Archaeologia Austriaca, Band 106/2022

A new Bronze Age site has been discovered near the Trapeza Hill, 7 km inland from Aigion (eastern Achaea, Greece). Ongoing research has thus far revealed a multi-phase settlement covering the Middle Helladic (MH) period and the transitional phase up until the Late Helladic (LH). Investigations since 2013 have included the collection of surface material, as well as the excavation of two trenches. This contribution presents the study conducted on the pottery and small finds recovered from the surface survey in order to outline an initial cultural and chronological framework of the settlement.

Keywords: Achaea, Middle Helladic, settlement, Pottery

The appearance of a large number of cremation burials towards the end of the Late Bronze Age in the west Aegean is usually explained as a result of the influence from the east Aegean–west Anatolian region, which is itself seen as influenced by the central Anatolian tradition. Although in some cases the cremated remains were deposited directly into graves, there are a number of cases in which they were first deposited in urns. This paper focuses on the use of urns in the east Aegean–west Anatolian region during the Middle and Late Bronze Age. It examines the use of different shapes of ceramic vessels as urns, as well as the similarities and differences between the attested traditions. The paper also compares the east Aegean–west Anatolian traditions to the picture emerging from the cemeteries in central Anatolia in order to re-examine the possible origin of the east Aegean–west Anatolian practices. Moreover, the east Aegean–west Anatolian traditions in the use of ceramic vessels as urns are compared to the newly emerged traditions at the end of the Late Bronze Age in the west Aegean. Finally, the results are used to re-evaluate the widely accepted and simplified narratives about the spread of the cremation burial rite from Anatolia to the west Aegean.

Keywords: Late Bronze Age, east Aegean–west Anatolian region, Central Anatolia, Greek mainland, Crete, urns

Within the scope of a master’s thesis, investigations of traces of use on selected knives, pins and razors from two Urnfield Culture cemeteries were conducted to gain insight into the Late Bronze Age chaîne opératoire concerning the production and processing of deposited artefacts. Selected finds from two sites, 3 km apart from each other in the Lower Traisen Valley, Lower Austria, were sampled for the study. Inzersdorf ob der Traisen is the slightly older site dating mainly to Ha A with activity in both preceding and subsequent periods (late 13th–11th century BC). The cemetery of Franzhausen-Kokoron is attributed to Ha A2 – Ha B3 (early 11th–8th century BC). Copper-based knives, pins and razors are some of the commonly deposited metal objects in the graves of both cemeteries. Taking into account the object biographies and the Late Bronze Age depositional customs, the production steps, traces of further processing and modes of use of the objects and their development in the course of the Late Bronze Age will be examined in more detail.

Keywords: Urnfield period, Lower Austria, bronze objects, metalwork wear analysis, Lower Traisen Valley

The collapse of the Great Moravian early medieval fortified centre at Pohansko near Břeclav triggered some changes. These changes became evident in the development of the alluvial plain environment, as well as in the settlement, subsistence, and economic strategies of the population. One particularly prominent phenomenon was an unprecedented increase in the proportion of hunted animals appearing in osteological assemblages from the 10th century AD. They were found among the features and the cultural layers of the former northeastern suburbium of the Great Moravian centre at Pohansko and a new settlement known as Břeclav-Na Včelách. Remains of the European beaver (Castor fiber) predominate or are strongly represented among the wild species, which might be the result of specialised hunting or even breeding. The joint analysis by palynologists, archaeobotanists and archaeozoologists seeks to explain the significant presence of a specific species in terms of the evolution of the natural environment and the economy.

Keywords: Beaver (Castor fiber), hunting, natural environment, Pohansko, early middle ages, Great Moravia

Unterhalb des Dorfes Schlaneid liegt im Valteswald die Ruine der St.- Valentin-Kirche, die bereits 2015 von den Verfassern publiziert wurde. Neue 14C-Datierungen geben Anlass zu einer Neubearbeitung. Die Kirchenruine baut auf einer Brandschicht aus der späten Kaiserzeit/ Spätantike auf. Zeitlich folgt eine Bestattung aus dem Frühmittelalter. Die bisher angenommenen Holzkirchen konnten nicht bestätigt werden, ein (spätantiker-)frühmittelalterlicher Holzbau ist aber nach wie vor anzunehmen. Der älteste gesicherte Kirchenbau (Phase A) ist eine Steinkirche aus der Karolingerzeit, am ehesten aus dem Zeitraum 775–890. Im Hochmittelalter wurde die Kirche neu errichtet. Die romanische Bauphase B datiert in die ersten Jahrzehnte des 12. Jahrhunderts, vielleicht um 1120. Im Spätmittelalter und in der frühen Neuzeit wurden nur mehr Umbauarbeiten (Phase C) vorgenommen. Die Freskomalerei (Phase C1) ist vor/um 1330/40 zu datieren. Der Bau des glockenturmartigen Aufsatzes (Phase C2) sollte in etwa 1397– 1469 geschehen sein. Die spätgotische Erneuerung der romanischen Süd-, West- und teilweise Nordmauer mit Guss eines neuen Estrichs (Phase C3) wurde wahrscheinlich im ersten Viertel des 16. Jahrhunderts vollzogen. Nach 1557 sollten der Estrich erneuert und ein neuer Seitenaltar (Phase C4) eingebaut worden sein. Der Abbau der Kirche (Phase D) erfolgte 1769/70, seitdem verfiel sie zur Ruine.

Keywords: Kirche, Frühmittelalter, Karolinger, Hochmittelalter, Romanik, Spätmittelalter, Gotik, Neuzeit

Archaeological stratigraphy is usually associated with an archaeological excavation. We show that the principles of archaeological stratigraphy can be extended to the analysis of prospection data. Specifically, we present a theoretical basis for archaeological stratigraphy with particular reference to the analysis of topographic data acquired from, e.g., airborne laser scans (ALS). Building on previous approaches to archaeological stratigraphy, we present an interval-based time model for constructing a stratigraphic sequence based on a combination of the spatial and temporal parameters of an archaeological stratification. Moving from an approach based on single points in time to a relative chronological structuring of a stratigraphic sequence, we postulate the use of an interval-based approach, based on Allen’s interval algebra. For this purpose, the existing software for the creation of a stratigraphic sequence (Harris Matrix) has been extended, which allows a relative chronological layout of the stratigraphic sequence in combination with an absolute chronological timeline. By linking this tool to a GIS, a comprehensible and digital creation of period and phase maps based on a spatio-temporal analysis of the underlying topographic data is enabled. The system we have developed provides a consistent visual representation, which means that a correct stratigraphic layout is maintained while the units of the stratigraphic sequence are aligned with the intervals of the time model.

Keywords: Archaeological stratigraphy, Harris Matrix, ALS, GIS, Allen’s interval algebra

Traces of human activity preserved in ground surface relief can be documented using airborne laser scanning (ALS). Various visualization techniques for ALS-based digital terrain models help to enhance the micro relief and display abundant information about the earthworks of settlements, pathways, field systems, burial grounds and the like. Such remains can express a complex pattern of intersecting and overlapping relief features produced by millennia of human activity. To ‘read’, or better decipher, this palimpsest or ‘messiness’, archaeological features must be classified, and their temporal relationship determined during interpretative mapping. While much interpretation of relief features is based on the relatively straightforward analysis of parameters like shape, morphology, topographical location or patterning, chronological sequencing of relief features can be very challenging. In this paper we propose a solution for the compilation of relative chronological sequences when mapping relief features from topographic data. We combine an interactive GIS-based archaeological interpretation with the creation of a stratigraphic sequence known as a Harris Matrix, which is extended by an interval-based hierarchical time model. This allows individual features and groups of features to be assigned to userdefined chronological periods and phases. The features extracted from the topographic data are grouped in a final Harris Matrix according to their temporal relations and can be translated into period or phase maps within the GIS environment. The value of this approach is demonstrated in a case study from Lower Austria, a complex archaeological landscape within which more than 1,450 archaeological relief features have been mapped into a coherent spatio- temporal model. The results give a detailed insight into the development of an archaeological landscape over at least 2,500 years, broken down into 10 periods, and have helped to answer specific historical questions. The approach presented here represents a starting point for further targeted analysis and investigation to provide an absolute chronological framework.

Keywords: Airborne laser scanning, LiDAR, archaeological interpretation, Harris Matrix, diachronic, 4D, interpretative mapping, landscape

The excavations at Svinjarička Čuka in the South Morava Valley in Serbia are presented with new primary data from the field and related material and scientific analyses. Newly recovered architectural remains from the classical Starčevo period revealed a variety of domestic features, so far belonging to an earlier and later occupation phase at the river terrace dating between 5700/5600 and 5500 BC. Details of the stratigraphy and certain materials are presented for selected domestic contexts, including one potential ‘Starčevo house’. Archaeological and scientific analyses are discussed and contextualised within the Neolithisation process in the chapters on new radiocarbon data and their Bayesian modelling, pottery studies, chipped stones and their raw material analyses, grinding kits, animal remains, archaeobotanical results and charcoal analysis. The later occupation at the site is presented with new results for the Middle and Late Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age, including domestic contexts, radiocarbon data and materials.

Keywords: Starčevo, Serbia, Neolithic, Bronze Age, Radiocarbon dating, Subsistence, vegetation

Sediments serve as an archive of human and animal activity and environmental conditions through their physical and chemical properties as well as captured biological traces. Archaeologists have been extracting information from archaeological soils and sediments for decades, but recent technological developments, such as the analysis of lipid biomarkers, proteins, and ancient DNA from soil and the diversification of approaches necessitate a re-examination of standard field practice and a renewed emphasis on soil and sediments as archaeological materials. This review paper brings together a range of specialists to introduce cutting-edge approaches to analysing soils and sediments. From the large to the small scale, pioneering methods can complement established soil analytical methods to address issues of soil formation and erosion processes, heritage preservation, mobility, domestication, land use, human-environmental interactions, cultural and biological complexity, and ecosystem legacies. Soil analyses are poised to enable archaeologists to ask new questions and generate innovative hypotheses in an interdisciplinary research framework.

Keywords: Sediments, micromorphology, lipid biomarkers, palaeoproteomics, sedimentary aDNA, soilscapes