Food offerings, flowers, a bronze bucket and a waggon: a multidisciplinary approach regarding the Hallstatt princely grave from Prague-Letňany, Czech Republic

• Published in: Archaeological and anthropological sciences Vol. 11; no. 1; pp. 209 - 221
• Main Authors: Kozáková, Radka, Kyselý, René, Trefný, Martin, Drábková, Klára, Kočár, Petr, Frolíková, Drahomíra, Kočárová, Romana, Moravcová, Kamila
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 2019; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Animals; Anthropology; Archaeology; Bones; Charcoal; Chemistry/Food Science; Earth and Environmental Science; Earth Sciences; Flowers; Geography; Graves; Infrared spectroscopy; Interdisciplinary aspects; Iron; Life Sciences; Organic matter; Original Paper; Pollen; Resins; Sheep; Bronze bucket; Infrared spectroscopy; Xylotomic analysis; Grave; Pollen; Paint; Meat offerings; Hallstatt
• ISSN: 1866-9557; 1866-9565
• DOI: 10.1007/s12520-017-0538-x

Two princely graves (numbers 6 and 14) of the Bylany culture from the Hallstatt period were excavated at Prague-Letňany in December 2014. The paper summarises the results of the scientific analysis of grave number 6. The grave inventory contained a four-wheeled waggon, 21 ceramic vessels of variable size and type, one bronze bucket, one iron sword, two iron spits and a variety of animal bones. Dark paint on the outer surface of the bronze bucket was examined using infrared spectroscopy and revealed the presence of beeswax and charcoal. This is unusual as the paint or coatings found on archaeological vessels from numerous periods are generally based on natural resins. Pollen analysis of the organic matter found in the bottom of the bronze bucket showed that it had originally belonged to flowers, probably in the form of a floral tribute. Osteological analysis of the offered parts of one adult sheep, one adult pig and one calf skeleton revealed the specific selection from fleshy parts of the animal bodies. There were no clear signs of roasting on the animal bones. Analysis of the waggon showed that
Fagus
wood was used for construction of the felloes,
Abies
/
Picea
wood for the axle and
Ulmus
,
Acer
and
Quercus
for other parts, suggesting that Modern Age technologies were already in use during the Hallstatt period.