River networks and funerary metal in the Bronze Age of the Carpathian Basin

Abstract

Archaeologists use differences in metals from burial contexts to identify variation in social inequalities during the European Bronze Age. Many have argued that these social inequalities depended on access to, and control of, trade routes. In this paper, I model critical gateways in the Tisza river-a river system in the Carpathian Basin that might have enabled privileged access to metal in some areas but not others. I then evaluate the concentration of metal on different topological nodes of the river network in an attempt to understand what best explains the distribution of metals across this landscape. I do this by describing Bronze Age metal consumption and display in cemeteries from four micro-regions of the Tisza, and compare them with network 'betweenness centrality' values for locations along the river. I find support for the argument that favourably located river nodes had better access to metal in the earlier part of the Bronze Age.

Uniform in diversity: Typological and technological analysis of Bronze Age fine ware from Kakucs-Turján

“…One of the crucial finding was the identification of uniform chaîne operatoire of pottery production in assemblages linked to different groups (Kreiter, 2007;Kreiter et al, 2006;Michelaki, 2008). The long-term perspective applied in these studies, corresponding to the late third and first half of the second millennium BCE, suggests that even if this period was characterized by increasing importance of expressing social status via burial rite (Duffy, 2020;Duffy et al, 2019;Przybyła, 2016), this process was taking place in an environment of increasing connectivity and interaction (Cavazzuti et al, 2021;. This raises a problem inherent to the founding principles of the existing cultural schemes, i.e.…”

Down to the Crust: Chemical and Mineralogical Analysis of Ceramic Surface Encrustations on Bronze Age Ceramics from Békés 103, Eastern Hungary

“…In the present study, we investigate the composition of surface encrustations on ceramics from the Bronze Age (primarily 1600-1280 calBC) urn cremation cemetery of Békés 103 "Jégvermikert" to determine the origin of this material and what impact it might have on internal sherd chemistry. This study is part of the broader BAKOTA (Bronze Age Körös Off Tell Archaeology) project, which examines how this large cemetery integrates into the broader social world of the Bronze Age Carpathian Basin [2,3].…”