PRACTICE AND PRESTIGE an exploration of neolithic warfare, bell beaker archery, and social... stratification from an anthropological perspective

Practice and Prestige: An Exploration of Neolithic Warfare, Bell Beaker Archery, and Social Stratification from an Anthropological Perspective investigates the appearance of the ‘archer’s package’ in select Bell Beaker burials raising questions of daily life, warfare, and social stratification during the Neolithic period. It draws on a recent study by the author that applied an anthropological methodology to assess the bone morphology of these skeletons for signs of specialised archery activity. These analyses revealed results at both a population as well as an individual level. In order to contextualise these osteological findings, the book explores the evidence for warfare and archery throughout the Neolithic period in general and the Bell Beaker period in particular. This perspective considers warfare to be a primary function of archery, thereby associating ‘archer’ burials with concepts of warfare and the warrior. A second perspective delves into prehistoric concepts of specialisation and social hierarchy in order to situate archers, archery, and warfare within potentially stratified populations. These two perspectives allow for the contextualisation of the anthropological results within a broad archaeological framework in which archers and archery were prominent parts of a complex Bell Beaker society. Neolithic,Bell Beaker,prehistoric warfare,specialization,social stratification,archery,biological anthropology Cover Title Page Copyright Page Contents Page Introduction Archaeological background Neolithization The Early and Middle Neolithic periods The Pre-Bell Beaker Final Neolithic period Figure 1: a. A Corded Ware polished battle ax from near Hijken (Netherlands), from Wentlink (2020: Figure 5.14) (object from the Drent Museum collection in Assen); b. Example Bell Beaker stone wristguards, including a roughout (left), from the Eastern com The Bell Beaker period Figure 2: Distribution map of bell beakers throughout Europe, from Besse (2015: Figure 1) Figure 3: The common Bell Beaker grave goods ensemble in Moravia (Czechia), including metal objects (needles, awls, earrings, hair ornaments), v-shaped buttons, daggers, bow-shaped pendants, arrowheads, stone wristguards, and arrow shaft smoothers, from D Part 1: Neolithic warfare During the Neolithic period Anthropological evidence Figure 4: Geomagnetic survey of the Austrian site of Schletz showing a double enclosure where several skeletons were found, from Lenneis (2001: Figure 7) Figure 5: The LBK ditch burial at Schöneck-Kilianstädten (Germany), from Meyer et al. (2015: Figure 1) Table 1: Examples of violent deaths identified on European Neolithic skeletons Fortifications Figure 6: Middle Neolithic enclosure around a settlement at Bucany (Slovakia). Image adapted from Pažinová (2007: Figure 1); original drawing from Bujna and Romsauer (1986: Figure 2) Table 2: Examples of fortification sites throughout Europe during the Neolithic period Imagery Figure 7: Battle image from El Cingle de la Mola Remigia (Spain), including what seems to be an arriving group (or phalanx) of 5 individuals, 4 of whom appear to be men due to the visible detailing of a penis, image adapted from Nash (2005: Figures 1b and Horses: domestication and riding Table 3: Examples of Levantine cave paintings depicting scenes of violence and an additional example from France Weapons Figure 8: The lithic assemblage found with Ötzi (Italy, second half of the 4th millennium BC); a: dagger, b: endscraper, c: borer, d-e: arrowheads, f: small flake, from Wierer et al. (2018: Figure 1) Bows Figure 9: An example of a Neolithic long bow recovered from the Schnidejoch passage (Alps), from Hafner (2012: Figure 7) Arrows Figure 10: Examples of early transverse arrowheads (Dordogne, France), from Cheynier (1946: page 209) During the Bell Beaker period Figure 11: A summary of the findings from Lemercier (2011). The pie chart on the left shows burials with and without a weapon; the middle chart shows burials with archery-related items; the right chart shows the number of graves with wristguards, arrowhea Figure 12: Arrowhead lodged in vertebrae (case 7) at San Juan ante Portam Latinam (Spain), from Soriano et al. (2015: Figure 9), original photo from Etxeberría and Herrasti (2007: Figure 66) Anthropological evidence Table 4: Examples of violent deaths dated to the Bell Beaker period Fortifications Figure 13: Bell Beaker fortification sites from the Iberian Peninsula, images from Cardoso (2008: Figures 4 and 1 respectively); a. Vila Nova de São Pedro (Portugal); b. Leceia (Portugal) Imagery Figure 14: Examples of types A and B stelae from the Petit-Chasseur site (Switzerland), from Corboud (2009: Figures 21 and 44 respectively) ; a. Type A, stele 2 ; b. Type B, stele 18 Table 5: Stelae from the Petit-Chasseur site (Switzerland) with depictions of daggers, axes, and bows and arrows (Corboud 2009) Bow-shaped pendants Figure 15: The three classified groups of decorated bow-shaped pendants, from Heyd (2000: Figure 79) Weapons Figure 16: Copper knives/daggers from the Amesbury Archer burial (United Kingdom) before conservation, from Fitzpatrick (2011: Plate 40) Bows Figure 17: Battle scene from Les Dogues (Spain, date unconfirmed) with what appear to be composite bows (circled), image adapted from Nash (2005: Figure 3), original from Ripoll Perello (1963) Figure 18: A reconstruction of child burial grave 1 from Landau-Südost (Germany) with a hypothesized bow placement, from Heyd (2007: Figure 15) Arrows Figure 19: Bell Beaker flint arrowheads from the Amesbury Archer burial in England (top) and burial 2 from Stehelčeves III in Czechia (bottom; includes both arrowheads with a hollow base and rough-outs), from Nicolas (2019: Figure 1) Figure 20: Artifacts making up an ‘arrow maker’s’ kit found at Vorbasse 2a, Ribe, Denmark; Objects include: arrowheads, rough-outs, sandstone arrow shaft smoothers, dagger, scraper; from Nicolas (2019: Figure 3) Wristguards Figure 21: Classifications of Bell Beaker wristguards based on the original typology by Sangmeister (1974); a. Examples of wristguards from the Western Bell Beaker complex (top) and the Eastern Bell Beaker Complex (bottom), from Nicolas (2019: Figure 6) ; A glance at Bronze Age warfare Figure 22: A flint sword from Abydos Umm el-Qaab (Egypt) measuring 72 cm and dating to 3300-2900 BC, from Klimscha (2018: Figure 7.8) Part 2: Neolithic social organization Specialization Figure 23: Schema portraying specialization as it relates to this study and how it can be used to interpret Bell Beaker social stratification Figure 24: A typology of production from specialization based on the four primary parameters listed above, from Bostyn (2018: Figure 1.1), originally adapted from Costin (1991: Table 1-1) Table 6: Examples of Bell Beaker child burials with an archer/warrior context The problem of child burials Social hierarchy Early indications and genetic evidence Structures and metalworks Figure 25: An illustration of the appearance and possible hierarchy of Bell Beaker grave goods in Bavaria (Germany), from Heyd (2007: Figure 13) Examples from Bulgaria A return to warfare Part 3: The anthropological connection The anthropological study The Bell Beaker skeletal collection Figure 26: Map of Austria with the sites studied Figure 27: Map of Czechia with the sites studied Figure 28: Map of Germany with the sites studied Table 7: Suspected Bell Beaker archers (A) ; asterisk(*) = wristguard present Table 8: Non-suspected Bell Beaker archers (N) Traumas Table 9: Individuals with signs of traumas identified by the author as well as studied by Farkašová (2011); an asterisk (*) indicates that the individual is a suspected archer The suspected archers and their contexts Figure 29: The number of archer burials with and without a wristguard Table 10: Archery contexts for suspected archers; Females (F) and sex not-determined (ND) appear at the bottom of the table Figure 30: The contexts of the burials with a wristguard Figure 31: The contexts for the burials without a wristguard Figure 32: The contexts of burials with a dagger and an archery-related item Results summary Interpretations at the population level Interpretations at the individual level The anthropological results within an archaeological framework Burial contexts Bell Beaker society Figure 33: The relationship between burial context and an anthropological archer occupation classification Figure 34: Diagram for interpreting potential societal value of specialized archery Figure 35: Diagram for interpreting the function of wristguards and archery Figure 36: The "war side" of the Standard of Ur, image available from the British Museum, www.britishmuseum.org, list number 121201 Figure 37: Diagram for interpreting the possible link between warfare and elevated social positions within a Bell Beaker community A note on sex and sexism in archaeology Closing remarks Acknowledgements Bibliography 118.pdf Cover Title Page Copyright Page Contents Page Introduction Archaeological background Neolithization The Early and Middle Neolithic periods The Pre-Bell Beaker Final Neolithic period The Bell Beaker period Figure 1: a. A Corded Ware polished battle ax from near Hijken (Netherlands), from Wentlink (2020: Figure 5.14) (object from the Drent Museum collection in Assen); b. Example Bell Beaker stone wristguards, including a roughout (left), from the Eastern com Figure 2: Distribution map of bell beakers throughout Europe, from Besse (2015: Figure 1) Figure 3: The common Bell Beaker grave goods ensemble in Moravia (Czechia), including metal objects (needles, awls, earrings, hair ornaments), v-shaped buttons, daggers, bow-shaped pendants, arrowheads, stone wristguards, and arrow shaft smoothers, from D Part 1: Neolithic warfare During the Neolithic period Anthropological evidence Fortifications Imagery Horses: domestication and riding Weapons Bows Arrows During the Bell Beaker period Anthropological evidence Fortifications Imagery Bow-shaped pendants Weapons Bows Arrows Wristguards A glance at Bronze Age warfare Figure 4: Geomagnetic survey of the Austrian site of Schletz showing a double enclosure where several skeletons were found, from Lenneis (2001: Figure 7) Figure 5: The LBK ditch burial at Schöneck-Kilianstädten (Germany), from Meyer et al. (2015: Figure 1) Figure 6: Middle Neolithic enclosure around a settlement at Bucany (Slovakia). Image adapted from Pažinová (2007: Figure 1); original drawing from Bujna and Romsauer (1986: Figure 2) Figure 7: Battle image from El Cingle de la Mola Remigia (Spain), including what seems to be an arriving group (or phalanx) of 5 individuals, 4 of whom appear to be men due to the visible detailing of a penis, image adapted from Nash (2005: Figures 1b and Figure 8: The lithic assemblage found with Ötzi (Italy, second half of the 4th millennium BC); a: dagger, b: endscraper, c: borer, d-e: arrowheads, f: small flake, from Wierer et al. (2018: Figure 1) Figure 9: An example of a Neolithic long bow recovered from the Schnidejoch passage (Alps), from Hafner (2012: Figure 7) Figure 10: Examples of early transverse arrowheads (Dordogne, France), from Cheynier (1946: page 209) Figure 11: A summary of the findings from Lemercier (2011). The pie chart on the left shows burials with and without a weapon; the middle chart shows burials with archery-related items; the right chart shows the number of graves with wristguards, arrowhea Figure 12: Arrowhead lodged in vertebrae (case 7) at San Juan ante Portam Latinam (Spain), from Soriano et al. (2015: Figure 9), original photo from Etxeberría and Herrasti (2007: Figure 66) 4 and 1 respectively); Figure 13: Bell Beaker fortification sites from the Iberian Peninsula, images from Cardoso (2008: Figures a. Vila Nova de São Pedro (Portugal); b. Leceia (Portugal) Corboud (2009: Figures 21 and 44 respectively) ; a. Type A, stele 2 ; b. Type B, stele 18 Figure 14: Examples of types A and B stelae from the Petit-Chasseur site (Switzerland), from Figure 15: The three classified groups of decorated bow-shaped pendants, from Heyd (2000: Figure 79) Figure 16: Copper knives/daggers from the Amesbury Archer burial (United Kingdom) before conservation, from Fitzpatrick (2011: Plate 40) Figure 17: Battle scene from Les Dogues (Spain, date unconfirmed) with what appear to be composite bows (circled), image adapted from Nash (2005: Figure 3), original from Ripoll Perello (1963) Figure 18: A reconstruction of child burial grave 1 from Landau-Südost (Germany) with a hypothesized bow placement, from Heyd (2007: Figure 15) Figure 19: Bell Beaker flint arrowheads from the Amesbury Archer burial in England (top) and burial 2 from Stehelčeves III in Czechia (bottom; includes both arrowheads with a hollow base and rough-outs), from Nicolas (2019: Figure 1) Figure 20: Artifacts making up an ‘arrow maker’s’ kit found at Vorbasse 2a, Ribe, Denmark; Objects include: arrowheads, rough-outs, sandstone arrow shaft smoothers, dagger, scraper; from Nicolas (2019: Figure 3) Figure 21: Classifications of Bell Beaker wristguards based on the original typology by Sangmeister (1974); a. Examples of wristguards from the Western Bell Beaker complex (top) and the Eastern Bell Beaker Complex (bottom), from Nicolas (2019: Figure 6) ; Figure 22: A flint sword from Abydos Umm el-Qaab (Egypt) measuring 72 cm and dating to 3300-2900 BC, from Klimscha (2018: Figure 7.8) Part 2: Neolithic social organization Specialization The problem of child burials Social hierarchy Early indications and genetic evidence Structures and metalworks Examples from Bulgaria A return to warfare Figure 23: Schema portraying specialization as it relates to this study and how it can be used to interpret Bell Beaker social stratification Figure 24: A typology of production from specialization based on the four primary parameters listed above, from Bostyn (2018: Figure 1.1), originally adapted from Costin (1991: Table 1-1) Figure 25: An illustration of the appearance and possible hierarchy of Bell Beaker grave goods in Bavaria (Germany), from Heyd (2007: Figure 13) Part 3: The anthropological connection The anthropological study The Bell Beaker skeletal collection Traumas The suspected archers and their contexts Interpretations at the population level Results summary Interpretations at the individual level The anthropological results within an archaeological framework Burial contexts Bell Beaker society A note on sex and sexism in archaeology Closing remarks Figure 26: Map of Austria with the sites studied Figure 27: Map of Czechia with the sites studied Figure 28: Map of Germany with the sites studied Figure 29: The number of archer burials with and without a wristguard Figure 30: The contexts of the burials with a wristguard Figure 31: The contexts for the burials without a wristguard Figure 32: The contexts of burials with a dagger and an archery-related item Figure 33: The relationship between burial context and an anthropological archer occupation classification Figure 34: Diagram for interpreting potential societal value of specialized archery Figure 35: Diagram for interpreting the function of wristguards and archery Figure 36: The "war side" of the Standard of Ur, image available from the British Museum, www.britishmuseum.org, list number 121201 Figure 37: Diagram for interpreting the possible link between warfare and elevated social positions within a Bell Beaker community Acknowledgements Bibliography Introduction Archaeological background Neolithization The Early and Middle Neolithic periods The Pre-Bell Beaker Final Neolithic period Figure 1: a. A Corded Ware polished battle ax from near Hijken (Netherlands), from Wentlink (2020: Figure 5.14) (object from the Drent Museum collection in Assen); b. Example Bell Beaker stone wristguards, including a roughout (left), from the Eastern com The Bell Beaker period Figure 2: Distribution map of bell beakers throughout Europe, from Besse (2015: Figure 1) Figure 3: The common Bell Beaker grave goods ensemble in Moravia (Czechia), including metal objects (needles, awls, earrings, hair ornaments), v-shaped buttons, daggers, bow-shaped pendants, arrowheads, stone wristguards, and arrow shaft smoothers, from D Part 1: Neolithic warfare During the Neolithic period Anthropological evidence Figure 4: Geomagnetic survey of the Austrian site of Schletz showing a double enclosure where several skeletons were found, from Lenneis (2001: Figure 7) Figure 5: The LBK ditch burial at Schöneck-Kilianstädten (Germany), from Meyer et al. (2015: Figure 1) Table 1: Examples of violent deaths identified on European Neolithic skeletons Fortifications Figure 6: Middle Neolithic enclosure around a settlement at Bucany (Slovakia). Image adapted from Pažinová (2007: Figure 1); original drawing from Bujna and Romsauer (1986: Figure 2) Table 2: Examples of fortification sites throughout Europe during the Neolithic period Imagery Figure 7: Battle image from El Cingle de la Mola Remigia (Spain), including what seems to be an arriving group (or phalanx) of 5 individuals, 4 of whom appear to be men due to the visible detailing of a penis, image adapted from Nash (2005: Figures 1b and Horses: domestication and riding Table 3: Examples of Levantine cave paintings depicting scenes of violence and an additional example from France Weapons Figure 8: The lithic assemblage found with Ötzi (Italy, second half of the 4th millennium BC); a: dagger, b: endscraper, c: borer, d-e: arrowheads, f: small flake, from Wierer et al. (2018: Figure 1) Bows Figure 9: An example of a Neolithic long bow recovered from the Schnidejoch passage (Alps), from Hafner (2012: Figure 7) Arrows Figure 10: Examples of early transverse arrowheads (Dordogne, France), from Cheynier (1946: page 209) During the Bell Beaker period Figure 11: A summary of the findings from Lemercier (2011). The pie chart on the left shows burials with and without a weapon; the middle chart shows burials with archery-related items; the right chart shows the number of graves with wristguards, arrowhea Figure 12: Arrowhead lodged in vertebrae (case 7) at San Juan ante Portam Latinam (Spain), from Soriano et al. (2015: Figure 9), original photo from Etxeberría and Herrasti (2007: Figure 66) Anthropological evidence Table 4: Examples of violent deaths dated to the Bell Beaker period Fortifications Figure 13: Bell Beaker fortification sites from the Iberian Peninsula, images from Cardoso (2008: Figures 4 and 1 respectively); a. Vila Nova de São Pedro (Portugal); b. Leceia (Portugal) Imagery Figure 14: Examples of types A and B stelae from the Petit-Chasseur site (Switzerland), from Corboud (2009: Figures 21 and 44 respectively) ; a. Type A, stele 2 ; b. Type B, stele 18 Table 5: Stelae from the Petit-Chasseur site (Switzerland) with depictions of daggers, axes, and bows and arrows (Corboud 2009) Bow-shaped pendants Figure 15: The three classified groups of decorated bow-shaped pendants, from Heyd (2000: Figure 79) Weapons Figure 16: Copper knives/daggers from the Amesbury Archer burial (United Kingdom) before conservation, from Fitzpatrick (2011: Plate 40) Bows Figure 17: Battle scene from Les Dogues (Spain, date unconfirmed) with what appear to be composite bows (circled), image adapted from Nash (2005: Figure 3), original from Ripoll Perello (1963) Figure 18: A reconstruction of child burial grave 1 from Landau-Südost (Germany) with a hypothesized bow placement, from Heyd (2007: Figure 15) Arrows Figure 19: Bell Beaker flint arrowheads from the Amesbury Archer burial in England (top) and burial 2 from Stehelčeves III in Czechia (bottom; includes both arrowheads with a hollow base and rough-outs), from Nicolas (2019: Figure 1) Figure 20: Artifacts making up an ‘arrow maker’s’ kit found at Vorbasse 2a, Ribe, Denmark; Objects include: arrowheads, rough-outs, sandstone arrow shaft smoothers, dagger, scraper; from Nicolas (2019: Figure 3) Wristguards Figure 21: Classifications of Bell Beaker wristguards based on the original typology by Sangmeister (1974); a. Examples of wristguards from the Western Bell Beaker complex (top) and the Eastern Bell Beaker Complex (bottom), from Nicolas (2019: Figure 6) ; A glance at Bronze Age warfare Figure 22: A flint sword from Abydos Umm el-Qaab (Egypt) measuring 72 cm and dating to 3300-2900 BC, from Klimscha (2018: Figure 7.8) Part 2: Neolithic social organization Specialization Figure 23: Schema portraying specialization as it relates to this study and how it can be used to interpret Bell Beaker social stratification Figure 24: A typology of production from specialization based on the four primary parameters listed above, from Bostyn (2018: Figure 1.1), originally adapted from Costin (1991: Table 1-1) Table 6: Examples of Bell Beaker child burials with an archer/warrior context The problem of child burials Social hierarchy Early indications and genetic evidence Structures and metalworks Figure 25: An illustration of the appearance and possible hierarchy of Bell Beaker grave goods in Bavaria (Germany), from Heyd (2007: Figure 13) Examples from Bulgaria A return to warfare Part 3: The anthropological connection The anthropological study The Bell Beaker skeletal collection Figure 26: Map of Austria with the sites studied Figure 27: Map of Czechia with the sites studied Figure 28: Map of Germany with the sites studied Table 7: Suspected Bell Beaker archers (A) ; asterisk(*) = wristguard present Table 8: Non-suspected Bell Beaker archers (N) Traumas Table 9: Individuals with signs of traumas identified by the author as well as studied by Farkašová (2011); an asterisk (*) indicates that the individual is a suspected archer The suspected archers and their contexts Figure 29: The number of archer burials with and without a wristguard Table 10: Archery contexts for suspected archers; Females (F) and sex not-determined (ND) appear at the bottom of the table Figure 30: The contexts of the burials with a wristguard Figure 31: The contexts for the burials without a wristguard Figure 32: The contexts of burials with a dagger and an archery-related item Results summary Interpretations at the population level Interpretations at the individual level The anthropological results within an archaeological framework Burial contexts Bell Beaker society Figure 33: The relationship between burial context and an anthropological archer occupation classification Figure 34: Diagram for interpreting potential societal value of specialized archery Figure 35: Diagram for interpreting the function of wristguards and archery Figure 36: The "war side" of the Standard of Ur, image available from the British Museum, www.britishmuseum.org, list number 121201 Figure 37: Diagram for interpreting the possible link between warfare and elevated social positions within a Bell Beaker community A note on sex and sexism in archaeology Closing remarks Acknowledgements Bibliography Back cover This book investigates the appearance of the ‘archer’s package’ in select Bell Beaker burials raising questions of daily life, warfare, and social stratification during the Neolithic period. It draws on a recent study by the author that applied an anthropological methodology to assess the bone morphology of these skeletons for signs of specialised archery activity. These analyses revealed results at both a population as well as an individual level. In order to contextualise these osteological findings, the book explores the evidence for warfare and archery throughout the Neolithic period in general and the Bell Beaker period in particular. This perspective considers warfare to be a primary function of archery, thereby associating ‘archer’ burials with concepts of warfare and the warrior. A second perspective delves into prehistoric concepts of specialisation and social hierarchy in order to situate archers, archery, and warfare within potentially stratified populations. These two perspectives allow for the contextualisation of the anthropological results within a broad archaeological framework in which archers and archery were prominent parts of a complex Bell Beaker society.