Burial Customs and Society in Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages of Northwest Lithuania
Articles
Lijana Muradian
Vilnius University
Published 2017-12-28
https://doi.org/10.15388/ArchLit.2017.18.11689
PDF

How to Cite

Muradian, L. (2017) “Burial Customs and Society in Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages of Northwest Lithuania”, Archaeologia Lituana, 18, pp. 47-77. doi: 10.15388/ArchLit.2017.18.11689.

Abstract

This article investigates the burial customs of the Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages in the territory of northwest Lithuania, focusing on barrow mounds and individual grave settings and grave goods. More than a century of excavations yielded 19 burial sites, in which 182 graves are known (169 cremations and 13 inhumations). The gathered data regarding burial customs consist of grave settings, burial locations within the mounds and grave goods, and these are used to interpret some features of how the communities were socially organized. During the Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages, the dead were buried in different types of graves: barrow mounds and flat graves; individual graves had different stone arrangements in both of mentioned types. This work presents a hypothesis that different types of graves and stone arrangements associated with burials were not just a result of time-related burial customs changes, but it could be an indicator of the social identity of the deceased. It is one of the possible indicators that hierarchic societies existed during the period in question.

Keywords: Late Bronze Age, Early Iron Age, barrow mounds, cremation burials, inhumation burials, society, northwest Lithuania

PDF

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Please read the Copyright Notice in Journal Policy
{"cc_re__cc_re__cc_by_4_0": ["on burials, inhumation burials, society, northwest Lithuania</p>\n\t\t\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"article-details-block article-details-galleys article-details-galleys-btm\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"article-details-galley\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\n\t\t\n\n<a class=\"btn\" href=\"http://www.journals.vu.lt/archaeologia-lituana/article/view/11689/10266\">\n\n\t\t\n\t\n\tPDF\n\n</a>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"article-details-block article-details-license\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a rel=\"license\" href=\"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/\"><img alt=\"Creative Commons License\" src=\"//i.creativecommons.org/l/by/4.0/88x31.png\" /></a><p>This work is licensed under a <a rel=\"license\" href=\"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License</a>.</p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Please read the Copyright Notice in&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.zurnalai.vu.lt/archaeologia-lituana/journalpolicy\">Journal Policy</a>.&nbsp;</p>\n\t\t\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n<div class=\"item downloads_chart\">\n\t<h3 class=\"label\">\n\t\tD", "\t\t\t\t<div class=\"article-details-galley\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\n\t\t\n\n<a class=\"btn\" href=\"http://www.journals.vu.lt/archaeologia-lituana/article/view/11689/10266\">\n\n\t\t\n\t\n\tPDF\n\n</a>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"article-details-block article-details-license\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a rel=\"license\" href=\"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/\"><img alt=\"Creative Commons License\" src=\"//i.creativecommons.org/l/by/4.0/88x31.png\" /></a><p>This work is licensed under a <a rel=\"license\" href=\"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License</a>.</p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Please read the Copyright Notice in&nbsp;<a href=\"http://www.zurnalai.vu.lt/archaeologia-lituana/journalpolicy\">Journal Policy</a>.&nbsp;</p>\n\t\t\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n<div class=\"item downloads_chart\">\n\t<h3 class=\"label\">\n\t\tDownloads\n\t</h3>\n\t<div class=\"value\">\n\t\t<div id=\"container\" style=\"min-width: 310px; height: 400px; margin: 0 auto\"></div>\n\t\t<div class=\"chartValues\" style=\"float: right\">\n            <a href=\"", ".journals.vu.lt/archaeologia-lituana/information/librarians\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tFor Librarians\n\t\t\t\t\t</a>\n\t\t\t\t</li>\n\t\t\t\t\t</ul>\n\t</div>\n</div>\n\n\t\t</div>\n\t</div>\n\t<div class=\"container site-footer-content\">\n\t\t<div class=\"row\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col-md site-footer-content align-self-center\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<p>Vilnius University Press<br>Tel. +370 5 268 7184 info@leidykla.vu.lt<br>1 Universiteto St., LT-01513 Vilnius<br>https://www.leidykla.vu.lt</p>\n\t\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-md col-md-4 align-self-center\">\n\n\t\t\t\t<a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" rel=\"license\" href=\"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img alt=\"Creative Commons License\" style=\"border-width:0\" src=\"https://i.creativecommons.org/l/by/4.0/88x31.png\" />\n\t\t\t\t</a><br /><br />\n\t\t\t\tVilnius University Press Journals site and its metadate are licenced under\n\t\t\t\t<a rel=\"license\" href=\"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/\">\n\t\t\t\t\tCreative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License\n\t\t\t\t</a>.\n\t\t\t</div>\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-md col-md-4 align-self-center\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"http://www.journals.vu.lt/archaeologia-lituana/about/aboutT", "268 7184 info@leidykla.vu.lt<br>1 Universiteto St., LT-01513 Vilnius<br>https://www.leidykla.vu.lt</p>\n\t\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-md col-md-4 align-self-center\">\n\n\t\t\t\t<a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" rel=\"license\" href=\"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img alt=\"Creative Commons License\" style=\"border-width:0\" src=\"https://i.creativecommons.org/l/by/4.0/88x31.png\" />\n\t\t\t\t</a><br /><br />\n\t\t\t\tVilnius University Press Journals site and its metadate are licenced under\n\t\t\t\t<a rel=\"license\" href=\"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/\">\n\t\t\t\t\tCreative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License\n\t\t\t\t</a>.\n\t\t\t</div>\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-md col-md-4 align-self-center\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"http://www.journals.vu.lt/archaeologia-lituana/about/aboutThisPublishingSystem\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img class=\"footer-brand-image\" alt=\"About this Publishing System\" src=\"http://www.journals.vu.lt/templates/images/ojs_brand_white.png\">\n\t\t\t\t</a>\n\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t</div>\n\t</div>\n</footer><!-- pkp_structure_footer_wrapper -->\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\n<div id=\"loginModal\" class=\"moda"], "copyright__copyright__copyright": [" not just a result of time-related burial customs changes, but it\u00a0could be an indicator of the social identity of the deceased. It is one of the possible indicators that hierarchic societies existed during\u00a0the period in question.\n\nKeywords: Late Bronze Age, Early Iron Age, barrow mounds, cremation burials, inhumation burials, society, northwest Lithuania\n\nPDF\n\nThis work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.\n\nPlease read the Copyright Notice in\u00a0Journal Policy"]}