Mesolithic cremations as elements of secondary mortuary rites at Vlasac ... 36-Boric et al...

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UDK 903ı12\ı15(497.11)"633\634">393.2Documenta Praehistorica XXXVI (2009)

Mesolithic cremations as elementsof secondary mortuary rites at Vlasac (Serbia)

Du[an Boric1, Jelena Rai;evic2, Sofija Stefanovic2

1 Cardiff School of History and Archaeology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, [email protected]

2 Department of Archaeology, Belgrade University, Belgrade, [email protected]

Introduction

Cremation burials in the archaeological record usu-ally come from later prehistoric periods in Europe,particularly the Bronze Age. Cremations also char-acterise the later mortuary record of many parts ofthe Roman Empire in the 3rd century AD. Yet, insome regions of Europe, cremations as a form ofmortuary practice date back to the Mesolithic. Amongother cases, cremations have been found at Oir-schot V in the Netherlands (Arts 1987), FranchthiCave in Greece (Cullen 1995) and in the Mesolithiclevels of several sites in the Danube Gorges of thenorth-central Balkans (see Radovanovi≤ 1996.187–219; Srejovi≤ and Letica 1978). In the latter region,

most recently, new excavations at the site of Vlasacin the Upper Gorge of the Danube (Bori≤ 2006; Bo-ri≤ et al. 2008) revealed several new cremation pitswith burned human bones. These instances indicatemortuary rituals focused on secondary burning ofdefleshed human bones as part of a particular mor-tuary behaviour of Late Mesolithic-Early Neolithic (c.7500–5900 calBC) settlers in this region. This paperpresents evidence that demonstrates the conclusionthat still flesh-covered and intact human bodies werenot burned and left in these locations in situ, andthat we are dealing with a specific, previously unre-cognised form of secondary mortuary practice, which

ABSTRACT – In the course of recent excavations of the Mesolithic-Neolithic site of Vlasac, new lighthas been shed on the mortuary practices and ritualistic behaviour of the Danube Gorges foragers onthe basis of human remains with evidence of diverse treatments of dead human bodies. While themajority of burials from the site were found as articulated and some as disarticulated inhumations,there were also several cremation burials. The aim of this paper is to present the analyses of theseburned remains, which were excavated in the course of 2006–2007 field seasons in the Danube Gor-ges. Some of the cremation pits contained calcified human bones, with charcoal and fragments ofbroken and burned projectile points. These contexts are compared with similar cremation pits foundduring the first excavations at Vlasac and other sites in the region in 1970–1971. Finally, we exam-ine a series of plausible interpretations in order to sketch a belief system that was part of these fu-nerary practices at Vlasac throughout the 7th millennium BC.

IZVLE∞EK – Nova izkopavanja mezolitsko-neolitskega nadi∏≠a na Vlascu in sledovi razli≠nih ravnanjz umrlimi ponujajo nove poglede na pogrebne prakse in rituale pri nabiralcih v Donavski soteski.Poleg skeletnih pokopov so bili odkriti tudi ∫gani grobovi. V ≠lanku predstavljamo rezultate analiz∫ganih ostankov, ki so bili izkopani v letih 2006–2007. V nekaterih kremacijskih jamah so bile odkri-te kalcifirane ≠love∏ke kosti, oglje in prelomljene in o∫gane pu∏≠i≠ne osti. Te kontekste smo primerjalis podobnimi kremacijskimi jamami, odkritimi med prvimi izkopavanji na Vlascu in drugih najdi∏≠ihv regiji v letih 1970–1971. Preu≠ili smo verjetne interpretacije verovanj, ki so bila povezana s pokop-nimi praksami na Vlascu v 7. tiso≠letju BC.

KEY WORDS – cremations; secondary mortuary practice; Mesolithic; Vlasac; the Danube Gorges

DOI: 10.4312/dp.36.16

Du[an Boric, Jelena Rai;evic, Sofija Stefanovic

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involved burning bones fromolder burials.

In this paper, we first presentthe archaeological contextswith burned human remainsfound in the course of newexcavations at Vlasac (2006–2007). Second, we focus onthe material from the old ex-cavations of the site (Srejovi≤and Letica 1978.18–27) bycombining physical anthropo-logy inferences with previo-usly unpublished details ofparticular archaeological con-texts. One should keep inmind that the 1970 and 1971campaigns were salvage exca-vations conducted at an acce-lerated pace over a large areawith excavation standards dif-ferent to those common to-day. Hence, the observationsmade in the course of the newexcavations at Vlasac serve as valuable guidelines onhow to treat comparable instances from previous ex-cavations at the site. In the final instance, these setsof data are compared in an attempt to reconstructrecurring patterns in the evidence and to suggest arange of possible meanings associated with Mesoli-thic cremations and secondary mortuary practices ingeneral.

The site and its setting

Vlasac is situated approx. 3km downstream from thetype-site of Lepenski Vir in the Upper Gorge of theDanube, on the Serbian side of the river. It is one ofthe key settlements among a number of Mesolithicand Neolithic sites found along the Danube banks inthis specific landscape zone (Fig. 1). The site wasfirst excavated in 1970–1971 by D. Srejovi≤ and Z.Letica (1978). New excavations at Vlasac were be-gun in 2006 and are ongoing (Bori≤ 2006; 2008; Bo-ri≤ et al. 2008). The resumed work at the site has co-vered an area of 326m2, investigating a 63m stretchof the new riverbank section created after 1971 inthe probably peripheral, southernmost part of thesite (Fig. 2). Spatially, this new work takes placeupslope from the excavation area that was investiga-ted in 1970–1971. During these first excavations,the zone next to the original riverbank profile, up toa height of around 70 m asl, was sampled for archa-

eological remains with a number of trenches. Since1971, the Danube has risen, due to the building ofthe hydroelectric dam, and largely covered the pre-vious excavation zone. The current riverbank wascreated by continuous erosion, which destroyed aportion of the site with archaeological remains. InFig. 2, we show an estimated relationship betweenthe old and new excavation areas, which remainsprovisional for the time being.

Radiometric evidence suggests that the site was moreor less continuously occupied from the Early Mesoli-thic, from around 9500 calBC, but the intensity ofoccupation, judging from the number of radiocarbondates, is greatest from the mid-8th millennium calBC.This Late Mesolithic occupation/use of the site cov-ers the period from around 7500 to 6200 calBC. Newresearch at Vlasac has also indicated that the site wascontinuously used throughout the transformational/Early Neolithic period (c. 6200–5900 calBC). Finally,there is clear evidence from the new as well as theold excavations that human groups also frequentedthe site in the course of the regional Middle Neoli-thic (c. 5900–5500 calBC). During the Middle Neoli-thic phase, the first pottery appears in Vlasac, whilethe evidence of contact with Early Neolithic groupsthrough the acquisition of novel material culture,among other kinds of exchanges, are documented inthe period 6200–5900 calBC (Bori≤ et al. 2008.Ap-

Fig. 1. Map of the Upper Gorge of the Danube, with principal Mesolithicand Neolithic sites.

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pendix; for a regional chronologysee Bori≤ 2008.Tab. 1; Bori≤ and Mi-racle 2004; Bori≤ and Dimitrijevi≤2007; 2009).

Apart from numerous burials (seebelow), domestic features were alsorecognised at the site, such as trape-zoidal dwellings and rectangularstone-lined hearths. Numerous utili-tarian artefacts were found acrossthe site, but primarily in relation todwelling structures. Among severalclasses of objects found are a typicalknapped stone industry characteri-sed by splintered pieces, numerousscrapers and end-scrapers, and (ra-rely) trapezes, among other typolo-gical groups, primarily made of locally available flint,along with a substantial use of quartz implements; alarge collection of bone, antler and ivory tools; and,ground stone tools in the form of pestles, mortarsand some specific tools such as stone clubs/fish-stun-ners (see Antonovi≤ 2006; Bori≤ 2002b; Kozłowskiand Kozłowski 1982; Radovanovi≤ 1996; Srejovi≤and Letica 1978).

Burials at Vlasac

Numerous burials have been found at Vlasac, shed-ding light on the complexity of mortuary rites practi-ced by the communities that inhabited the site overseveral Mesolithic millennia. The total number offormal burials at Vlasac excavated in 1970–1971comprises 87 graves, containing either 119 individu-als (Nemeskéri 1978) or 164 individuals (Roksan-di≤ 1999; 2000). There are further 17 formal burials

which were excavated in 2006–2008, while the mini-mum number of individuals (MNI) for this assem-blage is 16 (Stefanovi≤ n.d.). There are also a num-ber of disarticulated, scattered human remains foundacross the site. Among the buried individuals areadults, children and neonates, all buried mostly asextended inhumations, although some semi-flexedand one seated burial in a lotus position were alsofound (Bori≤ 2006; Bori≤ et al. 2008; Bori≤ and Ste-fanovi≤ 2004; Radovanovi≤ 1996; Srejovi≤ and Le-tica 1978.53–82). On the basis of the tight body po-sition of some skeletal inhumations, it is possible tosuggest that in a number of instances the corpse waswrapped before burial (cf. Duday et al. 1990; Nils-son Stutz 2003; Roksandi≤ 2001).

While some burials did not have any associated graveconstructions, a number of inhumations were cove-red or encircled by unmodified blocks of stone, or

had somewhat carefully fashionedstone plaques covering the body; insome instances specially selected sto-nes (sometimes of red colour) wereplaced beneath the head of the de-ceased. Burials were also frequentlyassociated with dwelling zones andwere interred over abandoned buil-dings or around stone-lined rectan-gular hearths. However, there areexamples of burials found immedia-tely beneath such rectangular hearths(for instance, Burials 51a and 51b un-derneath Hearths 19 and 19a).

Possible grave goods, usually in theform of bone implements, are noted

Fig. 3. River bank section of Trench 3/2006, with visible burnedcremation contexts 97 and 146 and disarticulated tibia H130 (seeFig. 5).

Fig. 4. Articulated remains of Burial H136 and the cut of crema-tion pit context 115 that damaged this older inhumation.


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in a few burials, while occasional unmodified animalbones found in burials cannot be related to formalburial practices with any certainty (Bori≤ 2002b.Ap-pendix 6). On the other hand, body adornment inthe form of beads/appliqués accompanied a numberof Late Mesolithic/transformational burials, most fre-quently consisting of a large number of appliqués ofpharyngeal teeth of the Cyprinidae family (carp).Such body decoration was also reported for the siteof Schela Cladovei (Boroneant 1990), a site locatedsome 80km farther downstream from Vlasac andbelonging to the same Late Mesolithic material cul-ture tradition. Along with Cyprinidae teeth appli-qués, another type of appliqués of marine snails, pri-marily Cyclope neritea and sporadically Collumbelarustica, were also found in a number of burials (seeBori≤ 2002b; 2006; 2007a; 2007b). Most recently,Spondylus and red and white limestone beads havebeen found in transformational phase burials (c.6200–5900 calBC) (Bori≤ 2007b: 2008).

Another particularity of the mortuary practices foundat Vlasac is the occurrence of cremated human bo-nes. It is possible to distinguish threebasic types of such contexts: (i) ovalpits with in situ burning of humanbones directly associated with skele-tal inhumations found a) above cre-mated remains or b) partly damagedby cremation pits; (ii) oval pits within situ burning of human bones notfound directly associated with skele-tal inhumations, but in their vicini-ty; and, (iii) isolated fragments ofcremated bones found in the burialfill of skeletal inhumations. Similarinstances of cremation ‘burials’ werefound both in the course of old andnew excavations at the site, and inthe following text, we focus on thistype of mortuary practice. We belie-

ve that the careful recording of contextual details inthe course of most recent excavations at the site en-ables us to understand the complexity of the parti-cular instances of cremation burials recorded in1970–1971, and hence we describe the most recentfindings first. Before the discussion of contextual as-sociations, we first provide a short guide to the ana-lytical procedure followed when examining burnedhuman remains.

Material and methods

The analyses focused on the number and weight ofbone fragments, variation in colour as an approxi-mate indicator of temperature and duration of boneexposure to the heat, and, where possible, identifi-cation of the minimum number of individuals, sexand age criteria. Macroscopic bone morphology ob-servation and comparative techniques were used inthe examination of bone fragments. The state of pre-servation of the skeletal material from Vlasac variessignificantly. Bones vary from being extremely frag-mented, with the majority of fragments being less

Fig. 5. Refitted fragmented tibia H130 and a bur-ned shaft fragment from context 115. This disarti-culated and partly burned bone can be connectedwith primary articulation H136.

Fig. 6. Burned human clavicle from cremation con-text 115 in Trench 3/2006. The clavicle might havebelonged to individual H136.

Fig. 7. Articulated inhumation Burial H81 and cremated pit con-text 115.


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than 5cm, to some containing almostcompletely preserved bones. Onlyin one instance (individual H60 fromnew excavations), when the decea-sed was partly burned, were certainburned bones found in their primaryanatomical articulation in situ. In allother burial contexts, burned boneswere disturbed, fragmented andfound in piles or in oval burial pits.

In total, there are 56 contexts withburned human skeletal remains atVlasac. From the 2006–2007 excava-tions, there are 38 contexts, while 18contexts are from 1970–1971 (Ap-pendix 1). Only in few instances wasit possible to determine the numberof individuals in a particular crema-tion context (e.g. burned remains ofboth a juvenile and an adult in thecremation pile labelled H60). From the 1970–1971excavation campaigns, in only one context (Burial54a) could two adult individuals be distinguished. Inall other contexts, estimating the MNI had its limi-tations. Despite the absence of duplicate skeletal ele-ments, a small number of bones and the nature oftheir fragmentation made more precise determina-tion difficult. Since in most cases, we examined in-complete skeletal remains with fragments (less than3cm long) originating from long bones, aging tech-niques and measurements relevant for determiningsex could not be applied. However, burned juvenilebones or bones of individuals under the age of 14–16 were not detected during the examination. In onlyone burial (H60; 14–16 years old) could age and sexbe determined with some certainty on the basis ofburned bones.

The assemblage of burned remains demonstrates avariety of colours and bone textures. As Shipman etal. (1984) point out, colour is not a sole indicator ofburning temperature, and should not be the onlyanalytical tool when examining burned osteologicalremains. However, it can be a rough guideline forestablishing an approximate range of temperatures,conditions of bones and/or environmental condi-tions at the time when a cremation event took place(Walker et al. 2008). In our analyses, we took intoconsideration the surface colours recorded using theMunsell Soil Colour chart (Munsell Soil CompanyInc. 1954), and we further compared them with fivestages suggested on the basis of the research under-taken by Shipman et al. (1984.311, Tab. 2). Based on

the colour of the bones found in Vlasac cremationcontexts, it is possible to suggest that bones under-went the first four stages described by Shipman etal. Stages II, III and IV apply to most of the dentaland osteological remains from Vlasac. According to

Fig. 8. In situ cremated remains of juvenile individual Burial H60,with some cremated cranial fragments of an adult individual, mostlikely the skull of individual H63.

Fig. 9. Close-up of the pile of cranial fragments ofa juvenile (H60) and an adult (H63). The arrowindicates the proximity of the unburned right hu-merus of individual H63 found under this pile ofcremated bones.


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these stages, temperatures from 285°C to 440°C pro-duce white, pinkish grey, dark grey, brown and blackcolours, while temperatures from 525°C to up to ap-proximately 800° can produce light grey, grey, me-dium blue and bluish grey colours.

After the fire is extinguished, fracture patterns, shrin-kage and warping of the fragments should indicatewhether bones were flesh-covered, defleshed but notcompletely dry (‘green’) bones, de-fleshed – anhydrous, boiled or ba-ked (Whyte 2001.438). We suggestthat bones at Mesolithic Vlasac weremost frequently burned with no softtissues on them, since they exhibitlongitudinal cracks and fractures (cf.Whyte 2001.439). Apart from indica-tions based on the colour and sur-faces of the burned bones, such aconclusion is also supported by con-textual evidence: the process of pre-paring bones for burning can be re-cognised at some locations on thesite (see below). Although it is oftenhard to distinguish among small andheavily burned fragments, among thedominantly human burned remains,there were occasional burned animalbones (e.g. occasional fish bones and

a phalanx of red deer from Burial54a).

Cremated human bones from the2006–2007 excavation campa-igns1

There are 17 formal burial contextswith human bones recognised on thebasis of the presence of complete orpartially articulated skeletons, witha minimum number of 16 individu-als (Stefanovi≤ n.d.), while 30 addi-tional contexts were associated withdisarticulated human bones. In total,38 contexts contained burned hu-man remains. However, crematedhuman remains were found in twoparticular zones of the site excavatedin 2006 and 2007 (Fig. 2). The two

zones also contained clusters of skeletal inhuma-tions. The first zone – with the majority of thesecontexts – is located in Trench 3/2006 and the otherin Extension Trench 3/2007.

Trench 3/2006At this location there is a complex sequence of ske-letal inhumations associated with concentrations ofcremated human bones. Similar to other instances

Fig. 10. Close-up of burned bones found directly beneath the legs ofskeletal inhumation Burial H53.

Fig. 11. Skeletal inhumation H232 placed on top of cremation pitF26.

1 New and ongoing fieldwork at Vlasac started in 2006 through a collaborative project between the Departments of Archaeology ofBelgrade University, Serbia, and the Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, UK, and with Milo∏ Jevti≤ and Du∏anBori≤ as principal investigators. We would like to acknowledge the funding received for the archaeological excavations at the siteof Vlasac through the British Academy grants (SG–42170 and LRG–45589) and the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research,University of Cambridge grants in the period 2006–2007.


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from the old and new excavations at Vlasac, this clu-ster of burials is found in a depression, which mighthave been a natural formation, but subsequently ad-justed by fashioning its sides. It was first used as ahabitation zone, since a flint, quartz and bone con-centration was found within a layer of palaeosol(context 222). This layer is currently radiometri-cally undated, but is probably of earlier Mesolithicdate, i.e. it must be older than the date for one ofthe earliest burials, H136, which is dated to the firsthalf of the 7th millennium calBC (see below). On topof this initial habitation zone, there was a red bur-

ned dwelling floor (context 149). One can only spe-culate that the outline of the floored area might havebeen of trapezoidal shape on the basis of the shapeof the preserved floor level and by analogy with suchcontemporaneous dwellings found at Vlasac in 1970–1971. Here, the first pits with in situ cremated bonesseem to have been dug into sterile deposits imme-diately around this Late Mesolithic dwelling floor,which had only a partially preserved rear part, whilethe Danube has eroded away its front part. Thesepits might have been dug only upon the abandon-ment of the dwelling floor and its covering by a ste-

rile layer of soil (context 132).Two oval pits with in situ cre-mated human bones (contexts97 and 146 [see Appendix 1]found on the eastern gradientof the depression at slightlydifferent levels), as well as theinfill of the burial sequenceabove the dwelling floor, wereseen in section on the erodedportion of the riverbank im-mediately upon the start ofwork at Vlasac in 2006 (Bori≤2006; 2008; Bori≤ et al. 2008.Figs. 5, 8–10) (Fig. 3).

Once this floor surface (con-text 149) had been abando-ned, eight inhumations ofadults, children and neonateswere placed one above theother, with the same bodyorientation, in supine exten-ded positions. In addition, oneof the earliest burials found

Fig. 12. Cross-section of cremation pit F26, with stratified fill contexts 260, 249 and 251 (a) and context249 exposed with a stone slab context 259 (b).

Fig. 13. Burned cranial fragments from cremation pit F26 (Trench 3/2006, Vlasac).


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here, placed at the south-eastern side of the cut fa-shioned for the (trapezoidal) dwelling floor, was achild burial (H297; around 1 year old), associatedwith more than 400 Cyprinidae teeth appliqués mo-dified by making V-shaped cuts on their roots to fa-cilitate easier sewing to the cloths that adorned thedeceased, along with 21 appliqués of Cyclope neri-tea marine snails. The knees were covered by a large,specially chosen stone. All these mortuary elementsmay connect H297 with the first burial discoveredin 2006, H2, suggesting these two burials were con-temporaneous (H2 is dated to 6775–6475 calBC at95 per cent confidence, or 6681–6530 calBC at 68per cent confidence after correcting for the fresh-water reservoir effect: for details of all AMS dates,see Bori≤ et al. 2008.Appendix). However, H297, al-though in the immediate vicinity of the vertical se-quence of burials, was not in a directstratigraphic relation with the otherburials and was not damaged by sub-sequent digging. It also had an un-usual body orientation, with the headpointing north-east.

Within the vertical burial sequencein Trench 3/2006, older burials hadusually been partially disturbed bylater digging and the subsequent cre-mation of the disturbed human re-mains. While it is difficult to recon-struct with certainty the remains ofwhich burials are found within theearliest cremation pits, partly due tothe loss of other burials that mighthave been destroyed by erosion, onecould speculate that these first pits

contained the bones of such older burials. On theother hand, it is clear that one of the damaged bu-rials found at the bottom of the vertical sequence ofburials, an old adult female (H136) was disturbed bya later pit in which this individual’s bones were pro-bably burned in situ (context 115). Only the feetand the right tibia and fibula of this individual werefound unburned in their primary articulation (Fig.4). As a consequence of this disturbance, some dis-articulated and unburned bone fragments of this in-dividual were probably scattered in the vicinity ofthe burial’s resting place, as is most probably thecase with an unburned left tibia diaphysis (contextH130) (Stefanovi≤ n.d.). Burial H136 is directly AMSdated to 6775 to 6473 calBC at 95 per cent confi-dence, or 6684 to 6530 at 68 per cent confidence(after correcting for the freshwater reservoir effect;see Bori≤ et al. 2008). From context 115, the crema-ted proximal anterior parts of the left and right tib-iae, and a fragmented left tibia labelled H130, pro-bably come from Burial H136 (Fig. 5). Other scat-tered and unburned finds from context 115 mightalso have come from individual H136: a very gra-cile clavicle, which is morphologically identical as acremated fragment in context 115 (Fig. 6). A totalof 19 permanent burned teeth were found that alsomight have belonged to individual H136. Althoughincomplete, among the burned bones, ribs, carpalsand phalanges were recovered with a 5mm sieveand the flotation of sediments from context 115.There were fragments of burned bone projectiles,which seem to have been a recurrent feature of thesepits with burned human bones (see Appendix 1), andwe will later discuss the possible meaning of such as-sociations (see below).

Fig. 14. Burned bone projectiles found in F26(Trench 3/2006, Vlasac).

Fig. 15. Skeletal inhumation Burial H244 (Feature 22) prior to ex-cavation, and pit F23 (fill 242 and cut 243), which contained bur-ned human remains and Cyclope neritea marine snails.


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The burned teeth in this context donot differ from the burned bones –their surfaces are smooth and glassy,with black colour dominating thecrowns and roots, indicating a lowertemperature and heat (Schmidt 2008.58), probably about 360–440°C(Shipman et al. 1984.311). Slighttransverse fracturing on the roots isobserved and uniform black colou-ration could indicate that the teethwere probably burned with no softtissues around them, since teeth pro-tected in the sockets tend to be multi-coloured (cf. Schmidt 2008.63).Small maxillar and mandibular frag-ments among the burned bones ofcontext 115 again suggest that per-haps the whole head of H136 wasburned here.

Above this cremation pit context 115, an adult maleindividual, Burial H81, was interred. In its primaryarticulation, only the left half of the pelvis, the wholeleft leg and the right leg beneath the knee are pre-served (Fig. 7). From the position of the deceased’slegs, it could be inferred that at least lower limbsmight have been wrapped at the time of burial, asthe ankles are touching, while the feet were foundin the upright position due to the effect of the wall(Bori≤ 2006). H81 is now also directly dated by OxA–20 762 to 6639 to 6440 calBC at 95 per cent confi-dence, or 6590 to 6468 calBC at 68 per cent confi-dence (after correcting for the freshwater reservoireffect), confirming its stratigraphic position in rela-

tion to H136. The bones of this individual were dis-turbed by the digging of the burial pit for the youn-ger burial, H63, which is above H81, but slightly ho-rizontally displaced to the north along the same axis.

Burial H63 is a young female adult between 25 and30 years of age (Stefanovi≤ n.d.). A number of boneswere found in the infill of the burial pit of H63. Onthe basis of morphological and metrical characteris-tics of these disturbed remains, one can suggest thatthese body parts are the bones of an adult male, andcan be with some certainty connected to H81. More-over, the presence of particular bones missing fromH81 (skull fragments, right femur, left humerus)strongly suggest that these bones are disarticulatedbody parts of H81. While disarticulated bones of H81

were not burned in situ, perhapssome of the unaccounted for boneswere burned in Feature 26, found tothe south of this main burial area.This oval pit contained cremated hu-man bones and was superposed by aprimary skeletal inhumation (H232).We describe this feature in more de-tail below.

The younger burial, H63, found aboveH81, and containing some of thedisarticulated body parts of H81, isdirectly dated to 6232 to 6018 calBCat 95 per cent confidence, or 6212–6066 calBC at 68 per cent confidence(after correcting for the freshwaterreservoir effect, see Bori≤ et al.2008), and is thus at least two cen-

Fig. 16. The upper part of the body of Burial H244 (Feature 22)with the damage done to its torso and the burned humerus left inits supposed in situ location.

Fig. 17. Hearths 15 and 18 and Burials 45 (AA–57778), 53, 54,54a, (OxA–5823) and 49 (photo: Centre for Archaeology, Facultyof Philosophy in Belgrade).


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turies older than H81 (see Fig. 32). This may suggesta restrictive set of criteria for particular individualsto be buried in this location over a long period oftime, while, at the same time, there seems to havebeen a clear recognition of this particular burialplace by a social group within a larger communitythat repeated several times the same set of burialcustoms (see Bori≤ in press). The skull of H63 wasremoved possibly after the decomposition of thesoft tissues, since neither the cervical vertebrae northe atlas were disturbed. H63 bears no traces of ex-posure to fire, and is much more complete than bothH136 and H81. Parts of the primary articulations ofa juvenile (H153) and a sub-adult individual (H60)were found over H63, while her left ulna, radius, fe-mur, part of left pelvis and lumbar vertebrae wereremoved when a burial pit was dug here for the in-terment of two neonate burials (H62 and H69). Allthese disarticulated body parts of H63 were subse-quently placed in the infill of the last inhumation inthe group burial – H53 (see below). Modified Cypri-nidae teeth appliqués were found on both sides ofthe neck and partly below the left scapula of H63,suggesting some sort of headdress adorning the de-ceased. A large Spondylus bead and red and whitelimestone beads found associated with this burial(Bori≤ 2006; 2007b; 2008) confirm its radiometricdate, placing it in the transformational phase in theDanube Gorges, parallel with the Early Neolithic timespan of the wider region of the north-central Bal-kans (see Whittle et al. 2002; 2005).

An important discovery for the theme of this articleis the subadult Burial H60, possibly a young female

individual (14–16 years old), pla-ced directly on top of H63. H60 waslargely burned by cutting anotheroval pit in this part of the burialplace. This was in situ burning,which almost completely destroyedthe lower limbs and lower torso ofH60, while the bones of the uppertorso (clavicles, rib cage and cervi-cal vertebrae and scapulae) werefound in their primary articulation,although parts of these bones werealso affected by fire and appear part-ly burned (Fig. 8). In the course ofthe cremation process, some bones(pelvis and lower limbs) of individ-ual H60 were heavily burned. By thecontent, number and weight of frag-ments, one could infer a deliberatecremation of the exhumed bones of

individual H60 in situ. It is of some interest to notethat the skull of this individual was detached fromits primary location, similarly to the removal of theskull of H63. The disarticulated position of the bro-ken atlas of this individual may suggest that the headwas severed while the bones of H60 were still flesh-covered or defleshed but not completely dry.

In this last pile of burned bones, of which most be-longed to H60 in this location, closer to the areawhere the heads of H63 and H60 should have beenfound, there were also cranial fragments of an adultindividual as well as of a juvenile (Fig. 9). It is likelythat these fragments indicate that, after the remo-val of the heads of H63 and H60, these skulls wereburned here, the remains of which are found in thepile of cremated remains. The following bones ofyoung female (?) individual H60 were present: twelvecranial fragments with unobliterated coronar andsagital sutures, and two fragments of occipital bonewith external occipital protuberance and unfused su-tural edges. The following fragments comprised thecranium of individual H63: four fragments of fron-tal bone, with parts of orbit; a fragment of the righttemporal bone with zygomatic process; two frag-ments of the petrous part of the temporal bone,with internal auditory meatus; the apex of the rightmastoid process and incomplete left mastoid pro-cess; a fragment of the lingual surface of left man-dible with teeth sockets; a left fragment of a mandi-ble with the third molar, and one fragment of thebody of a mandible, with the part of a socket for thethird molar and visible mylohyoid line and groove.Although most of the fragments are incomplete, their

Fig. 18. Sketch of Burial 54, with cremation zone 54a and primaryarticulations Burials 49 and 53 (redrawn after Srejovi≤ and Letica1978.70).


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general appearance indicates that they belong to anadult female.

On the other hand, the individual in Burial H21, re-presented by an isolated skull with mandible andthe upper portion of the torso of a smaller child (2years ± 8 months), on the basis of its age and thegeneral condition of the bones, probably belongedto the postcranial bones found as a partially preser-ved primary articulation marked as H153, also pla-ced on top of H63. If this is the case, the upper torsoand head of this child were also removed but notburned, and placed in the form of a structured de-posit, probably upon closing the whole burial loca-tion (see below; Bori≤ 2006). This removal of bodyparts probably took place when the skulls of H63and H60 were removed and subsequently burned.All these actions were probably undertaken imme-diately before a new skeletal inhumation was buriedhere.

The old adult individual Burial H53 is placed alongthe same axis as other, older burials in this location,but in the opposite direction to all other burials, i.e.with the head pointing upstream the Danube, in-stead of the previous rule of orienting the deceasedwith heads pointing downstream. As mentionedabove, the interment of this burial might have di-rectly been connected with the series of events justdescribed – of detaching the skulls of earlier burialsand the burning of H60 and probably parts of H63(the head) and possibly also parts of the child, H153.The legs of the old adult individual, H53, were foundlying directly on the pile of burned bones designa-ted as H60 (Fig. 10). The burial fill of this last inhu-mation, H53, at this location also contained a num-ber of bones from previously disturbed contexts,

but primarily the complete left femur, fragments ofthe left pelvis and the lumbar vertebrae of indivi-dual H63. On top of one thin stone plaque that cove-red the pelvis of H53, a red deer skull with antlerswas found as part of the ritualistic/structured clos-ing of this location. This red deer skull was placedsymmetrically with the already mentioned skull ofchild individual H21 (probably equivalent to the ar-ticulated post-cranial remains labelled as H153) (seeBori≤ in press). The red deer skull has directly beendated in the range 6006 to 5838 calBC at 95 per centconfidence, or 5984–5891 calBC at 68 per cent con-fidence (Bori≤ et al. 2008). After this burial, thewhole location was covered by large blocks of stoneand ‘closed’. The final infill of this burial locationbeneath the stone blocks, i.e. its uppermost layer,contained a number of burned human remains, whichmust have originated from the disturbance of oldercontexts with burned human remains, along withdisarticulated unburned fragments of human bone.

Feature 26 in Trench 3/2006On the southern side of the described depression,1.5m to the south of the vertical sequence of burials,another skeletal inhumation, H232 (young femaleadult, Feature 21), was discovered in 2007. The ori-entation of this burial followed the same general ori-entation as the rest of the burials in the vertical se-quence. Due to the gradient of the terrain in thesouthernmost part of the depression, the position ofthis burial was semi-seated, while its pelvis was pla-ced directly on top of a zone with intensely burnedhuman remains found in an oval pit lying directly

Fig. 19. Skeletal inhumation Burial 45 and crema-ted Burial 45a found behind the head of Burial 45(photo: Centre for Archaeology, Faculty of Philoso-phy in Belgrade).


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beneath H232 (Fig. 11). The pit (Feature 26) had anEast-West orientation. The cut (context 252) was100 by 60cm in diameter and 50cm deep. Three di-stinct fills were separated in the cross-section of thisfeature (contexts 249, 251 and 260). These differen-ces mark the intensity of burning in the pit, from thetrampled layer (context 251) on top of which H232was placed – the most intense zone of burning foundin the middle layer (context 249) and the diffusedburning (context 260) that affected the surroundingsediment on pit’s edges (Fig. 12). While some bur-ned bones from this pit were recorded in situ, mostwere hand-collected or picked up by sorting theheavy residue after the flotation of the sedimentfrom this feature. The flotation procedure also allo-wed for the recovery of a concentration of palaeobo-tanical remains, primarily stones of cornelian cherry(Cornus mas), which were also noted in relation tosome burials during the first excavations at Vlasac(e.g. Burial 49; Srejovi≤ and Letica 1978. 55). Thisconcentration of cornelian cherries found in F26probably occurred accidentally, being still attachedto branches used for firewood, but one should not

exclude the possibility that the fruit was delibera-tely thrown into this feature. Their presence proba-bly indicates the autumn for the timing of the crema-tion event. Most recently, one of these cherry stonesfrom context 249 was directly AMS dated by OxA–20702 in the range 6636–6476 calBC at 95 per centconfidence, or 6596–6502 calBC at 68 per cent con-fidence. This date could be taken as the date for thecremation pit, but also for the burial of H232, if oneassumes that the interment of this individual tookplace immediately after the cremation of bones,which their stratigraphic superimposition suggests.Comparing the heights of burials H81 (c. 7.25 m asl)and H232 (c. 7.30 m asl), which were both found atapproximately the same level above cremated con-texts, as well as the completely overlapping datesobtained for the likely interments of these two indi-viduals, one may suggest that these events possiblytook place around the same time, utilising an olderburial, H136, as the substance for burning in crema-tion pits beneath both burials.

Total recovery of the burned human remains fromcremation pit F26 was attempted,and these include: 511 fragments ofburned bones weighing almost 600grams that were hand collected;199.6 grams from a 5mm sieve; 647.8grams from a 3mm sieve; and 47.8grams from the flotation of sedi-ments. The length of fragments reco-vered by flotation ranged between0.5mm and 20mm (Appendix 1).Multiple colours on the burned bonesare noticeable – varying from blackto light blue and grey, to partially bur-ned bones. It is possible that not allthe bones were exposed to the sametemperature, probably due to theirdifferent positioning within a pyreand fluctuations in temperature thatoccur naturally. Also, bones could bepartly burned or differ in colour dueto draft and lack of fuel (Walker etal. 2008.129). Since the dimensionsof cremation pit F26 do not suggestthat a whole adult body could havebeen buried in it, it is most likelythat some already defleshed boneswere dug up from their primary po-sition and then burned here.

On the basis of the anthropologicalexamination of the burned remains

Fig. 20. Skeletal inhumation Burial 47 and cremated bones Burial47a (photo: Centre for Archaeology, Faculty of Philosophy in Bel-grade).


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from this feature, it is possible toconclude that there are no duplica-tions of skeletal elements to indicatethe presence of more than one per-son, although the high fragmenta-tion of bones might be misleadingin this respect. The majority of frag-ments originate from long bones,but three fragments of vertebrae andmore than 60 cranial fragments arealso present, indicating that almostthe whole skeleton or at least all theparts of a human skeleton mighthave been cremated here. Also, onemandibular fragment, 28mm long,is present, with preserved lingualsurface and with mental spines andsockets for both canines and all in-cisors, indicating an adult person. However, the cra-nial fragments were the best preserved and are thebest for sex and age determination. Cranial sutureclosures, observed on four fragments, indicate thatthe individual was of adult age, over 50 years old(Fig. 13). Due to high fragmentation and the absenceof diagnostic anatomical features on the post-cranialskeleton for sex determination, the gracility of boneswas the only indicator to suggest a possible female.In an attempt to answer the question about whosebones were burned in F26, one may thus recognisethe possibility that the disturbed bones of adult fe-male H136 might also have found their way intothis cremation pit and not only into the previouslymentioned context 115. This conclusion is corrobo-rated by the stratigraphic positions of these burialfeatures, their proximity, anthropological observa-tions on the burned human remains and their com-parisons with the preserved skeletal inhumation ofH136, which was found in its primary articulation.

Among the recovered fragments are an ulna and aradius that can be articulated. It is important to notethat the fracture patterns observed are not those ori-ginating from the bone shattering prior to burning(Mays 1998.214). Furthermore, a post-depositionaldisturbance could not result in either such traces orin the high degree of fragmentation. One bone frag-ment shows cutting traces made while the bone wasstill heated, while others show traces of blunt forcetrauma on the edges, which may indicate that thebones were first cut and then smashed. In this parti-cular case, we suggest that the mechanical breakageof the bones was done when the bones were beingprepared for cremation. Thus, we could assume thatsome time after the initial inhumation, defleshed bo-

nes of the deceased were taken from the primaryburial and intentionally fragmented in order to besubsequently burned in the pit. J. Kinley (1994.342)states that high fragmentation of burned bones incremations cannot be taken as an indication of thestate of burned remains at the time of deposition.Any movement while they were hot, their inter-ment, as well as the subsequent excavation and post-excavation conditions would affect the bones andmost likely increase their fragmentation. For a smallquantity of bones we could say that they sufferedsome very limited fragmentation in the course ofthe excavation and through their post-excavationtreatment, but deliberate pre-incineration fragmen-tation in a number of cremation burials at Vlasac isvery likely. Some instances of burials from the 1970–1971 excavations at Vlasac support this conclusion(see below).

Eleven fragments of burned bone projectiles (Fig.14) were found in the same feature, commingledwith burned human remains. One fragment wasfound beneath an unworked stone slab (context259) placed within the cremation pit, while nineother fragments came from the most intense zoneof burning in the middle of the pit.

Extension Trench 3/2007There is only one instance in the part of the sitewhere another cluster of skeletal inhumations wasfound with the evidence of, first, post-mortem dam-age to a skeletal inhumation and, second, subsequentburning of the disturbed human remains and asso-ciated finds. It relates to Burial H244 (Feature 22)and pit Feature 23 (fill 242 and cut 243) (Fig. 15),found in close proximity to two other skeletal inhu-

Fig. 21. Skeletal inhumation Burial 50a, with dislocated right fe-mur and traces of burning in this zone of disturbance; next to it,the disturbed skeleton of Burial 50.


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mations, Features 25 (H254) and 27 (H267). The in-dividual labelled as H244 is a female, around 40years old. This skeleton was damaged by a distur-bance that damaged most of the torso, leaving onlydistal parts of the arms and parts of the lumbar ver-tebrae. The mandible was also not found, and onecould suggest that perhaps the retrieval of the man-dible of this individual was the cause of the distur-bance. Curiously, a black burned and fragmentedright humerus was found in a place where it wouldbe expected anatomically, but no other traces of insitu burning were noticed in this location (Fig. 16).Further, a pit with a dark grey deposit and some bur-ned human remains was recognised as Feature 22(fill 242 and cut 243) in the immediate vicinity ofH244, i.e. behind its head, but at a somewhat lowerlevel. In total, 236 fragments weighing 64.4 gramswere collected from the pit. Apart from six cranialfragments (longest fragment 28mm), with no sutu-res, all other fragments come from long bones. Dueto the high degree of fragmentation (the longestpost-cranial bone is 22mm) and the absence of ana-tomical features for sex and age determinations, matc-

hing these fragments with the men-tioned skeletal inhumations in thevicinity is very difficult. Pit F22, withremains that do not indicate intenseburning in situ, also contained 9 bur-ned Cyclope neritea marine snails.It is possible that these appliqués,along with burned bone fragments,originate from disturbed burial H244,and that some of these remains en-ded up in this burial pit by secon-

dary redeposition, while the primary location fortheir burning might have been outside the currentlypreserved riverbank, on the edge of which this con-centration of burials was found.

Summary of findings for the 2006–2007 cre-mated remains

Previously described instances of cremation ‘buri-als’ discovered in the course of the 2006–2007 ex-cavation seasons suggest both some recurrent pat-terns in the appearance of cremated human bones,but also indicate a certain degree of variability thatdoes not allow for a single interpretive scenario. Therecurrent pattern found in the burial zone withinTrench 3/2006 suggests disturbances being madeonly to certain parts of older burials, frequently thehead and torso, while legs and feet were occasion-ally preserved. Disturbed bones were probably deli-berately broken in smaller portions prior to burn-ing. Given the degree of burning and the presenceof charcoal in these pits, the fire must have been bur-ned for a relatively long period, perhaps several days

Fig. 22. Distal tibia fragment that refits with a burned shaft frag-ment from Burial 50.

Fig. 23. Burned cranial fragments from cremation pit Burial 35.


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(C. A. I. French, pers. comm.). Such events of dig-ging through and disturbing previous burials andthe subsequent fragmentation and final burning ofthese bones might have taken place as a requiredpractice of (ritual) preparation for the interment ofthe newly deceased, since the skeletal inhumationsseem to have been placed directly on top of burnedremains. Only in one case (Burial H60) was it possi-ble to unequivocally determine that bones of morethan one individual were jointly cremated. The su-perimposition of these cremation pits with skeletalinhumations and their vertical stratigraphic rela-tions with other features in Trench 3/2006, furtheraided by a number of radiometric dates now avail-able, suggest that the basic elements of the samemortuary/ritualistic practice might have remainedunaltered for at least the last 800 years of the 7th

millennium calBC. In the course of this period, thisburial location was used for interments of a selectednumber of community members, which might havebelonged to a particular social (kin?) group. Somechanges seen in the appearance of ornament novel-ties around 6200 calBC did not alter the basic mor-tuary ritual of secondary re-burial and cremation (seebelow).

Cremated bones from the 1970–1971 excava-tion campaigns

In the course of 1970–1971, 19 burials with crema-ted human bones were recorded across the excava-ted area as i) piles of bones (Burials 35, 45a, 47a,65a, 58a and 68), ii) contents of oval pits (Burials11b, 54a, 85 and 86, while the last two were mar-ked as found in ‘fireplaces’), or iii) as isolated bonesfound within the burial fills of some skeletal inhu-mations (Burials 36, 45, 50, 50a, 50b, 51a, 52, 55and 67) (see Appendix 1). A number of physical an-thropologists have examined the human remainsfrom the 1970–1971 excavations at Vlasac (Nemes-kéri 1978; Nemeskéri and Lengyel 1978; Nemeské-ri and Szathmary 1978; Menk and Nemeskéri1989; Miki≤ 1981; 1992; Roksandi≤ 1999; 2000). Al-though these authors comment briefly on the crema-tion burials, detailed analyses of these remains havenever been undertaken, leaving this phenomenonwith neither an adequate description nor an appro-priate interpretative framework.

There are some problems with the collection of cre-mated bones excavated at Vlasac in 1970–1971. Oneburial (Burial 85) with cremated remains is missingfrom the collection. Also, the labelling for Burials 65and 65a is confused: Burial 65a was originally de-

scribed in the source publication as a round pit,0.25m in diameter, with calcified human bones (Sre-jovi≤ and Letica1978.61), while in the preservedcollection the label ‘Burial 65a’ is used for adult un-burned human bones, and the label ‘Burial 65’ isused for cremated remains. The source publicationalso fails to mention cremation bones found in theburial fills of skeletal inhumations.

The cremated remains excavated in 1970–1971 couldalso, slightly differently, be divided into anotherthree groups. The first group would comprise de-fined cremation contexts (pits or piles) containingonly burned human bones (Burials 11b, 35, 45a,47a, 54a, 58a, 65, 68 and 86). The second groupcomprises burials where burned bones are found as-sociated with primary articulated skeletons (Burials50 and 50a). The third group is made up of sporadicbone fragments (less than five per burial) that mighthave accidentally come to rest in burial fills fromdisturbed cremations nearby (Burials 36, 45, 50b,51a, 52, 55 and 67). The observations presented be-low are made on the basis of published information(Srejovi≤ and Letica 1978), as well as re-examinedmaterial and documentation available at the Facultyof Philosophy, Belgrade University. We will not usethe original excavator’s phasing of burials for phasesVlasac I–III, since it has recently been shown that,bearing in mind the colluvial character of formation

Fig. 24. Excavated cremation pit of Burial 35 andthe pile of bones with the head on top labelled asBurial 36 (photo: Centre for Archaeology, Facultyof Philosophy in Belgrade).


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processes at Vlasac, one could not sustain the exca-vator’s stratigraphic understanding of the site, and athorough revision of all associated features is requi-red. Such a new understanding of formation proces-ses and the stratigraphy of the site is based both onnew field research and an increasing suite of new ra-diometric measurements dating secure contexts fromold excavations (Bori≤ et al. 2008).

In a number of cases, we were able to connect thedefined cremation pits and piles that contained bur-ned human remains with nearby disturbed skeletalinhumations, the bones of which were burned. How-ever, we could not be absolutely sure in each parti-cular case that the cremated bones were from skele-tons in the vicinity of which they were found. Evenwhen diagnostic parts exist, due to the shrinkagewhen exposed to fire and the high degree of frag-mentation of burned and unburned bones, it washard to find fragments that can be refitted. However,in a small number of instances, we were able to con-join unburned bone remains from the inhumationswith burned fragments of bones found in cremations.

In the following, we describe particular contextualassociations. While piles or pits with cremated hu-man bones were found in different parts of the area

excavated in 1970–1971, their presence is promi-nent in the area where a number of other habitationand mortuary activities were also concentrated, i.e.in the western part of the site, in front of, behindand on the western side of Dwelling 2 (see Fig. 2).We shall describe these instances first.

Space around Dwelling 2 (Western sector)In square A/17, located in front of the wider side oftrapezoidal Dwelling 2 and overlapped Hearths 15,17 and 18, a complex sequence of overlapped andtruncated skeletal inhumations was found (Fig. 17).Among these burials are some of those that the ex-cavators recognised as cremation burials, frequentlyin association with, or in relation to skeletal inhuma-tions. We describe each of these features below.

Burial 86 (Dwelling 2)At the same level as the floor of Dwelling 2 and nextto the western side of this floor (0.4m away fromthe floor), there was an oval pit (0.8 by 0.35m) mar-ked as ‘Fireplace 2’. It contained a thick layer of char-coal and ash, as well as calcified human bones. Thesebones were marked as Burial 86. This feature con-tained 464 post-cranial fragments, the majority ofwhich originate from long bones of the lower extre-mities, but the head of a radius, a glenoid cavity(scapula), three fragments of ribs, one vertebra andtwo phalanges indicate that bones from the upperpart of the body were burned here. There were also75 very fragmented cranial (calotte) fragments, andonly one fragment of the mandible ramus (46.4mm).Cranial as well as post-cranial fragments do not showdiagnostic criteria for aging or sexing of these skele-tal remains. Among the burned human bones, oneburned unmodified Cyprinidae tooth appliqué wasfound.

The excavators indicate that this oval pit must havebeen dug only after the construction of Dwelling 2(Srejovi≤ and Letica 1978.22). This is similar to thecase of the so-called ‘Fireplace 1’, which containedBurial 85 associated with Dwelling 1 at the Easternsector of the site (see Bori≤ et al. 2008.Fig. 14). Inboth cases, it could be problematic to assume thatthese were the actual fireplaces of these dwellings.Instead, it is more likely that, similarly to the de-scribed instances from the new excavations at thesite found in Trench 3/2006 (see above), Burials 85and 86 associated with Dwellings 1 and 2 are crema-tion pits connected primarily with the burning ofhuman bones. For the absolute dating of these firsttrapezoidal dwellings at Vlasac, new radiometricdates indicate the first two centuries of the 7th mil-

Fig. 25. Section above Burial 11b in square a/6(photo: Centre for Archaeology, Faculty of Philo-sophy in Belgrade).


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lennium calBC, while the cremation pits might havebeen somewhat later. For instance, a roe deer skullwith antlers found at the floor of Dwelling 2 was da-ted in the range of 7047 to 6699 calBC at 95 per centconfidence, or at 7033–6821 calBC at 68 per centconfidence (Bori≤ et al. 2008). Although found ap-proximately at the same level as the floors of thesetwo dwellings, it is likely that these cremation pitswere created after these dwelling spaces had ceasedto be used for everyday activities.

Burial 54aCremation Burial 54a was found in an ellipsoidal pitcontaining burned human bones next to Burial 54(Fig. 18). Burial 54 is a disarticulated inhumation ofan adult male, over the age of 50, whose bones wereplaced in a pile above Burial 53 (see Fig. 17).

The total of 336 burned bone fragments, weighing527 grams, were recovered from Burial 54a. Therewere 32 cranial and 304 post-cranial bones exhibit-ing similar colours: from blue, dark grey to white andblack. However, some bones were also reddish incolour, not caused by the fire, but possibly due tothe treatment by ochre. Fragments of calotte, verte-brae and some long bone fragments have a thin la-yer of reddish dust and direct red pigmentation onthe surface. A mandible condyle, part of the mandi-ble body, and one premolar indicate that this cranialfragment belonged to an adult. Among the burnedbones in Burial 54a, part of a scapula (glenoid cav-ity) was found. The left scapula of the individual inBurial 54 is missing this part of the bone, and thefragmented part of the glenoid cavity is probablythe one found among burned bones in the crema-tion pit of Burial 54a. In the cremation pit infill, anunburned flint, an unmodified third phalanx of a reddeer, and a burned bone projectile were found.

On the edge of cremation pit of 54a, there was aright pelvis of another adult (male), over the age of30 (Fig. 18). One of the fragments missing from thepelvis was found inside the pit, partly burned. Aftera close examination of the content of Burial 54a andcomparisons with surrounding skeletal inhumations,we conclude that the bones of two different indivi-duals can be identified. One of these individuals couldbe connected to the disturbed bones found in the se-condary position and labelled Burial 54. This assum-ption is likely on the basis of the close spatial con-nection between these two burials and the bone frag-ments that can be conjoined. The other individual isidentified by the presence of burned bone fragmentsand parts of the unburned pelvis, but to no other

articulated or disarticulated skeleton in the vicinitycan this additional pelvis be assigned, and we mustassume that this individual was not preserved in anyarticulated primary position in this zone of the site.

Burial 54 is dated in the range of 7024 to 6394 calBCat 95 per cent confidence, or 6678 to 6454 calBC at68 per cent confidence (after correcting for the fresh-water reservoir effect), and the whole sequence couldpossibly be assigned to the mid-7th millennium calBC(Bori≤ et al. 2008).

Burial 45aA heap of cremated bones – labelled Burial 45a –was found just above the head of Burial 45 (Fig. 19);45a also had a burned bone fragment in its infillalong with 410 unmodified Cyprinidae teeth appli-qués around the head of the deceased. Only thehead, a clavicle, right humerus and some vertebraeof this individual were found in their primary artic-ulation. Burned human bones along with burnedCyprinidae teeth appliqués were found in the piledefined as Burial 45a, next to the head of Burial 45(Srejovi≤ and Letica 1978.58). Burned post-cranialfragments belong to long bones, and only two frag-

Fig. 26. Partly preserved skeletal inhumation Bu-rial 11a and cremation pit Burial 11b, which da-maged the upper part of the body of individual 11a(photo: Centre for Archaeology, Faculty of Philo-sophy in Belgrade).


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ments of ribs and one of a phalanx were present.Cranial fragments do not show any suture closures,and like the post-cranial fragments, the absence ofany identifiable features prevents us from providingsex or age determinations. At this stage we couldonly speculate that some of the disturbed and miss-ing bones of Burial 45 might have been burned andplaced in this pile behind the deceased’s head, whilethe presence of cranial fragments among these boneswould indicate that the head of some other indivi-dual must also have been burned here. Burial 45 isdated in the range of 6654 to 6411 calBC at 95 percent confidence, or 6591 to 6462 calBC at 68 percent confidence (after correcting for the freshwaterreservoir effect) (Bori≤ et al. 2008).

Burial 55Two burned bones were found, placed in virgin soil,in the burial fill of skeletal inhumation Burial 55(Srejovi≤ and Letica 1978.60). One fragment is uni-dentifiable and less than 10mm long. The other is acalcified fragment of a long bone, 39mm long, pro-bably part of a radius. These fragments might havecome from Burials 45 and 45a – since the intermentof Burial 55 considerably damaged Burial 45 (Fig.17) – and possibly also the burned remains of Bu-rial 45a. On the other hand, some of these burnedbones might also have come from Burial 54a (seeabove), since the feet of Burial 55 were beneath thiscremation pit, so the burned human remains in thefill of Burial 55 might have been intrusions from thelater burial.

Burial 47aBurial 47a exhibits a pattern that is almost identicalto the one found in Burial 45a. Again a pile of bur-ned bones marked as Burial 47a was found behindthe head of skeletal inhumation Burial 47 (Fig. 20).

This pile was 0.25m in diameter, and among tracesof charcoal and ash, burned human bones as well asburned Cyprinidae appliqués were found. The assem-blage contains highly fragmented and unidentifiablefragments of twenty-four cranial and 105 post-cra-nial long bones. While it is difficult to link the bur-ned bones with the skeleton of Burial 47 – whichconsisted only of the head, vertebrae and pelvis –traces of ochre on one of the fragments of burnedbones were detected. At the same time, the vertebraeof the skeleton of Burial 47 were also coloured withochre (Srejovi≤ and Letica 1978.59).

Burials 50 and 50aBurial 50a consists of a partially disturbed skeletalinhumation, with legs crossed at the ankles (Srejo-vi≤ and Letica 1978.59–60). In one of the previous-ly unpublished photos of this burial, one noticesthat the right leg and the right arm had been distur-bed, i.e. dislocated from their primary position, andthat precisely in the location of this disturbance onecan follow dark traces of burning (Fig. 21). This in-stance indicates that the disturbed bones of Burial50a were probably burned, even including the bo-nes of Burial 50, which was only partially preserved.Among the burned bones found in the fill of Burial50a, 138 post-cranial fragments are from long bonesonly, with the longest bone fragment being 45mmlong. One left metatarsal and tarsal, and one handphalanx were found complete and unburned. Twofragments of a burned mandible and a calcified toothwere recovered, as well as one fragment of a cranialbone with observable suture. Although very fragmen-ted and with no criteria for sex determination, all thebones are robust and it is possible to suggest, there-fore, that they belonged to an adult. In the burial fill,one burned unmodified Cyprinidae tooth was foundalong with traces of ochre.

In the case of Burial 50, the partlypreserved leg bones found in articu-lation had traces of breakage. In thefill of Burial 50, 147 fragments ofpost-cranial burned bones show tra-ces of intentional breakage. A distalfragment of a tibia can be refittedwith a burned fragment from Burial50 (Fig. 22). Although burned frag-ments are partly mixed and calcifiedwith fragments of other bones, thedimensions and morphological re-semblance of the burned tibia shaftand the unburned tibia from Burial50 suggest that the skeleton of Bu-

Fig. 27. Burned and fragmented projectiles from Burial 11 (afterBori≤ 2002b.Appendix 6).


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rial 50 was partly burned here. Other burned bones,however, are highly fragmented, with the largestbone fragment being 52mm long, and cannot beused for sex or age determinations. Among the bur-ned bones, besides fragments of long bones of lowerextremities, one phalanx and a fragment of a radiuswere found. A fragment of an epiphysis shows a redpigmentation that could be from ochre. The legs ofthe skeletons in Burial 50a and 50b had traces ofochre, and Burial 50 was reportedly found in ‘red-dish soil’ (Srejovi≤ and Letica 1978.59–60).

Burials 52, 51a and 50b had fewer than five burnedbone fragments, and these could perhaps be inter-preted as intrusions from disturbed contexts of bur-ning now located in Burial 50a. One fragment fromBurial 50b shows traces of ochre.

Burial 35Burial 35 is in the area behind Dwelling 2 (Srejovi≤and Letica 1978.55). It was in the vicinity of ano-ther fire installation marked as ‘Fireplace 4’. In thiscircular pit (0.39 by 0.34 m), 32 cranial and 372 post-cranial fragments were recovered, exhibiting varia-tions in colour due to different degrees of exposureto fire. Post-cranial skeletal material differs from therest of the cremated bones from Vlasac since thereare more calcified bones (white predominates), indi-cating exposure to higher temperatures or longerexposure to heat. The assemblage of bones consistsof fragments of vertebrae, ribs, a left ulna, a pelvis,a scapula, metacarpals, metatarsals, a humerus, sa-crum, right talus and left patella, and unidentifiablefragments of long bones. Such a composition indica-tes that different bone elements from both sides ofthe skeleton were burned. Cranial fragments showan uneven intensity of burning on the inner andouter sides of the skull, and even different intensi-ties of burning on specific parts of the skull (Fig 23).Eleven fragments belonging to the occipital and pa-rietal bones on the outer lamina are burned (blackin colour), while their inner lamina is untouched byfire. One occipital fragment (57x56mm), with an ex-ternal occipital protuberance, shows a fine border-line of burning on the outer lamina. Fragments offrontal bones, two maxillar and three mandibularfragments are completely burned (light brown, greyand blue) and even calcified (white). On those calci-fied frontal bone parts, the separation of externaland internal laminae can be observed. Given the co-lours observed on the bone fragments, it is reason-able to suspect that part of the preserved (not bro-ken) cranium with mandible was placed upside-downon the pile of post-cranial bones which were more

consumed by fire. Thus, the lower temperature chan-ged only the outer parts of skull bones.

This cremation burial was found in the immediateproximity of Burial 36 (Fig. 24), which contained apile of disarticulated broken bones over an area of0.5 by 0.4m with a head being placed on top of thispile. It is possible to assume that some of the bonesfrom secondary Burial 36 were burned in the pit ofBurial 35, although due to their fragmentation, itwas not possible to ascertain this connection.

Central sector

Burials 11b and 9 (square a/6)Cremation Burial 11b (the diameter of the cremationpit was 0.7m, depth 0.4m, associated with lumps ofochre) is found in the central part of the Vlasac ter-race, where the layer of sediments is rather thin, sinceit is located on the border of the rocky plateau (seeBori≤ et al. 2008.4–5, Fig. 2). The thickness of sedi-ments in this square, as well as the cross-section ofthis burial pit, are visible in the previously unpubli-

Fig. 28. Burial 9 in square 6/a: fragmented boneswere placed in a pile encircled by several longbones and stones; Burial 11a in the foreground(photo: Centre for Archaeology, Faculty of Philoso-phy in Belgrade).


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shed section above Burial 11b (Fig. 25). There are anumber of skeletal inhumations of articulated anddisarticulated burials in the vicinity: Burials 4a, 4b,6, 6a, 5, 9, 10, 11a, 18a, 18b and 18c. One of the bu-rials in this group, Burial 6, has been AMS dated inthe range 6600 to 6235 calBC at 95 per cent confi-dence, or 6558 to 6266 calBC at 68 per cent confi-dence (after correcting for the freshwater reservoireffect). By analogy, the remainder of the burials inthis location could also be dated to this general chro-nological framework (Bori≤ et al. 2008).

Next to the cremation zone of Burial 11b, partly arti-culated Burial 11a was found. In fact, the cremationpit of Burial 11b damaged the upper part of Burial11a, of which only the lower limbs were preserved(Fig. 26). Due to the general morphological resem-blance of cranial fragments and those of upper limbspresent in Burial 11b, with the preserved lowerlimbs of Burial 11a, we can suggest that the bonesof Burial 11a were burned inside the cremation pitof Burial 11b (similarly to previously described con-texts from Trench 3/2006: Burial context H136,

which was cut by a cremation pit context 115 orH60, see above). Besides the legs of Burial 11a, frag-ments of burned projectiles were found (Bori≤2002b.Appendix 6; Srejovi≤ and Letica 1978.69), aswell as some other discarded artefacts, among whichwas one unburned broken tool made from wild boartusk. It is not unlikely that the burned projectiles(Fig. 27) were actually burned in the cremation pitof Burial 11b. The practice of burning projectilepoints has been attested in several other cremationburials at Vlasac.

In the context of cremation burials, it is of interestto mention Burial 9, found in the same quadrant asBurials 11a–b. Burial 9 was found in a natural rockydepression, encircled by larger stone blocks (Fig. 28).The excavators suggest that the spinal column of thisindividual had been twisted so that the pelvis restedon the skull. In Fig. 28 one can notice the disarticu-lation of this skeleton, with the longer bones encir-cling those that were intentionally fragmented andplaced in the middle of this pile. We have suggestedalready that once the bones were taken out of their

Fig. 29. High fragmentation of bones found on a pile labelled as Burial 9.


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primary inhumations, they were fre-quently deliberately fragmented andplaced in a pile before being burned.Thus, burial 9 can be considered asan example of such preparation ofdefleshed (dry) bones, either for bur-ning or simply for burial in a frag-mented state (Fig. 29). In this case,parts of long bones were heavily frag-mented, never burned, but buried onthe pile alongside some of the remai-ning complete long bones of this in-dividual. This case, like the previous-ly described Burial 36, may also in-dicate ways of preparing bones forcremation.

Burial 58a (square b/9)Burial 58a (0.62 by 0.4m of darkburning) comprises another concen-tration of cremated bones found be-side partly preserved skeletal inhumation Burial 58.Burial 58 had its legs preserved, in articulation be-neath the knees and crossed at the ankles (similarto Burial 50a, see Fig. 21), while only the left femurwas preserved, and was extended into section b8–c8,such that the rest of the potentially preserved bodyremained unexcavated. Beside the right femur ofBurial 58, cremated Burial 58a was found, suggest-ing that some of the bones of Burial 58 might havebeen burned here. In addition, the skeletal remainsof a neonate, Burial 58b, were found next to theright side of Burial 58 in the proximity of Burial 58a(Srejovi≤ and Letica 1978.64, Fig. 93). These buri-als were found approximately at the same level(64.83m), with neighbouring Hearth 20 (at 64.81masl), which was overlapped by Hearth 16. Such a po-sition may indicate that these burials were placed atthe rear of a possible dwelling structure, of whichthese hearths were part, upon the dwelling’s aban-donment. A bone and charcoal samples from the la-yer between the two hearths have provided overlap-ping ranges: 6638 to 6479 and 6634 to 6474 calBCat 95 per cent confidence, respectively (Bori≤ et al.2008.15–16). Burial 58a contains very fragmentedcalcified cranial and post-cranial bones. Among nine-teen fragments of cranial bones, two were recogni-sed as temporal, two as occipital and two are uniden-tifiable fragments with observable sutures and visi-ble traces of sutura metopica. These characteristics,along with the presence of one fragment of the in-ner part of a mandible, with open sockets but noteeth or roots present, indicate the presence of anadult. All the cranial fragments differ in size, with

the longest fragment being 41.6mm long. Among153 post-cranial bone fragments, apart from one un-burned phalanx, two fragments of ribs and two pel-vic fragments (non-indicative for sex or age determi-nations), all other fragments come from long bones.The longest fragment is 50mm long. These fragmentscan not be reliably connected with the skeletal re-mains of disturbed Burial 58 or 58b.

Burials 65 and 68 (square d/5)Burials 65 (circular surface 0.25m in diameter) and68 (0.9 by 0.4 m) had smaller amounts of the calci-fied burned bones of two adult individuals found inthe vicinity of Burial 56 (Srejovi≤ and Letica 1978.61). We have already indicated that there was an er-ror in the labelling of the disarticulated bones mar-ked in the source publication as Burial 65 and theburned bones marked as Burial 65a, since on theoriginal labels of this material in the collection weexamined, these burials are inversely marked. Here,we are being true to the original labelling of the ma-terial and hence use label ‘Burial 65’ for the crema-tion and ‘Burial 65a’ for the unburned skeletal parts,thereby differing from the source publication. In apreviously unpublished photo of Burial 56, on theright, next to section e4–e5 where Burial 65a wasfound, one notices a surface with dark burning thatcan be related to the in situ burning of Burial 65(Fig. 30). Due to the high fragmentation of burnedbones, it is not possible to draw any firm conclusionsabout where these burned bones might have origi-nated, but it is very likely that they could be connec-ted to the disarticulated bones of Burial 65a found

Fig. 30. Burial 56 and cremation zone Burial 65 next to section e4–e5 (photo: Centre for Archaeology, Faculty of Philosophy in Bel-grade).


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in their immediate vicinity. Burial 68, on the otherhand, cannot be easily connected with any partiallyarticulated skeleton in its immediate vicinity. Thesefeatures were found in the vicinity and beneath thelevel of neighbouring stone construction VII andHearth 21 (see Fig. 2).

Burial 67One fragment of burned human bone was found inskeletal inhumation Burial 67 (square c/9) (Appen-dix 1). It is likely that this fragment was accidentallydeposited in the burial by the re-deposition of soilthat contained burned bones in the vicinity of thisburial.

Burial 85 and Dwelling 1 (Eastern sector)Burial 85 (ellipsoidal, 0.75 by 0.4 by 0.25m) wasnot found in the preserved collection of osteologicalremains from the 1970–1971 excavations of Vlasac.As previously mentioned when discussing Burial 86,found beside Dwelling 2, after the examination andreview of the numerous contextual instances relatedto the cremation burials at Vlasac, Burial 85 is alsoprobably not a fireplace of Dwelling 1. It should ra-ther be interpreted as yet another cremation pit thatmight have been cut after the construction and useof Dwelling 1. However, one should notice that theexcavators mention a lot of charcoal, ash, fish bo-nes, fragments of a human skull, and other calcifiedbones associated with this feature (Srejovi≤ and Le-tica 1978.18). Since these bones were not preserved,it is impossible to comment on the fact noted in thesource publication that these remains represent a 3–5-year-old child (Srejovi≤ and Letica 1978.57). Twodates obtained on animal bones found on the floor

of Dwelling 1 give ranges of 7163 to 6818 and 7042to 6699 calBC at 95 per cent confidence respectively(Bori≤ et al. 2008.12–14, Fig. 14).

Summary for 1970–1971 cremation burials atVlasac

The absence of cranial sutures, epiphyses and, inmost cases, dental material, reduced the possibilityfor exact age estimations. An exception to this pat-tern was Burial 54a, with two male individuals iden-tified on the basis of their pelvic bones. In the sourcepublication of Vlasac, the authors state: “…crematedremains always have the opposite sex from the ske-letal inhumations beside which they were found”(Srejovi≤ and Letica 1978.76). However, diagnosticcriteria for the determination of sex were oftenlacking in the examined assemblage of cremated bo-nes. Hence, only the robustness of the preserved bo-nes could be taken as an indicator. However, this isfurther complicated by the shrinkage of bones, sincethe exposure to temperatures affects bones, causingthem to lose from 15 to 30 per cent of their massand thus to become smaller (Mays 1998.215). In thislight, we must reject the suggested patterning of op-posite sex regarding cremated remains and the ske-letal inhumations where these cremations werefound.

Unlike the previously described 2006–2007 crema-tion ‘burials’, in the examples from 1970–1971, cre-mations were not superposed by skeletal inhuma-tions. However, there are obvious similarities in thepractice of partially or completely disarticulating ol-der burials through secondary mortuary rites and

the subsequent in situ burning ofsuch disarticulated bones. The prac-tice of intentionally fragmenting thedisarticulated bones of older burialsseems to have occurred prior to theirburning, as in the case of the un-burned but intentionally piled andfragmented bones of Burials 9 and36 in the vicinity of which other bur-ned burials were found – Burials 11band 35 respectively (see above).Charcoal, dark layers of soil and ashwere present in most of the crema-tions. The ritualistic nature of burn-ing human bones might be the mainreason for performing this practicenear skeletal inhumations. There arealso two examples of ellipsoidal cre-mation pits with burned remains la-

Fig. 31. Burned cranial and postcranial fragments of Burial 81from Lepenski Vir.


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belled as Burials 85 and 86, previously interpretedas Fireplaces 1 and 2 and associated with Dwellings1 and 2, respectively, in each case found along thedwelling’s longer, western sides. We suggest thatthese features were not fireplaces related to the day-to-day use of these spaces, but more probably crema-tion pits similar in nature to those found in associ-ation with skeletal inhumations as described in anumber of instances in this paper. However, oneshould be cautious in this respect and allow for thepossibility that, although similar in form and con-tent to other cremation pits, the association of thesefeatures with the two dwellings might have signi-fied a slightly different kind of secondary mortuaryritual from other described instances. Moreover,among the described instances of secondary mor-tuary practices involving the intentional cremationof human bones, one could suggest several differenttypes of mortuary and/or ritualistic behaviours. Sucha variety of practices – underlined by a very similarmaterial signature – may indicate individual choicesmade in adjusting an existing burial and or ritualcustom to momentary circumstances and needs. Onthe basis of the existing radiometric evidence, thistype of mortuary/ritualistic practice characterisedthe Late Mesolithic at Vlasac in the course of the 7th

millennium calBC.

Comparative examples and possible meanings

The closest comparative examples for cremationsfrom Vlasac are from neighbouring Lepenski Vir. Anumber of burials had occasional fragments (nomore than four small fragments per burial) of bur-ned bones in the burial fill (Burials 32a, 45a, 54d,87 and 93). However, there is only one example, Bu-rial 81, which contains a burned mandible and seve-ral cranial and post-cranial bones, which might beevidence of a possible in situ burning of human bo-nes similar to the described instances from Vlasac(Fig. 31).

In the course of the early prehistory of Eurasia, cre-mation burials were occasionally reported from sitesfound from the Near East to western Europe andScandinavia. The earliest known cremations comefrom Natufian culture contexts in the Levant. In theback of Kebara Cave, the remains of twenty-threecremated individuals were excavated by Turville-Pitre in 1931 (Bar-Yosef and Sillen 1993.205–208).The examined material demonstrates a high state offragmentation, but as the authors point out, the bur-ning of the bones was preceded by their desiccationand fragmentation. The authors suggest that the bur-

ning temperature might have been between 200 and600°C (Bar-Yosef and Sillen 1993.207). Also in thecontext of the Natufian culture, at Wadi Hammeh 27,in Jordan, sixteen burned human cranial fragmentswere found scattered among the refuse of Structures1 and 2 (Webb and Edwards 2002.117). At this site,a single, semi-flexed burial was found on top of whatturned to be a collective burial containing five otherindividuals. This last burial in the sequence, Homo1, was laid over an oval pit containing burned sedi-ments, while limestone plates had been deliberatelyplaced on the deceased’s thorax. Five individualsfound in a small pit beneath Homo 1 were the re-mains of secondary burials. One of these, Homo 3,had a necklace with 27 Dentalium shell fragmentsunder the mandible, and traces of ochre on the bo-nes (Webb and Edwards 2002.109).

The most relevant comparative example in the wi-der region of the Balkans for the cremations foundin the Danube Gorges is the Lower to the Upper/Fi-nal Mesolithic sequence at Franchthi Cave in Greece(Cullen 1995.277–278; Jacobsen and Cullen 1981).The total of the examined human remains from Fran-chthi indicate between 15 and 34 individuals for Me-solithic levels, represented by both fully articulatedburials, as well as many human bone scatters. A Me-solithic primary inhumation of a male, Fr 1, wasfound above a group burial location containing fiveinhumations (Fr 2–6) and two cremations of youngadults (Fr 7 and Fr 8) in Trench G1, near the presententrance to the cave, next to the cave wall. The maleindividual, Fr 1, was buried in a shallow pit with anashy deposit, in a semi-contracted position, with thepelvis and chest covered by stones (Cullen 1995.275). Below Fr 1, five inhumations (Fr 2–6) werefound, having probably been placed in semi-con-tracted positions. They were found in a reddish se-diment with shells, animal bones, and associatedwith a hearth (Cullen 1995.276). Radiometric dates(P–2096: 8710±100 BP; P–2106: 8730±90 BP; P–2107: 8530±90 BP) from the wood charcoal at thislevel indicate a period between c. 8000–7600 calBC.However, due to the problem of ‘old wood’ and theuncertain association of charcoal and burials, it ispossible that the burials are somewhat younger thanthis date. Among these remains, two individuals, amale and female (Fr 7 and Fr 8), were recognised asdeliberately cremated at high temperatures (400–1100°C). Cullen and King suggest that the boneswere burned while still articulated and with thebones still covered with flesh (Cullen 1995.277).Cullen points out that the cremations at Franchthiyielded a small percentage of cremated bones, but


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Fig. 32. Probability distributions of dates from Vlasac. The outline distributions show the likelihoods de-rived only from the calibration of dates. The solid distributions show results when stratigraphic con-straints are imposed. The bars under distributions show the 68.2 and 95.4 per cent ranges from the ana-lysis (see Appendix 2 for details). Dates were calibrated using OxCal v. 4.0.5 (Bronk Ramsey 1995; 2001)and modelled within the Bayesian statistical framework (cf. Bayliss et al. 2007; Buck et al. 1996).


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that very small fragments might have been lostthrough excavations or even flotation of the sedi-ment. Hence it is suggested that possibly whole bo-dies might have been cremated in these instances(Cullen 1995.278). Besides cremations and inhuma-tions, scattered human bones were found in the Me-solithic levels of the cave. Apart from the presenceof cremations, one aspect that further connects theMesolithic sequence at Franchthi with previously de-scribed examples from the Danube Gorges, and alsowith some other contemporaneous sites across theBalkans, is the type of ornament found in the buri-als. In one of the Upper Mesolithic units at Franchthi,67 Cyclope neritea and Dentalium beads accompa-ny an infant and a 3–6-year-old child (Cullen 1995.277). Probably as the type of personal adornmentfavoured in the Mesolithic, Cyclope neritea and Den-talium beads were also found with individuals Fr 1–8. These species were in use at Franchthi until theend of the Mesolithic period, when they were repla-ced by Cerithium vulgatum (Cullen 1995.282).

Two Mesolithic sites in northern Europe, Pomorsko 1and Wieliszew VII, yielded several cremated remains(Sulgostowska 2006.193–203). At Pomorsko in west-ern Poland, the remains of a child and some additio-nal burned fragments were recovered, while at Wie-liszew in north-eastern Poland, only a single male in-dividual was cremated. Discussing Mesolithic mobi-lity in this regional context, it was suggested thatcremations might have been practiced during seaso-nal expeditions, and that easier transportation of thedeceased over long distances might have been faci-litated in this way (Sulgostowska 2006.197).

Nicolas Cauwe (2001.147–163) mentions crematedhuman remains from the Early Mesolithic site of Abrides Autores in southern Belgium. In this rockshelter,a collective tomb consisting of five adults was found.Underneath this group burial, the remains of sixchildren were found, alongside the cremated bonesof an adult. All of the deceased, including the secon-dary burial of the cremated individual, had under-gone a selection and manipulation of skeletal re-mains. Fragments or whole bones were removedfrom and moved within the tomb, suggesting themaking of complex links between the deceased andthe living (2001.157).

The burned human bones of an individual, aged 10–13, buried next to and also within the pit where thecremation took place were found at the Middle Me-solithic settlement of Oirschot V, the Netherlands(Arst and Hoogland 1987.172–189). Also, at the Late

Mesolithic site of Dalfsen, only a small amount of hu-man calcinated bones were excavated from pits con-taining domestic refuse (Smits and van der Plicht2009.55–85). In Vedbaek Fjord, in eastern Denmark,one deposit at Gøngehusvej 7 revealed the remainsof five cremated bodies; this has been interpreted asa collective burial during an annual gathering, sincethe deceased were in different stages of decay by thetime of cremation (Fowler 2004.134).

In southern Sweden, burned human bones werefound at the Late Mesolithic site of Skateholm I (Gra-ves 11 and 20) as well as at Skateholm II (GraveXVIII) (Fahlander 2008.29–45; Nilsson Stutz 2003.327–328). Of the total of 87 excavated burials fromboth sites, damage inflicted upon older burials, pos-sibly including secondary mortuary practices, is de-scribed for Burials 4, 7, 13 and 28. In addition, inthe case of Grave 13, arrowheads pointing towardsthe deceased were found in the burial fill. This in-stance has been interpreted as an act of aggressiondirected at the dead individual (Fahlander 2008.38).

Conclusions

Considering the combined data from old excavationswith data from new excavations in Vlasac, it appearsthat cremations were elements of secondary mortu-ary rites, very often directly related to the intermentof the newly deceased. The burning of the bones ra-rely involved just one deceased. At Vlasac, contextsin which burned bones are found demonstrate directexposure to fire and intentional burning. Burialsfrom the new excavations, but also reanalyses of in-stances from the 1970–1971 excavations, suggestthat the majority of burned bones are found burnedin situ, near the complete or partly preserved skele-tal inhumations. Only small concentrations of burnedbones were found scattered with no traces of burn-ing in situ. On the basis of the current radiometricdating evidence for a number of contexts associatedwith cremation burials (see Fig. 32 and Appendix 2),we must reject previous conclusions that cremationpractices were restricted to the so-called ‘early phase’burials at Vlasac (Radovanovi≤ 1996.218), or phaseI as defined by Srejovi≤ and Letica (1978). Our cur-rent evidence suggests that the practice was promi-nent throughout the 7th millennium BC (Bori≤ et al.2008; see Appendix 2).

There are some remaining questions: how and whydid the community at Vlasac make choices with re-gard to what part of the body of the deceased to


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burn or which individual would undergo such acremation process? Although whole skeletons mighthave sometimes been cremated, it seems that in anumber of instances where one finds a clear associa-tion of a cremation with a particular disturbed ske-leton, it was the torso and head that were more fre-quently disarticulated and burned than the lowerlimbs or, at least, all parts of lower limbs (e.g. Bu-rials H136, H244, H81, 11b). Burial 50a may be apossible exception to this pattern. There are no ele-ments to suggest that either the sex or age of the de-ceased played an important role in decisions aboutwhich individuals should be exhumed, disarticulatedand burned, since individuals of both sexes and allages, including older juveniles, were chosen. Perhapsonly neonates did not undergo this process, but thepatterning here may be skewed due to the issue ofthe preservation of neonate bones in cremations, orbecause the small number of neonate bones werenot considered sufficient for such secondary mortu-ary practices of burning.

We could ask whether such particular choices matte-red at all. For instance, the chronological sequenceof overlapped cremations found in the course of newexcavations at the site may be suggestive of a longperiod between particular burials (see Fig. 32). Here,the issue of people’s memory of particular individu-als buried at a particular location becomes impor-tant. For instance, can we expect that people wouldremember a particular individual and would dig intoan old burial due to their continuing social contactwith the deceased (her/his character, rememberedbiography, virtues and/or vices), or does the decea-sed become a rather anonymous person from thepast who, through such acts of disarticulation andburning, are transformed into even more anonymousentities (e.g. spirits, ghosts, enemies, etc.), and theirdisarticulation and possibly also their burning trig-gering a ‘happy forgetting’ (cf. Bori≤ in press)?

One could speculate that purification before thenewly deceased was interred was a reason to burnhuman bones. This could be an explanation for in-stances recorded in 2006–2007 in Trench 3/2006,when skeletal inhumations were often found pla-ced on top of cremation pits that disturbed and bur-ned bones of older burials. However, in Trench 3/2007 in relation to F22, we recorded an instance inwhich a skeletal inhumation Burial H244 had beendisturbed by digging into its upper torso and by re-moving and burning the deceased’s bones, whichwere probably placed in nearby pit F23, behind thehead of the deceased. The pit contained burned bo-

nes and burned Cyclope neritea appliqués. Hence,disturbing older burials and the burning of bones inthe latter case suggests a different type of motiva-tion from those instances where a newly deceasedwas interred over a cremation. What, then, could bea reason for the partial or complete disturbance anddisarticulation of older burials, or for creating pat-ches of small surfaces with burned human remainsleft beside skeletal inhumations (e.g. Burials 47 and45a), as evidenced in most of the instances from the1970–1971 excavations at Vlasac? One could suggesttwo different speculative positions, which are notmutually exclusive. First, as the simplest interpretivesolution, the burning of older, probably already de-fleshed burials (sometimes only parts of older skele-tons) or of intentionally fragmented heaps of bonesof one or several individuals in the vicinity of newburials might have related to the ritual practice ofpurifying a place needing preparation for a newlydeceased individual, since many burials were not in-terred in virgin soil, but in places where there hadalready been a number of other interments. The is-sue of ritual purity in the choice of the resting placeof the deceased in this case might have been para-mount, if one assumes that the burial ground wasconsidered ‘polluted’ by the remains of previous bu-rials.

The second position would go a step further in spe-culative interpretation. We could assume that suchacts of disarticulation and burning were intended torestrict the remaining powers of defleshed, but stillarticulated bodies, which might have been under-stood as dangerous and still possessing voluntari-ness. There are other elements of mortuary practi-ces at Vlasac that suggest the placing of restrictionson the physical capacities of the deceased: possiblyby tying (especially the legs) or wrapping bodiesprior to burial, or the placing of large rocks on theknees of the deceased (Bori≤ 2006; Srejovi≤ and Le-tica 1978.passim; cf. Roksandi≤ 2001 for the siteof Padina), as if such acts were meant to restrict thepossible resurrection and movement of the dead. Ina world in which the dead might have been under-stood as changing the terms of their alliance and af-finities with the living community over the passageof time since their death, as many ethnographic in-stances indicate (e.g. Taylor 1993; Vilaça 1992;2000), it might have been important to assure theintentional forgetting of the dead and the restrictionof their powers through specific ritualistic practices,which involved, first, the disarticulation of bones,and, second, their fragmentation and thorough de-struction through burning. If one accepts such an in-


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terpretive framework, one could explain why in cer-tain instances the damage was done to a particularburial by disarticulating and partly fragmenting thebones of some of the deceased even without burningthem (e.g. Burials 9 and 36), or in those instanceswhere the disarticulation procedure was followedby burning, with no obvious association of burningwith the interment of a newly deceased (e.g. BurialsH244/F. 22, 11, etc.). In addition, while the presenceof broken and burned projectile points in a numberof cremation pits might have been related to pri-mary grave goods of articulated burials that wereeventually disarticulated and cremated and thus com-mingled with human bones, it is also possible thatbone projectiles were intentionally placed in secon-dary mortuary contexts, perhaps supporting the of-fered interpretation of a ‘predatory’ move againstthe dead. However, should we assume, by the sametoken, that if some of the older dead turned intodangerous, hostile spirits that required mastery, andthe exercise of the force of disarticulation and bur-ning of their physical remains, that those left untou-ched in their primary articulations were the ‘unpro-blematic’ dead? Moreover, why were only parts oftheir physical presence damaged and subsequentlyleft in particular, formally designated cremation con-texts next to articulated burials? Finally, who wasbeing protected by these practices of burning – theliving or the newly deceased placed buried with ol-der burials?

It is exceptional that the clearest examples of the de-scribed secondary mortuary practices, which invol-

ved the burning of old burials, are seen at the siteof Vlasac and not at other contemporaneous sites inthe Danube Gorges. Some elements of the same mor-tuary ritual could perhaps be observed in currentlyunpublished mortuary evidence from Lepenski Vir,but perhaps also in instances of burning found atthe site of Hajdu≠ka Vodenica in the Lower Gorge ofthe Danube (Jovanovi≤ 1984). It is possible that thecommunities inhabiting each of these sites, althoughsharing general attributes of the material culture andworldview characteristic of the period, also had theirparticular ways of going about their everyday busi-ness, which also involved specific burial customs, ri-tuals and beliefs. A fascinating point remains, how-ever, in that the form of these practices, if not their‘original’ meanings, remained unaltered throughoutthe 7th millennium calBC at Vlasac, surviving thegreat culture change that brought elements of theNeolithic world to the Danube Gorges’ foragers.

DB and JR would like to thank Mihael Budja for hishospitality in Ljubljana during the Neolithic seminarin November 2008. We are grateful to Emanuela Cri-stiani for comments and her generous help in editinga number of illustrations. DB acknowledges the fun-ding provided by the Leverhulme Programme ‘Chan-ging Beliefs of the Human Body’ based at the Univer-sity of Cambridge in the course of which this paperwas compiled.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

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tions

quad

rant

frag

men

ts(g

)V

LASA

C 1

970

–197

1 ex

cava

tion

cam

paig

nsB

urne

d bo

nes

foun

d in

ova

l pit,

0.7

0m

in d

iam

eter

,19

332

75

burn

ed a

nim

al b

one

B. 1

1b0

.40

m in

dep

th 14

Cra

nial

> 22

Ligh

t bl

ue a

nd g

rey

frag

men

ts< c

harc

oal

surr

ound

ed b

y lim

esto

ne b

lock

s\la

rge

rock

s.Po

stcr

ania

l> 17

9Po

stcr

ania

l> 30

5

Surf

ace

with

bur

ned

bone

s 0

.39

by 0

.34m

<46

411

10.9

Bla

ck< l

ight

bla

ck a

nd

B. 3

5be

side

the

rea

r of

Dw

ellin

g 2

and

Fire

plac

e 4.

b\18

Cra

nial

> 92

Cra

nial

> 220

gray

< par

tly b

urne

dU

nio

sp.

Post

cran

ial>

372

Post

cran

ial>

890

.9bo

nes

On

the

surf

ace

of 0

.50

by

0.4

0m

sku

ll of

Bur

ial 3

6 B

. 36

was

pla

ced

on a

pile

of s

mas

hed

hum

an b

ones

b\18

Post

cran

ial>

3Po

stcr

ania

l> 3.

2G

rey

–am

ong

whi

ch a

lso

burn

ed b

ones

wer

e fo

und.

B. 4

5Pa

rtly

pre

serv

ed s

kele

tal i

nhum

atio

nA

\17

Post

cran

ial>

1Po

stcr

ania

l> 1.

4Li

ght

redd

ish-

yello

w

Cyp

rinid

ae te

eth<

och

reB

urne

d bo

nes

wer

e di

scov

ered

sur

roun

ded

by10

022

7.5

Whi

te< l

ight

blu

e41

0 b

urne

d C

ypri

nida

eB

. 45a

limes

tone

blo

cks

on t

he s

urfa

ce o

f 0.3

0m

in d

iam

eter

<A

\17

Cra

nial

> 15

Cra

nial

> 32.

2an

d gr

eyte

eth

loca

ted

behi

nd t

he s

kull

of B

uria

l 45.

Post

cran

ial>

85Po

stcr

ania

l> 19

5.3

Bur

ned

bone

s lo

cate

d be

hind

the

sku

ll of

Bur

ial 4

7<12

811

1Li

ght

blue

and

gre

y<C

harc

oal<

ash<

Cyp

ri-

B. 4

7aro

und

surf

ace

(0.2

5m in

dia

met

er)

A\1

7C

rani

al> 2

4C

rani

al> 3

0lig

ht r

edni

dae

teet

h< 8

bur

ned

Post

cran

ial>

104

Post

cran

ial>

81an

imal

bon

e fr

agm

ents

One

unb

urne

d hu

man

B

. 50

Part

ly p

rese

rved

ske

leta

l inh

umat

ion

A\1

8Po

stcr

ania

l> 14

7Po

stcr

ania

l> 37

9Li

ght

blue

and

gre

yto

oth<

13

burn

ed a

nim

albo

ne fr

agm

ents

Part

ly p

rese

rved

and

dam

aged

ske

leta

l inh

umat

ion<

145

245

Whi

te< l

ight

blu

eC

ypri

nida

e te

eth<

10

B. 5

0a

Cyp

rini

dae

teet

h an

d oc

hre

unde

rnea

th t

he s

kele

ton.

A\1

8C

rani

al> 7

Cra

nial

> 12

and

grey

burn

ed a

nim

al b

one

Post

cran

ial>

138

Post

cran

ial>

233

frag

men

ts< o

chre

B. 5

0b

Part

ly p

rese

rved

ske

leta

l inh

umat

ion

unde

rnea

thA

\18

Post

cran

ial>

4Po

stcr

ania

l> 13

.4W

hite

< blu

e<O

chre

Bur

ial 5

0a

with

tra

ces

of o

chre

on

feet

.lig

ht r

eddi

shB

. 51a

Dis

turb

ed a

nd p

artly

pre

serv

ed s

kele

tal i

nhum

atio

nA

\18

Post

cran

ial>

2Po

stcr

ania

l> 2.

8G

rey

–

B. 5

2U

pper

par

t of

ske

leta

l inh

umat

ion<

Hea

rth

19 c

utA

\18

Post

cran

ial>

1Po

stcr

ania

l> 1.

2B

lack

–th

e lo

wer

lim

bs a

nd p

elvi

s of

the

dec

ease

d.El

lipso

idal

pit

(0.7

0 b

y 0

.55

by 0

.20

m)

with

bon

es33

652

7of

tw

o ad

ult

indi

vidu

als<

Bur

ial 5

4 be

side

it fo

und

inW

hite

< lig

ht b

lue

Bur

ned

bone

pro

ject

ile<

B. 5

4ase

cond

ary

posi

tion

and

the

othe

r in

divi

dual

is id

entif

ied

A\1

7C

rani

al> 3

2C

rani

al> 6

6an

d gr

eyth

ird

phal

anx

of r

edby

frag

men

ts o

f bur

ned

bone

s an

d un

burn

ed p

elvi

s th

atPo

stcr

ania

l> 30

4Po

stcr

ania

l> 46

1de

er< f

lint

was

foun

d at

the

edg

e of

the

pit

B. 5

5Sk

elet

al in

hum

atio

n w

ith it

s fe

et b

enea

th B

uria

l 54a

A\1

7C

rani

al> 2

Cra

nial

> 5Li

ght

redd

ish-

yello

w–

Bur

ned

bone

s on

the

sur

face

of 0

.62

by 0

.40

m17

228

0B

lack

< lig

ht b

lack

and

B. 5

8abe

side

dis

turb

ed B

uria

ls 5

8 an

d 58

b, a

bove

Hea

rth

23.

c\9

Cra

nial

> 20

Cra

nial

> 48.

2gr

ey< l

ight

red

dish

-yel

low

Cha

rcoa

lPo

stcr

ania

l> 15

2Po

stcr

ania

l> 23

1.8

276

Con

text

Con

text

des

crip

tion

Are

a\N

umbe

r of

Wei

ght

Col

our

of b

urne

d bo

nes

Ass

ocia

tions

quad

rant

frag

men

ts(g

)

B. 6

5Su

rfac

e 0

.25m

in d

iam

eter

with

bur

ned

bone

s lo

cate

dd\

5Po

stcr

ania

l> 14

Post

cran

ial>

63.8

Bla

ck< l

ight

bla

ck–

bene

ath

Dw

ellin

g V

II a

nd H

eart

h 21

.an

d gr

eyB

. 67

Skel

etal

inhu

mat

ion

bene

ath

Hea

rth

23c\

9Po

stcr

ania

l> 1

Post

cran

ial>

0B

lack

–

B. 6

8Lo

cate

d be

neat

h D

wel

ling

VII

and

Hea

rth

21,

d\5

Post

cran

ial>

75Po

stcr

ania

l> 80

.8B

lack

< lig

ht b

lack

–su

rfac

e w

ith b

urne

d bo

nes

(0.9

0 b

y 0

.40

m).

and

grey

Bur

ned

hum

an b

ones

foun

d in

Fir

epla

ce 2

539

626

Bla

ck< l

ight

bla

ck a

ndO

ne b

urne

dB

. 86

(elli

psoi

dal p

it 0

.80

by

0.3

5m, 0

.15m

in d

epth

).a\

18C

rani

al> 7

5C

rani

al> 1

03

grey

< lig

ht r

edC

ypri

nida

e te

eth

Post

cran

ial>

464

Post

cran

ial>

523

VLA

SAC

20

06–

200

7 ex

cava

tion

cam

paig

ns

13Fi

ll ov

er t

he s

tone

con

stru

ctio

n on

top

of w

hich

T. 3

\20

06

Cra

nial

> 1C

rani

al> 2

.2Li

ght

blue

Flin

tEa

rly-

Mid

dle

Neo

lithi

c St

ar;e

vo p

otte

ry w

as fo

und.

19D

ark

fill o

f Bur

ial H

21 a

nd o

f the

upp

er la

yer

of t

heT.

3\2

00

6C

rani

al> 2

Cra

nial

> 2.6

Whi

teFl

int<

bead

s< p

otte

rybu

rial

seq

uenc

e (l

ikel

y eq

uiva

lent

to

cont

exts

24

and

44).

frag

men

ts< a

ntle

r to

ol

Upp

er in

fill o

f bur

ial s

eque

nce

unde

rnea

th la

rge

bloc

ksB

urne

d an

d un

burn

ed

24co

veri

ng c

hild

sku

ll H

21 a

nd r

ed d

eer

skul

lT.

3\2

00

6C

rani

al> 2

Cra

nial

> 9.6

Bla

ckhu

man

bon

es< f

lint<

(lik

ely

equi

vale

nt t

o co

ntex

ts 1

9 an

d 44

).C

ypri

nida

e te

eth<

frag

-+

4 fr

om s

ieve

men

t of

dee

r ja

wB

urne

d an

d un

burn

ed

29La

yer

cove

ring

the

str

uctu

red

depo

sitio

n of

red

dee

r sk

ull

T. 3

\20

06

Post

cran

ial>

2Po

stcr

ania

l> 6.

2W

hite

hum

an b

ones

< ant

ler

beam

frag

men

t< fli

nt<

flint

in r

ed d

eer

skul

l

Con

text

44

is fi

ll of

dar

k so

il in

the

upp

er la

yer

of t

he47

850

.2B

lack

< lig

ht b

lack

and

Spon

dylu

s< li

mes

tone

44bu

rial

seq

uenc

e (l

ikel

y eq

ual t

o co

ntex

ts 1

9 an

d 24

).T.

3\2

00

6C

rani

al> 6

Cra

nial

> 30

gray

< lig

ht r

eddi

sh-y

ello

wbe

ads

Post

cran

ial>

41Po

stcr

ania

l> 50

.2

50Fi

ll of

Bur

ial H

53T.

3\2

00

6Po

stcr

ania

l> 11

3+

72 fr

om fl

otat

ion

Whi

te

110

.4

Laye

r of

fill

of F

2 co

veri

ng t

he s

urfa

ce s

outh

from

Cyp

rini

dae

teet

h<51

buri

al F

eatu

re 3

and

enc

lose

d by

con

text

65.

T. 3

\20

06

Post

cran

ial>

83Po

stcr

ania

l> 37

.5W

hite

< bla

ck< l

ight

blu

ebu

rned

ani

mal

bon

e<ye

llow

min

eral

54La

yer

of s

oil b

enea

th t

he fi

ll of

Fea

ture

2T.

3\2

00

6Po

stcr

ania

l> 34

Post

cran

ial>

14.1

Whi

te 21

1Po

stcr

ania

l> 71

.6W

hite

< bla

ck< l

ight

blu

e–

Post

cran

ial>

20.4

Cyp

rini

dae

teet

h an

d 59

Laye

r be

neat

h B

uria

l H53

T. 3

\20

06

Post

cran

ial>

54+

124.

8 fr

omW

hite

< bla

ck< l

ight

blu

ebe

ads

dist

urbe

d fr

omflo

tatio

nB

uria

l H63

919

1173

Lim

esto

ne b

eads

 1

96+

447.

8 fr

om fl

otat

ion

Bla

ck< l

ight

bla

ck a

ndSp

ondy

lus

bead

< per

-in

divi

dual

H63

Cra

nial

> 425

grey

< par

tly b

urne

d bo

nes

fora

ted

Cyp

rinid

ae te

eth

Post

cran

ial>

723

Post

cran

ial>

748

App

endi

x 1.

Con

tinue

d ...

277

Con

text

Con

text

des

crip

tion

Are

a\N

umbe

r of

Wei

ght

Col

our

of b

urne

d bo

nes

Ass

ocia

tions

quad

rant

frag

men

ts(g

)

Laye

r ab

ove

legs

of H

63 a

nd b

enea

th B

uria

l H53

<38

6.8

Cyp

rini

dae

teet

h<64

cont

aini

ng b

urne

d hu

man

bon

es.

T. 3

\20

06

Cra

nial

> 5C

rani

al> 2

Whi

te 33

Post

cran

ial>

4.8

burn

ed r

ock<

flin

t

87La

yer

betw

een

the

nort

hern

bou

ndar

y of

Bur

ial H

63T.

3\2

00

6Po

stcr

ania

l> 8

Post

cran

ial>

5.4

Bla

ckPe

rfor

ated

Cyp

rini

dae

and

the

edge

of t

he e

rode

d ri

verb

ank

nort

h-fa

cing

pro

file

teet

h

97Fi

ll w

ith b

urne

d bo

nes

visi

ble

on t

he e

rode

dT.

3\2

00

6Po

stcr

ania

l> 3

Post

cran

ial>

1.8

Whi

te< l

ight

blu

e–

nort

h-fa

cing

pro

file

109

Ash

y so

il be

neat

h la

yers

of d

ark

soil

labe

led

T. 3

\20

06

Post

cran

ial>

5Po

stcr

ania

l> 1.

4W

hite

Ash

< lim

esto

ne<

as c

onte

xts

54 a

nd 5

5fis

h bo

nes

110

Laye

r of

oliv

e-br

own

soil

bene

ath

Bur

ial H

81T.

3\2

00

6Po

stcr

ania

l> 55

Post

cran

ial>

53.2

Whi

te

2Po

stcr

ania

l> 1

Whi

teC

ypri

nida

e te

eth<

fish

bone

s 6

6C

rani

al> 8

3W

hite

< bla

ck< l

ight

tool

< ani

mal

pha

lanx

< Po

stcr

ania

l> 98

6Po

stcr

ania

l> 68

6bl

ack

and

grey

cut

Cyp

rini

dae

teet

h<fli

nt< b

urne

d ro

ck<

burn

ed b

one

proj

ectil

e11

547

.2W

hite

< bla

ck< l

ight

Bon

e pr

ojec

tile<

fish

118

Laye

r of

com

pact

bro

wn

soil<

bot

tom

of F

eatu

re 2

T. 3

\20

06

Cra

nial

> 4C

rani

al> 6

blac

k an

d gr

eybo

nes<

qua

rtz<

flin

tPo

stcr

ania

l> 11

1Po

stcr

ania

l> 41

.2

Laye

r of

soi

l nex

t to

the

ero

ded

nort

h-fa

cing

pro

file<

3416

.613

2da

rk s

oil

T. 3

\20

06

Cra

nial

> 4C

rani

al> 3

Bla

ck< w

hite

–Po

stcr

ania

l> 30

Post

cran

ial>

13.6

137

Sedi

men

t of

bur

ned

woo

d be

neat

h co

ntex

t 11

8,T.

3\2

00

6Po

stcr

ania

l> 33

Post

cran

ial>

12.7

Bla

ckB

urne

d w

ood<

poss

ibly

par

t of

con

text

115

two

burn

ed r

ocks

138

Bro

wn-

grey

ish

soil

just

und

er a

nd a

roun

d th

e ro

cks

T. 3

\20

06

Post

cran

ial>

19Po

stcr

ania

l> 18

.3W

hite

< bla

ckFl

int

foun

d in

con

text

115

Laye

r of

ligh

t br

own

yello

wis

h so

il w

hich

is p

art

Frag

men

ts o

f red

dee

r14

2of

the

fill

surr

ound

ing

Bur

ial H

136

T. 3

\20

06

Post

cran

ial>

13Po

stcr

ania

l> 6.

4W

hite

< bla

ck< l

ight

blu

ean

tler<

qua

rtz<

lim

e-st

one<

red

roc

k11

9B

lack

< lig

ht b

lack

Cyp

rini

dae

teet

h<

144

Laye

r w

ith c

harc

oal b

enea

th c

onte

xt 1

42T.

3\2

00

6C

rani

al> 1

Cra

nial

> 3an

d gr

eybu

rned

ani

mal

pha

lanx

<Po

stcr

ania

l> 10

Post

cran

ial>

6.4

one

carn

ivor

e ca

nine

4022

.4

146

Fill

with

bur

ned

bone

s vi

sibl

e on

the

ero

ded

T. 3

\20

06

+ 13

unb

urne

d fr

ag.

+ 77

.2 fr

om s

ieve

Bla

cktw

o fis

h bo

nes<

nort

h-fa

cing

riv

erba

nk p

rofil

eC

rani

al> 7

Cra

nial

> 4.8

burn

ed c

lay

soil

Post

cran

ial>

33Po

stcr

ania

l> 17

.6

278

App

endi

x 1.

Con

tinue

d ...

Con

text

Con

text

des

crip

tion

Are

a\N

umbe

r of

Wei

ght

Col

our

of b

urne

d bo

nes

Ass

ocia

tions

quad

rant

frag

men

ts(g

)

Laye

r as

soci

ated

with

sto

ne p

laqu

e w

ithin

con

text

145

296

84.2

Whi

te 9

Cra

nial

> 7.2

and

grey

Post

cran

ial>

287

Post

cran

ial>

7723

0Fe

atur

e 21

< fill

of B

uria

l H23

2T.

3\2

00

6C

rani

al> 8

Cra

nial

> 21.

4B

lack

Cyp

rini

dae

teet

hFe

atur

e 20

< fill

of p

it co

ntex

t 24

1 co

ntai

ning

dis

artic

ulat

edFr

agm

ents

of d

og a

nd23

7bo

nes

of d

og a

nd r

ed d

eer

and

ston

eT.

3\2

00

7C

rani

al (

|)> 1

Cra

nial

(|)

> 1.8

Whi

te 6C

rani

al> 1

4.2

Whi

te 23

0Po

stcr

ania

l> 50

.2st

one

B. H

244

Skel

eton

in F

eatu

re 2

2 w

ith t

he d

amag

ed t

orso

<T.

3\2

00

7Po

stcr

ania

l> 12

Post

cran

ial>

59.6

Bla

ck–

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ronk

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136

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99,9

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220

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99,7

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uria

l 6–6

560

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600

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560

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610

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e B

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0–6

390

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740

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l 45

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640

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095

,499

,899

,9R

_Dat

e Z

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–650

0–6

260

68,2

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0–6

230

95,4

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0–6

260

68,2

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0–6

230

95,4

99,8

99,7


280

App

endi

x 2.

Con

tinue

d ...

Unm

odel

led

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elle

dN

ame

(BC

\AD

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%fr

omto

%(B

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from

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20

and

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450

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420

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499

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e O

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2–6

690

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780

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990

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480

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299

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e B

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> Dw

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5,2

99,8

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LJ–2

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, spi

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30–6

680

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50–6

640

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95,4

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199

,8R

_Dat

e LJ

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101,

899

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> Son

da A

, spi

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690

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570

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920

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2,1

99,9

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OxA

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wel

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040

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920

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0,2

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wel

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040

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960

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_Dat

e O

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630

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590

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630

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199

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020

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e O

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6214

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80–6

830

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810

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820

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70–6

770

95,4

71,6

99,8

Phas

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ase

Late

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t La

te M

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2150

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uria

l 51a

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180

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320

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160

95,4

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499

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7776

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260

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290

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260

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290

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0–9

650

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068

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760

–880

095

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450

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660

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095

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5,3

99,6

R_D

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OxA

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wel

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660

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068

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760

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630

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750

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68,2

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690

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095

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quen

ce


281

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