DAWN OF THE EARLY BRONZE AGE IN SOUTH-WEST ERN SLOVAKIA. A RE-EVALUATION OF THE SOCIAL STRUCTURE AND CHRONOLOGY OF VÝČAPY-OPATOVCE

• Authors: Wilkes Fynn , Skorna Henry
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

This paper deals with the chronology and social structure of the Early Bronze Age cemetery of Výčapy-Opatovce (Slovakia/Nitra district). Six radiocarbon dates are presented for the Nitra culture cemetery, which date Výčapy-Opatovce to the very beginning of the Early Bronze Age (2300/2200 – 1500/1400 BCE), roughly contemporaneous with the first phases of the Branč cemetery (Nitra district). A small group of graves originally attributed to the Copper Age Ludanice group also seem to date at least partially to the Bronze Age. The results of the radiocarbon dating do not support a chronological division of the cemetery. Applying a burial index (Z-transformation), five grave clusters were identified within the cemetery. These concentrations of richly furnished graves are separated from each other by poor graves. Two of the clusters could be dated by the radiocarbon dates and demonstrated different areas at the burial ground were used at the same time. The authors conclude that in particular the chronological burial site model of Ch. Bernard, which she proposed in 2005 for Výčapy-Opatovce, should be rejected. The combination of the results of the analysis of the grave indices and radiocarbon dates for Výčapy-Opatovce argues for a division of the cemetery into social groups, as initially suggested by A. Točík.

Keywords

EN

WESTERN SLOVAKIA; EARLY BRONZE AGE; RADIOCARBON DATING; NITRA CULTURE; LUDANICE GROUP

• Publisher: Slovak Academy of Sciences, Archaeological Institute
• Journal: Slovenská archeológia (Slovak Archaeology)
• Year: 2022
• Volume: 70
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 63 – 80

Contributors

author

Wilkes Fynn

• Institut für Ur- und Frühgeschichte, Cluster of Excellence ROOTS, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Johannes-Mestorf-Straße 2 – 6, DE – 241 17 Kiel, Germany

• https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0159-722X

author

Skorna Henry

• https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6102-2324

Identifiers

DOI

https://doi.org/10.31577/slovarch.2022.70.3