Volume 100, Issue 1

Zusammenfassung Vinča ist nicht nur der Name eines bedeutenden Fundortes auf einem Tell an der Donau nahe Belgrad, sondern wurde auch zum Synonym für eine archäologische Kultur, deren Charakteristika und Chronologie Gegenstand einer langanhaltenden wissenschaftlichen Debatte waren. Die erste systematische Ausgrabung des Fundortes wurde von Miloje M. Vasić geleitet, der auch den ersten, kontroversen und grundlegend fehlerhaften chronologischen Rahmen vorschlug. Diese Studie untersucht das komplexe Zusammenspiel wissenschaftlicher und politischer Faktoren, die vermutlich Vasićs Entwicklung der Chronologie der Vinča-Kultur beeinflussten. Dabei wird der breitere Kontext der prähistorischen Archäologie an der Wende vom 19. zum 20. Jahrhundert und darüber hinaus berücksichtigt sowie der Einfluss zeitgenössischer intellektueller Strömungen auf die Interpretation prähistorischer Gesellschaften, ihrer Identitäten und übergeordneter theoretischer Ansätze.

Within its location on the Çine plain, south of the Great Meander River, Çine-Tepecik is an important settlement inhabited continuously from the Chalcolithic to the end of the Bronze Age. Çine-Tepecik reflects an advanced lithic assemblage based on different raw material resources from the earliest period. Obsidian is among the earliest finds in Tepecik showing interregional trade based on the system of exchange, and is a resource that societies prioritized in their social lives and interregional communication since the beginning of the settlement process. Starting from the 4 th millennium BCE until the end of the 2 nd millennium BCE, obsidian was obtained from three main resources in the Aegean. These are Melos and Antiparos from the Cyclades; Giali from the Dodecanese and Göllü Dağ, Nenezi and Acıgöl from Central Anatolia. These connections, based on trade with the Aegean and Central Anatolia, reveal a skilled craft of obsidian tool production, as well as an obsidian and rock crystal vessel tradition in Tepecik during the Middle Bronze Age. The assemblage, which has a special meaning among prestige products, belongs to a craft activity that requires skill and experience, and is an indicator of socio-cultural richness. During the 2 nd millennium BCE, in the wide geographical region covering Anatolia, Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean obsidian and rock crystal vessels were among the special items produced for the royal or elite class. The stone vessel assemblage reflects the political and economic power of these regions, and also provides an understanding of interregional cultural and commercial connections. In the Çine-Tepecik Middle Bronze Age settlement, the obsidian and rock crystal vessel traditions followed a similar chronological development as the geography extending to Anatolia, the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean, and brings new finds to regional archaeology.

Loose finds associated with the LBK have long been recovered during surveys in the Warsaw Basin, Mazovia. Most often, they have been interpreted as remnants of short stays of LBK communities migrating northwards along the Vistula River, or as stopping points of expeditions southwards for flint. Rescue excavations at Cząstków Polski site XII, Czosnów commune, although carried out on a small scale, provide the first possibility of a comprehensive multiproxy analysis to test this hypothesis and determine the nature of the settlement. By integrating the results of the analysis of natural conditions (soils, hydrography), excavated features, and artefacts: pottery (technology, stylistics, petrography), flint (raw materials, typology, use-wear) and coarse-grained stone (raw materials, typology, use-wear), we show that the site actually represents the remains of a small, shortly used settlement that is part of a small contemporaneous settlement micro-region occupied during the beginnings of the middle LBK (early Music Note phase). This micro-region is an example of a peripheral, short-lived and thus unsuccessful colonisation of early farming communities associated with the LBK.

This study aims to re-evaluate Cambaztepe, located approximately 12 km west of the Silivri district center of İstanbul, where rescue excavations led by the İstanbul Archaeology Museums in 2015 were carried out. Cambaztepe is a burial mound dated to the Early Bronze Age II (EBA II) within Anatolian chronology. It also has a secondary burial context dated to the Iron Age. Although there is no absolute dating, Cambaztepe is currently believed to be the earliest burial mound in Türkiye’s European territory (also known as Eastern Thrace), considering the burial position and the grave goods and/or finds. The excavation team has published only a preliminary report and two papers, of which one was published in a popular magazine. The possible relationship between Cambaztepe and Yamnaya (Pit-Grave), and other related cultures was not examined in the preliminary report. Furthermore, the preliminary report provides inaccurate and misleading suggestions about the way the deceased were placed in the grave and the grave finds. In addition to other evidence, the way the deceased were placed in the grave as a semi-supine position indicates that the Cambaztepe EBA II grave context is related to the Pit-Grave or other cultures with Pit-Grave traditions in the Balkans. However, the grave structure in round shape with a floor of stone slabs and the grave finds, consisting of a beaked jug of inland Western Anatolian origin and a dagger of Anatolian origin, make Cambaztepe different from contemporary burial mounds in the Balkans. The existence of a cremation burial is sufficient to make concrete suggestions in the context of possible early migrations from Europe to Anatolia in the 3 rd millennium BC, even though the exact nature of these migrations remains unknown, whether they involved the population movement or transfer of ideas-ideology-beliefs (or a combination of both). Likewise, the Cambaztepe EBA II grave context has a potential to define the mechanism of migration from Anatolia to Europe more precisely. The Cambaztepe EBA II grave context should be placed at the date range 2700–2500 BC, based on the burial practice observed in the Balkans and the grave finds of Anatolian origin.

In 1953 a human skeleton and a set of tools made from antler, bone, bronze, stone and wood was found embedded in marine clay under a former inlet of Lake Mälaren at Granhammar in Västra Ryd parish, Uppland province, Sweden. Andreas Oldeberg and Nils-Gustaf Gejvall published the find in 1959, and for half a century it did not see continued study. This paper reports on a comprehensive series of re-studies and laboratory analyses of the skeleton and the artefact finds. Among the results are an unambiguous date by multiple methods in the late 800s cal BC, i. e. late Period V in Montelius’ chronology. Inferences are made about the individual’s geographical origin, diet and main occupation. Comparisons are made with the victims of mass violence from Tollense Valley in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. In a time and place where almost every dead person was cremated and no human remains were buried under anything but the strictest ritualised circumstances, Granhammar Man offers something unique and valuable. He was killed in combat far from home and sank to the sea floor with his leather-working equipment.

The progress of field research and studies of archaeological sites from southern Poland (Małopolska) and experimental activities related to salt-making in the Bronze Age and Early Iron Age in the last two decades have created conditions for attempting to recreate the chaîne opératoire of this branch of prehistoric production. The use of ceramic containers for evaporating brine and drying and portioning salt means that we are dealing with two operational sequences (production of ceramics and salt) intertwined at some stage – from obtaining raw materials (clay and brine) to the distribution of transportable product and discarding of disposable containers. We conducted multi-aspect studies on the characteristics of materials related to each stage, including their spatial location, based on all available material from western Małopolska, in particular several large-scale benchmark sites (Podłęże 17, Brzezie 17 and Kraków-Bieżanów 11). This allowed us to identify certain differences in production sites. A comprehensive review of the source database also allowed us to establish a rather limited scope of both the degree of craft specialisation of the brewers and the scale of the centre’s influence. Nevertheless, in some periods, as in the beginning of the Urnfield period, this centre gained supra-regional importance, as evidenced by, among others, certificates of weight standardization of finished products.

This article presents the rationale behind the material culture from Rochelongue underwater site assemblage. This site was located in the 1960s at Cap d’Agde (Languedoc-Rousillon, France) and dated to the last quarter of the seventh–beginning of the sixth century BC. The study is based on the characterisation of the metal finds linked to the so-called “Launacian” phenomenon. The results are applied within the context of mobility, connectivity and cultural interaction, showing metal as the central defining element of these archaeological contexts. The provenance and cultural affiliations of the pieces, determined from chemical and provenance analyses, help, in turn, to determine interactions between the Iberian Peninsula and the rest of Europe. In this context, the South of France is a nexus for direct contact sustained over a certain period, probably economic, although never free from other socio-political considerations. Thus, the article opens debate on the underwater site of Rochelongue and its Launacian material culture context, feeding discussion on its chronology, cultural attribution and typological characterisations, as well as reflecting a greater relevance of the coastal and maritime route and its impact on the Iberian Peninsula than previously considered.

The central agglomeration Němčice in Moravia gave the name – the Němčice/Roseldorf type – to the entire gradually recognised group of large lowland settlements with production and distribution functions existing in La Tène Europe in the 3 rd –2 nd century BC. In addition to settlement and production features, several ditched quadrangular enclosures were also identified at the Němčice settlement. One of these, feature 525, was investigated in 2022. The history of the enclosure is demonstrated by finds and structures found in its inner space and from the individual layers of the fill of its ditch, which document development from the burial and perhaps other ritual functions of the enclosure ending with the deposition of fragments of weapons in the ditch, up to the incorporation of the feature into the space used for settlement activities. Ditched quadrangular enclosures, as are known besides Němčice especially from Roseldorf in eastern Austria and from other settlements in the corridor of the Amber Road, reflect significant changes in the ritual behaviour of the La Tène population in Central Europe in this period.

The examination in the relevant museums of the preserved metal parts of La Tène wagon graves of southeastern Europe enables, firstly, a precise determination of their function, and also the reconstruction of some wheels. The La Tène wheels were usually around 85 cm in diameter, hot iron tyres were pulled over the wooden felloes and fastened with a few additional nails (such as at Balsa or Toarcla). The wooden naves were reinforced with nave rings and pushed onto the axle-arm, the latter having a diameter of circa 5.5 cm. The axle nails prevented it from jumping off the axle-arm. In the case of the middle La Tène wagon wheels found at Curtuiușeni and the late La Tène chariot wheels found at Cugir, buffer rings with a band of circular fittings could be seen on the axle-arm between the axle nail and the nave head. In the case of Cugir the nave rings were made from cast bronze and the buffer ring claddings from wrought bronze.

The Poieneşti-Lucaşeuca-culture (late 3 rd to second half of the 1 st century BC), which is distributed in the forest steppe between the east Carpathian Mountains and the river Dniestr, is seen as the result of an immigration of groups from the Jastorf area in North-East Germany. This concept is based on cemeteries: both the form of the grave4s and their material culture (ceramics, jewellery, costume) are foreign in the area, but show clear connections to the North and the North-West. Up to now large settlement excavations are missing that would allow for an evaluation of that concept based on settlement and economic structures as well as on the material culture of everyday life. The project that is presented here with first results, aims to that desideratum. With surveys and test excavations as a starting point on different sites in Central part of Republic of Moldova, the authors are excavating the Poieneşti-Lucaşeuca settlement of Ivancea-Sub Pădure on a large scale. The project is funded by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft. The paper presents first results like different post buildings and pit dwellings, the spectrum of small finds and a selection of the numerous ceramics including greek imports, and discusses the connectivity that becomes visible. The post buildings have no regional parallels and seem to have the best parallels in the Northwest. In opposite to that the small finds show a broad entanglement especially to the south and West and thus contradict the evidence from the grave. Also, in opposite to the graves the settlement ceramics show clear regional traditions, bus also relations to the North and the Northeast.

A remarkable discovery was made in Vanovice (Moravia, Czech Republic): a fragment of a Roman bronze jug handle from the 1 st century AD. The find is stored in the Museum of Boskovice region under the inv. no. A50476. The workmanship of the bronze handle attachment far exceeds the typical finds from the region of Moravia. The design of the handle attachment is connected to the Hellenistic toreutic tradition. The head depicted on the handle is believed to be that of Dionysus or Silenus, as determined through iconographic analysis and comparison with other works from Roman sculpture (mostly double herms) and artistic craftwork. The context of this find raises many intriguing questions. The artefact was found on the periphery of a barbarian settlement from the Roman Period. The main characteristic of the site is the hilly landscape without any settlement or funerary activities from the Roman Period. Could this be an isolated find, or does it indicate evidence of ritual practices during the Roman Period in the Barbaricum?

Zusammenfassung Der Artikel ist die erste von zwei Veröffentlichungen, die die Ergebnisse eines Forschungsprojekts zur sozialen Stellung und Funktion der mit Sporen bestatteten Toten auf den Friedhöfen des mitteleuropäischen Barbaricums präsentieren. Die Hauptannahme des Projekts bestand darin, die Lage der Gräber mit Sporen auf den Friedhöfen zu analysieren, um etwaige Regelmäßigkeiten in Bezug auf die Lage der Reitergräber und ihre Beziehungen zu anderen Gräbern in der Nekropole herauszufinden. Die folgende Analyse umfasste acht Friedhöfe aus dem mitteleuropäischen Gebiet des Barbaricums, vier Friedhöfe der Przeworsk-Kultur – Chorula, Lachmirowice, Chmielów Piaskowy und Opatów – zwei Friedhöfe der Wielbark-Kultur – Kowalewko und Weklice – einen Friedhof der Sudovian-Kultur – Szwajcaria – und mit Hamfelde eine Nekropole des elbgermanischen Kulturkreises. Bevor mit den räumlichen Analysen begonnen wurde, war es notwendig, die Besonderheiten jeder Bestattung auf dem Friedhof zu bestimmen. Beobachtungen zum Geschlecht und Alter der Verstorbenen sowie zur Qualität der Ausrüstung, die in den Gräbern mit Sporen im Vergleich zu allen Objekten in der Nekropole gefunden wurde, erwiesen sich als enormer Mehrwert für das Projekt. Zu den wichtigsten Schlussfolgerungen gehört, dass Sporen am häufigsten im Zusammenhang mit Gräbern voll bewaffneter Krieger vorkommen, wo sie fast immer paarweise gefunden werden. Gräber mit Sporen, insbesondere solche, die als Gräber voll bewaffneter Krieger interpretiert wurden, gehörten zu den reichsten Gräbern des Friedhofs, was uns annehmen lässt, dass berittene Krieger die soziale und militärische Elite bildeten. Auf den meisten Friedhöfen werden Sporen im militärischen Kontext in den Gräbern von Menschen verzeichnet, die ab dem Alter von infans II/juvenis starben. Dies war höchstwahrscheinlich die Zeit der Initiation für junge Krieger. Darüber hinaus legt dies die Interpretation nahe, dass der Status eines hochrangigen Kriegers vererbt wurde. Sporen in den Gräbern von Frauen und Kleinkindern kamen fast immer einzeln vor und waren nicht von Waffen begleitet, was beweist, dass sie in diesem Zusammenhang keinen funktionalen Wert hatten, sondern eher ein Geschenk oder Symbol waren. Dieser Artikel beschreibt eine detaillierte und umfassende Analyse des Grabkontexts, von der angewandten Forschungsmethode bis hin zu den Ergebnissen und Interpretationen.

The so-called Åker assemblage, a collection of stray finds of weapon parts and warrior-related objects dating from c. AD 600, has held a prominent position in Norwegian archaeology since the discovery of the first objects on the estate of Åker in Hedmark in south-eastern Norway in the 19 th century. The assemblage comprises high-status objects belonging to a warrior elite whose equipment display close similarities across the European Continent and in Anglo-Saxon England. In early research, many of the objects in the assemblage, e. g., the renowned ‘Åker buckle’ with cloisonné and zoomorphic decoration, were ascribed a Continental provenance. More recent discussions, however, advocate a Scandinavian origin for all the objects in the assemblage. Yet, the question of where the items originally were manufactured was once more actualized when further objects belonging to the assemblage were unearthed by metal detectorists in the 1990s. Among the new finds were some Frankish types of belt mounts that are unique in a Scandinavian perspective and other items with similarities to related equipment found in other regions. The new items may thus potentially shed new light on the question concerning place of origin of the assemblage. The question of provenance, however, is tied up with the phenomenon of local workshop-traditions in Scandinavia and the North Sea region. New insights have been gained on this topic during recent years as several new production sites have been explored. Through a visual assessment of the new items in the assemblage and a discussion of related parallels, it is argued here for a yet unknown western Scandinavian workshop as the most likely source for several of the objects making up the Åker assemblage.

Zusammenfassung Der Gründer des ersten freien und nichtstaatlich finanzierten Forschungsinstitutes für Ur- und Frühgeschichte in Deutschland im Jahre 1921, des UFI in Tübingen, Robert Rudolf Schmidt, verdient es, für eine bislang wenig beachtete Schlüsselphase seines Lebens nach seiner Entlassung aus dem Universitätsdienst im Frühjahr 1934 noch einmal betrachtet zu werden. Und dies, obwohl seine Person schon mehrfach aus wissenschaftlicher Sicht bewertet wurde Bolus/Conard 2012; Fehr 2008, 99f.; Heiligmann 1992, 30–32; Häck 2020; Hülle 1951; Kater 1974, 80f.; Keefer 1992; Kimmig 1958; 1992, 16f.; v. Koenigswald/Müller-Beck/Pressmar 1974; Müller-Beck 2000; 2011, 123f.; Leube/Hegewisch 2002; Leube 2013; Strobel 2000, 20–42; 2010; Veit 2006; Schöbel 2001; 2002; 2011; 2012, 9f.; 2022; Vojkffy in: Zotz 1955, 9–12; propyläum vitae https://sempub.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/propylaeum_vitae/de/wisski/navigate/7913/view). . Neue Dokumente aus Privatarchiven ergänzen seine Forscher-Vita und sind geeignet, unter anderem Blickwinkel fachlich bereits vorgebrachte Narrative zu seiner Person erneut zu beleuchten. Dies trifft besonders auf die unter ihm vorgenommene Ausgrabung in den paläolithischen Höhlen von Mauern bei Rennertshofen in Bayern zu, die sich bislang einer genaueren Nachschau entzogen hatte. Er war bei seinem wissenschaftlichen Wirken im 20. Jahrhundert in fünf politischen Systemen tätig. Im Kaiserreich (bis 1918), in der Weimarer Republik (bis 1933), im Nationalsozialismus (bis 1945), in der Alliiertenzeit (bis 1949) und in seinen letzten Lebensmonaten in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland (ab 1949), deren Anforderungen er sich stellte, deren Spielräume er für seine prähistorische Forschung zu nutzten versuchte, an denen er aber mehrfach scheiterte.