Etnogeneza Słowian w świetle badań kopalnego DNA

Wydział Biologii: Instytut Antropologii

Landscapes of kingship in early medieval Ireland, AD 400–1150

This thesis explores the evolution of kingship in early medieval Ireland (AD 400–1150) through a kingdom based and multi-scalar approach to royal landscapes. Through exploring the role of place and landscape in the construction of early medieval Irish kingship, this study will assess the relationship between the social, economic and ideological roles of the king in Irish society. Kingship in Ireland was vested in places, such that royal landscapes were the pre-eminent symbol of regality and authority. As such, an interdisciplinary study of kingship grounded in archaeological methodologies has a unique potential to contribute to our knowledge of the practice of kingship. Consequently, this research considers the material apparatus of different scales of kingships and explores the role of landscape in the construction of kingship and the evolution of kingdoms. It takes two major case studies; (i) Cashel, Munster and the Éoganachta federation; and (ii) the Uí Néill, Tara and the Síl nÁedo Sláine kingdom of Brega. Through interdisciplinary methodologies it charts the genesis and development of political federations, focusing specifically on the role that royal landscapes’ played in their evolution. Similarly, this thesis engages critically with the nature of assembly places and practices in Ireland, and focuses specifically on issues pertaining to the nature of assembly and the archaeological manifestation of such practices. It includes a list of 115 landscapes identified as assembly places, and through the analysis of this material, this thesis examines the ways in which different types of royal sites articulated together to create royal landscapes implicated in the exercise of kingship, and the construction and maintenance of authority. Moreover, through the analysis of assembly places within the context of the development of kingdoms, and structures of jurisdiction and administration, it also investigates the evolution of supra-regional scales of identity and community associated with the emergence of major political federations in early medieval Ireland.

Reality-experiential history documentaries: the Trench (BBC, 2002) and Britain's modern memory of the First World War

Culloden (BBC, 1964) The Great War (BBC, 1964) 1914-18 (BBC/KCET, 1996) Haig: the Unknown Soldier (BBC, 1996) Veterans: the Last Survivors of the Great War (BBC, 1998) 1900s House (Channel 4, 1999) The Western Front (BBC, 1999) History of Britain (BBC, 2000) 1940s House (Channel 4, 2001) The Ship (BBC, 2002) Surviving the Iron Age (BBC, 2001) The Trench (BBC, 2002) Frontier House (Channel 4, 2002) Lad's Army (BBC, 2002) Edwardian Country House (Channel 4, 2002) Spitfire Ace (Channel 4, 2003) World War One in Colour (Channel 5, 2003) 1914: the War Revolution (BBC, 2003) The First World War (Channel 4, 2003) Dunkirk (BBC, 2004) Dunkirk: The Soldier's Story (BBC, 2004) D-Day to Berlin (BBC, 2004) Bad Lad's Army (ITV, 2004) Destination D-Day: Raw Recruits (BBC, 2004) Bomber Crew (Channel 4, 2004) Battlefield Britain (BBC, 2004) The Last Battle (ARTE/ZDF, 2005) Who Do You Think You Are? (BBC, 2004, 2006) The Somme (Channel 4, 2005) [From the Publisher]

Changes in solar activity and Holocene climatic shifts derived from C-14 wiggle-match dated peat deposits

Closely spaced sequences of accelerator mass spectrometer (AMS) C-14 dates of peat deposits display century-scale wiggles which can be fitted to the radiocarbon calibration curve. By wiggle-matching such sequences, high-precision calendar age chronologies can be generated which show that changes in mire surface wetness during the Bronze Age/Iron Age transition (c. 850 cal. BC) and the 'Little Ice Age' (Wolf, Sporer, Maunder and Dalton Minima) occurred during periods of suddenly increasing atmospheric concentration of C-14. Replicate evidence from peat-based proxy climate indicators in northwest Europe suggest these changes in climate may have been driven by temporary declines of solar activity. Carbon-accumulation rates of two raised peat bogs in the UK and Denmark record low values during the 'Little Ice Age' which reflects reduced primary productivity of the peat-forming vegetation during these periods of climatic deterioration.

Doonloughan: a seasonal settlement site on the Connemara coast

A series of shell middens and miscellaneous habitation sites, located in a dune
system in west County Galway, have been exposed and are slowly disappearing
through wind, wave and surface erosion. In 1992 a project was initiated to
record, sample and date some of these sites and the radiocarbon results
demonstrated that activity in the area spanned the Early Bronze Age through to
the Iron Age and into the early and post medieval periods. This preliminary
fieldwork was succeeded by the excavation of three of the better-preserved sites; a Bronze Age midden in 1994 and two early medieval sites (the subject of this paper), in 1997. The medieval sites dated to the late-seventh to ninth century adand were represented by a sub-circular stone hut with a hearth and the charred remains of a more ephemeral wooden tent-like structure. The discovery of a bronze penannular brooch of ninth/tenth century date at the latter site wouldsuggest that the settlements are not the remains of transient, impoverishedpeoples of the lower classes of society, eking out a living along the coast. The calcareous sands ensured good preservation of organic remains*fish and mammal bones, charred cereal grains, seeds and seaweed, and marine molluscs. Analyses of these indicated exploitation of marine resources but, otherwise, were comparable with the diet and economy represented by assemblages from established contemporary site types of the period. Unlike raths, cranno´gs and monastic settlements, however, the volume of material represented at the Galway sites was slight, despite the excellent preservation conditions. A range of seasonal indicators also suggested temporary habitation: probable latespring/summer occupation of the stone hut site and autumnal occupancy of the second, less substantial site. It is suggested that the machair plain, beside which the dunes are located, was most probably the attraction for settlers to the area and was exploited as an alternative pasture for the seasonal grazing of livestock.
*

A Chronological Framework for the Period 208 BC to AD 600

The period, from the Iron Age through to what is sometimes
called the Early Christian Period or the Early Middle Ages, includes
some of the most enigmatic centuries in the whole of Irish
history. In this article we intend to look at various strands of evidence
that have become available from the perspective of dendrochronology.
However, interpretation of dendrochronological
results works best when there is other information to push
against. In the case of this period one of the best sources of parallel
information – information essentially as well dated as tree
rings – has to be records of atmospheric chemistry from the ice
cores that have been drilled at several locations across Greenland.
Combining such information with evidence from tree rings,
palaeoecological research, and occasionally from history, allows
us to trace out a series of events and episodes that form the beginnings
of an understanding of this period between the Iron
Age flowering – with sites such as Emain Mache, Tara, Cruachain
– and the Early Christian flowering – widespread foundation of churches and monasteries.

Stable Isotope Dietary Analysis of Prehistoric Populations from the Minusinsk Basin, Southern Siberia, Russia: A new chronological framework for the introduction of millet to the eastern Eurasian steppe

We report the results of stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis of 354 human and faunal samples from five archaeological cultures of the Minusinsk Basin, Southern Siberia – Afanasyevo, Okunevo, Andronovo, Karasuk and Tagar (ca. 2700–1 BC) – a key location in Eurasia due to its position on a northern corridor linking China and central Eurasia. The results indicate that the diet of Eneolithic to Middle Bronze Age (Afanasyevo to Andronovo) populations was primarily C3-based, with C4 plants only becoming an important component of the diet in the Late Bronze Age Karasuk and Early Iron Age Tagar cultures. Freshwater fish seems to have been an important constituent of the diets in all groups. The findings constitute the earliest concrete evidence for the substantial use of millet in the eastern Eurasian steppe. We propose that it was probably introduced from Northwestern China during the Karasuk culture at the start of the Late Bronze Age, ca. 1500 BC. We conclude with a discussion of the implications for the nature of pastoralist economies on the steppes.

King David’s City at Khirbet Qeiyafa: Results of the Second Radiocarbon Dating Project

Fifteen samples of burnt olive pits discovered inside a jar in the destruction layer of the Iron Age city of Khirbet Qeiyafa were analyzed by accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon dating. Of these, four were halved and sent to two different laboratories to minimize laboratory bias. The dating of these samples is ~1000 BC. Khirbet Qeiyafa is currently the earliest known example of a fortified city in the Kingdom of Judah and contributes direct evidence to the heated debate on the biblical narrative relating to King David. Was he the real historical ruler of an urbanized state-level society in the early 10th century BC or was this level of social development reached only at the end of the 8th century BC? We can conclude that there were indeed fortified centers in the Davidic kingdom from the studies presented. In addition, the dating of Khirbet Qeiyafa has far-reaching implications for the entire Levant. The discovery of Cypriot pottery at the site connects the 14C datings to Cyprus and the renewal of maritime trade between the island and the mainland in the Iron Age. A stone temple model from Khirbet Qeiyafa, decorated with triglyphs and a recessed doorframe, points to an early date for the development of this typical royal architecture of the Iron Age Levant.

Freshwater Reservoir Effects on the Re-Dating of the Eurasian Steppe Cultures: New Data for the Prehistoric Sites of Kazakhstan and South of Siberia

Freshwater reservoir effects (FRE) can cause a major problem with radiocarbon dating human skeletal material in the Eurasian steppe. Recent research has demonstrated that, for the Eneolithic to Early Bronze Age sites of North-Eastern Kazakhstan, the maximum fish-herbivore freshwater reservoir offset observed equals 301±47 14C yrs, as such indicating that 14C dates from aquatic and human samples from the area apparently need to be interpreted with caution as they are likely to be affected by the offset. The current paper presents the new data on the FRE of the Eneolithic to the Early Iron Age sites of Kazakhstan and South of Siberia.

La présence phénicienne en Syrie du Nord à l’Âge du Fer, 1000-500 av. J.C.

RÉSUMÉ Cette étude porte sur la présence phénicienne en Syrie du Nord uniquement pendant la première moitié de l’Âge du Fer, i.e entre 1000 et 500 av. J.C. Elle est fondée sur l’analyse des données archéologiques et littéraires des principaux sites côtiers de cette région, al Mina, Ras el Bassit, Tell Kazel, Tell Soukas et Amrit. Après une présentation des caractéristiques culturelles de la civilisation phénicienne, j’aborde l’analyse de ces sites. Les données qui permettent de prouver une présence phénicienne dans la région s’avèrent nombreuses et j’en conclus que les Phéniciens devaient constituer une minorité importante de la population de ces sites, au même titre que les Grecs ou les Chypriotes, la majorité étant d’origine syrienne. Mais dans certains cas, notamment sur les sites les plus proches des grandes capitales phéniciennes, il n’est pas impossible qu’ils aient été majoritaires. L’étude illustrera par ailleurs l’importance du rôle des cités de la Syrie du Nord dans les échanges commerciaux et culturels avec les autres cultures du Sud-Est du bassin méditerranéen, notamment celles de la Grèce, île de Chypre, de la Cilicie et de la Syrie intérieure.

El armamento de influencia La Tène en la Península Ibérica (siglos V-I a.C.)

El armamento de tipo La Tène se ha venido relacionando habitualmente con la Segunda Edad del Hierro europea, y en general con un territorio dominado por poblaciones de etnia celta. Sin embargo, en la actualidad su alcance llega a un territorio más amplio, que en particular afecta a buena parte de la Europa occidental. En este trabajo se analizan y estudian las armas de influencia La Tène en la Península Ibérica a partir de la información directa del material arqueológico. Además de un catálogo exhaustivo de estas armas para el territorio, se realizan una serie de propuestas tipológicas y se procede al estudio de los conjuntos de armas (panoplias) y a procurar resolver las cuestiones de la llegada de estos influjos, de las vías de propagación de las armas, de sus características y peculiaridades morfológicas y tecnológicas y, finalmente, de su evolución a lo largo de más de cuatro siglos de historia.

Proceedings of the Ninth Annual Conference of the British Association for Biological Anthropology and Osteoarchaeology, Department of Archaeology, University of Reading

The Proceedings of the Ninth Annual Conference of the British Association for Biological Anthropology and Osteoarchaeology (BABAO) held at the University of Reading in 2007. Contents: 1) A life course perspective of growing up in medieval London: evidence of sub-adult health from St Mary Spital (London) (Rebecca Redfern and Don Walker); 2) Preservation of non-adult long bones from an almshouse cemetery in the United States dating to the late nineteenth to the early twentieth centuries (Colleen Milligan, Jessica Zotcavage and Norman Sullivan); 3) Childhood oral health: dental palaeopathology of Kellis 2, Dakhleh, Egypt. A preliminary investigation (Stephanie Shukrum and JE Molto); 4) Skeletal manifestation of non-adult scurvy from early medieval Northumbria: the Black Gate cemetery, Newcastle-upon-Tyne (Diana Mahoney-Swales and Pia Nystrom); 5) Infantile cortical hyperostosis: cases, causes and contradictions (Mary Lewis and Rebecca Gowland); 6) Biological Anthropology Tuberculosis of the hip in the Victorian Britain (Benjamin Clarke and Piers Mitchell); 7) The re-analysis of Iron Age human skeletal material from Winnall Down (Justine Tracey); 8) Can we estimate post-mortem interval from an individual body part? A field study using sus scrofa (Branka Franicevec and Robert Pastor); 9) The expression of asymmetry in hand bones from the medieval cemetery at Écija, Spain (Lisa Cashmore and Sonia Zakrezewski); 10) Returning remains: a curator’s view (Quinton Carroll); 11) Authority and decision making over British human remains: issues and challenges (Piotr Bienkowski and Malcolm Chapman); 12) Ethical dimensions of reburial, retention and repatriation of archaeological human remains: a British perspective (Simon Mays and Martin Smith); 13) The problem of provenace: inaccuracies, changes and misconceptions (Margaret Clegg); 14) Native American human remains in UK collections: implications of NAGPRA to consultation, repatriation, and policy development (Myra J Giesen); 15) Repatriation – a view from the receiving end: New Zealand (Nancy Tayles).