Chronology and social significance of the "princely" barrow cemetery in Łęki Małe and the Central European Early Bronze Age

PLoS One. 2024 May 20;19(5):e0300591. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0300591. eCollection 2024.

Abstract

The "princely" barrows of Łęki Małe, Greater Poland are the oldest such monuments within the distribution area of Únětice societies in Central Europe. While in the Circum-Harz group and in Silesia similar rich furnished graves under mounds have appeared as single monuments as early as 1950 BC, Łęki Małe represents a chain of barrows constructed between 2150 BC and 1800 BC. Of the original 14 mounds, only four were preserved well enough that their complex biographies can now be reconstructed. They included ritual activities (before, during, and after the funeral), and also subsequent incursions, including robberies. The long lasting barrow cemetery at Łęki Małe can be linked to a nearby fortified site, Bruszczewo. Together, Łęki Małe and Bruszczewo represent a stable, socially differentiated society that existed for no less than 350-400 years. Therefore, it can be argued that the Early Bronze Age societies of Greater Poland were extremely sustainable in comparison to those of other Únětice regions.

Publication types

  • Historical Article

MeSH terms

  • Archaeology
  • Cemeteries* / history
  • Europe
  • History, Ancient
  • Humans
  • Poland

Grants and funding

JC was granted by the National Science Centre, Poland, project no. 2014/15/G/HS3/04720. https://www.ncn.gov.pl JM was granted by the German Research Foundation, project no. Mu 1259/30-1. https://www.dfg.de MS was granted by the National Programme for Development of Humanities, Poland, project no. 0359/NPRH7/H11/86/2018. https://www.gov.pl/web/edukacja-i-nauka/narodowy-program-rozwoju-humanistyki JM, BKK, JK, HR were supported by the German Research Foundation, project no. 2901391021. https://www.dfg.de The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.