Archaeology
Munich was densely populated during the Iron Age
In a press announcement issued by the Bavarian State Office for Monument Preservation, archaeologists have uncovered evidence indicating that Munich, located in Bavaria, Germany, was densely populated during the Iron Age.
Excavations in preparation for the development of a residential estate have uncovered over 100 ancient dwellings that could house up to 500 inhabitants during the Iron Age.
The discovery was made in the Feldmoching district, where circular brown features and post holes revealed the imprint of structures in large concentrations. According to the researchers, the structures vary in size and floor plan, which were half-timbered wooden houses using clay as a filling material.
Over 2,800 finds have been discovered, as well as two groups of graves consisting of 9 burials that date from the late Iron Age between 450 to 15 BC.
The team also found evidence of Roman occupation, evidenced by Roman burials from the 3rd to 4th century AD. In one of the burials, the researchers found funerary offerings of a plate, an intact ceramic jug, and a drinking cup made of soapstone.
According to the press announcement, the area likely contained a scattered agricultural settlement, indicated by the discovery of part of a sickle in one of the Roman burials.
Previous excavations in the region have uncovered a Roman settlement north-east of Munich, which was excavated in the neighbourhood of Denning.
During the Roman period, the Via Julia, a major Roman highway, crossed the River Isar south of Munich, and connected the colony of Augusta Vindelicorum (Augsburg) with the Municipium Claudium Juvavum (Salzburg).
Apart from scattered settlements by the Baiuvarii during the 6th century AD, major settlement of the Munich area wouldn’t take place until the founding of the town of Munich in 1158 during the Medieval period.
Bavarian State Office for Monument Preservation
Header Image Credit : Bavarian State Office for Monument Preservation
A Polish-Peruvian team of archaeologists have uncovered 22 mummified burials in Barranca, Peru.
The discovery was made on the Cerro Colorado hill, where the researchers unearthed the burials in one of four mounds located in a cluster.
Bioarchaeologist, Łukasz Majchrzak, said: “The bodies are wrapped in fabrics and plant material known as burial bundles. Between the layers of the fabrics we found ceramics, tools, and cult objects placed as funerary offerings.”
The team also found corn cobs and unidentified plant materials, which were likely placed as food for the deceased on their journey to the afterlife.
Six of the burial bundles contain the remains of adults placed in the fetal position, with their upper and lower limbs tucked under their chests.
According to the researchers, the adult burials are arranged vertically, which makes them appear as if they were sitting. They all have a similar external appearance, wrapped in thick fabric and entwined with rope.
One of the adult bundles is decorated with geometric patterns, while the remaining bundles – as Majchrzak suggests – may contain representations of animals and deities.
The other 16 burial bundles mostly contain the remains of children no older than 2 years old who were placed in a horizontal position.
The team plan to use computed tomography to examine completely preserved burial bundles that have no visible damage to allow for a non-invasive anthropological analysis. In further stages, they plan to carry out a chemical and isotope analysis, including the strontium isotope, which will determine whether the burials are from a local population.
Header Image Credit : R. Dziubińska
This content was originally published on www.heritagedaily.com – © 2023 – HeritageDaily
An international team, led by archaeologists from Freie Universität Berlin has uncovered an ancient prehistoric fortress in a remote region of Siberia known as Amnya.
According to a study, published in the scientific journal “Antiquity”, the fortress is a complex system of defensive structures around an ancient settlement, dating from 8,000 years ago.
The fortress is spread across two settlement clusters, Amnya I and Amnya II. Amnya I consists of extant surface features such as banks and ditches, which enclose the tip of a promontory, and 10 house pit depressions. Ten further house pits, located approximately 50m to the east, comprise the open settlement of Amnya II.
Excavations have uncovered approximately 45 pottery vessels within the wider complex, including pointed and flat-based forms that reflect two distinct typological traditions.
The Amnya settlement complex signifies the start of a distinctive, enduring trend of defensive sites among hunter-gatherers in northern Eurasia—an almost continuous tradition that persisted for nearly eight millennia until the Early Modern period.
Tanja Schreiber, archaeologist at the Institute of Prehistoric Archaeology in Berlin and co-author of the study, explains, “Through detailed archaeological examinations at Amnya, we collected samples for radiocarbon dating, confirming the prehistoric age of the site and establishing it as the world’s oldest-known fort.
“Our new palaeobotanical and stratigraphical examinations reveal that inhabitants of Western Siberia led a sophisticated lifestyle based on the abundant resources of the taiga environment,” added Schrieber.
The construction of fortifications by foraging groups has been observed in different parts of the world, primarily in coastal regions during later prehistoric periods. However, the early in inland western Siberia is unparalleled.
According to the researchers, the discovery transforms how we perceive ancient human communities, questioning the notion that the establishment of permanent settlements with grand architecture and intricate social systems began solely with the rise of agriculture.
Header Image Credit: Nikita Golovanov
This content was originally published on www.heritagedaily.com – © 2023 – HeritageDaily
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