engleski

Violent neolithization of southern Central Europe? (Bio)archaeological study of Starčevo- Körös-Criş burials from Jagodnjak in eastern Croatia

Starčevo-Körös-Criş cultural complex is the earliest manifestation of the Neolithic lifestyle in Central Europe. The available radiocarbon dates suggest that the neolithization process on the southern fringes of this region, i.e. eastern Croatia and northern Serbia, started around 6000 BCE. Although recent studies, especially the results of ancient DNA analyses, confirmed that the Early Neolithic people moved from Anatolia into continental Europe mostly following the large rivers such as Danube, we still don’t have sufficient insight about the nature of this processes. For example, was the first contact between the Mesolithic populations and the newcomers peaceful or violent? Did these populations form any social bonds such as marriages and other kinship systems? In this paper we describe six Early Starčevo burials from Jagodnjak in eastern Croatia radiocarbon dated to approximately 5900/5800 BCE. Four of these are standard Starčevo burials, unlike the other two that can be defined as mass graves. The sex and age distribution of 18 individuals retrieved from this site is quite unusual as only the remains of young/middle-aged males are present. The palaeopathological analysis revealed the presence of multiple ante- and perimortem injuries suggesting an increased level of intentional violence. And finally, the results of preliminary aDNA analysis suggest that these individuals are either immigrants from Anatolia or their direct descendants. Based on this preliminary data we cautiously suggest that the individuals from Jagodnjak could be the members of the first immigrant waves arriving to Central Europe from the South-east. Furthermore, it is possible that the early interactions between these newcomers and the indigenous Mesolithic inhabitants were not peaceful, at least judging by the Jagodnjak example. However, due to lack of more solid evidence, especially considering the complete absence of Mesolithic skeletal remains from the region, the proposed hypotheses are still tentative as only further investigations and future data can offer us better understanding of these processes.

Neolithic ; Croatia ; Starčevo culture

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