Zvejnieki burial ground
Stone Age cemetery in northern Lativa / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Zvejnieki burial ground is an archaeological site consisting of a large Stone Age (i.e. Mesolithic and Neolithic) cemetery with over 400 burials and associated grave goods. It is located along a drumlin on the northern shore of Lake Burtnieks in northern Latvia.
Location | Lake Burtnieks |
---|---|
Coordinates | 57.776°N 25.226°E / 57.776; 25.226 |
Type | Burial ground |
History | |
Founded | 7500 BC[1] |
Abandoned | 2600 BC[1] |
Periods | Mesolithic / Neolithic |
Cultures | Kunda culture, Narva culture, Comb Ware culture, Corded Ware culture |
The site had been known among archaeologists since the nineteenth century. However, it was first explored archaeologically through excavations led by Francis Zagorskis between 1964 and 1978.[2] Before the discovery of a human skull in 1964, the site was used primarily for quarrying gravel. Archaeologists estimate that the site originally contained over 400 burials.[1]
The cemetery contains 330 recorded burials,[1] with roughly equal numbers of male and females.[3] About one third of the burials are children.[3] The principal grave goods are animal tooth pendants, occurring in both adult and child graves.[3] A smaller number of male and female graves contain hunting and fishing equipment, including harpoons, spears, arrowheads and fish-hooks.[3] The earliest burials are dated to the Middle Mesolithic, 8th millennium BCE, but they continue throughout the Stone Age, extending over at least four millennia.[3]
Two sites representing settlements have been identified close to the cemetery: Zvejnieki I (Neolithic) and Zvejnieki II (Mesolithic).[3]