Kultura pucharów lejkowatych na obszarze dawnych Prus Wschodnich (w świetle źródeł ceramicznych)

• Authors: Kukawka Stanisław , Małecka-Kukawka Jolanta

Title variants

EN

The Funnel Beaker culture in the area of former East Prussia (in the light of pottery sources)

• Languages of publication: PL

Abstracts

EN

According to Konrad Jażdżewski (1936), almost all of East Prussia was the farthest north-eastern area of the TRB. The article verified the published information about the pottery of this culture. Seven sites were unambiguously verified negative. The text and Figure 1 show 12 potential sites for which no illustrations of pottery have been found in the literature (Fig. 1 and text: 1-12) as well as 17 positively verified sites (Fig. 1 and text: 13-29). There are five sites associated with the permanent settlement of the TRB, which can be described as settlements (Fig. 1 and text: 18-22) and a swamp deposit (Fig. 1 and text: 28). It is possible that the alleged grave should be added to this group (Fig. 1 and text: 11). In five cases, TRB pottery can be considered as imported in a foreign, sub-Neolithic cultural environment of the Zedmar culture or Narva/Pit-Comb Ware culture (Fig. 1 and text: 23-27; site 27 located outside East Prussia - in Latvia). All sites associated with the TRB settlement form a small enclave in the east of Prussia (north-western part of the Iława Lake District and Żuławy Wiślane). Most of the sites included in this article are also concentrated there. The results significantly verify the extent of the TRB settlement proposed by K. Jażdżewski (1936), which is still often referred to by archaeologists (including, unfortunately, also Polish). This enclave is undoubtedly connected with the farthest north-eastern big centre of the TRB in the Chełmno Land (Adamczak, Kukawka, Małecka-Kukawka 2018). From here, the transmission of settlement to the north was carried out through the right-bank part of the Vistula River’s urstromtal and the adjacent western part of the Iława Lake District. In the Chełmno Land, the TRB can be divided into two main phases (stages of development) - the older one (around 4200/4100-3700/3600 BC) and the younger one (around 3700/3600-2900/2800 BC) with a transitional stage (around 3700-3600 BC) (Kukawka 2010). All settlements from East Prussia are in the older phase and in the transitional phase (around 3900/3800-3600 BC). The imports of the TRB pottery in the sub-Neolithic environment most likely also fall within this period. Apart from one fragment of pottery (site 17 – Bernburg type amphora), no late TRB materials were found. It can be suggested that the settlement of this culture disappears during the younger phase. A similar remark can be made concerning the imports of the TRB pottery on sub-Neolithic sites. This is consistent with the observations from the Chełmno Land, in the east of which settlement in the younger phase is disappearing, or at least significantly weakening (Adamczak, Kukawka, Małecka-Kukawka 2018). The aforementioned Bernburg type amphora is not related to the eastern group of the TRB and can probably be treated as a distant import in the Globular Amphora culture or the Corded Ware culture environment. Pottery with sub-Neolithic features also appeared on sites defined as TRB settlements. It is not related to the Zedmar culture, but to the broadly understood Narva/Pit-Comb Ware culture circle. This is also analogous to the observations from the Chełmno Land or, more broadly, the north-eastern part of the eastern part of the TRB (Kukawka 2010). The mutual relations of the ‘two worlds’ took place mainly along the Vistula Lagoon and further from Żuławy Wiślane through the Lower Vistula Valley to the Toruń Basin (Kukawka, Małecka-Kukawka, Adamczak in press). It should also be noted that the enclave of TRB settlement located in the western part of East Prussia does not go beyond the zone of post-linear sites of cultures of the Danube circle (Bigos 2014; Kurzyk, Kwapiński, Ruta 2019; Rybicka, Wysocki 2003). This is different from the views concerning the northern and western TRB groups. There, the emergence of this culture is treated as a stage of neolithization of new areas, previously exploited by hunter-gatherer groups. The lack of interest of archaeologists in the neolithization of the former East Prussia means that the state of the TRB recognition in this area will not change significantly in the coming years.

Keywords

PL

Prusy Wschodnie; neolit; kultura pucharów lejkowatych; ceramika

EN

East Prussia; Neolithic; Funnel Beaker culture; pottery

• Publisher: Muzeum Archeologiczne w Gdańsku
• Journal: Pomorania Antiqua
• Year: 2022
• Volume: Tom XXXI
• Pages: 7–39

Contributors

author

Kukawka Stanisław

• Uniwersytet Mikołaja Kopernika w Toruniu, Instytut Archeologii, ul. Szosa Bydgoska 44/48, 87-100 Toruń

author

Małecka-Kukawka Jolanta

• Uniwersytet Mikołaja Kopernika w Toruniu, Instytut Archeologii, ul. Szosa Bydgoska 44/48, 87-100 Toruń