Breaking Traditions: An Isotopic Study on the Changing Funerary Practices in the Dutch Iron Age (800–12 bc)

Urnfields in the Dutch river area were replaced by cemeteries with a mixture of cremation and inhumation graves around the sixth century bc. This study provides the first biogeochemical evidence that the Iron Age communities were heterogeneous in terms of geological origins. The high percentage of n...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inArchaeometry Vol. 60; no. 3; pp. 594 - 611
Main Authors Kootker, L. M., Geerdink, C., Broeke, P. W., Kars, H., Davies, G. R.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Oxford Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.06.2018
Subjects
Archaeology
burial rite
Customs
Iron Age
palaeomobility
strontium isotope analysis
the Netherlands
Traditions
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Summary:Urnfields in the Dutch river area were replaced by cemeteries with a mixture of cremation and inhumation graves around the sixth century bc. This study provides the first biogeochemical evidence that the Iron Age communities were heterogeneous in terms of geological origins. The high percentage of non‐locally born individuals (~48%) supports the hypothesis that the change in burial practice was the result of the influx of foreign people, who were being allowed to keep their own burial customs, whereas some of the local inhabitants adapted the burial rites of foreign cultures, leading to a heterogeneous burial rite for some centuries.
ISSN:0003-813X
1475-4754
DOI:10.1111/arcm.12333