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In this paper, we examine archaeological bird remains from Klaipėda Castle (Ger. Memel), western Lithuania. The castle was built in 1252, and during the Middle Ages, it was the northernmost castle of the Teutonic Order in Prussia. The castle together with its adjacent town were subjected to wars and changing political situations over the centuries, but nevertheless represented a socially higher status. The studied bird remains were found during the excavations in 2016 and have been dated by context to the Middle Ages – from the end of the 13th to the beginning of the 14th century. Our aim is to introduce and discuss the bird remains with an emphasis on two species – the white-tailed sea-eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla) and golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos). Most of all, we are interested in their role in expressing people’s social status, use in material culture, and significance as a food source. Our analysis showed that in Klaipėda, the eagles were probably used for raw material and possibly for feathers, but not for hawking and food. Alternatively, they could have been killed for scavenging. Other species identified in the assemblage such as chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus), grey partridge (Perdix perdix), geese (Anser sp.), ducks (Anatinae), and great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo) were mainly interpreted as food waste. This article presents the first concentrated study on bird remains from Klaipėda and is one of the first discussions about the meaning of eagles in the Baltic region.

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The aim of this article is to present the most important results of the archaeological research of the Kukuliškiai settlement (Klaipėda district) in 2017–2020. During 3 seasons of the research, more than 3 hectares of the territory on the Littorina sea terrace were scanned by GPR, 101 geological drills were hammered, and an area of 45m2 was investigated. Fifteen AMS 14C dates were taken from different objects and stratigraphic layers of the settlement. Dating showed that settlement was contemporaneous and occupied around c. 800–400 cal BC. The complexity and scope of the research provides valuable insights into the lifestyle of Late Bronze Age coastal community. The discovery of wooden structures, organic artefacts and ecofacts indicates that the site provides excellent conditions for the survival of organics, of which there are only a dozen in Lithuania. The site and the collected research data, therefore, offer exceptional opportunities for the study of Bronze Age life not only in the coastal Lithuanian, but also in the southeastern Baltic region.

The period from the 16th to the 17th century is known for changes in material culture, especially in dining traditions, as different tableware appeared, replacing the dominant pottery of the medieval period. New types of technologically and functionally advanced vessels and dishes including Dutch and Italian tin-glazed earthenware, German stoneware, and a variety of slipwares were changing dining traditions across Europe. All this can be observed from the archaeological material uncovered in what is today Vilnius old town. Tableware from both western European and Ottoman manufacturers was found during archaeological excavations in Vilnius. Compared to the Middle Ages, the total number of imported wares increased significantly. Medieval tableware was very rare in Vilnius and available exclusively to individuals of high social classes but during the early modern period the situation changed. Imported pottery of the 16th and 17th centuries showed that inhabitants of the town were influenced by western dining traditions and usage of imported tableware in their everyday rituals had grown significantly. Focusing on this change traced from Vilnius old town archaeological material, the paper will examine whether imports were available to the representatives of specific social classes or were widely known to the town’s community. Imported tableware as a marker of urban lifestyles suggests that town dwellers, especially noble families, monks and nuns used a variety of imported tableware. This fact represents that dining practices anchored into early modern Vilnius society and changed traditional dining practices.