On the chronology of the Vinča culture chronology: Vasić’s legacy of the Vinča-Belo Brdo datings
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Marcel Burić
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.
Résumé
Vinča n’est pas seulement le nom d’un site archéologique important situé sur un tell près du Danube, près de Belgrade, mais est également devenu synonyme d’une culture archéologique dont les caractéristiques et la chronologie ont fait l’objet d’un débat scientifique prolongé. La première fouille systématique du site a été dirigée par Miloje M. Vasić, qui a également proposé le premier cadre chronologique, controversé et fondamentalement erroné. Cette étude examine l’interaction complexe entre des facteurs scientifiques et politiques qui ont probablement influencé l’élaboration par Vasić de la chronologie de la culture de Vinča. Elle prend en compte le contexte plus large de l’archéologie préhistorique à la charnière des XIXe et XXe siècles et au-delà, ainsi que l’impact des courants intellectuels contemporains sur l’interprétation des sociétés préhistoriques, de leurs identités et des paradigmes théoriques qui les englobent.
Abstract
Vinča is not only the name of a prominent tell site located on the Danube River near Belgrade but has also become synonymous with an archaeological culture whose characteristics and chronology have been a subject of longstanding scholarly debate. The site’s first systematic excavation was conducted by Miloje M. Vasić, who also proposed its initial, controversial and fundamentally incorrect chronological framework. This paper aims to examine the intricate interplay of scientific and political factors that likely influenced Vasić’s development of the Vinča Culture chronology. It considers the broader context of prehistoric archaeology at the turn of the 19th to 20th century and beyond, alongside the impact of contemporary intellectual trends on the interpretation of prehistoric societies, their identities, and overarching theoretical paradigms.
Sažetak
Vinča nije samo naziv istaknutog arheološkog nalazišta smještenog uz rijeku Dunav nedaleko od Beograda, već je postala sinonim za arheološku kulturu čije su karakteristike i kronologija predmet dugotrajnih znanstvenih i stručnih rasprava. Prvo sustavno iskopavanje lokaliteta proveo je Miloje M. Vasić, koji je također predložio početni, kontroverzni i u osnovi netočan kronološki okvir za ovu kulturu. Ovaj rad nastoji istražiti složenu međusobnu povezanost znanstvenih, političkih i individualnih čimbenika koji su mogli utjecati na Vasićevo oblikovanje kronologije vinčanske kulture. U obzir se uzima širi kontekst prapovijesne arheologije na prijelazu iz 19. u 20. stoljeće i kasnije, kao i utjecaj tadašnjih suvremenih intelektualnih trendova na tumačenje prapovijesnih društava, njihovih identiteta i općih teorijskih paradigmi.
© 2025 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Titelseiten
- Abhandlungen
- On the chronology of the Vinča culture chronology: Vasić’s legacy of the Vinča-Belo Brdo datings
- Obsidian and Rock Crystal Artefacts as Prestige Finds Based on Raw Material Resources in Çine-Tepecik
- Searching for islands of happiness – LBK settlement at Cząstków Polski site XII, Czosnów Commune in Mazovia, Central Poland
- Re-evaluating Cambaztepe in the Context of its Yamnaya (Pit-Grave) Origin, the Anatolian Trade Network and Possible Early Migrations towards Anatolia in the 3rd Millennium BC
- Granhammar Man: axed down and thrown into the sea in Late Bronze Age Uppland, Sweden
- Salt, clay, and society: Towards a reconstruction of salt-making chaînes opératoires in the Bronze and Early Iron Age in the Kraków–Wieliczka salt-bearing region
- Recycling Metal, Mobility and Connectivity. An Analysis of Rochelongue Underwater Site Assemblage (seventh–sixth BC) West Languedoc (France)
- Burials and Rituals in the La Tène Period: The Quadrangular Enclosure from Němčice
- Reconstructions of the La Tène wagon wheels of Southeast Europe
- Beyond cemeteries – excavation of a settlement of Poieneşti-Lucaşeuca Culture in Ivancea, Republic of Moldova
- Fragment of a Roman Period jug handle from Vanovice, Blansko District (Moravia, Czech Republic) – interpretation possibilities
- Horsemen in social structures of Central European Barbaricum – Analysis 1: grave contexts
- The Åker assemblage: Provenance and local workshop-traditions in the North Sea region in the late 6th and early 7th centuries
- Wissenschaft und prähistorische Forschung in fünf politischen Systemen. Robert Rudolf Schmidt (1882–1950) und die SS-Grabung Mauern 1937 bei Rennertshofen
Articles in the same Issue
- Titelseiten
- Abhandlungen
- On the chronology of the Vinča culture chronology: Vasić’s legacy of the Vinča-Belo Brdo datings
- Obsidian and Rock Crystal Artefacts as Prestige Finds Based on Raw Material Resources in Çine-Tepecik
- Searching for islands of happiness – LBK settlement at Cząstków Polski site XII, Czosnów Commune in Mazovia, Central Poland
- Re-evaluating Cambaztepe in the Context of its Yamnaya (Pit-Grave) Origin, the Anatolian Trade Network and Possible Early Migrations towards Anatolia in the 3rd Millennium BC
- Granhammar Man: axed down and thrown into the sea in Late Bronze Age Uppland, Sweden
- Salt, clay, and society: Towards a reconstruction of salt-making chaînes opératoires in the Bronze and Early Iron Age in the Kraków–Wieliczka salt-bearing region
- Recycling Metal, Mobility and Connectivity. An Analysis of Rochelongue Underwater Site Assemblage (seventh–sixth BC) West Languedoc (France)
- Burials and Rituals in the La Tène Period: The Quadrangular Enclosure from Němčice
- Reconstructions of the La Tène wagon wheels of Southeast Europe
- Beyond cemeteries – excavation of a settlement of Poieneşti-Lucaşeuca Culture in Ivancea, Republic of Moldova
- Fragment of a Roman Period jug handle from Vanovice, Blansko District (Moravia, Czech Republic) – interpretation possibilities
- Horsemen in social structures of Central European Barbaricum – Analysis 1: grave contexts
- The Åker assemblage: Provenance and local workshop-traditions in the North Sea region in the late 6th and early 7th centuries
- Wissenschaft und prähistorische Forschung in fünf politischen Systemen. Robert Rudolf Schmidt (1882–1950) und die SS-Grabung Mauern 1937 bei Rennertshofen
