On the Significance and Research Potential of the Grebieten Burial Ground: A Reconstruction of the Prewar State of Knowledge and the Prospects for Modern Research

Abstract

The Grebieten burial ground, situated in the former Kreis Fischhausen of the German Empire's province of East Prussia, (currently in the Zelenogradskii district of the Kaliningrad oblast', Russian Federation), represents a reference monument of Sambian-Natangian culture, and at the same time is one of its best investigated archaeological sites. However, a recent comparative analysis of the available sources of information showed that the modern state of knowledge is incomplete, while the research potential of the monument is far from being exhausted. This article gives an overview of the state of research, as well as of the open questions and gaps in our knowledge. Along with a description of the currently available sources of information and their limitations, the publication informs readers about recently conducted archaeological studies, performed both on the partially preserved prewar archaeological material and on the monument. Besides the actual reintroduction of Grebieten into scientific research, the authors point out its role and its significance in the much more complex archaeological context. The results of recent research suggest strongly that the Grebieten burial ground is part of a much larger complex of archaeological monuments situated along the western coast of the Sambian Peninsula, in the close vicinity of amber collecting areas. This settlement complex played an important role in the collection and trade in amber, which defined the nature of Sambian-Natangian culture in the Roman Iron Age and Migration Period. Further multilateral investigations of the Grebieten burial ground should lead to a clearer view of the settlement system, the social structure, everyday life and contacts of the population of Sambia in the Roman Iron Age.Key words: Grebieten, Sambian-Natangian culture, burial ground, amber trade, settlement system, Königsberg's Prussia Museum. PRASSOLOW, KONSTANTIN N. SKVORTSOV O n t h e S i g n i f i c a n c e a n d R e s e a r c h P o t e n t i a l o f t h e G r e b i e t e n B u r i a l G r o u n d : A R e c o n s t r u c t i o n o f t h e P r e w a r S t a t e o f K n o w l e d g e a n d t h e P r o s p e c t s f o r M o d e r n R e s e a r c h