THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL INTERPRETATION OF SKELETAL REMAINS OF THE PRZEWORSK AND WIELBARK CULTURE POPULATION FROM KOLOZAB IN PLONSK DISTRICT

• Authors: Pyzuk M.
• Languages of publication: PL

Abstracts

EN

Based on the chronological and cultural interpretation of the site presented in the introduction by J. Andrzejowski, it appears that the cemetery was used by the Przeworsk people from phase A3 of the younger pre-Roman period to the beginnings of phase B2/C1 and by the Wielbark people from phase B2/C1 to C3 or the beginnings of the early stage of the Migration Period (first half of the 1st century BC - 4th century AD). The study assemblage included burnt human skeletal remains from 260 graves (92.3% without urns) containing 286 individuals. Of these, single burials constituted 90%, while 10% were double burials, in most cases (57.7%) consisting of an adult and a child. The population of the cemetery at Kolozab was composed of adults in 79.4% and children in 20.6%. For 86.0%, it was possible to determine the age category at death; for 32 individuals (11.2%) of the adult population, gender could also be established. The biggest mortality among children (61.0%) had place in early childhood-(infans I), mainly among the newborn and infants. This constituted 12.6% of all deaths in the Kolozab population. Tabular data illustrate the number of deaths among adults. The most deaths (33%) were among adults in the 18-20 to 30-35 age groups. This constitutes 26.2% of the entire population in Kolozab. The life body height, calculated for men at 162.7-168.7 cm and for women at 156.4-160.3 cm, identifies this population as being of medium height (in each gender category). No bone pathologies were observed. Some characteristics of burial customs (weight of bones in grave, number and kind of skeletal remains, color of these remains) expressed in numbers have been also presented. Interestingly, the graves contained over 65% limb bones and 61% cranium bones, indicating that the cremated remains had been meticulously picked out of the funeral pyre.

Keywords

EN

ANTHROPOLOGY; CREMATION BURIALS; PRZEWORSK ABD WIELBARK CULTURES

Discipline

• ARCHAEOLOGY: ARCHAEOLOGY

• Publisher: Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology, Polish Academy of Sciences
• Journal: Archeologia Polski
• Year: 2004
• Volume: 49
• Issue: 1-2
• Pages: 33-48
• Document type: ARTICLE

Contributors

author

Pyzuk M.

• M. Pyzuk, Instytut Archeologii i Etnologii PAN, Al. Solidarnosci 105, 00-140 Warszawa, Poland

Identifiers

CEJSH db identifier

04PLAAAA000364