices ties and cranial parts are also present. Individual involving human remains. We have little evi- C was only partially articulated, with the hip dence regarding the variability of burial prac- and leg bones packed below and above the torso, tices, although as more sites are being studied suggesting a rearrangement of the bones while one would expect the variability to rise consid- the body was still not completely decomposed. erably, and appear less monolithic than present models suggest. Even in the case of Frälsegården, there are Conclusions indications that not all bodies were treated One of the main points to make is the strong in the same way. At present, the most likely taphonomic inuence on fragmentation and scenario is that of an early phase represent- bone element frequencies in Scandinavian meg- ed by disarticulated bones and a later phase aliths. e main argument for secondary bur- represented by more complete skeletons. is ial has often been the under-representation of probably reects a change in burial practice, certain categories of bones, for instance small perhaps coupled also with a change in how hand and foot bones, supposed to result from the dierent parts of the chamber were used. loss outside the chambers when the deeshed One possibility, supported for instance by the bones were handled and transported. However, spatial concentration of pig phalanges in the as Bennike ( , ) and Ahlström () central area, is that wrapping in pig skins was have argued, such patterns may also indicate not used in the early phase. taphonomic loss within the chambers. Finally, special treatment of bones is sug- In the case of Frälsegården there can be little gested by bone packages and a skull group. doubt that several of the bodies were primary Whether these indicate secondary handling of burials, and that much of the chaotic appear- bones or result from alternative, parallel treat- ance of the chamber contents must be due to ment of some bodies remains an open question extended periods of use and later disturbance. at the moment. In spite of this, traces of ordered depositions in the chamber are still visible. At least for the later period of use, bodies Acknowledgements would have been put in the chambers in a com- e analyses of material from Frälsegården has plete state, perhaps wrapped in skins. Rather been funded by Riksbankens Jubileumsfond than intentional fragmentation and de-indi- as part of the project “Anonymous Ancestors? vidualization of humans through mortuary Reconsidering Neolithic Collective Graves”, practices, preservation of individual identity which has been carried out in cooperation within the tombs may have lasted for genera- between the author and Torbjörn Ahlström, tions. e use or reuse of bones from these per- Lund University. sons would have emphasized specic genealogic
¡ References Shanks, M. & Tilley, C. . Ideology, Symbolic Power and Ritual Communication: A Reinterpretation of Neo- Ahlström, T. . Det döda kollektivet: Bioantropologisk lithic Mortuary Practices. In Hodder, I. (ed.), Symbolic analys av skelettmaterialet från Rössbergagånggriften. and Structural Archaeology. Cambridge. In Persson, P. & Sjögren, K.-G. (eds.), Falbygdens gång- Sjögren, K.-G. . “Mångfalldige uhrminnes grafvar…” grifter: Undersökningar – . GOTARC Serie C Megalitgravar och samhälle i Västsverige. GOTARC no. . Göteborg. ser B no. , Coast to coast-books no. . Göteborg. – . Grave or Ossuary? Osteological Finds from a –. . Megalithic tombs, ideology and society in western Recently Excavated Passage Tomb in Falbygden. In Sweden. In Knutsson, H. (ed.), Coast to coast – Arrival: Knutsson, H. (ed.), Coast to coast – Arrival: Results Results and Reections. Proceedings of the Final Coast to and Reections. Proceedings of the Final Coast to coast- coast-conference – October in Falköping, Sweden. conference – October in Falköping, Sweden. Coast Coast to coast books no. . Uppsala. to coast books no. . Uppsala. – . Fragment av ordning: Undersökning av överplöj- – . Underjordiska dödsriken – humanosteologiska da megalitgravar vid Frälsegården, Gökhems socken, undersökningar av neolitiska kollektivgravar. Coast to Västergötland, –. GOTARC Serie D no. coast books no. . Göteborg. , Västergötlands museum rapport :. Skara. Andersen, N. H. . e Sarup Enclosures: e Funnel – . Anonymous Ancestors? e Tilley/Shanks Hypo- Beaker Culture of the Sarup site including two causewayed thesis Revisited. In Calado, D., Baldia, M. & Boulanger, camps compared to the contemporary settlements in the M. (eds.), Session C Part I: Monumental Questions: area and other European enclosures. Jutland Archaeolo- Prehistoric Megaliths, Mounds and Enclosures. Proceedings gical Society Publications XXXIII: . Århus. of the XV world congress Lisbon – September . Bägerfeldt, L. . Megalitgravarna i Sverige: Typ, tid, BAR International series S. Oxford. rum och social miljö. :a reviderade upplagan. Gamleby. Sjögren, K.-G. & Ahlström, T. in prep. Anonymous Bennike, P. . Stenalderbefolkningen på øerne syd Ancestors? Reconsidering burial practices in Scandi- for Fyn. In Skaarup, J., Yngre Stenalder på øerne syd navian megalithic tombs. Unpublished manuscript. for Fyn. Rudkøbing. Sjögren, K.-G. & Price, T. D. . Vegetarians or meat – . Human remains from the Grøfte dolmen. Journal eaters? Enamel δC and Neolithic diet at the Fräl- of Danish Archaeology . segården passage tomb, central Sweden. In Berger- Booth, T. . Report on the Frälsegården in Sec- brant, S. & Sabatini, S. (eds.), Counterpoint: Essays in tions. Unpublished ms. Archaeology and Heritage Studies in Honour of Professor Bruzelius, M. . Nordiska Fornlemningar från Skåne. Kristian Kristiansen. Oxford. Iduna IX. Sjögren, K.-G., Price, T. D. & Ahlström, T. . Mega- Cullberg, C. . Megalitgraven i Rössberga. Stockholm. liths and mobility in south-western Sweden: Investiga- Hildebrand, B. E. . Berättelse om antiqvariska under- ting relations between a local society and its neighbours sökningar i Vestergötland år . Antikvarisk Tidskrift using strontium isotopes. Journal of Anthropological för Sverige I. Archaeology . Hinders, J. . Dödsrikets livshistorier: Benkemiska iso- Skoglund, P. . Reconstructing the Human Past using topanalyser på artikulerade och disartikulerade individer i Ancient and Modern Genomes. Doctoral dissertation. Frälsegårdens gånggrift. Masteruppsats i laborativ arkeo- Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis. Uppsala. logi, Arkeologiska forskningslaboratoriet, Stockholms Skoglund, P., Malmström, H., Raghavan, M., Storå, J., universitet, vt . Stockholm. Hall, P., Willerslev, E., Gilbert, M. T. P., Götherström, Lindgren, A. . Ytterligare underrättelse om en på Axe- A. & Jakobsson, M. . Origins and Genetic Legacy valla hed upptäckt Forngrift. Götheborgska Wettenskaps- of Neolithic Farmers and Hunter-Gatherers in Europe. och Witterhets Samhällets Handlingar. Wettenskapsafd. V. Science ( ). Malmström, H. . Ancient DNA as a Means to Investi- Skoglund, P., Malmström H., Omrak A., Raghavan M., gate the European Neolithic. Acta universitatis Upsali- Valdiosera C., Gunther T., Hall P., Tambets K., Parik J., ensis. Uppsala. Sjögren K.-G., Apel J., Willerslev E., Storå J., Göther- Midgley, M. . e Megaliths of Northern Europe. ström A. & Jakobsson M. . Genomic Diversity London & New York. and Admixture Diers for Stone-Age Scandinavian Persson, P. & Sjögren, K.-G. . Falbygdens gånggrif- Foragers and Farmers. Science ( ). ter, del . Undersökningar – . GOTARC Ser Strömberg, M. . Die Megalithgräber von Hagestad. C no. . Göteborg Acta Archaeologica Lundensia, series in °, no. . Lund.
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An ABC of lithic arrowheads A case study from southeastern France Kevan Edinborough, Enrico R. Crema, Tim Kerig and Stephen Shennan
Abstract If archaeology is to take a leading role in the social sciences, new theoretical and methodological advances emerging from the natural sciences cannot be ignored. is requires considerable retooling for archaeology as a discipline at a population scale of analysis. Such an approach is not easy to carry through, especially owing to historically contingent regional traditions; however, the knowledge gained by directly addressing these problems head-on is well worth the eort. is paper shows how population level processes driving cultural evolution can be better understood if mathematical and computational methods, often with a strong element of simulation, are applied to archaeological datasets. We use computational methods to study patterns and process of temporal variation in the frequency of cultural variants. More specically, we will explore how lineages of lithic technologies are transmitted over time using a well-analysed and chronologically ne-grained assemblage of central European Neolithic armatures from the French Jura. We look for sharp cultural transitions in the frequency of armature types by trying to detect signicant mismatches between predictions dictated by an unbiased transmission model and observed empirical data. A simple armature classication scheme based on morphology is introduced. e results have considerable implications for analysing and understanding cultural transmission pathways not only for Neolithic arma- tures, but also for the evolution of lithic technology more generally in dierent spatiotemporal contexts.
Department of Archaeology, Institute of Archaeology, University College London- - Gordon Square, London WCH oPY, UK (CaSES Research Group, Department of Humanities, Universitat Pomepeu, Fabra). [email protected] Department of Archaeology, Institute of Archaeology, University College London- - Gordon Square, London WCH oPY, UK (Department of Archaeology, University of Belgrade, Serbia). [email protected] Archaeology of Pre-Modern Economies (DFG Research Training Group ), Universities of Cologne and Bonn, Albertus-Magnus-Platz, D- Cologne, Germany. [email protected]
Department of Archaeology, Institute of Archaeology, University College London- - Gordon Square, London WCH oPY, UK. [email protected]
Introduction norm in the Natural Sciences. e spectac- ago David Clarke in his ular success of evolutionary biology is a case seminal work Models in Archaeology suggested in point and can be attributed to two major archaeologists should construct explicit test- developments. Firstly, a developed population able models (Clarke ed. ), but unfortu- level theoretical approach emerging last cen- nately few European researchers do this for- tury resulting from biology’s “New Synthesis” mally with cultural questions at large regional followed by a staggering series of molecular or supra-regional analytical scales. In contrast, level discoveries (Gilbert et al. ). Sec- multi-scaled explanatory models supported by ondly, the development of complementary highly theorized quantitative methods are the analytical tools that harness the exponential
growth in computational processing power cation scheme and apply a simulation-based has expanded the array of tools for inves- analysis to infer patterns of cultural change in tigating increasingly sophisticated research a very well contextualized case-study area in questions. western Europe. To do this we t an unbiased Our agenda is clear. If archaeology is to transmission model (whereby the probability assume a lead role in the social sciences as of adopting a given cultural trait is determined opposed to simply following an agenda set by solely by its frequency in the population and the anthropology, it must undergo its own theoret- rate of cultural innovation; Boyd & Richerson ical “New Synthesis”. is is because developed ) to the entire sequence and determine population level thinking (Boyd and Richerson whether specic transitions exhibit strong diver- ) allows us to systematically analyse site gence from our expectations. First, however, and regionally-scaled consequences of aggre- we briey examine the historical reasons why gated technological choices which result in some problematical assumptions are currently the innovation and spread of cultural traits made by traditional lithic armature studies. and “variants”. Population thinking combined with compu- tational modelling allows us to infer cumulative A brief history of time’s arrowheads consequences of specic individual behaviours, e ancient, ubiquitous and persistent nature enabling direct comparison between theoretical of stone tools compared to many other lines expectation and empirical observation. Archae- of archaeological evidence provides us with ologists can benet enormously by applying this an excellent opportunity to analyse mode and type of formal analysis to modelling cultural tempo of technological transmission with a transmission following Boyd and Richerson’s suite of new methodological advances based theoretical lead ( ), as a testable narrative on populational thinking (Shennan ). can be constructed that may be compared with In archaeology, directional sequences of tech- the modelled eects of external environmen- nological evolution could only be speculative tal drivers of cultural variation, since expected prior to the development of taxonomic sys- ranges of summary statistics can be obtained tems-theory, coupled with relative and radi- and compared with other empirical evidence ometric dating techniques. Systematic typolog- (Shennan ). ical classication of lithics formally originated Archaeology is now ideally positioned within in Scandinavia, perhaps when the Swedish pol- the social sciences to evaluate and test explana- ymath Kilian Stobæus ( –), himself tory models of cultural transmission on a case- a voracious collector of antiquities including by-case basis, as this is the only discipline with many lithics, outrageously noted in that direct access to material residues of individual stone age axes and daggers were anthropogenic decisions deposited in the cultural record over in origin, and not created by lightning as com- considerable periods of (sometimes) well-dated monly believed (Per Karsten pers. comm.). e time and space. e lithic residue of ancient inuential classication scheme of Stobæus’ lithic armatures provides us with a particularly more famous student at Lund, Linnaeus, subse- good dataset for testing the predictions of the- quently revolutionized the science of taxonomy. oretical and experimental quantitative culture e underlying principle of Linnaeus’ seminal transmission work (Bettinger & Eerkens ; and inuential Systema Naturae ( ) was Edinborough ; Mesoudi & O’Brien a typological, he provided an essentialist taxon- & b). Here we develop a paradigmatic classi- omy for the natural world, directly related to
Aristotelian concepts of discretely named and ical New Synthesis (O’Brien & Lyman ). categorized essences (Hull ; ). Biolo- As the only secure way to distinguish an gy later rejected Linnaeus’ immutable catego- arrow head from a dart head armature is the rization of species and static natural ordering, close association of a wooden shaft with a diag- supplanted in by Darwin’s uid explana- nostic knock end for a bow string (Rausing tory mechanism of biological “transmutation”, ; Edinborough ), armatures are iden- more commonly known as descent with mod- tied as such by each individual lithic analyst. ication. As Hull states, the three essentialistic is is done by noting hafting polish, agreed tenets of typology following Aristotle are rstly, optimal metric ranges, high or low velocity spin the ontological assertion that (Platonic) forms o fractures, or more likely a combination of exist; secondly, the methodological assertion these diagnostic features compared with known that the task of taxonomy as a science is to ethnographic analogies and experimental work discern the essences of species; and thirdly the (Edinborough ). Arrowhead identications logical assertion concerning a denition, that by dierent analysts presumably have some is to say the classicatory type-name that des- degree of error, and issues remain as to correct ignates an essence (Hull , p. ). When identication of artefact use-wear, reusage and constructing a classicatory system archaeol- resharpening (Knarrström ); although ogists can benet from an overt awareness of these issues are not signicant in a large enough these tenets, as treating clearly variable tool spatial-temporal sample due to the destruc- types consciously or unconsciously as implicit tive nature of a relatively high velocity impact essentialist species leads to a mismatch of units (Knarrström ). Arrowheads are constrained of analyses, technical lineages, and thus an by size for functional and engineering reasons erroneous analysis of the lithic data at hand (Friss-Hansen ), and can metrically sep- (O’Brien & Lyman ). arate out bimodally as separate distributions from generally larger dart points (Shott ), although the precise measurements, methods Armature classication and results involved are hotly debated among Our classication scheme for Neolithic arma- lithic analysts (Edinborough ; ; Riede tures explicitly looks at the trait level rather than & Edinborough ). Circumalpine wetland the whole artefact unit of analysis, avoiding the archaeology has its own tool-type classicatory typologically rooted “species problem” (Hull issues that may prove problematic, as ambigu- ), in an attempt to avoid the circularity of ous lithic tools, i.e. potential daggers, knives, measuring interdependent technological traits or chisels, may possibly be misclassied by a (Edinborough ; Buchanan and Collard given analyst. ). We use a “paradigmatic” or materialist Despite these potentially confounding issues, approach, as opposed to a typological essentialist we do not believe this debate makes it problem- approach (Dunnell ; O’Brien & Lyman atical to establish the lineages of technological ), which sees types not as immutable enti- descent we are interested in here, as the instanc- ties like Linnaean species, but as populations es where armatures are perhaps misclassied of traits in a constant state of becoming (Hull will appear as statistical outliers and can be ). It was this revolutionary switch from accounted for. It follows that our classication an essentialist to a materialist philosophy in scheme places a greater emphasis on proximal biology that was the key theoretical advance and basal characteristics, following the work enabling the intellectual fecundity of the biolog- of Bettinger and Eerkens (), as the extant
archaeological and ethnographic evidence sug- Saintot ; Shennan ). A comparison gests that there is considerably more variety in of the environmental pollen record with breaks a projectile point basal element than the distal in the settlement sequence and variation in dif- element, certainly prior to the later innovation ferent cultural assemblages (Pétrequin ) of metal arrowhead mouldings (Saintot ). has shown clear support for models of abrupt cultural replacement in the French Jura region, notably in the appearance of the Horgen cul- Case study ture early in the nd century BC, followed by Some scholars have applied population-level the transition to Ferrières cultural assemblage, approaches towards understanding cultural thought to intrude from the south, in the late transmission processes underlying armature st century BC. e development of the local assemblages with some success (e.g., Bettinger Clairvaux culture then follows, down to c. & Eerkens ; Mesoudi & O’Brien a & BC. From to BC armature mor- b), whilst a general lack of armature sequenc- phology diversies and this is thought to be an es obtained from securely stratied sequences indigenous development inuenced by great- remains problematic. Finding deep-time secure er trade networks in the context of the local temporal sequences with signicant numbers of Chalain culture. e transition to the Bronze armatures is a rare occurrence. It is dicult to Age is perhaps not so clear-cut, with compet- constrain relatively or poorly dated sequences ing models of cultural replacement and grad- with the necessary temporal precision required ual change (Pétrequin ; Shennan ). to tightly constrain explanatory models (Edin- e subsequent standardization of arrows on borough ). On the other hand, following barbed and tanged types indicates Bell Beak- a tradition over years old, circum- alpine er inuences from BC that carry on to Neolithic lake-dwelling excavations present the Middle Bronze Age in that particular area researchers with unprecedented stratied (Saintot ). sequences (Pétrequin & Bailly ) especially e original armature analysis by Saintot since the Centre National de la Recherche Sci- ( ) was based on dening elementary entique and the Sous-Direction de l’Archéol- morphological types, aggregated into types, ogie made the lakes of Chalain and Clairvaux from securely identied arrowheads out of a focused case-studies for French prehistory, with total of armature lithics, whose trajectories an intensive research programme instigated by through time were characterized on the basis of Pétrequin (e.g., ). In particular, the sites their changing frequencies (Saintot , Figs. on the shores of these lakes in the Jura region –). Saintot concluded that the patterns of of southeastern France have an excellent chro- morphological variation she identied in the nology associated with a highly detailed study dierent types of armatures could be ascribed of lithic armatures ideal for testing competing to a number of cultural processes relating to theories of cultural change (Pétrequin ; changes in the direction of the cultural al- ; Saintot ). iations evidenced in the artefact assemblages A series of cultural historical interpreta- from the sites concerned. ese resulted from tions of these sites have been supported by regional scale demographic movements and various analyses of material culture arcing across changing exchange links. Saintot used chron- southeastern France. A dynamic cultural milieu ological phases (I: – BCE; II: emerges, characterized by variation in techno- BCE; III: IV: BC; V: – logical and stylistic traditions (Pétrequin ; BCE; VI: – BCE; VII: –
Fig. . Attributes used to dene the paradigmatic classication for armature traits based on key morphological characteristics. Note the focus on capturing the greater variation present at the proximal end of the armature, which is often hidden when attached to an arrowshaft by mastic and binding technology (cf. Edinborough ).
BCE; VIII: – ; IX: – BCE), derived from the armature illustrations in plates following Pétrequin ( ), although the rst – of Saintot cross referenced against the two were very poorly represented (only arrow- tables of data therein, and from previous eth- heads), and identied two particular periods no-archaeological research which indicates that of change aecting not just armatures but also the proximal end of lithic arrowheads contains pottery and ornaments, the rst c. BCE, the most variability and is therefore useful for marked by incoming communities from the measuring cultural and technological variation east entering into contact with areas to the (Edinborough ; Saintot ). south and the second with the appearance of Second, our aim is not to relate the types Bell Beaker material at c. BCE (Saintot to the broader cultural context of the sites, , p. ). the main focus of Saintot’s discussion, but to Our study and classication scheme diers t evolutionary models of social learning and from that of Saintot ( ) in two fundamen- to address the question of whether any of the tal ways. First, in contrast to her type con- phase transitions showed a more marked change struction we use as the basic type unit unique than predicted by the model. ere are too few combinations of traits identied by our para- armatures present in phase II to investigate digmatic classication. e attributes used to the phase II-III transition argued by Saintot construct the types and the types themselves to represent the earliest major change in the are shown in g . e attribute values were local sequence. e other predicted signicant
Fig. . e relative frequency of our armature types in each archaeological phase (left plot), and Morisita- Horn dissimilarity against temporal distance (right plot) measured between the mid-points of each phase of all pairs of phases identied at the Clairvaux-Chalain sites. change is that associated with the appearance statistic (Morisita ; Horn ), an eco- of Bell Beakers though it is ambiguous from logical index that quanties the compositional Saintot whether this is represented by the phase dissimilarity between two vectors of frequency, VII–VIII or VIII–IX transition. ranging from (identical composition) to Temporal changes in the frequency of arte- (complete absence of shared types). fact types oer the possibility for examining, e scatterplot in g. shows a signicant inferring, and testing models of cultural trans- correlation between the two measures as expect- mission (Neiman ; Shennan & Wilkinson ed (R2 =., p-value= ., Mantel Test ; Kandler & Shennan ). Mathemati- with , permutations), as the longer the cal models originally developed in evolutionary temporal distance between two phases, the biology, and modied to incorporate dynamics higher the dissimilarity in the frequencies of intrinsic to cultural transmission (Boyd and dierent armature types. On the other hand, Richerson ), allow us to make explicit the scatterplot also shows a variation in the quantitative predictions of population level dissimilarity between phases at approximately summary statistics that can be tested against the same interval. Can we safely state that these the observed record. dierences are resulting from dierent genera- Given that our objective is to examine poten- tive cultural transmission processes, or are these tial variations in the evolutionary process over levels of diversity to be expected from the same time, we chose as a summary statistic of our process? Can we safely ignore the eect of sam- data the dissimilarity in the frequency of arte- ple size or time-averaging (e.g. Premo )? fact traits between all possible pairs of cultural Here we use Approximate Bayesian Compu- phases. We use the Morisita-Horn dissimilarity tation (ABC, Beaumont et al. ; see Crema
Fig. . Simulation output of frequency change in cultural traits (left column) and cor- responding scatter plot of Morisita-Horn dissimilarity vs. time distance. Simulation generated from an unbiased transmission model, with a population size of and innovation rates of . (a), . (b), and . (c). e frequencies depicts the most common traits from each simulation.
et al. for an archaeologically tailored dis- similarity indices between the observed and cussion on the method as well as methodo- simulated data should be small and randomly logical discussion of the present case study), a distributed. Consequently, any changes in the computational method that enables us to infer, generative process (e.g. an increase in the inno- for a given simulation model, the parameter val- vation rate, transmission mechanism, popula- ues that will provide the best t to an observed tion size) should lead to signicant deviations at dataset. is is achieved by iteratively generat- key transitions (as those expected from phases ing articial summary statistics (comparable to VII–VIII and/or VIII–IX). the observed ones) using dierent parameter values sampled from a prior parameter distri- bution. e nal output of ABC is a proba- Unbiased Cultural Transmission bilistic estimate of the parameters values that One of the most commonly adopted models is informed both by the hypothesized model for exploring the frequency of dierent artefact and the empirical data. types is the unbiased transmission or random We used the dissimilarities plotted on g. drift model (Boyd and Richerson ; Bent- as our empirical data-set and assumed that ley et al. ). e key principle is that the if the generative process behind the empirical most parsimonious initial assumption in the record was unchanging, dierences in the dis- pattern of cultural transmission is a neutral
Fig. . Posterior density distribu- tion of the two simulation para- meters obtained from ABC.
blance to classic archaeo- logical “battleship curves”. When innovation rate is high (Fig. -a), variants have a shorter time-span of existence. Consequently if we plot the dissimilarity against distance in time (as we did in Fig. ) we have a steep curve, suggesting a fast rate of cultural evolution. When the rate of innova- process where selective biases are absent. In tion is low (Fig. -c), cultural variants have a other words, the likelihood of copying a cul- longer persistence over time, and the scatter tural trait is purely a function of how frequent plot exhibits a shallower curve. us depend- this trait is. Under this model, two variables ing on the rate of innovation we should expect play a pivotal role in dening the dynamics dierent levels of dissimilarity between two of cultural evolution: the rate of innovation archaeological phases at the same temporal and the eective population size. e former inter-distance. Fig. also highlights how the is simply the frequency by which a new cul- very same model and parameters can generate, tural trait is invented within dened interval as a consequence of the random nature of the of time t. e invention is at the individu- copying process, a range of dissimilarity values al level and does not necessarily imply the for the same temporal distance. adoption of the trait by all other individuals. e eective population size can be concep- tualized in dierent ways, from the number Fitting the model and detecting of social learners to the observed sample that outliers play a role in the copying process. It is impor- e variation observed in g. indicates that tant to stress that the eective population is given a temporal distance between archaeolog- not equivalent to the actual population size, ical phases we might expect a variety of values although a positive correlation between the in the dissimilarity measure depending on the two can be expected. choice of our model parameters. is leads to Fig. shows how variation in the innova- the question of how we can evaluate episodes tion rate alone can generate dierent patterns of signicant change at Clairvaux-Chalain, if under the same unbiased cultural transmission we do not know what exactly we should expect. process, though all of them bear a strong resem- In other words, if the process generating the
Fig. . Dissimilarity ranges expected from the unbiased transmission compared to observed values (das- hed line) for phases VII to VIII and VIII to IX. pattern observed in the frequency changes of abilistic range (rather than a xed value) for arrowhead typology was unbiased transmission, the frequency of transmission events yielded what were the innovation rate and the eective similar results (see Crema et al. ), suggest- population size? ing that the overall conclusion of the study is Fig. shows the parameter estimates of the suciently robust. unbiased transmission model obtained from e posterior estimates of the model param- ABC. Assuming that individuals can socially eter obtained from ABC enable us to estimate learn approximately once a decade (for bow-ar- expected dissimilarity for any given pair of row technology see Hill & Hurtado ), archaeological phases, taking into consideration the simulation shows that the best-t model sample size, time-averaging, temporal distance has an innovation rate of approximately . between the two assemblages, and the inferred (equivalent to an innovation per years innovation rate and eective population size. per person), and an eective population size Fig. shows such expected dissimilarity values between and . It is worth noting that for the transitions of our interest (phases VII to these parameter estimates are functions of the VIII and VIII to IX), which can be compared assumptions built into the model (i.e. frequency against the observed dissimilarity (shown as a of transmission events), and hence their inter- vertical dashed line). is strongly suggests that pretation should be cautious, and restricted the observed dissimilarity is lower than that to relative terms, rather than absolute ones. expected by the unbiased transmission model. However, a more conservative approach using Such a result is the opposite of what would be bootstrapped summary statistics and a prob- expected if there was a major cultural change
during this interval, despite the later appearance awarded to Prof. Stephen Shennan in phases VII–VIII and VIII–IX of distinctive for the EUROEVOL project. Many thanks barbed and tanged arrowhead morphologies, to Prof. Lars Larsson for the opportunity to often intuitively associated with the dramatic contribute to this volume, and to Prof. Mark arrival of Bell Beaker culture or perhaps even omas, Dr. Marc Vander Linden, Dr. Felix Horgen dagger technology (Furestier ; Riede, and the EUROEVOL team at University Vander Linden ). College London for thought-provoking discus- sions. Special thanks to Dr. Per Karsten and Dr. Bo Knarrström for all the support provided to Conclusions the rst author during (and after) his doctoral is paper shows how population level pro- research. Analyses has been conducted using cesses driving cultural evolution can be better R statistical programming language (R Core understood if mathematical and computational Team ) using the vegan (Oksanen et al. methods, often with a strong element of sim- ) and abc (Csilléry et al. ) packages. ulation, are applied to archaeological datasets. We navigate through persistent previous taxo- nomic problems archaeologists inherited from References other disciplines long ago by adopting a pop- Beaumont, M. A., Zhang, W. & Balding, D. . ulation-based approach, coupled with a trait- Approximate Bayesian Computation in Population Genetics. Genetics . based paradigmatic taxonomic classication Bentley, R. A., Hahn, M. W. and Shennan, S. J. . scheme for armatures and a statistical method Random drift and culture change. Proceedings of the that enabled us to formulate our hypothesis as Royal Society B ( ). a simulation model. Bettinger, R. L., and Eerkens, J. . Point typologies, We conclude that our population level cultural transmission, and the spread of bow-and-arrow technology in the prehistoric Great Basin. American approach uses new computer-based Bayesian Antiquity . methods that make it possible to generate sim- Boyd, R. and Richerson, P. J. . Culture and the Evo- ulation models integrating theory with archae- lutionary Process. Chicago. ological evidence to compare outcomes with Buchanan, B., and Collard, M. . Investigating the peopling of North America through cladistic analyses observed data. is approach has great utility of early Paleoindian projectile points. Journal of Anth- for studying armature evolution across Euro- ropological Archaeology (). pean research traditions. Our approach is tai- Clarke, David L. . Models in archaeology. London. lor-made for exploring highly specic models Crema, E. R., Edinborough, K., Kerig, T., Shennan, of cultural transmission elsewhere in the archae- S.J. . An Approximate Bayesian Computation approach for inferring patterns of cultural evolutio- ological record so we believe the implications nary change. Journal of Archaeological Science, Volume for better understanding other technological , October . lineages with this methodology are profound. Csilléry, K., Francois, O. and Blum, M. G. B. . abc: We hope this new approach and others like an R package for approximate Bayesian computation it will enable archaeology to undergo its own (ABC). Methods in Ecology and Evolution . Dunnell, R.C. . Systematics in prehistory. New York. much needed New Synthesis. Edinborough, K. . Evolution of bow-arrow technology. PhD diss., University College London. – . Weapons of maths instruction: A thousand years Acknowledgements of technological stasis in arrowheads of the South Scan- dinavian Middle Mesolithic. Papers from the Institute is research was funded by the European of Archaeology . Research Council Advanced Grant number – . Population history, abrupt climate change and
evolution of arrowhead technology in Mesolithic south vegan: Community Ecology Package. R package version Scandinavia. In Shennan, S. J.(ed.), Pattern and Process .– . URL: HYPERLINK “http://CRAN.R-pro- in Cultural Evolution. Berkeley. ject.org/package=vegan”http://CRAN.R-project.org/ Friss-Hansen, J. . Mesolithic cutting arrows: Fun- package=vegan ctional analysis of arrows used in the hunting of large Pétrequin P. . North wind, south wind: Neolithic game. Antiquity . technical choices in the Jura mountains, – Furestier, R. . Les industries lithiques campaniformes BC. In Lemonnier, P. (ed.), Technical choices: transfor- du sud-est de la France. BAR: British archaeological mations in material culture since the Neolithic. London. reports. International series . Oxford. – . I. Les lacs de Chalain et de Clairvaux: dynamique Gilbert, S.F., Opitz, J. M. & Ra, R. A. . Resyn- évolutive des styles céramiques et transferts de popula- thesizing evolutionary and developmental biology. tion. In Gallia préhistoire . Developmental Biology . Pétrequin P. & Bailly, M. . Lake-dwelling research Hill, K. & Hurtado, M. . Ache Life History: e Eco- in France: From climate to demography. In Menotti, logy and Demography of a Foraging People. New York. F. (ed.), Living on the Lake in Prehistoric Europe: Horn, H. S. . Measurement of “Overlap” in compa- Years of Lake-dwelling Research. London. rative ecological studies. e American Naturalist . Premo, L. S. . Cultural transmission and diversity in Hull, D. . e Eect of Essentialism on Taxonomy time-averaged assemblages. Current Anthropology . – Two ousand Years of Stasis (I) e British Journal R Core Team R: A language and environment for sta- for the Philosophy of Science Vol. , No. . tistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Com- Hull, D. . Units of evolution: a metaphysical essay. puting, Vienna, Austria. URL: HYPERLINK “http:// In Jensen, U. J. and Harré, R. (eds.), e philosophy www.R-project.org/”http://www.R-project.org/. of evolution. New York. Rausing, G. . e Bow: Some Notes on Its Origin and Kandler, A. & Shennan, S. . A non-equilibrium Development. Lund. neutral model for analysing cultural change. Journal Riede, F. & Edinborough, K. . Bayesian Radio- of eoretical Biology . carbon models for the cultural transition during the Knarrström, B. . Flint: a Scanian hardware. Malmö. Allerød in southern Scandinavia. Journal of Archaeo- Linnaeus, C. . Systema naturae, sive regna tria natu- logical Science . rae systematice proposita per classes, ordines, genera, & Saintot, S. . Les armatures de èches en silex de species. Leiden. Chalain et de Clairvaux. In Gallia préhistoire . Mesoudi, A. & O’Brien, M. J. a. e Cultural Trans- Shennan, S. . Population, culture history, and the mission of Great Basin Projectile Point Technology I: dynamics of culture change. Current Anthropology . An Experimental Simulation. American Antiquity . – . Descent with modication and the archaeo- – b. e Cultural Transmission of Great Basin Pro- logical record. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal jectile Point Technology II: An Agent-Based Computer Society B, . Simulation. American Antiquity . Shennan, S. & Wilkinson, J. R. . Ceramic Style Morisita, M. . Measuring of the dispersion and ana- Change and Neutral Evolution: A Case Study from lysis of distribution patterns. Memoirs of the Faculty of Neolithic Europe. American Antiquity (). Science, Kyushu University, Series E. Biology, . Shott, M. J. . Stones and shafts redux: the metric Neiman, F. D. . Stylistic Variation in Evolutionary discrimination of chipped-stone dart and arrow points, Perspective: Inferences from Decorative Diversity and American Antiquity . Interassemblage Distance in Illinois Woodland Cera- Vander Linden, M. . For whom the bell tolls: Soci- mic Assemblages, American Antiquity . al hierarchy vs. social integration in the Bell Beaker O’Brien, M. J. & Lyman, R. L. . Applying Evolu- culture of Southern France. Cambridge Archaeological tionary Archaeology: A Systematic Approach. New York. Journal (). Oksanen, J. F. Blanchet, G., Kindt, R. Legendre, P., Vang Petersen, P. . Flint fra Denmarks Oldtid. Copen- Minchin, P. R. O’Hara, R. B., Simpson, G. L., Soly- hagen. mos, P., Stevens, M. H. M. and Wagner, H. .
e scent of sandstone – exploring a TRB material Susan Hydén
Abstract e aim of this article is to briey explore how quartz-rich sandstone might have been perceived by TRB societies. Using the senses as a point of departure, it discusses how sandstone was selected for grinding stones and for dry walling in megaliths, emphasizing the signicance of the visual as well as the mechan- ical properties of the material. e article also acknowledges the complexity of the way in which the material was perceived. e signicance of sandstone was shaped by context, implying that a changing context altered its signicance. Ultimately, this study is a call for taking materials seriously by exploring them in a more nuanced way. Analogies, for example, can be very useful – not as proof, but as a way of raising questions and scenting the diversity of the Neolithic.
Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, LUX, Lund University, Box , SE- Lund, Sweden. [email protected]
Introduction for grinding stones and as building material. Whether or not the scent of sandstone or the vicinity of Höör in sound of the blocks was signicant during the central Scania in , Professor Sven Nils- early Neolithic is indeed hard to tell, although son was told that Scanian quarrymen were senses such as touch, feel, smell, sound and known for the ability to recognize sandstone sight are part of any craftsperson’s skills (Kuij- by using their sense of smell. In the search for pers , p. ). But such analogies open suitable rock material for querns, they thrust one’s mind and encourage us to raise questions thin, pointed levers into the ground. When that would otherwise not have been asked, due hitting rock, experienced quarrymen could to our unfamiliarity with premodern working distinguish between sandstone and gneiss by skills. Using the senses as a point of departure smelling the tip of the bar. ey could also make we can perhaps “scent” something out about an estimation of the size of the boulders they how this material was perceived. came across by listening to the sound the bar made when hitting the stones (Nilsson , p. ). Scanian sandstone was not only used as Scanian quartz-rich sandstone raw material for quern stones during medieval Geologically speaking, there is no such thing and historical times. It was also an important as Scanian quartz-rich sandstone, but, rather, building material, the cathedral in Lund being many dierent types of sandstone. In some a renowned example. But the signicance of parts of Scania there are still sandstone for- sandstone during another era of monumentality mations that are quarried. Another source is is seldom discussed, despite its frequent uses the vast areas of moraine containing pieces of
sandstones brought by the ice sheet and hence of the chambers, passages and/or kerbstones not local in a geological sense. One aspect that are often sealed with a dry wall consisting of these quartz-rich sandstones have in common smaller stones that are stacked on top of each is a reddish colour, although they sometimes other, although the use of the word dry wall is show a more greyish or even whitish hue. Geol- unfortunate as there is evidence of the use of ogists refer to one group as arkoses, which is a mortar (Ebbesen , p. ). Dry walling is type of sandstone containing a high degree of often associated with passage graves, but was the mineral feldspar. e feldspar contributes also used in dolmens (Jacobsson , p. ; to the red colour, but some Scanian sandstones Brink & Hammarstrand Dehman , p. are coloured by iron oxide, or a combination ). e reason for the selection of sandstone of the two (Johansson ). may have been the natural cleavability of this ough not qualifying as such, some sand- rock type, which was expedient for megalith stones look very much like homogeneous quartz- builders who wanted thin stone plates to use. ites. ere is also a large variation in the size of On the other hand, investigations in Denmark, quartz and feldspars grains. What causes the Sweden, north Germany, northern Nether- colour or other geological specics of the sand- lands and northwestern France have raised the stone is not important from an archaeological suggestion that the red colour of the building point of view, however. Irrespective of its com- materials may have been signicant (Strömberg position or formation, many of these quartz- , p. ; Hårdh & Bergström , p. ; rich sandstones are easily recognizable, mainly Tilley ; Scarre , pp. f.; Midgley due to the combination of their colour and the , p. ; van Gijn & Raemaekers ). often homogeneous, sometimes layered matrix e geological history of an area is reected of small quartz grains that makes them rath- in the choice of stone for building material. er easy to break along their planes (Johansson Among the passage graves in the megalith-dense ). To avoid burdening the text in this study, region of Västergötland, Sweden, for example, quartz-rich sandstone will be referred to simply the use of at pieces of red and grey limestone as “sandstone” from now on, although it is not as construction material has been noted (Axels- a homogeneous group geologically speaking. son & Jankavs ). e red limestone is softer and dissolves more easily than the grey limestone. is means that the red stones stick A retrospective view together more easily, which could have been a Prehistoric megalith builders used many dier- desirable property for megalith builders who ent types of rock to build their monuments. In wanted material that had the ability to seal the the southeastern part of Scania, for example, chamber and keep it dry. On the other hand, numerous rock types have been documented, the red stones were often placed in ways that which seem to have been found in the vicini- made the red colour stand out (Axelsson & ty of the tombs (e.g. Strömberg pp. Jankavs , pp. .). An investigation .). Among these rock types, the selection of of a specic type of red sandstone (Kågeröd red sandstone for dry walling in megaliths has sandstone) used for the dry walling in passage been noted in many cases, although other rock graves in western Scania is another example types, especially lamellar or easily cloven stones, of how both the colour and the mechanical were also used (Fig. ; Strömberg , p. ; properties of the sandstone seem to have been Hårdh & Bergström , pp. .; Tilley important (Hårdh & Bergström , p. ). ; Ebbesen , pp. , ). e walls If such qualities made sandstone a sought-
– Flaking is often used to shape the sides of the artefacts but it is often hard to tell whether aking and/or percussion were applied to shape the use surfaces as well, since they usually are heavi- ly worn. e bottoms of the artefacts are often unaltered but can exhibit a worn appearance, and sometimes the artefacts display two use surfaces, often situated on opposite sides. ese grind- ing stones are most often fragmented which makes it dicult to estimate the original size of these artefacts. ey are occasionally found, sometimes in large numbers, on sites from the Mesolithic period and have been associated with ground stone axes (Jensen , p. ; Schaller-Åhrberg , p. ). ey are a comparatively common nd at TRB sites as well, dating from a time when Stone Age people ground axes made of int as well. e appearance of the heavily worn use surfaces is often inter- preted as being caused by the grind- ing and polishing of, for example, axes (van Gijn & Houkes , p. ; Johansson , p. ; Schaller Åhr- Fig. . A dry stone wall in the Hallebrøndshøj passage grave berg ). Experimental archaeology on Bornholm, Denmark. Photo: Svend Illum Hansen. has proven such stones to be suitable for grinding e.g. int axes with water, after building material in Scania, the high sometimes together with sand, as an eective quartz content made it a useful material for lubricant (Olausson , p. ; Madsen , tools as well. According to Rapp (, p. p. ; Hahn , p. ). ese circumstances ), quartz was the most common abrasive combined mean that they are often interpreted throughout the ancient world, and rock types as axe grinding stones, but it may be mentioned with high quartz content are generally suit- that this assumption is under revaluation and able for grinding and abrading (e.g. van Gijn needs to be problematized (Hydén, ongoing & Houkes ). In southern Scandinavia, PhD project). Although the function of these quartz-rich sandstone was often selected for artefacts is not the topic of this article, it may be grinding stones (Fig. ). ese tools are easy noted that the term grinding stone is used here to recognize, not only because of the rock type in a generic way, i.e. without indicating what itself, but also because of the smooth polish have been ground using these tools. Neverthe- that the worn use surfaces exhibit, which some- less, this type of artefact has not attracted much times have striations visible to the naked eye. attention in archaeological research (Hamon
Fig. . Some examples of fragmented grinding stones from the Early Neolithic site of Almhov in south- ern Sweden. Photo: Susan Hydén.
, p. ; Schaller Åhrberg , p. ). quently puts it: “materials appear to vanish, us, an investigation of grinding stones made swallowed up by the very objects to which they of sandstone can contribute to an understand- have given birth. at is why we commonly ing of how this material was perceived, as well describe materials as “raw” but never “cooked” as shedding light on a type of tool that is often – for by the time they have congealed into overlooked or taken for granted. objects they have already disappeared.” Viewed from this perspective, it is better to talk about “material” rather than “raw material”. inking material In recent years, however, research which Despite notable exceptions, much of the last acknowledges that material is not a formless decades’ focus on material culture and materi- substrate without any signicance until it is ality has been criticized for producing research transformed into a nished artefact form seems based on theoretical perspectives, but with to be emerging (e.g. Boivin & Owoc ; surprisingly little attention paid to the physi- Conneller ). At the same time it is some- cal material itself (e.g. Olsen ; Hurcombe what ironic that archaeological research seldom ; Ingold ; Conneller ). One rea- focuses on stone as a material, despite the fact son may lie implicit in our modern concept of that a whole period is named after it. Stone as a “raw material”, or as Ingold (, p. ) elo- catchall term in archaeology is rather unwieldy
– as it conveys the fact that it comprises many exposed to the weather and other natural pro- rock types with very dierent properties (Con- cesses (Lynch ; Jones ). In addition, neller , p, ). Dierent rock types may subtle tonal patterns such as natural dierenc- very well have been thought of as dierent kinds es in shade are not that obvious for us today as of material in the past, materials that were used they would have been in earlier societies where to grind, smooth, abrade, polish, saw, bore, the palette of colours was restricted (Hurcombe crush, shape and sharpen, among other things. , p. f.). ere is a rich ora of research It was used for a vast variety of purposes, from that emphasizes the importance of incorporating making tools, structures and petroglyphs, to colour and other aspects of the sensory realm tempering of pottery, processing animal and into the interpretations of prehistoric societies vegetable products, pigments, clays and other (e.g. Jones & MacGregor ; Fahlander & materials (Adams ). Flint is an exception as Kjellström ; Day ). e scope of this it clearly is the most studied material in the rock article does not allow for an extended discussion and mineral group in southern Scandinavia, to of the theoretical background and methodo- such extent that it can be considered the norm logical implications of sensory archaeologies. (cf. Alexandersson , p. ). One reason But by posing the question whether colour or for this research lacuna concerning sandstone other sensory aspects could be part of the way grinding stones may be that they do not display grinding stones were perceived, new ways of any obvious typological features. Moreover, the understanding a tool that is often overlooked production and maintenance does not produce or taken for granted can be gained. But neither much waste material to facilitate technologi- typologies nor function-based terminologies are cal studies, and the akes and other by-prod- very helpful when exploring this issue. Focus- ucts that do occur are seldom retrieved from ing on the artefacts’ life histories, however, has Scanian archaeological excavations. Pecking proven fruitful when studying ground stone and grinding techniques may also have been artefacts in general (Hydén ; ; ). involved in the process, but they do not leave So what can the life histories of grinding stones any macroscopically visible by-products, apart tell us about the sensory aspects of sandstone? from manufacturing tools involved in the pro- As a basis for this brief discussion, the grinding cess (Olausson , p. ). All these factors stones from the site of Almhov will be used. Alm- contribute to the tendency to interpret these hov was an Early Neolithic burial and gathering grinding stones in strictly functional terms. place situated outside present-day Malmö, and ey represent the idea of a ready-made tool grinding stones were the most common type of used to shape other tools, a fact that does not ground stone artefacts found at the site. Alm- encourage any further interpretations. hov is introduced by Rudebeck & Macheridis But just as sandstone was deliberately sought in this volume and will for that reason not be out for dry walling, this material was inten- presented in more detail here (see also Gidlöf tionally selected to be used as grinding tools. ; Rudebeck ; Hydén ). And quite possibly, there was a similar tension between the mechanical properties and visual qualities, as seems to have been the case when Visibility sandstone was selected as a building materi- Studying sandstone in relation to the life histo- al. Studying the colours associated with rocks ries of grinding stones raises a number of ques- is often forgotten, partly because many rock tions about procurement strategies and storage. types sometimes resemble each other after being e investigation of the grinding stones from
Almhov showed that they are made of sand- at the landscape in southern Scania it is easy stone nodules. Patches of weathered surfaces to forget how it must have looked like during caused by natural forces can often be identi- the Neolithic period. Walking the arable lands ed despite their fragmentary character, which of today, it is easy to nd stones on the newly indicates that the material did not originate ploughed elds. But tilling the soil must also from solid rock (Hydén , p. ). e have provided opportunities to gather stones moraine that surrounds Almhov is a possible during the Neolithic, although the need for source, although the stones could have been clearance of stones was perhaps not that impor- transported a greater distance. e study made tant in small-scale farming (cf. Olausson , of the Kågeröd sandstone mentioned previously p. ). Keeping animals is also a way of expos- suggests that the material used as dry walling in ing stones due to trampling and grubbing. In passage graves was quarried. e large amounts addition, people must also have come across of lamellar stones that were used in combination stones during the clearance and digging for with their sharp-edged form makes it conceiv- pits and megalithic structures at burial and able that they were brought from an outcrop gathering places such as Almhov. ere is also along a river in the area. e distribution of the possibility that people brought sandstone these red stones in the megaliths points to the nodules or nished grinding stones to Almhov existence of a relationship between two areas from other places. e pottery found at Alm- where megalithic graves were erected in western hov, for example, was not made of local clay Scania and the sandstone could have been trans- (Gidlöf , p. ). e sandstone akes ported by water (Hårdh & Bergström , found at Almhov are negligible, suggesting pp. .). A dierent procurement strategy that the artefacts were formed and curated at must be attributed to the grinding stones found another place. is may, on the other hand, at Almhov. Although the preferred quartz- be a source-critical problem, as such produc- rich sandstone nodules may originate from tion waste can be rather scarce and dicult to the moraine, such stones were hardly lying identify and was not a prioritized aspect in the around everywhere. Firstly, the nodules need excavation plan. to have a certain size. Secondly, many of these Even if the material could have been pro- stones were to some extent formed by aking cured in many dierent ways, the red colour in order to shape the sides, indicating that a could very well have been part of it. Red sand- certain form was desirable. At the same time, stones plates are in fact something that many this shaping seems to be done only partly and archaeologists look out for during eldwork, could also be part in the maintenance of the as they may be an indication of a megalithic tools in order to prevent the use surface from environment. is is not to suggest that col- becoming too hollow. Nevertheless, the shape our was the only way of recognizing sandstone of the original, “natural” nodule was utilized during prehistory, and other types of red stones to a great extent, thus showing that there was were also collected, e.g. red granite, which was an interest in letting nature act as a designer used to temper pottery. Also worth noting is the (cf. Conneller ). e question is how the large numbers of pits, which are typically found sandstone was collected; if the nodules were on TRB sites. Both artefacts and unmodied actively searched for or if they were picked up stones are generally found in these pits, and for future use when an opportunity presented Almhov is no exception. Investigations of the itself. Both ways are of course possible, and composition of these stones to see whether they irrespective of procurement strategy, looking are random or not could provide a basis for a
– discussion of rock type selection and if there and the visibility of these clearly broken tools are pits that could have been used for storage could represent the social practice of fragmen- (cf. Schneider p. ). tation (Hydén ). Exploring the life histories of the grinding But warnings about concluding too quickly stones from Almhov in relation to context can that some sort of colour symbolism or the like provide clues as to whether colour was signif- was signicant, thus privileging vision over the icant at the end of their use lives as well. e other senses or other aspects, have been made fragmented grinding stones were put into the (Scarre , pp. f.). Stone is also seen as dolmens, at the facades of the long barrows as a material that embodies the signicance of well as inside the burials. e tools must have place, an idea that can be interpreted in many been deposited, displayed and arranged in var- ways (e.g. Scarre ; Conneller , pp. ious ways, and their signicance was shaped .). Although this kind of interpretation is and reshaped by these dierent and changing often connected to monuments it must also be contexts. A large corpus of research material a possibility for nodules used for artefacts and with well-preserved and detailed documented found in a moraine to signify a place. People contexts would be required for a wider dis- visiting a large burial and gathering place such cussion. is is not the case here, but some as Almhov are likely to have come from dierent aspects can briey be touched upon. e red, places and may have brought the stones. But the at Kågeröd sandstones used for dry walling grinding stones could also have gained signif- contrasted in a conspicuously way than the icance through their use, e.g. representing the larger slabs in the passage graves. Due to the communal work of building the monuments bad preservation of the monuments at Almhov, at Almhov (Hydén , p. ). Even materi- the placement of the grinding stones cannot be als used in what are considered mundane tasks discussed in detail. Still, they were put into these were bound up with people’s understandings monuments, and even if they hardly worked as of the world (Conneller , p. ). dry walling material, the colour of these tools would still have had a visual eect. A connection between the overall use of red building stones To conclude – the signicance and the frequent use of red ochre in or close to of sandstone the megaliths has been suggested (Strömberg e aim of this short article was to briey , pp. .; Hårdh & Bergström , explore how quartz-rich sandstone might have p. ). An interesting parallel is an investiga- been perceived by TRB societies, which led to tion of fragmented sandstone tools found on a a discussion about colour and visibility. e Neolithic site in the Netherlands. ese tools, signicance of artefacts is shaped by context, used as querns, were intentionally broken and and changing the context alters the signicance, rubbed with ochre (Verbaas & van Gijn ). which allows for dierent interpretations in Again, the main thread seems to be the red which dierent material qualities can be part. colour, and even if not all sandstone grinding Both the mechanical properties and the senso- stones from Almhov are distinctly red, there ry qualities of a material are examples of what is the possibility that they once were covered can be important in dierent ways in dierent with ochre. e almost glossy appearance of situations. e possible tension between stone the use surfaces is another visual characteristic, as something permanent (the monuments) not to mention another most striking feature. and something that was destroyed and per- All grinding stones at Almhov are fragmented haps abandoned (the artefacts) is something
that could be explored further. Ultimately, this slutundersökning : område C och C: Vintrie : : study is a call for a problematization of dierent fornlämning , och : Bunkeo socken, Malmö kommun, Skåne län. Sydsvensk arkeologi. Kristianstad. kinds of archaeological methods, concepts and Conneller, C. . An Archaeology of Materials: Sub- hierarchies. It is concluded, for example, that stantial Transformations in Early Prehistoric Europe. stone can be many materials, that material is New York. not that “raw” and that the moraine could be Day, J. (ed.) . Making Senses of the Past: Toward a looked upon as a harvesting eld where col- Sensory Archaeology. Carbondale. Ebbesen, K. . Danmarks megalitgrave vol. ,. Køben- our was important for localizing material of havn. Natures design. Fahlander, F. & Kjellström, A. (eds.) . Making sense To conclude, modern quarrymen in Scania of things: archaeologies of sensory perception. Department used scent and sound while quarrying for sand- of Archaeological and Classical History, Stockholm stone, an observation that led to a discussion University. Stockholm. Gidlöf K. . En tidigneolitisk samlingsplats. In Hade- of the sensory aspects of sandstone during the vik, C. & Steineke, M. (eds.), Tematisk rapportering earlier part of the Neolithic. As such, analogies av Citytunnelprojektet. Malmö Kulturmiljö. Malmö. can be very useful – not as proof, but as a way van Gijn, A-L. & Houkes, R. . Stone, procurement of raising questions and scent the diversity of and use. In Louwe Kooijmans L.P. & Jongste P. F. B (eds.), Schipluiden – Harnaschpolder: A Middle Neo- the Neolithic. lithic Site on the Dutch Coast (– BC). Analecta Praehistorica Leidensia / . Leiden. van Gijn, A-L. & Raemaekers, D.C.M. . Choosy Acknowledgements about stone – the signicance of the colour red in the I would like to thank the archaeological seminar Dutch Funnel Beaker Culture. In Niedersächsisches Institut für historische Küstenforschung (ed.), Flint at the department of Archaeology and Ancient from Heligoland − e exploitation of a unique source History in Lund for valuable comments on a of raw-material on the North Sea coast. Siedlungs- und previous version of this paper. Special thanks Küstenforschung im südlichen Nordseegebiet . Rah- goes to Svend Illum Hansen for providing a den, Westf. photo of a dry stone wall. Hahn, J. . Erkennen und Bestimmen von Stein und Knochenartefakten: Einführung in die Artefaktmorpho- logie. Archaeologica Venatoria . Tübingen. Hamon, C. . Broyage et abrasion au néolithique ancien: References caractérisation technique et fonctionnelle des outillages Adams, J. . Ground Stone Analysis: A Technological en grès du Bassin parisien. BAR International Series Approach. Salt Lake City. . Oxford. Alexandersson, K. . Why use dierent raw materials? Hårdh, B. & Bergström, J. . Red Walling in Passage- Raw material use during the Late Mesolithic to Middle tombs. Meddelanden från Lunds Universitets Historiska Neolithic along the coast of Kalmarsund. In Larsson, Museum – . New Series vol. . Lund. M. & Parker Pearson, M. (eds.), From Stonehenge to Hurcombe, L. . A sense of materials and sensory the Baltic: living with cultural diversity in the third mil- perception in concepts of materiality. World Archa- lennium BC. Oxford. eology , . Axelsson, T. & Jankavs, P. . Stones for the ancestors Hydén, S. . Förstenade handlingar: Försök att gestalta – red limestone and cleft rocks. In Bakker, J. A., Bloo, bergartsföremål. In Hadevik, C. & Steineke, M. (eds.), S. B. C. & Dütting, M. A. (eds.), From funeral monu- Tematisk rapportering av Citytunnelprojektet. Malmö ments to household pottery: current advances in Funnel Kulturmiljö. Malmö. Beaker Culture (TRB/TBK) research. Proceedings of the – . Klotformade handstenar från yngre bronsålder BorgerMeetings , e Netherlands. Oxford. och äldre järnålder. In Högberg, A. (ed.), Södra Kris- Boivin N. & Owoc M. A. . Soils, Stones and Sym- tineberg – hantverk i fokus. Malmö Museer. Malmö. bols: Cultural Perceptions of the Mineral World. London. – . Fragments of life and death – the biography of Brink, K. & Hammarstrand Dehman, K. . Vintrie grinding and polishing stones found in long barrows park – grav och gård BC– AD: arkeologisk at the Almhov burial site. In Hinze, M., Furholt, M.,
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Fragmentation during the Neolithic Transformation and enchainment from a south Swedish perspective Lars Larsson
Abstract Studies of the creation of material culture, objects as well as structures, are well represented in research. e ways in which objects and structures go out of use should be as interesting and important an aspect as how they were made. In recent research fragmentation has been closely connected to enchainment, the relation between objects and humans. e eect of re represents a special form of fragmentation. Finds indicate that the use of re on artefacts, especially int, is well known throughout the Neolithic. Axes are more aected than any other type. In order to achieve the right fragmentation the int has to be heat-treated. In the second stage the int can be placed directly on a re. At two sites in southeastern Scania mass destruction of int objects was performed. e evidence from the sites suggests that the process of destruction involved transforming key items of material culture. is means that that the enchainment is not an isolated episode but a process including both separate individuals and a number of members of the society. e building of earthen long barrows and large palisades involved moving soil and cutting trees, which caused fragmentation of environments, but at the same time had the goal of social unication.
Institute of Archaeology and Ancient History, LUX, Lund University, Box , SE- Lund, Swe- den. [email protected]
Introduction e duration of that “life” may also vary; in recognize particular world- some cases no more than days, in others, as views, ideas and values archaeologically? In the with heirlooms, having a life-span that exceeds case of objects, we can certainly identify evi- several human generations (Hakiwai & Smith dence for structured forms of treatment, from ). In some instances, objects can even be the conditions in which certain objects were regarded as more valuable than people, pos- made to the manner in which many were depos- sessing names and biographies that are well ited. But we can only begin to make sense of known to the community. that evidence, once we recognize the close cat- Studies of the creation of material culture, egorical and biographical links that often join including objects as well as structures, are well people and things. For example, tools have a represented in research. But in research the ways birth, an active life and a death. How the process objects and structures go out of use is as inter- of birth and death is dealt with depends, as for esting and important an aspect as how they very people, on how particular tools and materials made. Studies have been performed (Berggren are evaluated, a process that can vary from one ) but more can be done. ere is a need to example to another. In other words, the “life” study the causes of the destruction of objects, of a tool may take dierent paths, depending intentional as well as unintentional: worn out on decisions taken by individuals or collectives. and discarded, deposited in graves, caches or
ritual depositions etc. e same applies to con- and Gaydarska. When re is involved in the structions. ere can be many dierent reasons process of fragmentation it involves a relation of social importance why an object or construc- to objects of natural and articial origin that is tion was taken out of service. needed for just one stage in the process, such as ere are several aspects to be considered with- making and maintaining a re (Hodder ) in the processes of deposition and destruction. It might be a considerable process including Scandinavian archaeologists have long interpret- several hours or days and involving a number ed collections of tools buried in the soil outside of people. is is of special importance when occupation sites mainly as the result of ritual re is used on objects that do not burn and are acts. Outside Scandinavia, however, it seems to not entirely destroyed by high temperature. In be more dicult to nd acceptance for the inter- addition, the handling of object might involve a pretation of Stone Age depositions as objects not deliberate process of changing the quality of the to be recovered (Bradley ). A collection of object but simultaneously preserving the shape, tools is often regarded as a cache for later use. But as in the treating of int axes. In these cases the the large number of nds in wetland environ- change of enchaining might involve a process of ments of southern Scandinavia makes no sense considerable alterations between the objects or except in terms of ritual purposes (Larsson ). features and the members of the society. ousands of int axes have been found in wet- lands. In many cases the artefacts were deposited within a delimited area of a bog, even though Transformation of int by re individual depositions may include artefacts cov- e eect of re represents a special form of ering a considerable time-span (Karsten ). fragmentation. Finds from settlement sites John Chapman was the archaeologist who indicate that the deliberate exposure of int was able to make the theme of fragmenta- artefacts to re was well known throughout tion well known and a subject of discussion the Neolithic. Fire alteration of tools is rela- (Chapman ). Research on this theme has tively frequent at sites from the whole of the developed (Jones ; Chapman ; Chap- Neolithic (Karsten ; Malmer ). e man & Gaydarska , ; Gamble ) eect of re on int axes could be accidental, and has also been criticized (Brittain & Har- but at several sites the percentage is too high ris ). In the recent debate on fragmenta- (often higher than ) to be viewed in such tion the term enchainment has been used fre- mundane terms (Karsten ). Most sites quently. e enchainment between humans and show marked dierences in terms of the tool the objects marks changes in the social sphere types aected by re. ere is also evidence between humans when the object is made, used that the exposure of axes to re was in itself and fragmented. Enchainment does not have to highly structured (Larsson , ). e be linked to fragmentation but it is especially alteration of int by direct exposure to re obvious that a change in the enchainment takes provides dierent products of fragmentation place as an object is intentionally fragmented. from those seen on many sites. Simple exposure Most of the discussion has been aimed at to high temperatures results in the fragmen- the enchainment before and after the event tation of int artefacts into very small pieces. of intentional fragmentation, which in most is is not what we nd with many int tools cases is a short action. e simple intentional aected by re, which are often recovered as breaking of an object like the gurines from larger-than-expected fragments. southeastern Europe is the topic of Chapman Experiments have been conducted, exposing
newly-made int axes to dierent forms of re, int axes has been regarded as the result of including direct as well as indirect heat in large ritual acts in which re played an important and small res, in order to nd out what happens role (Andersen ). to int at dierent temperatures (Larsson ). It is of special interest to identify a relationship In order to get large pieces of int aected by between the fabrication of axes and the transfor- re, such as are found at the sites, you have to mation of these same tools. At some causewayed treat it in two evocative stages. First, the int has enclosures of the late Early Neolithic and early to be heat-treated. In the second, more public, Middle Neolithic (Andersen ) as well as stage the int can be placed directly on a re. palisades of the “second generation” (Svensson e int undergoes a colour transformation from ; Brink ) from the late Middle Neo- natural black or grey to white. is shows that lithic (MNA–MNB), waste from int axe fabri- the majority of int tools were handled carefully, cation transformed by re has been documented in order to obtain a colour change with a min- (Runcis ). ere seems to be a direct link imum of destruction. e artefact undergoes between the birth and death of axes (Strassburg remarkable change during the act. ), related to monumental enclosures. e intention was not to destroy the int objects, but to keep them in parts as large as possible, even after their transformation by Mass destruction by re re. At almost every site, axes are more aect- A special and so far rare type of site with exam- ed than any other type. is phenomenon is ples of re-altered ints, covering an area of independent of chronology, occurring from the approximately × m, has been found on earliest Early Neolithic to the latest Late Neo- a plateau at Kverrestad, southeastern Scania lithic. Alteration by re, however, seems to be (Larsson , ). Excavation revealed a most common during the Middle Neolithic, number of pits of varying size and depth, in including the late Funnel Beaker culture and which int and stone artefacts aected by re the Single Grave culture. had been deposited together with a considera- ere are several aspects that may be con- ble amount of fragmentary pottery. e largest sidered within the processes of deposition and pit was about m long, the shortest measuring destruction – or perhaps we should we say “dif- less than . m. A majority of pits are small and ferent means of transformation”. Transformation shallow. Finds from the few larger pits were in this connection is viewed as a process in several made throughout the ll, which shows that the stages when the enchainment between humans artefacts had been deposited during the entire and tools changes and is tied to the interaction process of lling of the pits. Fragments of about with structures such as hearths but also ele- a hundred thick-butted, concave-edged axes ments such as heat and smoke. e int object and chisels have been found, as well as arrow- is changed by holding a number of cracks but heads and other int and stone tools (Larsson it has still its original shape. e fragmentation ). A small number of burnt human bones, can easily be performed with a slight action as intentionally cracked into small pieces, were also a break. If the action is performed it is through found, providing another example of a special the intention of the members of the society. enchainment between humans and axes. One Fire-damaged int axes are found in connec- has to be aware that the colour change of int tion with megalithic tombs (Jørgensen ), exposed to re is similar to the cremation of a as well as in pits and trenches associated with human body. causewayed enclosures. e fragmentation of e nds are dated to the later part of the
Battle Axe culture. As an interesting aspect of e sociotope of re the “life cycle”, the axes at Kverrestad includ- What is being expressed at Svartskylle and Kver- ed rough, unpolished examples, only shaped restad with no connection to settlements or into form, as well as examples with very well graves, diers from the destruction by re of executed polish over the entire body. Some of single tools or small numbers of tools, as evi- the latter show traces of use. denced at settlement sites and megalithic tombs. e choice of axes in particular for altering is type of deposition is found throughout by re, as recorded at settlement sites, is also the Neolithic, but on certain occasions the act obvious among the nds at Kverrestad. More achieves an impressive eect. than of the axe nds display changes by re. Tools aected by re that lie outside the However, among a number of arrowheads made megalithic tombs can be regarded as an enchain- by pressure-aking, originating from the Oder ment to the ancestors or deposits through which area on the other side of the Baltic Sea, just the ancestors act as agents for further contacts. show the same alteration by re. ese marked Deposits including the element of re, as at dierences indicate intentional selection – some Kverrestad and Svartskylle, might place the tools required treatment by re more than others. actors in direct contact with the metaphysical If we use enchainment, the explanation might world without the intermediacy of ancestors. be that the relation between the objects from a e cosmology that dictated burning, just group at a far distance was dierent from the like that relating to wetland depositions, was relation of axes that were accessible in an area active throughout most of the Neolithic. e at a much shorter distance. Similar evidence fact that the depositions at Svartskylle and has also been found at Svartskylle, some km Kverrestad are the result of short-term activities west of Kverrestad (Larsson ). Svartskylle is indicates that they should be regarded as com- dated to the Early Neolithic/Middle Neolithic pleted deposits of mass material. ese seem transition. At Svartskylle, preforms as well as to have been of exceptional size and intend- polished int axes were found. e same habit ed to impress humans as well as metaphysical is evident despite a time gap of almost one mil- beings. Both sites are located in a way that the lennium. is phenomenon is independent of action could be attended by a large number of chronology, occurring from the earliest Early people and in addition were surrounded by wet Neolithic to the latest Late Neolithic. areas as delimitation. e contact that people ere is a very marked dierence in the atti- intended to be established between the physical tude towards burning, compared with deposition and metaphysical worlds was impressive and in water. In the former case, the destruction of imposing. e transformation by re of material the artefact is easily visible at the point when culture must have been very obvious and the the practical function of the tool disappears. wealth represented by the number of tools and Fire is the destroyer, but also the creator. Slash- exotics included must have been considerable. and-burn clearance of the forest creates arable In view of the high quality and great num- land. at int axes are linked to re could be ber of axes, there must have been knappers explained by a special relationship between re, who spent a considerable amount of time pro- int and people. A common way of making ducing axes, i.e. true int-knapping experts. re was to use int and iron pyrites. e sparks Blacksmiths were regarded in late prehistory appear to originate from the int, and the idea as possessing not only the knowledge to master that re was inherent in this material might have iron, but also the knowledge required to master been an accepted element of the worldview. forces of the immaterial world (Østigård ).
A similar status was accorded to the knowledge in terms of the burning of the post-ends before and action of the bronze smelter (Goldhahn they were put into the holes in order to improve ). One can express it a special enchainment the resistance of the wood to degradation in the between certain persons and the raw material. soil. However, it might be reasonable to suspect e int-knapping specialist who made the that charcoal can also originate from the burn- axes may have acquired the same status. e ing of houses. In the absence of well-preserved knapper, like the axes, was positioned in a zone oor levels, it is impossible to eliminate the between the living society and another world, possibility of accidental house destruction by that of the spirits and deities. ose involved re or burning through hostile action. in the birth of particular axes may also have e remains of activities within, and especial- been involved in their death, transforming ly outside, megalithic tombs reect a variety of int objects as part of the transformation of actions causing fragmentation. In same cases, the deceased and eecting their transfer to the such as the Carlshögen tomb in southeastern world of the forefathers/foremothers. Scania, the human remains were separated, e evidence from Kverrestad suggests that, probably after some period of decay, particu- among other things, the process of transform- lar parts such as the vertebrae being stored ing the body also involved transforming key together and even placed in a pit inside the items of material culture and, in the case of tomb (Strömberg ). int axes, this also involved prior heat treat- One example of fragmentation in connection ment. is prior treatment was not in most with megalithic tombs is Ramshög in southeast- cases a public, pyrotechnical event with a huge ern Scania. Pits were found below the chamber re, the cracking of heated ints and splinters and partially under the orthostats (Strömberg ying out of the re. e subsequent result, a ). In these pits burnt and unburnt human slow colour change without intense cracking, bones were found, combined with several hund- may thus have been all the more remarkable red int akes and fragments of int axes. e for those attending the more open and public position of the pits indicates that they might stages of cremation ceremonies. have been dug and the items deposited before the tomb was built. Just outside the entrance a small structure built of wood and stone had Actions of fragmentation been burnt. Found within the structure were Fire was also used as a means of fragmentation burnt human skull fragments and some bro- in many other activities. In many cases the ken pieces of a thin-bladed int axe, cracked nal act of use included burning. On stratied without using re. Several other features were sites in dierent parts of Europe the burning documented outside the entrance, containing of houses has been interpreted as an intention- fragments of int axes aected by re, chis- al act incorporated into a wider ritual sphere els or blades, most in association with burnt (Apel et al. ; Chapman ; Chapman human bones. At the Trollasten dolmen in the & Gaydarska ). Because there are virtually same part of Scania, eleven collections of burnt no substantial occupation layers associated with human bones, along with pieces of axes and Neolithic houses in southern Scandinavia it is chisels aected and not aected by re were very dicult to obtain a full understanding found (Strömberg ). In one case almost of the nal acts undertaken when houses were all pieces of an axe aected by re had been abandoned (Larsson & Brink ). e char- deposited. Two sets of material included parts coal in post-holes has usually been explained of the same axe.
ese examples indicate that the change same could apply to a proportion of the sherds enchainment concerning fragmentation can from the Scanian megalithic tombs. be related to actions including re mixed with Another action of interest connected with the the remains that were just intentionally bro- fragmentation of pottery is intentional sorting ken into pieces. of sherds. An example is the material from a cemetery of seventeen children’s graves dated to the Early Middle Funnel Beaker culture at Breaking into pieces Borgeby in western Scania (Runcis ). e In addition to fragmentation by re, some pottery in the graves is represented by intact other interesting observations have been made vessels, fragments of individual vessels and small concerning the fragmentation of stone objects. fragments of as many as vessels. Parts of pot- at a battle axe could break at the shaft-hole tery vessels may dissolve, which is a common is no wonder, since this is the weakest part. explanation for the absence of some parts of Malmer’s study ( ) of broken battle axes vessels. However, when just one or a few sherds from the Battle Axe culture provides a special from particular vessels are represented we are insight into the deposition of broken objects. dealing with an intentional sample of sherds He documented edge parts, but only to be represented in a certain feature. Parts of neck parts. Although of the edge parts have the same vessel could have been deposited in a newly-nished or unnished shaft-hole, the other circumstances, for example forming part disparity is remarkable. ere has to be an of a deposition or in connection with mega- intentional dierence in the way these parts lithic tombs. e above-mentioned late Battle were deposited. Malmer’s suggestion was that Axe culture depositions at Kverrestad present a the neck parts were left at the settlement sites, similar situation. Just a small number of sherds while the edge parts were deposited elsewhere. from the same vessel are present. At the mass destruction site where re was used, the number of necks of int axes is higher than the number of edges. Fragmented environments e fragile nature of pottery makes it vulner- e rst major fragmentation of the landscape able to fragmentation. However, there is strong was introduced when the forest was cut down evidence of deliberate fragmentation as a regular in the Early Neolithic. Even if the landscape phenomenon during the Neolithic. Some of in an ecological sense may have been changed the Scanian tombs hold the largest quantities during the Late Mesolithic through intentional of pottery ever found in megalithic tombs in reduction of the dense forest by re in order any region of Europe. e number of vessels at to improve the feeding for wild animals, it was the passage grave of Gillhög, close to the west during the Early Neolithic that clearing of the coast, is estimated at almost one thousand. In forest became a regular phenomenon. In this some cases the vessels were left standing on the fragmentation of the landscape the death of entrance stone, and must have fallen down and trees due to elm disease may have facilitated broken. e question is whether this explana- the clearance process (Larsson ). tion can be applied to all of the thousand ves- Fragmentation of the forest served several sels. At some megalithic tombs on the island purposes for the societies of that time. e of Funen, Andersen () has recognized that most obvious was to clear areas for agricul- sherds are of the same size. is would not be ture. However, a large number of trees were the case if fragmentation was accidental. e felled in order to incorporate them into struc-
tures, both large and small. One example is the Conclusion large palisade excavated at Håslöv, dating to e fragmentation of objects as well as struc- the Early Neolithic (Andersson & Wallebom tures is a phenomenon that in some cases just ). At least nine thousand posts were used includes a short episode when an object is for the arrangement. e construction of large cracked into pieces or a structure is torn down. palisades during the later part of the Middle As we have seen, however, on a number of occa- Neolithic required the chopping of thousands sions the fragmentation includes a process with of trees. rough fragmentation of the forest, a duration of several hours or days. As for the a structure was erected that served the aim of fragmentation of int objects, it includes at social unication and thereby a marked change least two stages until the desired condition was of the enchainment both between humans and obtained. is might mean that the enchain- the environment and also between humans. ment between the objects and humans might e trees were transformed from their natural have changed focus from individuals to a sit- state into an important arrangement in culture. uation where several of the members of the Another kind of fragmentation of the land- society were committed. In addition, it signies scape in order to create social unication is a complex enchainment, where in some cases the building of a megalithic tomb. Stones are objects that were transformed by re as an agent dragged from localities that may be situated could be deposited together with objects that kilometres away. Even if large stones suitable were just broken. e enchainment process for building material were more common than seems to include a number of stages that need today, this still required a good knowledge to be further studied. of the landscape. In some cases not only was the size and shape important: the colour also played a decisive role. Stones were sometimes References split. One example of such fragmentation is Andersen, N. H. . e Sarup Enclosures: e Funnel found in Denmark, where two dolmens, two Beaker Culture of the Sarup site including two causewayed kilometres apart, each have one half of the same camps compared to the contemporary settlements in the area large boulder as the capstone (Ebbesen ). and other European enclosures. Jutland Archaeological However, no similar study has been carried Society Publications XXXIII(). Aarhus. – . Sarupsområdet på Sydvestfyn i slutningen af . out in Scania. e some applies to the stud- årtusende f.Kr. In Schülke, A. (ed.), Plads og rum i ies of the origin of stones or boulders usable tragtbægerkulturen. København. for building material, which is complicated Andersson, M. & Wallebom, B. . Dösserygg and by glacial processes during the Ice Age, when Skeg rie. Megalithic centres in south-west Scania, southern Sweden. In Fontijn, D, Louwen, A. J., van stones could be moved a considerable distance der Vaart, S. & Wentink, K. (eds.), Beyond Barrows: from the source by the glaciers. One example Current research on the structuration and perception of indicating that special building material could the prehistoric landscape through monuments. Leiden. be transported over a considerable distance is Apel, J., Hadevik, C. & Sundström, L. . Burning the red sandstone that was split into smaller down the house: e transformational use of re and other aspects of an Early Neolithic TRB site in eastern slabs for use as a lling material between the central Sweden. Tor . orthostats at some megalithic tombs, after being Berggren, Å. . Med kärret som källa: Om begreppet oer quarried some kilometres away (Hårdh & och ritual inom arkeologin. Vägar till Midgård . Lund. Bergström ). Bradley, R. . e Passage of Arms: An archaeologi- cal analysis of prehistoric hoards and votive deposits. Cambridge.
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Michelsberg and Oxie in contact next to the Baltic Sea Doris Mischka, Georg Roth and Katrin Struckmeyer
Abstract is article focuses on the cultural contacts between the Michelsberg culture and the Early Neolithic Oxie group of the Funnel Beaker complex in southern Scandinavia and northern Germany by presenting and analysing an assemblage of nds from the site Flintbek LA , km southwest of Kiel, Schleswig-Hol- stein, Germany. ere a pit lling contained pots of local early Neolithic funnel beakers of the Oxie group as well as of the middle Michelsberg culture (II/III). e Michelsberg vessels allowed a post-hoc projec- tion into the correspondence analysis of Höhn , for the rst time relating quantitative-based rela- tive chronologies of Michelsberg and Funnel Beaker. e decoration techniques at Flintbek are included in a combined correspondence analysis with the earliest Funnel Beaker groups of southern Scandinavia following Madsen . e Flintbek nds connect on one hand two dierent classication systems of pottery and on the other hand the two main distribution areas of Michelsberg and Early Funnel Beakers of the North group. e Michelsberg nds are seen as an end point of the expansion phase of this culture in the north. e article concludes with a hypothesis about the development from pointed or round-based pots to at-based ceramics, relating this to changes in house furniture and activities connected to a more agrar- ian economy.
Institut für Ur- und Frühgeschichte, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Kochstr. / , D- Erlangen, Germany. [email protected]
Institut für Ethnologie – Projekt “MA Environmental Archaeology”, Forschungsstelle Afrika des Institutes für Ur- und Frühgeschichte an der Universität zu Köln, Jennerstrasse , D- Cologne, Erlangen, Germany. [email protected]
Niedersächsisches Institut für historische Küstenforschung, Viktoriastr. / , D- Wilhelmshaven, Germany. [email protected]
e site Flintbek LA the Michelsberg culture. Later, Lutz Klassen pit was found underneath a Bronze () connected the at-bottomed funnel Age tumulus, containing Early Neolithic pot- beaker with the bosses at the rim of the earliest tery. Bernd Zich published important parts of funnel beakers, type of Koch ( ). the assemblage in several articles, including a Zich also published a rst conventional 14C completely reconstructed at-bottomed funnel date (KI-, ± BP) of oak tree char- beaker with bosses on the inside and several coal with an age of – cal. BC (σ), sherds with what are called arcade rims (Zich intensifying the discussion of the importance of , pp. f.; Zich /, pp. .). In the Flintbek nds for the origin of the Funnel his articles, Zich described the similarities to Beaker North group (Zich /, p. ).
e nds were reanalysed in the work of Mis- e rst three can be classied according chka (b), who was able to ret some of the to the prole shape and dimensions, although published sherds and obtained several vessel no sherds from their bases were classied in proles. A second radiocarbon date using AMS the two variants of Tulpenbecher according to was measured on elm tree (Ulmus), by the Leib- Höhn (, p. g. ). Due to its high niz Laboratory at Kiel University (KIA, degree of fragmentation vessel PU – similar ± BP) with a calibrated age of – to PU – is not included in the correspond- cal. BC (σ). Apart from old wood eects which ence analysis. have to be taken into account for both dated PU , classied as a variant of a bowl samples, the short standard deviation of the with a bent wall (“Knickwandschüssel” Kw Kiel AMS dates has to be interpreted with care, after Höhn , p. ), shows a steeper and because the Kiel laboratory could not reproduce straighter prole of the wall underneath the its own measurements of some controlled sam- bend than most of the corresponding Michels- ples, probably between September and berg bowls. Also, its bend is situated slightly spring (http://www.uni-kiel.de/leibniz/ higher. [Accessed October ]; Christmas greeting Based on the rim shapes and rim zone card ). Nevertheless, for the discussion of shapes, six pots are classied as storage ves- the minimum age of the pit, the youngest date sels according to Höhn’s typological coding measured (– cal. BC (σ) is seen as a for vessel shapes (, pp. f.): PU , chronological upper boundary for the pit lling. , , , and . PU and become more open at the neck than the maximal rim diameter, which identies them as belonging Finds (Figure ) to vessel type Vg (“Vg” for “Vorratsgefäß”/ Among the nds, pottery sherds are most fre- storage vessel). In addition PU , and quent. Some sherds weighing . kg in are classied as Vg. eir classication relies total have been combined to pottery units mainly on rim sherds. For a classication of (PU). Rettings or similarities in temper and pots as Vg at bottoms are needed. Unfor- high resemblance in texture and manufacture tunately, it was not possible to t base sherds of the sherds provided the criteria for consider- to one of the storage vessels. ing several sherds as one pot. Nineteen pottery units feature only one sherd, PU is retted e Oxie group pot from single sherds and PU has complete- ly been reconstructed by the laboratory of the Because of numerous concordances in shapes Museum Schloß Gottorf, Schleswig. and decoration techniques we propose regard- e bases of the pots are dicult to identify ing the terms Wangel’s group (Hartz et al. ) in the assemblage and to join with the other and Oxie group (Larsson ; Madsen ) parts of the vessels. ey are often thinner than as synonymous and prefer to label this phe- the wall-sherds. nomenon as Oxie group in future. Among the vessels there is one beaker of type according to Koch ( ) with a completely e Michelsberg pots (Figure ) at base: PU on gure . It is undecorated Four pottery units are shaped like Michels- apart from one line of small bosses (Lochbuck- berg Tulpenbecher (tulip-beakers): PU , , el) beyond the rim, imprinted from the out- and . side. Type beakers found at Kongemosen and
Fig. . Flintbek LA . Selection of the most important pottery units (PU) from the pit. (Figure A. Heitmann, D. Mischka; PU drawing from PU drawing from D. Mischka; A. Heitmann, LAof the most important pottery . Selection . Flintbek the pit. (Figure units (PU) from Fig. , g. .). / p. Zich
Bjornsholm were dated directly to – horizontally beyond the rim on the vessel’s outer cal. BC using organic crusts (Koch , pp. surface. Fingernail impressions, nger tricks for .). the arcade rims, and simple patch strips, boss- es or single stitches and simple incisions with rounded prole are present as well. Pots of ambiguous character (Oxie or Michelsberg) (Figure ) Within the Flintbek LA assemblage, less Other nds distinct vessel forms also turn up, which cannot Apart from the pottery, lithics weighing (yet) be reliably classied as Oxie or Michels- . kg in total were found. Tools such as lat- berg types. Clay spoons like PU are typical erally retouched blades or akes, truncations, for both groups, but rarer in the north (Klas- borers and endscrapers make up for only sen , pp. .). Funnel necks (PU , , of the assemblage. Also, tiny bone fragments , and ) and subcutaneous knobs (PU and pieces of charcoal as well as grams of ) are another common feature in Michels- burnt clay, some with plant imprints, relate the berg and the Oxie group (Lüning , p. pit to Michelsberg features (cf. e.g. Jeunesse ; Koch , p. ) – where subcutaneous , p. or Jeunesse & Seidel , p. ). knobs on type I beakers are preferably placed on the shoulder of the pot or on upper parts of the belly (e.g. . and in Klassen , Archaeometric analysis of p. ). Broken knobs (PU , ) indicate the pottery lugged vessels which are less frequent in the Archaeometric analyses were carried out with- Michelsberg context. in the DFG-Priority programme SPP on “Early Monumentality and Social Dierentia- Pots with uncertain classication tion” on a selection of pottery sherds to gain fur- (Figure ) ther information on the pottery technology and to distinguish the clay composition of dierent Some pottery units do not t into existing vessel forms. e study concentrated especial- classications: e.g. PU resembling a big ly on the type of clay used and the tempering bowl, PU with a big belly and a conical material. A total of sherds from pottery prole, or PU , a very thin-walled, irregular units from Flintbek LA were analysed. shaped pot with a wide funnel rim, or PU e analysis of the selected fragments was which may resemble a small ask according to carried out using three methods. First, the open its dimensions and prole shape. Several base fractures of the fragments were polished to sherds (PU , , , and ) could not be determine, count and measure the temper par- tted to other pottery units and are therefore ticles with the help of a digital reected light treated here as distinct units. In the Flintbek microscope. Second, thin sections were pre- inventory both shapes of bases occur, at as pared on eight selected sherds to characterize well as rounded bottoms. the raw material and its natural components of sand and silt or mineral particles with a polariz- Decorations ing microscope. is method helps to describe the articially added tempering materials as e decorations are made of simple lines or rows well. And third, sherds whose thin sections of stitches, with the vast majority orientated showed a similar raw material were analysed
chemically by ICP-AES (Inductively Coupled Correspondence analysis (CA) Plasma – Atomic Emission Spectrometry). e measurement of a total of chemical elements CA of the pot shapes (Figure ) made it possible to determine the chemical e Flintbek LA assemblage was project- composition of the clay used for pottery pro- ed post hoc as a supplementary row into the duction, and to compare it among the samples. correspondence analysis (CA) of Michelsberg Similar measurement results indicate the use inventories produced by Birgit Höhn (, of the same raw material source. e chemi- listed in annex ). Software package ca (Nenadic cal analysis of the ceramics was carried out by & Greenacre ) of the statistical program- OMAC laboratories (Ireland) and analysed by ming environment R (R Core Team ) was T. Brorsson (). used for all computations. e main tempering material is crushed gran- Our assemblage – already using Höhn’s typo- ite which is characteristic of the Funnel Beak- logical coding (, pp. – ) – comprises er North group. Nearly of the pottery is the following vessel types respectively entries tempered additionally with chamotte and some in column: with int. e latter is very specic and is (type code/column) kw ta tb ta vg vg absent from later Neolithic sherds of the Flint- (number of objects) bek region. Chamotte is known from the Sin- gle Grave culture wares in other regions (e.g. All other types of Höhn’s table were recorded Hulthén , p. ; Engberg , p. ; as zero, i.e. all other columns contain zeroes. Madsen , p. ; Norden , p. ); e new line from the Flintbek LA inven- Koch Nielsen detected chamotte in Ertebølle tory is not used for computing the ordination, pots as tempering material but not in funnel because as a new data set it would have changed beakers (Koch Nielsen ). It is rare in Funnel the ordination result. Instead, the new data line Beaker inventories of northern Germany exam- of Flintbek LA was projected into the solu- ples being a lugged beaker from Siggeneben-Süd tion space by means of weighted averages using (Meurers-Balke , pp. f., gs. –; the numbers of the types present as weights and p. , g. ) or four sherds from the middle averaging over their standard coordinates. is Neolithic site of Bostholm (Meurers-Balke et al. approach is known as supplementary row con- , p. tab. and plate .; ., ; . ). cept (Greenacre , pp. f.). It was chosen Furthermore, about are tempered with to study the position of the Flintbek inventory plant remains. Note that, since several kinds of within the similarity space of the Michelsberg temper can be present in one specimen, their assemblages without inuencing the existing percentages do not sum up . relative order – here the relative chronology e clay itself is ne-grained to medi- of Michelsberg. um-grained and belongs to at least four dif- e biplot of the CA is given in row princi- ferent sources. pal coordinates and scaling and reproduces Unfortunately it was not possible to analyse the published result of Höhn’s analysis (; the pot PU which was classied as type beak- for biplots cf. Borcard et al. , pp. f.). er of the Oxie group after Koch ( ) since e projection of the Flintbek assemblage ts this required breaking the specimen. No sig- well in between early Michelsberg assemblag- nicant dierences were detected between the es. e nearest neighbours in the biplot along analysed ceramics of Michelsberg type and the the parable gradient are the assemblages of remaining types of Michelsberg or Oxie group. Ehrenstein and in Germany – dated to
Fig. . Above: Scaling biplot of CA Michelsberg inventories after Höhn with projection of Flintbek LA assem- blage (Figure G. Roth). Below: scaling biplot of CA rim decoration techniques of the Fun- nel Beaker North Group together with Flintbek sites (Figure: D. Misch- ka & G. Roth).
Michelsberg phase II as well as II and III and Jutland and the Danish isles were submitted the two Belgium sites ieusies “Ferme de to a correspondence analysis. e observed l’Hoste”, dated to Michelsberg phases II and Early Neolithic I (EN I) groups were desig- III and Mairy “Les Hautes Chanvieres”, dated nated Oxie, Volling and Svaleklint. e rst to the transition Michelsberg phases II to III CA axis already represented chronological as (Höhn , annex , nos. .; .; . well as spatial information. We used these EN I and .). So Flintbek ts nicely in the tran- sites and recoded decorations according to the sition from Michelsberg phase II to III. Höhn NoNeK recording system (Mischka a; Mis- dates this transition in the early st century chka b; www.nonek.uni-kiel.de [accessed BC (Höhn , g. ). is is – within the October ]). Additionally three EN limits of both methods: CA and radiocarbon sites from the Flintbek region were included dates – in congruence with the Flintbek dates in Madsen’s data set. which probably are older than cal. BC. e result of our new correspondence analy- A problem is connected to the pottery sis conrms the results of Madsen and Petersen unit PU , which is classied as a at-based (cf. Madsen and Petersen , Figs. –). Oxie beaker type and which is therefore not e Flintbek sites LA -, LA - and included in the CA of the Michelsberg pottery. LA -, the site discussed here, lay within the Because of its S-shaped prole and at base range of the Oxie sites. To the right assemblages it should be classied as a Michelsberg vessel from the Svaleklint and Volling period follow. type B (at-based beaker; Höhn ). But e small oset of our Flintbek LA - is at bases are late within the Michelsberg chro- probably due to the absence of two techniques nology. Taking into account that the general (oblong stamps “Dreikantstich” and ngertip idea of at bases for the Early Funnel beaker impressions) combined with the dominant groups could derive from Lengyel via Gater- presence of furrows, a technique more frequent sleben at some time before (!) late Michels- in Svaleklint and Volling sites. berg, it seemed reasonable to exclude PU Although the sites are grouped on the basis from the inventory of Flintbek LA pro- of decoration techniques, an interpretation jected into the Michelsberg CA. In fact test has to be carried out with care considering the runs (not presented here) with PU present possible presence of two causal factors (chro- showed that only a presence/absence approach nology and geographic distribution). At the changes LA position signicantly while a moment their relationship and their combined projection of the abundance vector is nearly eects cannot be evaluated or singled out. So unaected by PU . the impact of the chronology as well as that of the spatial distribution on the CA result (sites scatter) is not clear. Here more accurate abso- CA of the decoration techniques lute dates are needed for the dierent groups (Figure ) to better understand the analysis. Without In the mid- s Madsen and Petersen divided them even further canonical analyses using early Funnel Beaker ceramics into several groups the spatial distribution as a constraint may not based on decoration techniques (Madsen and be able to separate the factors time and space Petersen ; Madsen ; see also Madsen given the possibility of a diusion process, i.e. , pp. .). ey developed codes for the a spreading of the decoration techniques over dierent techniques and counted the frequen- time and space. cies for each site. Consequently sites from
Interpretation and discussion . Early Michelsberg settlers bringing their e role of the Michelsberg culture in the Neo- typical pots and the concepts for producing lithization process of southern Scandinavia has them with them to live among or between late been discussed for a long time, as well as the Ertebølle communities. inuence of the northern traditions on Michels- eir subsistence strategy, based mainly on berg (e.g. for contrasting opinions (Lichardus farming and less on hunting, shing and gath- , pp. f.; Klassen , p. , p. ; ering, may have been quite a surprise to their or Schier , p. ; Schier ). Especial- neighbours. But other aspects of daily life such ly the chronological order of the Michelsberg as commonalities in material culture and in culture and the Funnel Beaker culture, in par- particular in vessel forms like Tulpenbecher ticular the Funnel Beaker North group, is of which resemble traditional Ertebølle beakers decisive importance for this discussion. Only a (or starting with the Oxie or Volling group sound chronology allows for further consider- becoming old-fashioned), may have facilitat- ations regarding spatial processes and interac- ed intercultural contact and exchange with the tions. Additionally, the function of the pottery inhabitants of the region. If vessel functions has to be evaluated against the background of were related to their shapes, other similarities a changing subsistence, with the people of the between the Oxie group and Michelsberg apart Funnel Beaker culture being the rst inhabitants from the Tulpenbecher may have been recog- of the north European plain relying primari- nized by both sides. ly on agriculture (Midgley ). e state of research places the origin of the early Michels- . We rule out the possibility of the pit lling berg culture with its characteristic vessel shapes, Flintbek LA representing the remains of a such as Tulpenbecher (tulip beakers), clay disks raid, because its deposition structure resembles and clay spoons (in German “Schöpfer”) in the typical Michelsberg features (Jeunesse , Paris Basin (e.g. Schier ; cf. Höhn ). p. ; Jeunesse & Seidel , p. ), so no e assemblage of Flintbek LA may be abnormal deposition process such as a destruc- seen as one instance of the eastward-bound tion layer can be postulated. expansion of Michelsberg beginning in MBK II (Höhn , p. , g. ). . We cannot exclude that some of the Michels- e CA results represent the rst time that a berg pots may have been imported from other relative chronology based on quantitative anal- settlements further south by the people living ysis, i.e. a reproducible approach, for one of in the Flintbek region. But the treatment of the two culture historical entities Michelsberg the objects in the deposition process is typical or Funnel Beaker allows us to directly place a of a Michelsberg environment. characteristic assemblage of the other one into a single relative system thereby directly relating Summing up all evidence speaks – in our view both sequences. According to our result we pro- – for a movement of at least some people and pose Early Funnel Beaker (Oxie group) to be not only an exchange of commodities. contemporaneous with or to slightly younger Our occupation with the pottery resulted in than late MBK II. a little hypothesis concerning one of its func- Changing from the abstract level of culture tional aspects that we would like to present here history to that of concrete human interactions, before ending our paper: the shaping of the vessel basically we would like to discuss three aspects bases. An interesting aspect of the Flintbek LA of the genesis of the Flintbek assemblage: assemblage is indeed the presence of at vessel
bases. Strictly speaking, this is the only non-gen- Engberg, U. . Sen Trattbäger- och tidig Stridsyxe- uine Michelsberg element and a non-genuine keramik: En jämförelse av godstyperna. In Adamsen, Ertebølle element within this inventory, which C. & Ebbesen, K. (eds.), . Stridsøksetid i Sydskan- dinavien. Copenhagen. only becomes typical for Michelsberg in the later Greenacre, M. . Correspondence Analysis in Practice. phases of this culture (MBK IV/V, – Boca Raton. cal. BC; cf. Höhn ). We do not want to Hartz, S., Heinrich, D. & Lübke, H. . Frühe Bauern further investigate the cultural history of at an der Küste: Neue 14C-Daten und aktuelle Aspekte vessel bases, but instead would like to draw zum Neolithisierungsprozeß im norddeutschen Ost- seeküstengebiet. Prähistorische Zeitschrift . attention to their functional aspects. What are Höhn, B. . Michelsberger Kultur in der Wetterau. the dierences or potential advances of pots Universitätsforschungen zur prähistorischen Archäo- with at bases versus roundish-pointed bases? logie . Bonn. Symbolic or ritual signicance is hard to assess. Hulthén, B. . On ceramic technology during the Sca- Here a simple aspect of the dierences in prac- nian Neolithic and Bronze Age. eses and Papers in tical everyday use is emphasized: with at bases North-European Archaeology . Stockholm. Jeunesse, C. . Die Michelsberger Kultur. In Karlsruhe one does not need a string mounting or stands Badisches Landesmuseum (eds.), . Jungsteinzeit im made of stone or organic materials; also, one Umbruch: Die “Michelsberger Kultur” und Mitteleuropa can transport pots easily and without the help vor Jahren. Darmstadt. of other people carrying (or constructing) the Jeunesse, C. & Seidel, U. . Das Erdwerk von Mairy stands or preparing string mountings. Especially und seine Umgebung. In Karlsruhe Badisches Lan- desmuseum (eds.), Jungsteinzeit im Umbruch: Die intriguing is the connection of at bases to at “Michelsberger Kultur” und Mitteleuropa vor Jah- surfaces, i.e. house oors of or furniture in solid ren. Darmstadt. permanent buildings – in particular shelves and Klassen, L. . Jade und Kupfer: Untersuchungen zum tables to put the pots on. Neolithisierungsprozess im westlichen Ostseeraum unter Finally, we propose that Flintbek stands besonderer Berücksichtigung der Kulturentwicklung Euro- for the presence of Michelsberg settlers who pas – BC. Jutland Archaeological Society . Aarhus. came to southern Jutland during the expan- Koch, E. . Neolithic Bog Pots from Zealand, Møn, sion phase of the Michelsberg culture at the Lolland and Falster. Copenhagen. transition of MBK II/III (st century BC) to Koch Nielsen, E. . Ertebølle and Funnel Beaker Pots live among the local indigenous people. We are as Tools: On Traces of Production Techniques and Use. aware that this view is simplistic but still see Acta Archaeologica . Larsson, M. . Tidigneolitikum i Sydvästskåne: Kro- it as the most economical explanation for the nologi och bosättningsmönster. Acta Archaeologica Lun- Flintbek assemblage. densia Ser. in ° . Bonn, Lund. Lichardus, J. . Die Michelsberger Kultur strukturell gesehen. In Biel, J., Schlichtherle, H., Strobel, M. & References Zeeb, A. (eds.), . Die Michelsberger Kultur und Behrends, R.-H. . Neue Forschungen zur Michels- ihre Randgebiete – Probleme der Entstehung, Chronologie berger Kultur im Kraichgau. In Biel, J., Schlichtherle, und des Siedlungswesens. Kolloquium Hemmenhofen J., Strobel, M. & Zeeb, A. (eds.), Die Michelsberger .–... Stuttgart. Kultur und ihre Randgebiete – Probleme der Entstehung, Lüning, J. . Die Michelsberger Kultur: Ihre Funde in Chronologie und des Siedlungswesens. Kolloquium Hem- zeitlicher und räumlicher Gliederung. Berichte Römisch- menhofen .–... Stuttgart. Germanische Kommission . Borcard, D., Gillet, F., Legendre, P. . Numerical Madsen, T. . Die Gruppenbildung im frühesten Neo- ecology with R. Use R! series. New York. lithikum Dänemarks und ihre Bedeutung. In Hoika, Brorsson, T. . ICP-analyses of Funnel Beaker pottery J. & Meurers-Balke, J. (eds.), Beiträge zur frühneolith- from Flintbek, Kiel, Germany. Reports from Ceramic ischen Trichterbecherkultur im westlichen Ostseegebiet Studies . Landskrona. (Symposium Schleswig ). Neumünster.
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TRADE AND EXCHANGE IN PREHISTORY. Studies in honour of Berta Stjernquist. . BOZENA WYSZOMIRSKA, Ekonomisk stabilitet vid kusten. Nymölla III. En tidig- neolitisk bosättning med fångstekonomi i nordöstra Skåne. . . MATS G. LARSSON Runstenar och utlandsfärder. Aspekter på det senvikingatida sam- hället med utgångspunkt i de fasta fornlämningarna. . . TOVE HJØRUNGDAL, Det skjulte kjønn. Patriarkal tradisjon og feministisk visjon i arkeologien belyst med fokus på en jernalderkonekst. . . REGIONS AND REFLECTIONS. In Honour of Märta Strömberg. . . JOHN TROENG, Worldwide chronology of fty-three prehistoric innovations. . . ANNE CARLIE, På arkeologins bakgård. En bebyggelsearkeologisk undersökning i norra Skånes inland baserad på synliga gravar. . . PER KARSTEN, Att kasta yxan i sjön. En studie över rituell tradition och förändring utifrån skånska neolitiska oerfynd. . . e earliest settlement of Scandinavia and its relationship with neighbouring areas. (Ed.) L. Larsson. . . BIRGITTA HÅRDH, Silver in the Viking Age. A Regional-Economic Study. . . MATS G LARSSON, Från stormannagård till Bondby. En studie av mellansvensk bebyg- gelseutveckling från äldre järnålder till medeltid. . . MÄRIT GAIMSTER, Vendel period bracteates on Gotland. On the signicance of Ger- manic art. . . Centrala platser – Centrala frågor. (Ed.) L. Larsson. . . LENNART CARLIE, Bebyggelsens mångfald. En studie av södra Hallands järnålders- gårdar baserad på arkeologiska och historiska källor. . . Fynden i centrum. Keramik, glas och metall från Uppåkra. (Ed.) B. Hårdh.. . Form, Function & Context. Material culture studies in Scandinavian archaeology. . . ELISABETH RUDEBECK, Tilling nature – harvesting culture. Exploring images of the human being in the transition to agriculture. . . BO KNARRSTRÖM, Flinta i sydvästra Skåne. En diakron studie av råmaterial, produk- tion och funktion med fokus på boplatsteknologi och metalltida intutnyttande. . . Uppåkra. Centrum och sammanhang. (Ed.) B. Hårdh. . . PÅVEL NICKLASSON, Strävsamma bönder och sturska stormän. Stafsinge och Halland från bronsålder till medeltid. . . Uppåkra. Centrum i analys och rapport. . . Bilder av bronsåldern. Ett seminarium om forntida kommunikation. (Ed.) J. Goldhahn. . . BERTIL HELGESSON, Järnålderns Skåne. Samhälle, centra och regioner. . . Central places in the migration and merovingian periods. Papers from the nd Sachsen- symposium. (Eds. B. Hårdh & L. Larsson. . . Centrality – Regionality. e social structure of southern Sweden during the Iron Age. (Eds.) B. Hårdh & L. Larsson. . . Landskapsarkeologi och tidig medeltid– några exempel från södra Sverige. (Eds.) M. Anglert & J. omasson. . . MAGNUS ANDERSSON, Skapa plats i landskapet. Tidig- och mellanneolitiska sam- hällen utmed två västskånska dalgångar. . . FREDRIK SVANBERG, Decolonizing the Viking Age I. . . BJÖRN NILSSON, Tingens och tankarnas landskap. Försök I natur-umgängets arkeologi med exempel ur Blekinges och Smålands förutna. . . Fler fynd i centrum. Materialstudier i och kring Uppåkra. (Ed.) B. Hårdh. . . LIV NILSSON, Embodied rituals & ritualized bodies. Tracing ritual practices in late Mesolithic burials. . . ANNA GRÖHN, Positioning the Bronze Age. In social theory and research context. . . Continuity for centuries. A ceremonial building and its context at Uppåkra, southern Sweden. (Ed. Lars Larsson) . . PETER SKOGLUND, Vardagens landskap. Lokala perspektiv på bronsålderns materiella kultur. . . PÅVEL NICKLASSON, En vit äck på kartan. Norra Småland under bronsålder och järnålder. . . OLA MAGNELL, Tracking wild Boar and Hunters. Osteology of wild Boar in Mesolithic South Scaandinavia. . . LARS LARSSON & ILGA ZAGORSKA. Back to the origin. New research in the Meso- lithic-Neolithic Zvejneki cemetery and environment, northern Latvia. . . Arkeologi och identitet. (Eds.) B. Petersson & P. Skoglund. . . TOM CARLSSON, Mesolitiska möten. Strandvägen, en senmesolitisk boplats vid Motala ström. . . TOM CARLSSON, Where the river bends. Under the boughs of trees. Strandvägen – a late mesolithic settlement in eastern middle Sweden. . . MIKAEL DAHLGREN, Stilla yter Maas. Senromersk strategi och logistik i den arke- ologiska rekonstruktionen. . . PÅVEL NICKLASSON, Det lilla landet Vista. . . Arkeologi och samhälle. (Eds.) B. Petersson, K. Jennbert & C. Holtorf. . JENNBERT, KRISTINA. Kullabergs grottor. Mellan istid och nutid, mellan humaniora och naturvetenskap. . FREDRIK EKENGREN & LIV NILSSON STUTZ. I tillvarons gränsland. Perspektiv på kroppen mellan liv och död. . Från romartida skalpeller till senvikingatida urnesspännen – Nya materialstudier från Uppåkra. (Ed.) Birgitta Hårdh. . . Experimental Archaeology – Between Enlightenment and Experience. (Eds.) B. Petersson & L. E. Narmo. . ULLA ISABEL ZAGAL-MACH WOLFE, Grasping technology, assessing craft – Devel- oping a research method for the study of craft-tradition. . Folk, fä och fynd. (Eds.) Birgitta Hårdh & Lars Larsson. . . Neolithic Diversities. Perspectives from a conference in Lund, Sweden. (Eds.) Kristian Brink, Susan Hydén, Kristina Jennbert, Lars Larsson & Deborah Olausson. .