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A SPATIAL ANALYSIS OF MEGALITHIC TOMBS
6. SUB- AND NON-MEGALITHIC GRAVES
AND THE ORIGIN OF MEGALITHIC TOMBS.
By
Maximilian O.
All rights reserved
6.1 Introduction
TRB
megalithic tombs, as the most spectacular burial architecture, have captivated
researchers for centuries, but to fathom their origin it is necessary to survey
their relationship to the seemingly unspectacular sub- and non-megalithic
graves. Failure to understand this relationship has led to ironic conclusions.
For example Brøndsted (1957:190), quoted by T. Madsen (1979:315), resolved
that the “dolmen is the visible
result of incoming religious ideas.” Thus, according to
T. Madsen: “Brøndsted clearly
expressed the generally held opinion that the coming of megalithic graves meant
a decisive change in the religious life of the early farmers.”
Contrary to this still common view, the
seemingly less impressive, difficult to find and hard to date graves
(Fig. 6.1) are an integral part of the TRB's mortuary complex.
Figure 6.1. Mound LA 14 with urdolmen-size burial
pits,
Like many of the TRB's culture traits, the burial practices are
inherited from earlier times, although their connection to the preceding
cultures are, as the TRB's origin itself, hardly understood. Yet it is this
seemingly simple grave architecture which gave rise to megalithic chambers and
mounds. Their architectural forms coexisted with megalithic tombs, frequently
in the same mounds. They even outlasted megalithic architecture, perhaps giving
rise to the KAK and EGK/Corded Ware culture burial architecture, as seems
to be indicated by the stone-packed graves and sub-megalithic MN B/LN cists.
Continuous use of the same burial site is, for example, demonstrated at Bordesholm-Tannenbergkoppel. There a Konens Høj type grave (Fig. 6.2) was found near two megalithic tombs, along with MN B/LN earth-graves, Bronze Age tumuli, and Late Bronze Age and Iron Age urn graves (Hingst 1974:20-22, 67). The same is true for the nearby Flintbek settlement area where the earliest occupation starts during the EN I, most likely sometime between 4400-3860 B.C. (Zich 1992, 1994a, b, 1995a ).
Figure 6.2. Konens Høj type grave with EN C/II funnel beaker, Bordesholm-Tannenbergkoppel, Schleswig-Holstein (Hingst 1974:22 Fig. 4).
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Table 6.1 Non- and sub-megalithic tombs ¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾ Non-megalithic
graves Unlined
burial pits Coffins
(in pits) Wood-lined
and/or covered burial pits ¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾ Sub-megalithic
graves (small to medium size fieldstones and stone slabs) Stone
pavements usually on level ground Fieldstone-frame
on level ground Stone-lined
and/or covered burial pits Coffins
in stone-lined and/or covered pits or on level ground Cists
of sub-megalithic stone slabs Masonry
chambers with stone or wooden roofs Corbeled
chambers |
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6.2 The roots of the TRB burial practice and architecture
A bewildering variety of burial architecture occurs in the TRB. It may be categorized into non-megalithic, sub-megalithic, and a megalithic architecture, albeit with considerable overlap, including hybrid tombs. The graves may or may not be covered by a mound (cf. Ebbesen 1994a). Without endeavoring to prescribe a new typology, the architecture is listed under two classes (non-megalithic = earth and wood architecture, sub-megalithic = architecture incoporating), according to increasing architectural complexity in Table 6.1
Several of these forms
arose before the TRB became clearly definable in the archaeological record.
Among these are the true graves or burial pits originally called earth- or
flat-graves to distinguish them form burials within mounds. The true graves
were typical of the Danubian LBK, STK, Rössen, Lengyel, and non-Danubian
Ertebølle cultures.
Haüsler views TRB's flexed burials as an inheritance from the Danubian agriculturists. The reappearance of extended burials on the western fringes of the former Danubian culture area is thus seen as a reversal of the traditional agricultural flexed burial practices (Häusler 1992:278, 282, 285, 291; 1994:37-38). The TRB, which straddles the ancient Danubian domain and that of the Mesolithic, is said to express this hunter-gatherer / agriculturist burial dualism in its practices. Thus the southern Baalberge flexed burials (resting on the right side) first oriented west, later east, are stated to be derived from the Lengyel sphere. The later Bernburg phase and MN V KAK continued this norm.
LBK, STK and Rössen burials usually contained a single, flexed
interment similar to the MN TRB graves of
Figure 6.3.
The silhouette of a skeleton in flexed position in a burial pit Heek, Kr. Borken,
The graves of each of the older cultures have a relatively consistent
orientation that shows a gradual change through time. More or less standardized
orientations can also be observed in EN graves. In
The older cultures
occasionally interred two individuals in the same grave in close proximity.
Both interments had the same orientation, but the individuals are placed in
exactly the opposite direction, sometimes even
antipodal, i.e. foot to foot (e.g. Behrens 1973). This position is
foreshadowed in the Swedish Ertebølle cemetery Skateholm II.
Grave 10 has an antipodal-like double grave, although the two skeletons
are more side by side rather than foot to foot, with one male extended, the
other in a sitting position (M. Larsson 1989:214-216, Fig. 3, 5). The
four TRB extended skeletons in the (wooden) plank lined grave at
Bygholm Nørremark, Jylland, were fully antipodal (T. Madsen 1979:309;
1993:99 unnumbered Figure; Rønne 1979:5-6). According to Tempel (1979:114) it
is possible that the 40 cm high “stone-bench” architecture of
Cuxhaven-Gudendorf (Fig. 6.__) also contained such a (foot to foot?) double
burial.
Figure 6.4.
Grave (the 3.85:1.20 m ) with stone benches-like courses of small to
medium size field stones Cuxhaven-Gudendorf (Tempel 1979a:115, Fig. 2).
Pottery not to scale.
The two pots from Cuxhaven-Gudendorf were of slightly different periods
(Fig. 6.4**).
Just like these graves, the burial antipodal position within them
probably was in use throughout a wide area for a long time. Group burials with
flexed antipodal position are shown by Behrens (1973:240 Fig. 102) for the
Salzmünde phase. The KAK flexed antipodal double burial at Zauschwitz (Behrens
1993:241 Fig. 103a) shows that this practice continued right to the end of
the MN A.
Figure 6.5.
Stone framed graves below Sarnowo (Chimielevski 1952:50-51, 56 Fig. 17-18, 23).
Left and center = extented burial with collared flask Mound 1, Grave 1. Right =
Mound 2,
The burial pits (Ebbeson’s Type a) plus graves with a single
layered fieldstone frame (Type b) and the supine burials are thought to be a
continuation of the Mesolithic burial traditions (Ebbesen 1994a:80). They are
demonstrated for Sarnowo (Fig. 6.__). But skeletal remains from EN non- and
sub-megalithic graves are extremely rare in
There are indeed remarkably similar mortuary practices recorded for the Late Mesolithic and the TRB (cf. Tilley 1996:109-115). These include single and multiple interments in flexed and extended positions. Drugsholm is a good, early example (Fig. 6._). The remains of two “dismembered” individuals at Fakkemose, Langeland, found in a pit below a dolmen in tumulus (Skaarup 1985:207 Fig. 222, 1990:79 Fig. 6) may also imply a close relationship.
But perhaps the most convincing evidence stems from EN
C/II grave from Lohals, associated with a ribbed collared flask (Skaarup
1985:324-325 Fig. 374-375). The position of the extended supine male and the
the somewhat supine female on top of him is nearly identical to the Mesolithic
interment of Skateholm I Grave 14 (eg. Coles and Coles 1989:71 Fig. 50).
Also The TRB tree trunk coffin of Himmelpforten Grave V (Tempel
1979a:111-112), which itself foreshadows a Bronze Age practice (Fig.
2.__*), and similar EN burials in
In the Late Mesolithic
Figure 6.7 Extended supine burial with beads and boar’s tusks in stone-framed grave, Sarnowo Mound 3, Grave 1 (Chmielewski 1952:62 Fig. 29).
At Skateholm two sites have been located
approximately halfway between the passage-graves of Ö. Torp and Snårestad.
Skateholm I had fifty-three graves. One grave had a sitting female with a
baby in her lap, as well as 30 tusks from wild boars. Skateholm II is the older
cemetery. It contained sixteen graves.
In one grave a wood/bark coffin held a man, two axes, four blades, a
bone needle etc. In Grave 15 a young man was interred in a seated position with
three antlers used to prop him up. The above mentioned Grave 14 contained
an old man in extended position with a young woman next to and over him in a
flexed position. Grave 26 contained a tightly
flexed elderly woman. There were six dog burials, including Grave 21 - one
of the most “richly” furnished of all the graves, containing a
decorated antler hammer, dear antlers, and three blades (M. Larsson
1989:219-220, 217 Fig. 7). Similarly, the EN TRB burial at Weißenfels,
Within the context of the two Mesolithic cemeteries there were several
hundred structures, including a ca. 60 m2 feature. A 4:4 m structure within
Skateholm II could be interpreted as a chamber-like structure, mortuary or
cult house (M. Larsson 1989:220). Some graves provide evidence of a wooden
superstructure that was later fired and backfilled. This process was
accompanied with ritual flint
knapping. There is also evidence of ritual feasts and food deposits. Some parts
of individual skeletons were removed before burial. None of these practices
would be out of place in the TRB and to some extent even in the German
Gallery-Grave culture.
Ebbesen (1994a) and Tilley (1996) argue for a continuity of Mesolithic
burial practices in
Figure 6.8: Sarnowo double burial (Chimielewski 1952:55 Fig. 24).
However, entombment in early graves did not always accommodate
merely a single, supine, extended individual. For instance, at Sarnowo Mound 2
contained a pair of extended, side by side skeletons (Fig. 6._). Mound 8
may represent a related burial practice (Fig. 13.6). There were three
individuals near each other in the Iłowo 1
long-mound (Chimielewski 1952:41 Fig. 11). And while Häusler refers to
the supine entombment as the primary Mesolithic burial practice, he does draw
attention to a number of other, less common customs. At Tangermünde most
burials were extended, but the only double interment included a supine and a
flexed skeleton.
Likewise, at Mesolithic Skateholm a double burial (Skateholm I, Grave 14) consisted of a supine male and a flexed female (Coles and Coles 1989:71 Fig. 50, right). “Supine, sitting, and hocker (flexed) positions” were observed and “many variations occur ..., as for example, in the hocker position, where the range is from weakly-marked positions in which the extremities are only slightly angled to an extremely contorted position, which must mean that the deceased was tightly trussed up and bound hand and foot” (L. Larsson 1989:214). These Mesolithic variations are attributed to age and sex differentiation, but there was also an increased tendency towards flexed burials through time.
Similarly, the Falbygden primeval passage-grave Gökhem 17 contains
perhaps the oldest C14 flexed burial in the the
more northerly parts of TRB (Persson and Sjögren 1994, ibid. in press). The
3:2 m chamber (Kammergrab) of
Niederbösa, Kr. Sonderhausen contained 78 interments, both flexed and
extended. The depositions occurred in two
separate chamber divisions, which were assumed to represent moieties.
One individual showed evidence of a projectile point injury. The chamber
contained wood remnants, Salzmünde and Walternienburg pottery, flint tools,
animal teeth and lower jaws. The tomb was later used for Corded Ware interments
(e.g. Beier 1991a Plate 10,2; Müller-Karpe 1974:961 No. 600).
Haüsler views TRB's flexed burials as an inheritance from the Danubian
agriculturists. The reappearance of extended burials on the western fringes of
the former Danubian culture area is thus seen as a reversal of the traditional
agricultural flexed burial practices (Häusler 1992:278, 282, 285, 291;
1994:37-38). The TRB, which straddles the ancient Danubian domain and that of
the Mesolithic, is said to express this hunter-gatherer / agriculturist burial
dualism in its practices. Thus the southern Baalberge flexed burials (resting
on the right side) first oriented west, later east, are stated to be derived
from the Lengyel sphere. The later Bernburg phase and MN V KAK continued
this norm.
Although several archaeologists (e.g. Ebbesen 1994a, Tilley 1996) argue
for a continuity of Mesolithic burial traditions in the TRB, it is risky to
extend this argument to the supine position which supposedly occurs in the
earliest megalithic chambers. Aside from the fact that such chambers were built
several hundred years after the TRB becomes recognizable, there is an
extraordinary paucity of extended burials in urdolmen (cf. Chapter 7). As a
result Tilly (1996:82-83), using Ebbeson’s (1990:66) phrasing,
diplomatically states that "the body
was typically lain out on its back in supine position and no other has been
documented."
Tilley can cite only Ølstykke, Kellerød and Grøfte A and B, out of presumably thousands of Scandinavian dolmen (ibid. 130-133) in support for the continuity of Mesolithic burial practices in megalithic chambers. Worse yet, the evidence largely comes from 19th and early 20th century excavations. In the case of Ølstykke, the only true urdolmen as defined below, a supine skeleton was positioned along one side of the chamber (Fig. 8.__; cf. Midgley 1992:424, 449-450; Persson and Sjögren in press). Grøfte had two cist-like chambers, neither being a true urdolmen, containing at least one double burial, whose limited remains were presumably scattered by animal action, so that there is no direct evidence of their burial position (Ebbesen 1990. Bennike 1990). In addition, assigning the rare urdolmen containig extended skeletons to the TRB is sometimes questionable (Raddatz 1979:130). This is illustrated at Bogø By, Denmark, where an extended burial and an EN C/II pot was found together with later EGK artifacts in an urdolmen without entrance (Fig. 8.3***). In fact, in danish passage-graves the only more or less articulated skeletons are the last interred (Bennike 1990). EN flexed, multiple interments occur at Preußlitz, dated to the Baalberge phase (Behrens 1973:239 Fig. 101c, Preuß 1980:24). The sole human evidence in the above mentioned Westphalian MN flat-grave also reveals a flexed burial. It is, therefore, wiser to view the Mesolithic connection in terms of the continued use of a broad variety of burial practices with regional differences that include flexed and extended burials, of adults, child and new born, animal burials, perforated teeth, boar's tusks, (flat-grave) cemeteries, wooden superstructures (later set on fire or otherwise demolished), feasts, ritual flint knapping, etc. But many of these attributes also occur in the Danubian derived cultures.
Figure 6.9 Reconstructed wooden chambers, Granstedt,
6.3 Sub- and non-megalithic graves and their relationship with megalithic tombs.
Frequently
earth-graves are found in direct association with megalithic tombs. This was
the case in Issendorf, where at least four graves were located 24 m north
of a megalithic tomb. The graves had the same orientation as the megalithic
tomb. Unfortunately the preservation in the sand dunes was very poor so that
additional graves can only be suspected on the basis of surface finds. The
Issendorf graves showed evidence of chamber-like structures suggesting to
Two wooden chambers
(Fig. 6.5) were reconstructed in their own tumulus at Granstedt (Tempel
1984 and verbal communication May 1994). Offerings of pottery were placed on
top of the wooden roof of each chamber in a fashion documented for flat-graves
(
Non- and sub-megalithic graves cross the line
between flat-graves and megalithic chambers by turning up in mounds that also
contain megalithic chambers, thus implying similar functions. For example, at Flintbek
LA 3 a series of successive earth-graves, including the Konens Høj
type, culminated in the construction of four extended dolmen, all contained in
a rebuilt and expanded long-mound (Fig. 17.21). Stone framed and stone lined,
bathtub-shaped pits occur as single features in their own long-mounds with
megalithic enclosure Likewise stone-framed graves, somtimes apperantly erected
on the ancient soil surface, and stone-lined, bathtub-shaped graves occur in
flat-graves and mounds with rectangular and trapezoidal megalithic enclosures
(Fig. 6._).
On the west side of
the
Figure 6.10.
Stone-lined grave and bathtub-shaped pit in megalithic enclosures (Schuldt
1972:184 Fig. 30).
A pavement also appeared below the tumulus
Horneburg 1, Kr. Stade, near a megalithic tomb. The pavement ended
with an upright stone plate (Tempel 1979a). The plate seems similar to the ones
from the Issendorf flat-graves and a grave in Sievern, Kr. Stade. An
analogous flat-lying stone plate was found in the stone-lined grave within a
small rectangular long-mound with megalithic enclosure at Rothenmoor, Kr.
Sternberg in
A major concentration of such cists is located in Wollschow, Kr. Pasewalk, where roughly 40 cists and urdolmen are located in a group. Schuldt (1975) suspected that most of them belonged to the EN. Two cists were contained in a 20 m long-mound with typical trapezoidal megalithic enclosure. The proximal end harbored a cist constructed of red sandstone slabs 1.9-1.7 m long and 1.5-1.2 m high. Near the distal end was a much smaller cist (0.85:0.5 m and 0.5 m high), covered with a single stone slab. It once contained three children, two were found facing each other in a flexed position, aged six to eight years old.