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UNION INTERNATIONALE DES SCIENCES PRHISTORIQUES ET PROTOHISTORIQUES INTERNATIONAL UNION OF PREHISTORIC AND PROTOHISTORIC SCIENCES PROCEEDINGS OF THE XVI

WORLD CONGRESS (FLORIANPOLIS, 4-10 SEPTEMER 2011) ACTES DU XVI CONGRS MONDIAL (FLORIANPOLIS, 4-10 SEPTEMBRE 2011) VOL. 2
Actes de la session 47 Proceedings of session 47

Tumuli Graves Status Symbol of the Dead in the Bronze and Iron Ages in Europe
Les tombes tumulaires symboles du statut des dfunts dans les ges du Bronze et du Fer en Europe
Edited by

Valeriu Srbu Cristian Schuster

BAR International Series 2396 2012

Published by Archaeopress Publishers of British Archaeological Reports Gordon House 276 Banbury Road Oxford OX2 7ED England
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BAR S2396
Proceedings of the XVI World Congress of the International Union of Prehistoric and Protohistoric Sciences Actes du XVI Congrs mondial de lUnion Internationale des Sciences Prhistoriques et Protohistoriques Secretary of the Congress: Rossano Lopes Bastos President of the Congress National Commission: Erika Robrahn-Gonzlez Elected Bureau (2011-2014): President: Jean Bourgeois Secretary General: Luiz Oosterbeek Treasurer: Franois Djindjian Series Editors: Luiz Oosterbeek, Erika Robrahn-Gonzlez Volume editors: Valeriu Srbu, Cristian Schuster

Tumuli Graves Status Symbol of the Dead in the Bronze and Iron Ages in Europe / Les tombes tumulaires symboles du statut des dfunts dans les ges du Bronze et du Fer en Europe

Archaeopress and the individual authors 2012 ISBN 978 1 4073 0989 7
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IN SEARCH FOR PRESTIGE: BRONZE AGE TUMULAR GRAVES IN WEST SERBIA


Marija LJUTINA
Faculty of Philosophy, Belgrade, Serbia mljustin@f.bg.ac.rs

Katarina DMITROVI
National Museum, aak, Serbia katarina.dmitrovic@gmail.com

Abstract: Long tradition of research on prehistoric mounds in West Serbia and well defined funerary contexts rendered the results of the excavations useful to reveal regularities specific for particular chronological and territorial units. An attempt was made to single out the elements that indicated prestige and special status of the deceased. The main indicators are mounds themselves as landmarks and central places of the graves inside the mounds. Some graves can be distinguished from the others regarding the number and type of grave goods and grave constructions, treatment of the deceased and their position inside the mounds. Key-words: Bronze Age, burials, prestige, tumuli, West Serbia Rsum: Grce une longue tradition des recherches sur les tumulus prhistoriques dans louest de la Serbie, aussi bien quaux contextes funraires bien dfinis, les rsultats des excavations se sont avrs utiles quant la dcouverte des rgularits spcifiques aux certaines units chronologiques et territoriales. Il a t fait un effort pour distinguer les lments indiquant le prestige et le statut particulier des dcds. Les indicateurs principaux sont les tumulus eux-mmes, en tant que points dintrt, et les points centraux des tombes l'intrieur des tumulus. Certaines tombes peuvent tre distingues des autres par le nombre et type des biens et structures au sein des tombes, le traitement des dcds et leur position au sein des tumulus. Mots cls: ge du bronze, enterrements, prestige, tumulus, louest de la Serbie

INTRODUCTION The territory of West Serbia geographically belongs mostly to the Dinaride system of the Central Balkans (Fig. 1). In the north there is a plain representing the borderline to the Pannonian plain. In the east the rivers Kolubara, West Morava and Ibar make a division between West and Central Serbia. In the west, the border between West Serbia and Bosnia is represented by the river Drina, while in the south there is a border with Montenegro and Kosovo. As it has already been emphasized (cf. 2002; Dmitrovi, Ljutina 2008, with references), the territory of West Serbia is famous by a great number of tumuli. Intensive excavation of these objects has long tradition, since the end of the 19th century ( 1890; 1892; 1893), especially in the aak and Valjevo regions. A particular effort in research of the mounds can be noticed in the period after the Second World War. Based on the results of all these excavations, it can be stated that tumular burials had been practiced since the Eneolithic up to the Roman times, with significant number belonging to the Bronze Age. The main aim of the study is to give a review of characteristics of the Bronze Age mound burials in several geographical units, emphasizing general features and special characteristics, in search for any trace of prestige. The proposed title of the study was fairly binding from the beginning. The case study of the region of West
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Serbia was deliberately chosen for being well known for its prehistoric mound burials. An attempt had already been made (Ljutina, Dmitrovi 2010) to trace elements of prestige in the Iron Age graves from one of the zones in West Serbia the West Morava valley. Having in mind that during the Iron Age one is faced with stratified chiefly societies, with princely graves as the most drastic example, it was not such a hard task. The work was performed under assumption that stratification of the Iron Age societies of the West Morava valley had its roots deep inside such processes in the Bronze Age, and that traceable elements of prestige speak in favour of it, but not much to confirm the assumption was found in the funerary practices in the transition period from the Late Bronze to the Early Iron Age. Consequently a question arose if we really knew how to determine elements of prestige in the Bronze Age contexts. The Bronze Age is an epoch qualitatively different from both the preceding Neolithic and Eneolithic, and the following Iron Age. The third millennium BC formed a necessary historical overture to this new social and economic environment. By the later third millennium mining and metallurgy were added to the economy, which speeded up interaction and changes, which took place simultaneously over vast regions. Bronze Age funerary practices occasionally became uniform over broad areas, although burials are remarkable both for their regional and chronological diversity. The practice of single graves under tumuli is widespread during the first

TUMULI GRAVES STATUS SYMBOL OF THE DEAD IN BRONZE AND IRON AGES IN EUROPE

Figure 1 Map of Serbia with encircled region of West Serbia

half of the Bronze Age, although flat cemeteries are also found in parts of central Europe. Around 1200 BC, a drastic change in burial practices can be noted in much of central and southern Europe. Starting from that time, cremation burials in urns prevailed (Bogucki 2004, 4; Kristiansen, Larson 2005, 140). The variation in the burials has led to the very reasonable view that the Bronze Age was characterised by increasing differences in the access by individuals to status, power and wealth. Burial evidence may overemphasize such differences, but certain burials undoubtedly reflect the high status of persons who somehow earned or deserved to be buried that way. The amount of effort that was necessary to invest in the construction of some Bronze Age mortuary structures (in the case of West Serbia building up tumuli) and the high value ascribed to the goods buried with the deceased and in this way taken out of use by the living is in accordance with the expectations for such a stratified society (Bogucki 2004, 5). However, the displays of wealth in some Bronze Age burials are so elaborate and the practice is so widespread, that it is difficult not to conclude that society was
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increasingly differentiated into elites and commoners. The question of what form these differentiated societies took is still answered in more than one way. Some researchers established and followed the hypothesis that they were organised into chiefdoms (cf. Earle 1997), a form of social organisation known from pre-state societies around the world. A chiefdom is a regional polity with institutional governance and some social stratification organising a population of a few thousand to tens of thousands of people. Chiefdoms are intermediatelevel polities, bridging the evolutionary gap between small, village-based polities and large, bureaucratic states. Archaeologists use the presence and distribution of monumental constructions and prestige goods to document the evolution of chiefly societies (Earle 1997, 14). As an alternative to such a simply but strictly comprehended hierarchical social structure, other archaeologists imagined Bronze Age society as a society which had more complicated and fluid patterns of differences in authority and status (Bogucki 2004, 5). Whatever point of view is accepted, it is clear that social organisation was becoming increasingly complex throughout Europe during the Bronze Age.

M. LJUTINA & K. DMITROVI: IN SEARCH FOR PRESTIGE: BRONZE AGE TUMULAR GRAVES IN WEST SERBIA

The first step in determination of the reflection of the complex social organisation in archaeologically traceable elements of funerary practice was to single out the burials which were somehow special. The concept of special burials covers a wide range of meanings and content. As J. Notroff (Notroff 2011, 143-144) elaborately explained, special treatment of the deceased does not necessarily involve a negative reason; it could also indicate an increased appreciation. Special burials would mean all burials different from what is considered the normative for the funeral rite of a social group. This can be referring to spatial position of the deceased and his/her grave, grave construction, treatment of the deceased as well as grave inventory odd and conspicuous by any means. Definition of prestige is certainly to be discussed (cf. Ljutina, Dmitrovi 2010 with references). In most of the general definitions, prestige is equal to the respect and admiration and a reputation for high quality that someone or something gets because of their success or important position in society. Tracing elements of prestige as estimation in peoples eyes weight or credit in general opinion, commanding position in peoples minds inside archaeological record should be performed with extreme precaution. As for the elements of material culture which can be connected with the emergence of high-status warriors and new forms of social practices that constituted the warrior lifestyle in the Bronze Age, the work of P. Treherne (Treherne 1995) was used to define main methodological guidelines. According to this author (Treherne 1995, 108109), there are four main material categories that can be recognized from mortuary context: 1) warfare as reflected by the deposit of weaponry; 2) alcohol consumption (drinking vessels); 3) riding/driving technology (e.g. chariots, wagons and horse riding); 4) bodily ornamentation (e.g. tweezers, razors, mirrors, objects of adornment, etc.). These specific sets of material objects, and the social practices they signed, represented an accumulation of both foreign and local elements through a process of bricolage by which individuals actively constructed new forms of individual and shared identity reified through prestigious material items (regardless of their original purpose) and activities. Such practices led to the development of a differentiated warrior ideology that widely infused and spread throughout societies and ultimately led to and increasingly prominent status group within many European communities (Treherne 1995, 109). THE BRONZE AGE TUMULAR GRAVES IN WEST SERBIA A REVIEW The aak region In the aak region, 26 mounds in total are attributed to the Bronze Age. The mounds usually have a radius of maximally 20 m and an average height of 1-2 m. In most of the cases the calotte is solely earthen, although in the Early Bronze Age mounds a peripheral ring and a covering made of stone are known (Nikitovi et al. 2002,

90). These stone constructions are rare in the later periods of the Bronze Age. The Early Bronze Age burials are usually in the centre of the mound, with a stone construction (e.g. the sites Ruja in Dualovii: Fig. 2/1, and Veliko polje in Janii: Fig. 2/4). Characteristic for this area is skeletal burial in a stone construction resembling a coffin (Fig. 2/2). In addition to this phenomenon, another burial practice is noticed: a conical stone construction covering burnt bones of the deceased (Nikitovi et al. 2002, 90). During this period, grave goods are neither numerous nor various in material or type. Typical example is a beaker with two handles. Stone arrows and mallets are rare ( 2006, 26). During the Middle Bronze Age the situation is somewhat different. The graves from this period are usually buried into the already existing barrows, made in the previous phase. It is worth noticing that the later burials never damaged the old central graves. In general, the burial ritual is represented by incineration and use of urns along with numerous and abundant grave goods, with a significant novelty metal, namely bronze objects. It is necessary to underline the main difference in the structure of grave inventory: bronze objects as grave goods doubtless prevail in the higher, mountainous parts, while presence of ceramic vessels is dominant in the West Morava valley (Dmitrovi 2010). The Late Bronze Age of this region is poorly investigated. It seems that burial customs kept basic form from the previous phase, while the grave inventory revealed all the characteristics of the period. The Uice, Poega and Arilje regions To the west of aak, in the surroundings of the towns Poega, Arilje and Uice, a smaller number of the Bronze Age tumuli have been investigated. During the Early Bronze Age several ritual patterns for burying deceased were ascertained. In some of the cases, funerary context consisted of a stake (with a stake hole determined in situ) with fired bones and vessels in function of grave goods, while on the superior level there was an urn with the burnt bones. A modified ritual was determined in the cases where a stake was accompanied by remains of several individuals and ritually broken vessels. Likewise in the aak region, a central burial unit with burnt bones covered with a conical stone construction appeared in this area, as well as burials in a coffin solidly made of stone slabs with inhumed deceased (Zotovi 1985, 33-34). It is necessary to single out a flat necropolis from Stapari near Uice, where among numerous graves from the younger prehistoric phases, there was a very early urn of the Vuedol type (Zotovi 1985, 34). During the Middle Bronze Age the deceased were mainly burnt and placed usually together with bronze jewellery into urns or on the open space without any construction or sometimes with summarily prepared base. Two coffins made of stone slabs should be emphasized as a reminiscence of the previous phase. In one of them, at the site Blakovina, there were two skeletons lying in the opposite direction, with bronze jewellery enclosed. In the other one, at the site Lokve in Dukovci, a bronze sward (Fig. 3/3) was found (Zotovi 1985, 43). In this period incineration of

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TUMULI GRAVES STATUS SYMBOL OF THE DEAD IN BRONZE AND IRON AGES IN EUROPE

5
2 Ruja, Dualovii: mound 12, grave 1 stone coffin with skeleton in crouched position and grave goods (, 2002, fig. 5); 3 Oborite: mound VI (, 1991, fig. 5); 4 Veliko polje, Janii: mound with central grave (documentation of the National museum aak); 5 Okrun, Gornji Krajinovii: mound X (, 1991, fig. 1); 6 Okrun, Gornji Krajinovii: mound XI (, 1991, fig. 4)

Figure 2 The Bronze Age mounds from West Serbia: 1 Ruja, Dualovii: mound 12, grave 1 (, 2002, fig. 4);

the deceased prevails. Inhumation is confirmed at the already mentioned site Blakovina, the Stapari flat necropolis, the mounds at the sites Davidovia air in Arilje, Kriva Reka and Raana. In Davidovia air skeletal remains were placed on a surface made of bigger and smaller pebbles, with a bronze dagger enclosed (Fig. 3/2). The dagger represents a very rare find in a wider
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area. Another bronze dagger came from the site Crvica near Bajina Bata (Fig. 3/1). The graves from Kriva Reka (the grave 5 in the mound I) and Raana seem very similar: very similar grave constructions were examined, with typical bronze jewellery enclosed (a torque in Raana, and tutuli, bracelets, necklaces made of saltaleoni from Kriva Reka) (Zotovi 1985, 41-42).

M. LJUTINA & K. DMITROVI: IN SEARCH FOR PRESTIGE: BRONZE AGE TUMULAR GRAVES IN WEST SERBIA

Southwest Serbia In Southwest Serbia, in the valley of the river Poblanica and on the Jabuka upland plateau in the Priboj region, the mounds registered so far revealed specific rituals. In the valley of the Poblanica, at the sites Slana Voda and Polje in Donji Krajinovii some very early burials were examined. Central pits were excavated, whose shape and stone disposition completely simulate a grave construction, but without any trace of the deceased. In the mound II at the site Polje a skeleton in crouched position was found, placed on a bigger stone slab in the mound centre, without any grave goods. The secondary grave from the same mound is interesting because it obviously belonged to a sacrificed person, purposely thrown and covered by stones which caused numerous fractures on the skeleton ( 1991, 78). Very significant are mounds X and XI from the site Okrun in Gornji Krajinovii (Figs. 2/5, 6). The mounds are one of a kind regarding their architecture with concentric rings made of pebbles with a central zone, ritual use of fired wood and symbolic use of stone artefacts. Traces of the burnt deceased were found only in the central pit of the mound XI ( 1991, 78-80). As for the mounds V, VI and VII from the near site Oborite, if we put aside lots of secondary Hallstatt graves, it is obvious that these objects were established during the Early Bronze Age. Presence of massive stone covering, central core and stone constructions with remains of the deceased speaks in favour of the statement. Central place and special architectonic and ritual pattern point to the special rank of the deceased (Fig. 2/3). In the mound VI a calotte oven was found, which along with the same finds from Davidovia air and Luani certainly has a special ritual meaning. Above this object a specific construction was formed, which consisted of a round platform with storeyed graves. In the primary grave bronze knives and typical ceramic vessels with high cylindrical necks and two handles were found. In the secondary grave, some remains of burnt bones were lying beside the skeleton. M. Zotovi ( 1991, 80-81) thought they might have represented a sacrifice. In the mound from the site Savin Lakat on the Jabuka plateau several biritual burials were found. Special attention was certainly paid to the central graves, where also a skeletal grave of a female was found in the stone construction without any grave goods. According to M. Lazi ( 2007, 122-123), this is about the wife of the male buried in the central construction, or maybe another sacrifice, dedicated to the erection of the mound. Northwest Serbia The mounds excavated in Northwest Serbia reveal almost identical general picture of burial patterns as it was described in the previous examples. No matter whether the mounds are on Beloti Bela Crkva locations or Tolisavci, Banjevac and Bukovako polje near Valjevo, the situation they indicate is much alike. In this region, too, it was noticed that respect for the central place was paid in the manner that the number of additional burials was not numerous, as well as that the central graves were

never damaged by the later burials ( 1893; Garaanin 1983, 740). A special spatial pattern in known from Bukoviko polje, where six other mounds were placed around the central one (Garaanin 1983, 740). All the mounds were made of earth, sometimes (at Banjevci and Tolisavac) with a covering made of pebbles. Pebbled peripheral circle is known from Beloti. Beloti also revealed use of stone coffins, as it was the case at the site Joeva near Loznica (Garaanin 1983, 743). The bronze sword from Joeva (Fig. 3/4) is one of very few finds of weapons in the grave inventory on this territory (Garaanin 1983, 744, 748). M. and D. Garaanin recognised the ritual of human sacrifice in the mound 16 in Beloti (Garaanin M., Garaanin D. 1962, 55-56; Garaanin 1983, 741). The grave goods represent typical repertory for the Bronze Age. A bronze pin, with even 115cm in length, set beside the skeleton of the deceased must be emphasized as a specific find (Fig. 3/5). D. Garaanin considered these long pins to have served purpose of fixing the canvas that had covered the deceased (Garaanin 1983, 743). Tumular necropolis on the site Paulje near Loznica shows almost the same characteristics of the excavated mounds. These mounds were established in the Middle Bronze Age and were additionally used for burials during the Iron Age (-, 2001; , - 2010). Usual ritual was incineration. In one case exclusively, in a mound of greater dimensions, a skeletal burial was covered by stone. Uneven number and disposition of the grave goods (rich grave goods vs. total absence of grave goods) are indicators of social stratification in this community (, - 2010, 4). Among various enclosed goods (personal belongings: bronze pins, bracelets, torques, pendants of different shape, as well as ceramic vessels), similar to the findings from the other mounds in West Serbia, a special attention must be paid to the oversized pins, dated to the Br C D (, - 2010, kat. 20, 36, 59, 60, 92), as well as to the bronze sward from the central grave in the mound X (, - 2010, 8, kat. 30). A pin (Fig. 3/6) came from the central grave in the mound B. The place defined as the central grave in the mound comprised both the place of funeral pyre and the deposited burnt remains of the deceased. In the mound O, which represents one of the most dominant objects of the kind in this necropolis, a purposely distorted bronze pin (Fig. 3/7) was found in the lateral, additional skeletal grave, lying above the deceased. A conical stone covering was made above the skeleton, and its periphery covered even the central grave of the mound (, 2010, 11). All these facts clearly point to a special rank of the deceased. IN SEARCH FOR PRESTIGE Having in mind all these facts from the mound burials in the West Serbia, it is possible to separate several facts that might be closely related to the objects and burial forms which indicate some special treatment of the

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TUMULI GRAVES STATUS SYMBOL OF THE DEAD IN BRONZE AND IRON AGES IN EUROPE

1 2 3 4

5 Figure 3 Bronze weapons and pins from the Bronze Age graves in West Serbia: 1 Crvica, Bajina Bata: bronze dagger (Zotovi 1985, T. XI/2); 2 Davidovia air: bronze dagger (Zotovi 1985, T. XI/3); 3 Lokve, Dukovci: bronze sword (Zotovi 1985, T. XI/1); 4 Joeva: bronze sword (Benac 1983, T. CII/1); 5 Beloti: bronze pin (Benac 1983, T.CII/4, 4a); 6 Paulje: bronze pin (, - 2010, kat. 2059); 7 Paulje: bronze pin (, - 2010, kat. 2092)

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M. LJUTINA & K. DMITROVI: IN SEARCH FOR PRESTIGE: BRONZE AGE TUMULAR GRAVES IN WEST SERBIA

deceased. The most noticeable are the central place in the mound and specially formed burial construction (stone coffins from the aak and Poega regions) and above all the whole mound as a special aspect of respect for the deceased. The construction of monuments and the rearrangement of the landscape (cf. Ljutina, Dmitrovi 2009), such as the construction of artificial barrows, require not only considerable labor and resources, but leadership and coordination. The monuments serve as the solid foundation upon which lasting institutions are constructed. Unlike events, which must be repeated on a regular basis, monuments remain permanent representations of the ideological system. They often effectively represent power even long after a state or social system has disappeared, therefore defying time and giving the impression of permanence and transcendence (Earle 1997, 156-157). For all the reasons mentioned above, it seems plausible to presume that the tumular burials were originally prestigious by themselves. Special rank of the deceased might be emphasized by some special, unusual, and obviously rare goods enclosed, like bronze swards, knives or long pins. Burial furnishings usually can be divided into two groups attire as well as personal items from the deceaseds property, and additional equipment for the afterlife to which a third group of objects, with amulet character, can be added. The term amulet is used here to describe objects which have been assigned spiritual powers, providing salvation, protection and defence (Notroff 2011, 148). Objects understood in this way could have been of different nature and shape. They may have found their way into the grave as part of personal dress in life and it is likely that a supposed protective character of these objects in the lifetime was also exceeded into the afterlife. Another question is whether grave goods interpreted in means of amulets have to be expanded in their meaning to another facet: what if at least some of them were used as a spiritual defence mechanism, not to protect the dead from dangers in the other world, but to guard the living descendants from possibly harmful deceased relatives and actually banish them right there in the grave (Notroff 2011, 148, with references)? One of the possible interpretations of presence of the oversize pins in the grave contexts can be in accordance with this amulet concept. Acceptance of this interpretation does not necessarily exclude recognition of the items as prestigious. The spread of the Minoan/Mycenaean rapier and its imitation in east central Europe, together with other evidence, suggest that this region was a commercial meeting point between Minoan/Mycenaean traders and their counterparts from east central Europe (Kristiansen, Larson 2005, 208). Offensive weapons in the funerary contexts in West Serbia (Figs. 3/1-4) should be observed in the light of the previous statement, as well as confirmation of existence of high-status warriors and new forms of social practices that constituted the warrior lifestyle. From the four main material categories that can be recognized from mortuary context, as defined by P. Treherne (Treherne 1995) and already mentioned above,

this one martial equipment can be defined as prestigious with high probability. Confirmations for the other two consumption of alcohol and bodily ornamentation are less solid. Presence of pottery in grave inventory, and drinking vessels in particular, can point out to the consumption of specific liquids as a sign of prestige. Bodily ornamentation, recognised through the finds such as bronze pins, bracelets, torques and pendants in the graves, can be inserted into the matrix of the warrior lifestyle. But both the pottery and the elements of dress and jewellery can be indicators of something else, and not the martial prestige. One thing is sure: elements of prestigious chariots, wagons or horse riding have not been recognised in the Bronze Age burials in West Serbia. Some authors considered some graves to have belonged to sacrificed persons, probably for the sake of the centrally placed deceased, but such a concept lacks convincing evidence. On the other side, special rank of the deceased might be emphasized by the special grave architecture several concentric rings which accentuate the central grave. CONCLUSIONS Long tradition of systematic research on prehistoric mounds in West Serbia provided a basis for further studies on various topics. Well defined funerary contexts rendered the results of the excavations useful to reveal regularities specific for particular chronological and territorial units. The number of the Early and Middle Bronze Age graves significantly prevails among the Bronze Age graves seen as a whole. Very few grave finds can be dated to the Late Bronze Age. Regarding general regularities for each chronological phase and in accordance with the symbolism of ritual patterns and objects, an attempt was made to single out the elements that indicated special status of the deceased. Prestigious grave inventory, despite being recognised more easily, is not always the most convenient means of indication of high rank. In the case of West Serbia, the main indicators are mounds themselves as landmarks and central places of the graves inside the mounds. The central place, occasionally associated with specific grave construction, was obviously prestigious by itself and dedicated to an important person presumably a tribal leader or a member of rising tribal aristocracy. After the central grave had been set, mound covering started. Later graves are usually in concentric disposition, at a certain distance from the central grave. It was noticed that there were not any later destructions of the central graves, which speaks in favour of special treatment of the central place in the mound for centuries. Some graves can be distinguished from the others regarding the number and type of grave goods and grave constructions, treatment of the deceased and their position inside the mounds. If some of the elements are considered indicators of prestige, it should be taken reservedly. While trying to reach the system of values

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used by the Bronze Age people following the traces of rituals and material goods, we might come to the conclusions limited by the modern comprehension of symbols of power and the afterlife. Bibliography BOGUCKI, P. (2004) Masters of Metal, 3000 1000 BC: Introduction. In Bogucki, P., Crabtree, P.J., eds. Ancient Europe 8000 BC-AD 1000: Encyclopedia of the Barbarian World Volume II Bronze Age to Early Middle Ages (c. 3000 BCAD 1000). New York: Tomson Gale, p. 3-5. -, J., , . (2001) . : , , 48 p. Catalogue. , . (2002) . . aak. XXXII, p. 5-32. , . (2006) . . aak. XXXVI, p. 11-30. DMITROVI, K. (2010) Burial Customs during the Middle Bronze Age in the Northern Part of the West Morava Valley. In Cndea, I., ed. The Thracians and Their Neighbours in Antiquity: Studia in Honorem Valerii Srbu. Brila: Muzeul Brilei, Editura Istros, p. 187-196. DMITROVI, K., LJUTINA, M. (2008) Funerary Practices in the Region of aak during the Iron Age. In Srbu,V., tefnescu, R., eds. Funerary Practices in Central and Eastern Europe (10th c. BC 3rd c. AD). Proceeding of the 10th International Colloquium of Funerary Archaeology Tulcea (Dobruja Romania) 10th 12th of October 2008. Brila, Braov: Editura Istros, Muzeul Brilei, p. 85-108. EARLE, T. (1997) How Chiefs Come to Power. The Political Economy in Prehistory. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 250 p. GARAANIN, M. (1983) Zapadnosrpska varijanta vatinske grupe. In Benac, A., ed. Praistorija jugoslavenskih zemalja IV. Bronzano doba. Sarajevo: Akademija nauka i umjetnosti Bosne i Hercegovine, Centar za balkanoloka ispitivanja, p. 736-759. GARAANIN, M., GARAANIN, D. (1962) - 1959. 1960. . . Beograd. III, p. 47-68. , ., -, J. (2010) , , . : ; : - , 36 p. Catalogue. HANKS, B. (2008) The Past in Later Prehistory. In Jones, A., ed. Prehistoric Europe: Theory and Practice. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell, p. 255-284.
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KRISTIANSEN, K., LARSON, T.B. (2005) The Rise of Bronze Age Society. Travels, Transmissions and Transformations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 449 p. , . (2007) . . Beograd. 1, p. 109-127. LJUTINA, M., DMITROVI, K. (2009) Landmarks of Memory Notes on Iron Age Tumuli Topography in aak Region, Serbia. In Srbu,V.; Ciobanu, D. eds. the Necropolises and the Environment (1st mill. BC). Proceedings of the 11th International Colloquium of Funerary Archaeology, Buzu Romania 2009. Buzu: Muzeul Judean Buzu; Brila: Muzeul Brilei. p. 91-101. LJUTINA, M., DMITROVI, K. (2010) Elements of prestige in the Iron Age Graves from the West Morava Valley, Serbia. In Srbu, V. ed. The Weaponry and the Combat Parade Gear Marks of the Prestige and Social Status in the Tombs of the Bronze and Iron Ages. Proceedings of the 12th International Colloquium of Funerary Archaeology Braila 22nd-24th October 2010. Brila: Muzeul Brilei, Editura Istros. p. 123-142. (Istros XVI). NOTROFF, J. (2011) Menace from the Afterlife? Some Remarks about the archaeological Evidence for Fearing and Banishing the Dead and a Contribution to Otomani and Fzesabony Sepulchral Rite. In Berecki, S. et al. eds. Bronze Age Rites and Rituals in the Carpathian Basin. Proceedings of the International Colloquium from Trgu Mure 8-10 October 2010. Trgu Mure: Editura Mega. p. 143-153. NIKITOVI, L., STOJI, M., VASI, R. (2002) Mojsinje a Bronze and Iron Age Mound Necropolis. aak: National Museum aak, Archaeological Institute Belgrade. 156 p. TREHERNE, P. (1995) The Warriors Beauty: The Masculine Body and Self-Identity in Bronze Age Europe. Journal of European Archaeology, 3 (1), p. 105-144. , . (1890) . . . 7, p. 101107. , . (1892) . . . 9, p. 123. , M. (1893) . . . 10, p. 75-97. ZOTOVI, M. (1985) Arheoloki i etniki problemi bronzanog i gvozdenog doba zapadne Srbije. Dissertationes et monographiae, tome XXVI. Titovo Uice: Zaviajni muzej; Beograd: Savez arheolokih drutava Jugoslavije. 151 p. , . (1991) . . . XL XLI/1989-1990, p. 77-88.

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