From Mounds and Museums: Building a Bioarchaeology of the Early Bronze Age in the Apuseni Region of Transylvania

Summary

The Apuseni Mountains of southwest Transylvania, Romania, are amongst the richest gold and copper procurement zones in the world. Metals from this region helped fuel the rise of inequality across Europe during Late Prehistory, and the area is also home to a rich mortuary record, with archaeological survey identifying over one hundred mounded tomb cemeteries belonging to Bronze Age communities. However, none of these cemeteries have been fully excavated and only a small sample of skeletons has been studied. Here, we describe the results of bioarchaeological analysis of human skeletal remains from a sample of previously unanalyzed Early Bronze Age sites that encompass a significant degree of environmental and cultural variability, including upland cemeteries with stone-covered cairns, as well as lowland cemeteries with earthen cairns. These cemeteries show evidence of diverse mortuary treatments, including primary burials, secondary burials, and commingled interments. Our analyses assess age, sex, health, and funerary treatment, providing preliminary information about how mortuary treatment intersected with aspects of identity and lived experience. This study builds a foundation for future bioarchaeology in the Apuseni region and emphasizes the need to supplement osteological analysis of the scant museum collections with larger-scale excavation of cemeteries.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 83rd Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (2018)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 21262