Ravens and Crows in Iron Age and Roman Britain

Abstract

The raven and crow skeletons from Danebury are re-examined, taking into account their taphonomy, their context and the associated finds. Raven and crow burials from other Iron Age and Roman sites are surveyed, again with a discussion of their context and associated finds where these could be ascertained. Taken together, the evidence makes it clear that most if not all were deliberate burials, often at the base of pits. We demonstrate how interpretations of such burials have changed, with zooarchaeologists initially proposing functional explanations and archaeologists readier to accept that the burials were deliberate. We go on to argue that the unique character of ravens and crows, including their tolerance of humans, their scavenging habits, and their voice, led to their playing an important role in Iron Age and Roman rites and beliefs.

Birds in Subsistence and Culture at Viking Age Sites in Denmark

“…Like eagles, ravens (and to some extent other corvids) play a significant role in Norse mythology. This is seen in the pre‐Christian Norse belief system exemplified by Odin's two raven familiars, Huginn (thought) and Muninn (memory), who acted as messengers by flying out each morning and returning each evening to tell what had happened that day (Serjeantson & Morris, : 100). On the other hand, ravens and other corvids are commensal scavenger birds attracted to human settlement dumps.…”

Symbols of Power: The Silchester Bronze Eagle and Eagles in Roman Britain

“…It is known that ravens were part of special burials at sites such as Danebury, Hants. and Silchester, and that sometimes eagle bones were included in these deposits (Serjeantson and Morris 2011). Thus, as Serjeant son and Morris (2011, 102-03) point out, the question of whether authors see the deposition of eagle bones as resulting from their role as scavengers or as votive offerings is often a result of the simple identification of the bones as opposed to an inter pretation of their context.…”

“…They are also used as a form of sympathetic magic and eagle feathers are highly desirable in many cultures for their association with qualities necessary for success in hunting and warfare (Parker 1988, 201;Serjeantson 2009, 186). A number of the ravens from Danebury had their wings removed, possibly in order to procure wings/feathers for ritual or display purposes and the deliberate deposition of ravens continued in Britain from the Iron Age into the Roman period (Serjeantson and Morris 2011). Ravens are often associated with shamanism and may well have acted as familiars to shamans or priests in Iron Age and Roman Britain (ibid., 100).…”

Routine Magic, Mundane Ritual: Towards a Unified Notion of Depositional Practice

“…Collis 2001, 84–6; Cumberpatch and Dunkley 1996, 7), attributing to them a contemporary reified status over other objects from the same context. Through closely examining material patterns of inhabitation and deposition, archaeologists can begin to make informed inferences and generate contextual ‘biographies’ of people, animals, objects and materials (Brudenell and Cooper 2008; Cooper and Edmonds 2007; Morris 2008; Needham and Spence 1997; Pollard 2008; Robbins 2000; Serjeantson and Morris 2011). Particularly within developer‐funded investigations, there should be more extensive on‐site sampling of features and volumetric post‐excavation analyses, including burnt stone.…”

“…In the Mithraic religion animal sacrifices were important, too, with the meat eaten in communal feasts (Beck 2000;Lentacker et al 2004;Woodward 1992). The possible symbolic meanings of animals and their remains in Iron Age and Roman Britain have been explored elsewhere (Black 1983;Grant 1984;Green 1992;Hill 1995;Merrifield 1987;Serjeantson and Morris 2011;Smith 2005). For some rural communities, blood, milk, cheese and yoghurt might have been the important everyday foods derived from animals, with meat perhaps only consumed during feasts or following sacrifices.…”