The Grave’s A Not-So-Private Place: Elite Multiple Burials in Early Iron Age West-Central Europe
Channel: Recording Archaeology
Date: 2017-02-12

In his 1984 survey of multiple burials in prehistoric Europe Claus Oeftiger noted that burials containing more than one individual are frequently found in richly outfitted chamber graves. The sample of multiple burials has expanded significantly in the intervening years and it may be time to revisit this mortuary category in light of new evidence. While most multiple burials contain two adults, often a female and a male, male/male, female/female and male/child or female/child combinations are also known. These configurations have traditionally been interpreted as reflecting familial relationships but recently excavated burials indicate that more complex associations for this category of burial are likely. We argue that the early Iron Age elite multiple burial category should be re-evaluated with reference to ethnographic anaology, archaeological evidence from other areas of westcentral Europe, and recent burials excavated in the vicinity of the early Iron Age Heuneburg hillfort.

Author - Prof. Arnold, Bettina, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Shorewood WI, United States of America
Co-author(s) - Fernandez Goetz, Manuel, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom (Presenting author)