Problematika narušení pohřbů pohledem antropologa/Issues of disturbance of burials from an anthro... more Problematika narušení pohřbů pohledem antropologa/Issues of disturbance of burials from an anthropologist's point of view
The article summarizes knowledge about graves, their nomenclature and possible disturbances of graves. Its main focus is the interred human body. The article recommends to analyze excavation situations comprising graves professionally, using appropriate techniques but, at the same time, critically. The simplest explanations are in most cases usually correct. Evidence of disturbance can often be explained with reference to natural processes.
Kubálek, Pavel 2023: Problematika narušení pohřbů pohledem antropologa. Archeologie ve středních Čechách / Praha : Ústav archeologické památkové péče středních Čech Roč. 27, č. 1 (2023), s. 329-334.
2004 wurde im Rahmen einer groß angelegten Rettungsgrabung im Objekt der ehem. Kasernen Georgs vo... more 2004 wurde im Rahmen einer groß angelegten Rettungsgrabung im Objekt der ehem. Kasernen Georgs von Podiebrad am náměstí Republiky-Platz in Prag 1-Neustadt auch ein großer Friedhof mit Körperbestattungen aus dem 17.-18. Jh. gefunden. Zu dieser Zeit gehörte der gesamte Raum zum Kapuzinerkloster St. Josef, das 1795 definitiv aufgelöst wurde. Das nicht allzugroße Bestattungsareal bot neben anthropologischem Material vor allem eine Reihe wertvoller Informationen zur Gestalt der Bestattungssitten und der materiellen Ausstattung im Raum der Klostergemeinde zur Zeit der barocken Frömmigkeit und des radikalen Gesellschaftswandels in der Zeit der Aufklärung.
Zeitschrift Fur Archaologie Des Mittelalters, 2012
Zusammenfassung: Das völkerwanderungszeitliche Gräberfeld in Prag-Zličín, Tschechische Republik D... more Zusammenfassung: Das völkerwanderungszeitliche Gräberfeld in Prag-Zličín, Tschechische Republik Das Gräberfeld der Vinařicer-Gruppe aus der älteren Phase der Völkerwanderungszeit in Prag-Zličín, Hrozenkovská Straße, ist mit 173 erfassten Körpergräbern das größte Gräberfeld dieser Epoche in Böhmen und eines der größten in Mitteleuropa. Die Datierung der Fundstelle in das 5. Jahrhundert n. Chr. wurde anhand von Fibeln, Schnallen, Glasbechern, Keramik, verschiedenen Beschlägen und weiteren Kleinfunden aus Metall vorgenommen. Eine Gürtelschnalle, eine Fibel und einige andere Gegenstände deuten auf ein Ende um 500 n. Chr. Der Charakter der Funde belegt eine überregionale Bedeutung des Gräberfeldes und deutet auf Kulturbeziehungen zu Gallien, dem Rhein- und Donaugebiet sowie zum Nordseeraum hin. Fast alle Gräber weisen Spuren sekundärer Graböffnung in derselben Periode auf. Ein besonderes Verdienst der Ausgrabung liegt in der Dokumentation von Nischen mit Keramik- und Glasgefäßen, die als ein wichtiges Merkmal der Vinařicer-Gruppe gelten. Die Bearbeitung des umfangreichen Fundmaterials steht erst am Anfang und wird vorraussichtlich längere Zeit in Anspruch nehmen. Die metallographischen und andere technologische Analysen wie anthropologisch-biologische, dendrologisch- und chronologischen Untersuchungen sowie die Erstellung eines GIS-Modells für das gesamte Gräberfeld sind in Planung. Summary: The Migration Period Burial Site in Prague-Zličín, Czech Republic The cemetery of the Vinařice Group in Prague-ZličÍn, Hrozenkovská St., belonging to the earlier phase of the Migration Period, represents with 173 documented inhumation graves the largest graveyard of this epoch in Bohemia and one of the largest in Central Europe. Its dating into the 5th century AD is grounded on brooches, buckles, glass vessels, ceramics, different fittings and other metal objects. A belt buckle, a brooch and some other objects indicate an end around 500 AD. The character of the finds suggests a supra-regional importance of the cemetery and cultural relations to Gaul, the Rhineland and the regions along the Danube as well as to the North Sea. Nearly all graves show traces of secondary openings in the same period. A special benefit of the excavation lies in the documentation of niches with ceramic and glass vessels, which are counted as typical of the Vinařice group. The analysis of the considerable material has just begun and will probably take a longer time. The metallographic as well as anthropological-biological, dendrological and chronological analysis and the establishment of a GIS model of the whole cemetery are planned.
An unusual skeletal find from Tetín
Due to a water pipeline failure, a trench was dug in which di... more An unusual skeletal find from Tetín Due to a water pipeline failure, a trench was dug in which dislodged human skeletal remains in a secondary position were documented. The location of the find next to the church of St. Catharine seems to conform to a medieval multi-layered cemetery whose beginnings might date back to the 11th–12th century. The assemblage contains incomplete remains of seven individuals. A skull fragment belonging to an adult woman can be regarded as a curiosity. The shape and dimensions of the nasal bones, the piriform aperture (i.e. the nose's shape) and the arrangement of the alveoli show distinct negroid features. It is therefore likely that these remains belonged to a black woman or to a woman of mixed race. This theory should be tested with the help of DNA analysis and complemented with trace elements analysis to specify her origins. This find can also be regarded as evidence of the region's broader contacts with the outside world. Small apophyses in the cavities of the upper jaws indicate a chronic inflammation of the nasal cavities, which, with a certain degree of exaggeration, can be interpreted as a consequence of a long cold (or of a stay in unsuitable conditions, smoke-filled rooms, close contact with other people, etc...). Thus the above woman might have lived in an environment she was not adopted to. English by Jan Machula
Zeitschrift für Archäologie des Mittelalters, 2012
The cemetery of the Vinařice Group in Prague-Zličín, Hrozenkovská St., belonging to the earlier p... more The cemetery of the Vinařice Group in Prague-Zličín, Hrozenkovská St., belonging to the earlier phase of the Migration Period, represents with 173 documented inhumation graves the largest graveyard of this epoch in Bohemia and one of the largest in Central Europe. Its dating into the 5th century AD is grounded on brooches, buckles, glass vessels, ceramics, different fittings and other metal objects. A belt buckle, a brooch and some other objects indicate an end around 500 AD. The character of the finds suggests a supra-regional importance of the cemetery and cultural relations to Gaul, the Rhineland and the regions along the Danube as well as to the North Sea. Nearly all graves show traces of secondary openings in the same period. A special benefit of the excavation lies in the documentation of niches with ceramic and glass vessels, which are counted as typical of the Vinařice group. The analysis of the considerable material has just begun and will probably take a longer time. The m...
A NEAR EASTERN HAPLOTYPE IN THE BURIAL OF A YOUNG MAN WITH A FISSURE IN THE SKULL FROM THE EARLY ... more A NEAR EASTERN HAPLOTYPE IN THE BURIAL OF A YOUNG MAN WITH A FISSURE IN THE SKULL FROM THE EARLY MEDIEVAL CEMETERY AT TETÍN In the paper, the results of the anthropological investigation of graveNo. 7 fromthe earlymedieval cemetery at Tetín are published. At the same time, the partial results of a pilot archeogenetical project are presented. According to the basic data, the individual was of the male gender, belonged to the adultus I stage (20–30 years), and was about 167 cmtall. According to the pathological finding, he suffered froma congenital cerebral herniation (cephalocele, hernia cerebri) between parietal bones, caused by a congenial limited fissure of the skull (cranioschisis). For the purpose of prediction of geographical origin, an analysis of the Y chromosome was carried out and theG2 haplogroup was predicted (defined by theM201mutation), which probably arose in the Near East or in South Asia from the F haplogroup. Its spread took place during the Neolithic agricultural revolution.
2004 wurde im Rahmen einer groß angelegten Rettungsgrabung im Objekt der ehem. Kasernen Georgs vo... more 2004 wurde im Rahmen einer groß angelegten Rettungsgrabung im Objekt der ehem. Kasernen Georgs von Podiebrad am náměstí Republiky-Platz in Prag 1-Neustadt auch ein großer Friedhof mit Körperbestattungen aus dem 17.-18. Jh. gefunden. Zu dieser Zeit gehörte der gesamte Raum zum Kapuzinerkloster St. Josef, das 1795 definitiv aufgelöst wurde. Das nicht allzugroße Bestattungsareal bot neben anthropologischem Material vor allem eine Reihe wertvoller Informationen zur Gestalt der Bestattungssitten und der materiellen Ausstattung im Raum der Klostergemeinde zur Zeit der barocken Frömmigkeit und des radikalen Gesellschaftswandels in der Zeit der Aufklärung.
2004 wurde im Rahmen einer groß angelegten Rettungsgrabung im Objekt der ehem. Kasernen Georgs vo... more 2004 wurde im Rahmen einer groß angelegten Rettungsgrabung im Objekt der ehem. Kasernen Georgs von Podiebrad am náměstí Republiky-Platz in Prag 1-Neustadt auch ein großer Friedhof mit Körperbestattungen aus dem 17.-18. Jh. gefunden. Zu dieser Zeit gehörte der gesamte Raum zum Kapuzinerkloster St. Josef, das 1795 definitiv aufgelöst wurde. Das nicht allzugroße Bestattungsareal bot neben anthropologischem Material vor allem eine Reihe wertvoller Informationen zur Gestalt der Bestattungssitten und der materiellen Ausstattung im Raum der Klostergemeinde zur Zeit der barocken Frömmigkeit und des radikalen Gesellschaftswandels in der Zeit der Aufklärung.
Kačna jama Cave (Divača, Slovenia) exceeded 20 km with a prospect of further prolongation!
In th... more Kačna jama Cave (Divača, Slovenia) exceeded 20 km with a prospect of further prolongation!
In the course of 2019, three exploratory international expeditions to the Kačna jama Cave were organized by the Plánivy group in collaboration with caving friends from the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovenia. They were directed to new spaces in the inflow part of the cave, called Lamák – Lamski rov. The expeditions were aiming especially at documentation of the newly discovered spaces and prolongation of further continuations of the cave. The spaces newly surveyed in 2019 reached a length of ca. 1.3 km. Lamski rov thus reached an interim length of 2.5 km and continues yet further! With the inclusion of new discoveries, the length of the polygon of the Kačna jama Cave reached 20.2 km. This met our long-term objective of exceeding the cave length of 20 km! Since the beginning of our activities in the Kačna jama Cave in 2005, we have extended the cave length from the official figure of 12.75 km by 7.45 km! In the past 2 years, a relatively extensive labyrinth of overflow corridors related to the main stream of the Reka River was discovered, interconnected with the meandering inflow corridor called Nova jama with an unknown tributary yielding 10 to 30 l·s-1. As this region is characterized by extensive karstification along numerous tectonic fractures, a considerable prolongation of the cave polygon can be expected in year 2020, too.
Research in the Kačna jama Cave and its surroundings in 2018, Divača, Slovenia
The International... more Research in the Kačna jama Cave and its surroundings in 2018, Divača, Slovenia
The International CzechHungarian Kačna jama exploration team, in collaboration with the local Slovenian Gregor Žiberna Club from Divača, continued systematic exploration of the Kačna jama Cave and surrounding caves in 2018. Our objective was to find spaces related to the active flow of the Reka River and to its flood channel. The Kačna jama Cave was fixed with new anchoring and traverses at many places for an effective caving gear transport.A promising opening with draught was discovered in the inflow tract of the cave behind the Ogabno Lake, in a side corridor of the active flow called Kokodrili, during the revision of the known parts of the cave. In the fall of 2018, the Czech team managed to discover an extensive system of phreatic passages 5 m in diameter at the upper level above this opening. At the same time, a completely new strong tributary cca. 20 to 30 l.s1 was discovered to feed the system from the northeast. This tributary was associated with a prominent meandering inflow corridor and a labyrinth of passages under the waterfall in the direction of drainage to the Reka River. Two exploratory campaigns were undertaken in the new spaces so far. They resulted in a map showing some of the discovered 550 m of the Lamski rov Corridor, in a measured polygon of the main meandering Inflow Corridor to a distance of 490 m and in a measured polygon of the Outflow Corridor under the Berger Waterfall to the outflow sump, 166 m in length. Revision mapping involved the survey of the side corridor of Kokodrili with a length of 94 m. As a result, the polygon of the Kačna jama Cave was extended by 1,300 m. At the end of 2018, the unofficial length of the Kačna jama Cave was extended from 17,676 km to 18,976 km. It is clear enough that the latter figure will not remain an ultimate one in 2019. We wish to thank the following groups for their collaboration in the Kačna jama project: all friends from the Czech Republic from different caving clubs as well as cavers not organized in caving clubs, all friends from Hungary – especially those from the Papp Ferenc Budapest Club, and all Slovenian friends – especially those from the Gregor Žiberna Club from Divača village. Details on the individual expeditions are available from webpage: www.planivy.cz.
Two graves of the final Eneolithic Period at Prague-Čakovice: a solitaire family burial?
An archa... more Two graves of the final Eneolithic Period at Prague-Čakovice: a solitaire family burial? An archaeological excavation of the development area U zámeckého parku estate was carried out in 2005–06 at Prague 18 – Čakovice. The site is located north of the current village in fields delimited by Schoellerova, Šircova, Tryskovická street and by the Mratínský stream in the south (fig. 1). The main component of human activity represents the Late La-Tène settlement followed by the settlement of the Early Roman Period. The Bronze Age is represented by the Únětice a Štítary Culture settlement (Kostka 2007, 13–14). The most distinctive and also the earliest example of rare funerary activity were two isolated inhumation burials – features 123 and 180. The distance of both graves from Mratínský stream was 140 to 150 meters in the north direction. The distance between both burials was 12 m folowing the north-west – south-east line (fig. 2). The feature 123 contained two skeletons, one of a male of age group (40–60 years), stature about 183 cm with a robust figure. This individual was holding in its arms a sub-adult individual of age group infans II (6 years), which is a child without sex determination (fig. 6–7) Feature 180 contained a female skeleton in age group maturus I (40–50 years). Both adult skeletons were buried in crouched position, on their right side, head orientated to the south. The analysis of the funerary rite and burial assemblage of the two burials it is possible to date them to the very beginning of the Únětice Culture (Proto–Únětice), which is a complicated period of the Final Eneo- lithic Period. An eloquent gesture of the buried man holding the child suggests their close relationship and perhaps reflects strong emotive personal bond to the child, which was perhaps mans offspring. However considering the average life expectancy of prehistoric populations he might have rather been a grandfather. The relationship between buried man and woman and about the interpretation of the event represented by this group of burials we can only theoretically speculate.
Římské a germánské spony ve střední Evropě (Archeologie barbarů 2012), 2017
Kubálek, P. 2017: Souhrn výsledků základního antropologického zpracování lidských kosterních nále... more Kubálek, P. 2017: Souhrn výsledků základního antropologického zpracování lidských kosterních nálezů z pohřebiště z období stěhování národů v Hostivici, okr. Praha-západ. In: E. Droberjar - B. Komoróczy (eds), Římské a germánské spony ve střední Evropě (Archeologie barbarů 2012). Brno 2017, 525-526.
Results of anthropological research into the Migration Period burial ground in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic)
This article summarizes the results of basic anthropological research into a part of a multi-period site located in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic). Human remains from the burial ground are dated to the Migration Period (approximately 6 th century AD). These human remains were obtained during a rescue excavation in 2011 and the research was conducted by the Museum of Central Bohemia in Roztoky. The collection of 92 burials comprised 77 individuals (3 admixtures), where 18 individuals were determined as immature and 47 as mature. From the total of 47 mature individuals, 6 individuals were interpreted as males and 12 individuals were interpreted as females. In 30 individuals it was not possible to determinate neither sex nor age by the method used. Enamel hypoplasia at various levels was identified with 19 individuals. For sex determination, the morphological method based on J. Brůžek (2002) and morphological determination of skull (by Acsádi – Nemeskéri 1970) were used. For age determination, tooth abrasion based on Lovejoy’s scheme (1985) was applied. Determination of immature individuals was based on mineralisation of teeth (by Walkhoff-Hess 1954, in Fiala 1968) and tooth eruption (by Ubelaker 1978). For the estimation of height, the method by Sjøvold (1990) was applied.
One male and one female cranium were found which exhibit intentional deformation of cranial vault (Aymara deformation).
Tab. 1. Age-classe distribution by sex (English by Joanne Strobachová)
Římské a germánské spony ve střední Evropě (Archeologie barbarů 2012), 2017
Kubálek, P. 2017: Souhrn výsledků základního antropologického zpracování lidských kosterních nále... more Kubálek, P. 2017: Souhrn výsledků základního antropologického zpracování lidských kosterních nálezů z pohřebiště z období raného středověku v Hostivici, okr. Praha-západ. In: E. Droberjar - B. Komoróczy (eds), Římské a germánské spony ve střední Evropě (Archeologie barbarů 2012). Brno 2017, 527–528.
Results of anthropological research into the early medieval burial ground in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic)
This article summarizes the results of basic anthropological research into a part of a multi-period site located in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic). Human remains from the burial ground are dated to the Early Middle Ages (approximately 9 th – 10 th century AD). These human remains were obtained during a rescue excavation in 2011 and the research was conducted by the Museum of Central Bohemia in Roztoky.
The collection of 156 burials comprised 131 individuals (1 admixture), where 22 individuals were determined as immature and 102 as mature. From the total of 102 mature individuals, 32 individuals were interpreted as males and 54 individuals were interpreted as females. In 16 individuals it was not possible to determinate neither sex nor age by the method used.
Enamel hypoplasia at various levels was identified with 33 individuals.
For sex determination, the morphological method based on Brůžek (2002) and morphological determination of skull (by Acsádi – Nemeskéri 1970) were used. For age determination, tooth abrasion based on Lovejoy’s scheme (1985) was applied. Determination of immature individuals was based on mineralisation of teeth (by Walkhoff-Hess 1954, in Fiala 1968) and tooth eruption (by Ubelaker 1978). For the estimation
of height, the method by Sjøvold (1990) was applied.
Tab 1. Age-classe distribution by sex
(Translated by Joanne Strobachová)
A settlement and a burial of the Stroked pottery culture in Dětenice, Jičín District (Czech repub... more A settlement and a burial of the Stroked pottery culture in Dětenice, Jičín District (Czech republic)
The paper summarises the results of a rescue excavation carried out in Dětenice (Jičín District) in 2012. A group of nine sunken features and a clay pit (feature 1), located 100 m south-southeast from the main group, were excavated. Features 2, 3 and 12 formed a superposition and a human inhumation burial was found in a deposit in settlement feature 3. The finds belong to the Late Neolithic, more precisely to phase IV of the Stroked Pottery culture. Finds were especially made in features 1 and 3. Post-holes 10 and 11 did not contain any finds.
The buried body was strongly crouched and deposited on the left side with the head facing the east-south -east, in the already partly backfilled settlement pit (Fig. 7 and 8). Anthropological analysis has shown that the buried person was an adult individual aged 40–50 years, probably of the male sex, and the body height was about 164 cm. Analysis of carbon isotope ratios (C 13 /C 12 ) has indicated that his diet had been rich in animal proteins and poor in plants. Additionally, analysis of strontium isotope ratios ( 87 Sr/ 86 Sr) has also been carried out for samples from a tooth (molar), a bone of the buried individual and a pig bone from feature 3. The results have shown that the individual had been born in an area with chalk bedrock, with a higher representation of Tertiary volcanic rocks, such as the Bohemian Paradise or the Česká Lípa region. He spent the last 7–10 of his life in the place where he was buried. (English by Jan Machula)
The excavation of an enclosed area of the Funnel Beaker culture at Hrdly, Litoměřice District
Bo... more The excavation of an enclosed area of the Funnel Beaker culture at Hrdly, Litoměřice District
Both aerial prospecting and magnetometric measurements helped to identify an enclosed area of unclear origin near the village of Hrdly. The surviving part of the enclosure consists of an arc-shaped pointed trench and the foundations of an inner palisade. Its preserved length is about 200 m. In one place, there was observed a max. 15 m long interruption which is complemented with a 20 m long trench in the forefield. In 2013–2014, the Institute for Classical Archaeology of the FF UK carried out an excavation of the aforementioned feature. The excavation enabled a thorough examination of the individual elements in the preserved part of the enclosure, their particular parameters, the nature of the fill and overall contexts. On the basis of radiocarbon dating and scarce archaeological material, it is possible to attribute the enclosure to the early phase of the Funnel Beaker culture. The main interval of the calibrated radiocarbon dating ranges between 3800–3500 BC. Despite the spatial distance between test pits 01 and 03, the established chronological intervals seem to overlap to a large extent. Therefore, the feature represents the second certain trench enclosure from this period in Bohemia, after Makotřasy. Two inhumation graves were uncovered in test pit 03. The burial rite and radiocarbon dating enable us to attribute these graves to the Corded Ware culture. The example of the Hrdly site explicitly demonstrates the benefits of interdisciplinary cooperation between archaeology and relevant natural science disciplines.
Problematika narušení pohřbů pohledem antropologa/Issues of disturbance of burials from an anthro... more Problematika narušení pohřbů pohledem antropologa/Issues of disturbance of burials from an anthropologist's point of view
The article summarizes knowledge about graves, their nomenclature and possible disturbances of graves. Its main focus is the interred human body. The article recommends to analyze excavation situations comprising graves professionally, using appropriate techniques but, at the same time, critically. The simplest explanations are in most cases usually correct. Evidence of disturbance can often be explained with reference to natural processes.
Kubálek, Pavel 2023: Problematika narušení pohřbů pohledem antropologa. Archeologie ve středních Čechách / Praha : Ústav archeologické památkové péče středních Čech Roč. 27, č. 1 (2023), s. 329-334.
2004 wurde im Rahmen einer groß angelegten Rettungsgrabung im Objekt der ehem. Kasernen Georgs vo... more 2004 wurde im Rahmen einer groß angelegten Rettungsgrabung im Objekt der ehem. Kasernen Georgs von Podiebrad am náměstí Republiky-Platz in Prag 1-Neustadt auch ein großer Friedhof mit Körperbestattungen aus dem 17.-18. Jh. gefunden. Zu dieser Zeit gehörte der gesamte Raum zum Kapuzinerkloster St. Josef, das 1795 definitiv aufgelöst wurde. Das nicht allzugroße Bestattungsareal bot neben anthropologischem Material vor allem eine Reihe wertvoller Informationen zur Gestalt der Bestattungssitten und der materiellen Ausstattung im Raum der Klostergemeinde zur Zeit der barocken Frömmigkeit und des radikalen Gesellschaftswandels in der Zeit der Aufklärung.
Zeitschrift Fur Archaologie Des Mittelalters, 2012
Zusammenfassung: Das völkerwanderungszeitliche Gräberfeld in Prag-Zličín, Tschechische Republik D... more Zusammenfassung: Das völkerwanderungszeitliche Gräberfeld in Prag-Zličín, Tschechische Republik Das Gräberfeld der Vinařicer-Gruppe aus der älteren Phase der Völkerwanderungszeit in Prag-Zličín, Hrozenkovská Straße, ist mit 173 erfassten Körpergräbern das größte Gräberfeld dieser Epoche in Böhmen und eines der größten in Mitteleuropa. Die Datierung der Fundstelle in das 5. Jahrhundert n. Chr. wurde anhand von Fibeln, Schnallen, Glasbechern, Keramik, verschiedenen Beschlägen und weiteren Kleinfunden aus Metall vorgenommen. Eine Gürtelschnalle, eine Fibel und einige andere Gegenstände deuten auf ein Ende um 500 n. Chr. Der Charakter der Funde belegt eine überregionale Bedeutung des Gräberfeldes und deutet auf Kulturbeziehungen zu Gallien, dem Rhein- und Donaugebiet sowie zum Nordseeraum hin. Fast alle Gräber weisen Spuren sekundärer Graböffnung in derselben Periode auf. Ein besonderes Verdienst der Ausgrabung liegt in der Dokumentation von Nischen mit Keramik- und Glasgefäßen, die als ein wichtiges Merkmal der Vinařicer-Gruppe gelten. Die Bearbeitung des umfangreichen Fundmaterials steht erst am Anfang und wird vorraussichtlich längere Zeit in Anspruch nehmen. Die metallographischen und andere technologische Analysen wie anthropologisch-biologische, dendrologisch- und chronologischen Untersuchungen sowie die Erstellung eines GIS-Modells für das gesamte Gräberfeld sind in Planung. Summary: The Migration Period Burial Site in Prague-Zličín, Czech Republic The cemetery of the Vinařice Group in Prague-ZličÍn, Hrozenkovská St., belonging to the earlier phase of the Migration Period, represents with 173 documented inhumation graves the largest graveyard of this epoch in Bohemia and one of the largest in Central Europe. Its dating into the 5th century AD is grounded on brooches, buckles, glass vessels, ceramics, different fittings and other metal objects. A belt buckle, a brooch and some other objects indicate an end around 500 AD. The character of the finds suggests a supra-regional importance of the cemetery and cultural relations to Gaul, the Rhineland and the regions along the Danube as well as to the North Sea. Nearly all graves show traces of secondary openings in the same period. A special benefit of the excavation lies in the documentation of niches with ceramic and glass vessels, which are counted as typical of the Vinařice group. The analysis of the considerable material has just begun and will probably take a longer time. The metallographic as well as anthropological-biological, dendrological and chronological analysis and the establishment of a GIS model of the whole cemetery are planned.
An unusual skeletal find from Tetín
Due to a water pipeline failure, a trench was dug in which di... more An unusual skeletal find from Tetín Due to a water pipeline failure, a trench was dug in which dislodged human skeletal remains in a secondary position were documented. The location of the find next to the church of St. Catharine seems to conform to a medieval multi-layered cemetery whose beginnings might date back to the 11th–12th century. The assemblage contains incomplete remains of seven individuals. A skull fragment belonging to an adult woman can be regarded as a curiosity. The shape and dimensions of the nasal bones, the piriform aperture (i.e. the nose's shape) and the arrangement of the alveoli show distinct negroid features. It is therefore likely that these remains belonged to a black woman or to a woman of mixed race. This theory should be tested with the help of DNA analysis and complemented with trace elements analysis to specify her origins. This find can also be regarded as evidence of the region's broader contacts with the outside world. Small apophyses in the cavities of the upper jaws indicate a chronic inflammation of the nasal cavities, which, with a certain degree of exaggeration, can be interpreted as a consequence of a long cold (or of a stay in unsuitable conditions, smoke-filled rooms, close contact with other people, etc...). Thus the above woman might have lived in an environment she was not adopted to. English by Jan Machula
Zeitschrift für Archäologie des Mittelalters, 2012
The cemetery of the Vinařice Group in Prague-Zličín, Hrozenkovská St., belonging to the earlier p... more The cemetery of the Vinařice Group in Prague-Zličín, Hrozenkovská St., belonging to the earlier phase of the Migration Period, represents with 173 documented inhumation graves the largest graveyard of this epoch in Bohemia and one of the largest in Central Europe. Its dating into the 5th century AD is grounded on brooches, buckles, glass vessels, ceramics, different fittings and other metal objects. A belt buckle, a brooch and some other objects indicate an end around 500 AD. The character of the finds suggests a supra-regional importance of the cemetery and cultural relations to Gaul, the Rhineland and the regions along the Danube as well as to the North Sea. Nearly all graves show traces of secondary openings in the same period. A special benefit of the excavation lies in the documentation of niches with ceramic and glass vessels, which are counted as typical of the Vinařice group. The analysis of the considerable material has just begun and will probably take a longer time. The m...
A NEAR EASTERN HAPLOTYPE IN THE BURIAL OF A YOUNG MAN WITH A FISSURE IN THE SKULL FROM THE EARLY ... more A NEAR EASTERN HAPLOTYPE IN THE BURIAL OF A YOUNG MAN WITH A FISSURE IN THE SKULL FROM THE EARLY MEDIEVAL CEMETERY AT TETÍN In the paper, the results of the anthropological investigation of graveNo. 7 fromthe earlymedieval cemetery at Tetín are published. At the same time, the partial results of a pilot archeogenetical project are presented. According to the basic data, the individual was of the male gender, belonged to the adultus I stage (20–30 years), and was about 167 cmtall. According to the pathological finding, he suffered froma congenital cerebral herniation (cephalocele, hernia cerebri) between parietal bones, caused by a congenial limited fissure of the skull (cranioschisis). For the purpose of prediction of geographical origin, an analysis of the Y chromosome was carried out and theG2 haplogroup was predicted (defined by theM201mutation), which probably arose in the Near East or in South Asia from the F haplogroup. Its spread took place during the Neolithic agricultural revolution.
2004 wurde im Rahmen einer groß angelegten Rettungsgrabung im Objekt der ehem. Kasernen Georgs vo... more 2004 wurde im Rahmen einer groß angelegten Rettungsgrabung im Objekt der ehem. Kasernen Georgs von Podiebrad am náměstí Republiky-Platz in Prag 1-Neustadt auch ein großer Friedhof mit Körperbestattungen aus dem 17.-18. Jh. gefunden. Zu dieser Zeit gehörte der gesamte Raum zum Kapuzinerkloster St. Josef, das 1795 definitiv aufgelöst wurde. Das nicht allzugroße Bestattungsareal bot neben anthropologischem Material vor allem eine Reihe wertvoller Informationen zur Gestalt der Bestattungssitten und der materiellen Ausstattung im Raum der Klostergemeinde zur Zeit der barocken Frömmigkeit und des radikalen Gesellschaftswandels in der Zeit der Aufklärung.
2004 wurde im Rahmen einer groß angelegten Rettungsgrabung im Objekt der ehem. Kasernen Georgs vo... more 2004 wurde im Rahmen einer groß angelegten Rettungsgrabung im Objekt der ehem. Kasernen Georgs von Podiebrad am náměstí Republiky-Platz in Prag 1-Neustadt auch ein großer Friedhof mit Körperbestattungen aus dem 17.-18. Jh. gefunden. Zu dieser Zeit gehörte der gesamte Raum zum Kapuzinerkloster St. Josef, das 1795 definitiv aufgelöst wurde. Das nicht allzugroße Bestattungsareal bot neben anthropologischem Material vor allem eine Reihe wertvoller Informationen zur Gestalt der Bestattungssitten und der materiellen Ausstattung im Raum der Klostergemeinde zur Zeit der barocken Frömmigkeit und des radikalen Gesellschaftswandels in der Zeit der Aufklärung.
Kačna jama Cave (Divača, Slovenia) exceeded 20 km with a prospect of further prolongation!
In th... more Kačna jama Cave (Divača, Slovenia) exceeded 20 km with a prospect of further prolongation!
In the course of 2019, three exploratory international expeditions to the Kačna jama Cave were organized by the Plánivy group in collaboration with caving friends from the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovenia. They were directed to new spaces in the inflow part of the cave, called Lamák – Lamski rov. The expeditions were aiming especially at documentation of the newly discovered spaces and prolongation of further continuations of the cave. The spaces newly surveyed in 2019 reached a length of ca. 1.3 km. Lamski rov thus reached an interim length of 2.5 km and continues yet further! With the inclusion of new discoveries, the length of the polygon of the Kačna jama Cave reached 20.2 km. This met our long-term objective of exceeding the cave length of 20 km! Since the beginning of our activities in the Kačna jama Cave in 2005, we have extended the cave length from the official figure of 12.75 km by 7.45 km! In the past 2 years, a relatively extensive labyrinth of overflow corridors related to the main stream of the Reka River was discovered, interconnected with the meandering inflow corridor called Nova jama with an unknown tributary yielding 10 to 30 l·s-1. As this region is characterized by extensive karstification along numerous tectonic fractures, a considerable prolongation of the cave polygon can be expected in year 2020, too.
Research in the Kačna jama Cave and its surroundings in 2018, Divača, Slovenia
The International... more Research in the Kačna jama Cave and its surroundings in 2018, Divača, Slovenia
The International CzechHungarian Kačna jama exploration team, in collaboration with the local Slovenian Gregor Žiberna Club from Divača, continued systematic exploration of the Kačna jama Cave and surrounding caves in 2018. Our objective was to find spaces related to the active flow of the Reka River and to its flood channel. The Kačna jama Cave was fixed with new anchoring and traverses at many places for an effective caving gear transport.A promising opening with draught was discovered in the inflow tract of the cave behind the Ogabno Lake, in a side corridor of the active flow called Kokodrili, during the revision of the known parts of the cave. In the fall of 2018, the Czech team managed to discover an extensive system of phreatic passages 5 m in diameter at the upper level above this opening. At the same time, a completely new strong tributary cca. 20 to 30 l.s1 was discovered to feed the system from the northeast. This tributary was associated with a prominent meandering inflow corridor and a labyrinth of passages under the waterfall in the direction of drainage to the Reka River. Two exploratory campaigns were undertaken in the new spaces so far. They resulted in a map showing some of the discovered 550 m of the Lamski rov Corridor, in a measured polygon of the main meandering Inflow Corridor to a distance of 490 m and in a measured polygon of the Outflow Corridor under the Berger Waterfall to the outflow sump, 166 m in length. Revision mapping involved the survey of the side corridor of Kokodrili with a length of 94 m. As a result, the polygon of the Kačna jama Cave was extended by 1,300 m. At the end of 2018, the unofficial length of the Kačna jama Cave was extended from 17,676 km to 18,976 km. It is clear enough that the latter figure will not remain an ultimate one in 2019. We wish to thank the following groups for their collaboration in the Kačna jama project: all friends from the Czech Republic from different caving clubs as well as cavers not organized in caving clubs, all friends from Hungary – especially those from the Papp Ferenc Budapest Club, and all Slovenian friends – especially those from the Gregor Žiberna Club from Divača village. Details on the individual expeditions are available from webpage: www.planivy.cz.
Two graves of the final Eneolithic Period at Prague-Čakovice: a solitaire family burial?
An archa... more Two graves of the final Eneolithic Period at Prague-Čakovice: a solitaire family burial? An archaeological excavation of the development area U zámeckého parku estate was carried out in 2005–06 at Prague 18 – Čakovice. The site is located north of the current village in fields delimited by Schoellerova, Šircova, Tryskovická street and by the Mratínský stream in the south (fig. 1). The main component of human activity represents the Late La-Tène settlement followed by the settlement of the Early Roman Period. The Bronze Age is represented by the Únětice a Štítary Culture settlement (Kostka 2007, 13–14). The most distinctive and also the earliest example of rare funerary activity were two isolated inhumation burials – features 123 and 180. The distance of both graves from Mratínský stream was 140 to 150 meters in the north direction. The distance between both burials was 12 m folowing the north-west – south-east line (fig. 2). The feature 123 contained two skeletons, one of a male of age group (40–60 years), stature about 183 cm with a robust figure. This individual was holding in its arms a sub-adult individual of age group infans II (6 years), which is a child without sex determination (fig. 6–7) Feature 180 contained a female skeleton in age group maturus I (40–50 years). Both adult skeletons were buried in crouched position, on their right side, head orientated to the south. The analysis of the funerary rite and burial assemblage of the two burials it is possible to date them to the very beginning of the Únětice Culture (Proto–Únětice), which is a complicated period of the Final Eneo- lithic Period. An eloquent gesture of the buried man holding the child suggests their close relationship and perhaps reflects strong emotive personal bond to the child, which was perhaps mans offspring. However considering the average life expectancy of prehistoric populations he might have rather been a grandfather. The relationship between buried man and woman and about the interpretation of the event represented by this group of burials we can only theoretically speculate.
Římské a germánské spony ve střední Evropě (Archeologie barbarů 2012), 2017
Kubálek, P. 2017: Souhrn výsledků základního antropologického zpracování lidských kosterních nále... more Kubálek, P. 2017: Souhrn výsledků základního antropologického zpracování lidských kosterních nálezů z pohřebiště z období stěhování národů v Hostivici, okr. Praha-západ. In: E. Droberjar - B. Komoróczy (eds), Římské a germánské spony ve střední Evropě (Archeologie barbarů 2012). Brno 2017, 525-526.
Results of anthropological research into the Migration Period burial ground in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic)
This article summarizes the results of basic anthropological research into a part of a multi-period site located in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic). Human remains from the burial ground are dated to the Migration Period (approximately 6 th century AD). These human remains were obtained during a rescue excavation in 2011 and the research was conducted by the Museum of Central Bohemia in Roztoky. The collection of 92 burials comprised 77 individuals (3 admixtures), where 18 individuals were determined as immature and 47 as mature. From the total of 47 mature individuals, 6 individuals were interpreted as males and 12 individuals were interpreted as females. In 30 individuals it was not possible to determinate neither sex nor age by the method used. Enamel hypoplasia at various levels was identified with 19 individuals. For sex determination, the morphological method based on J. Brůžek (2002) and morphological determination of skull (by Acsádi – Nemeskéri 1970) were used. For age determination, tooth abrasion based on Lovejoy’s scheme (1985) was applied. Determination of immature individuals was based on mineralisation of teeth (by Walkhoff-Hess 1954, in Fiala 1968) and tooth eruption (by Ubelaker 1978). For the estimation of height, the method by Sjøvold (1990) was applied.
One male and one female cranium were found which exhibit intentional deformation of cranial vault (Aymara deformation).
Tab. 1. Age-classe distribution by sex (English by Joanne Strobachová)
Římské a germánské spony ve střední Evropě (Archeologie barbarů 2012), 2017
Kubálek, P. 2017: Souhrn výsledků základního antropologického zpracování lidských kosterních nále... more Kubálek, P. 2017: Souhrn výsledků základního antropologického zpracování lidských kosterních nálezů z pohřebiště z období raného středověku v Hostivici, okr. Praha-západ. In: E. Droberjar - B. Komoróczy (eds), Římské a germánské spony ve střední Evropě (Archeologie barbarů 2012). Brno 2017, 527–528.
Results of anthropological research into the early medieval burial ground in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic)
This article summarizes the results of basic anthropological research into a part of a multi-period site located in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic). Human remains from the burial ground are dated to the Early Middle Ages (approximately 9 th – 10 th century AD). These human remains were obtained during a rescue excavation in 2011 and the research was conducted by the Museum of Central Bohemia in Roztoky.
The collection of 156 burials comprised 131 individuals (1 admixture), where 22 individuals were determined as immature and 102 as mature. From the total of 102 mature individuals, 32 individuals were interpreted as males and 54 individuals were interpreted as females. In 16 individuals it was not possible to determinate neither sex nor age by the method used.
Enamel hypoplasia at various levels was identified with 33 individuals.
For sex determination, the morphological method based on Brůžek (2002) and morphological determination of skull (by Acsádi – Nemeskéri 1970) were used. For age determination, tooth abrasion based on Lovejoy’s scheme (1985) was applied. Determination of immature individuals was based on mineralisation of teeth (by Walkhoff-Hess 1954, in Fiala 1968) and tooth eruption (by Ubelaker 1978). For the estimation
of height, the method by Sjøvold (1990) was applied.
Tab 1. Age-classe distribution by sex
(Translated by Joanne Strobachová)
A settlement and a burial of the Stroked pottery culture in Dětenice, Jičín District (Czech repub... more A settlement and a burial of the Stroked pottery culture in Dětenice, Jičín District (Czech republic)
The paper summarises the results of a rescue excavation carried out in Dětenice (Jičín District) in 2012. A group of nine sunken features and a clay pit (feature 1), located 100 m south-southeast from the main group, were excavated. Features 2, 3 and 12 formed a superposition and a human inhumation burial was found in a deposit in settlement feature 3. The finds belong to the Late Neolithic, more precisely to phase IV of the Stroked Pottery culture. Finds were especially made in features 1 and 3. Post-holes 10 and 11 did not contain any finds.
The buried body was strongly crouched and deposited on the left side with the head facing the east-south -east, in the already partly backfilled settlement pit (Fig. 7 and 8). Anthropological analysis has shown that the buried person was an adult individual aged 40–50 years, probably of the male sex, and the body height was about 164 cm. Analysis of carbon isotope ratios (C 13 /C 12 ) has indicated that his diet had been rich in animal proteins and poor in plants. Additionally, analysis of strontium isotope ratios ( 87 Sr/ 86 Sr) has also been carried out for samples from a tooth (molar), a bone of the buried individual and a pig bone from feature 3. The results have shown that the individual had been born in an area with chalk bedrock, with a higher representation of Tertiary volcanic rocks, such as the Bohemian Paradise or the Česká Lípa region. He spent the last 7–10 of his life in the place where he was buried. (English by Jan Machula)
The excavation of an enclosed area of the Funnel Beaker culture at Hrdly, Litoměřice District
Bo... more The excavation of an enclosed area of the Funnel Beaker culture at Hrdly, Litoměřice District
Both aerial prospecting and magnetometric measurements helped to identify an enclosed area of unclear origin near the village of Hrdly. The surviving part of the enclosure consists of an arc-shaped pointed trench and the foundations of an inner palisade. Its preserved length is about 200 m. In one place, there was observed a max. 15 m long interruption which is complemented with a 20 m long trench in the forefield. In 2013–2014, the Institute for Classical Archaeology of the FF UK carried out an excavation of the aforementioned feature. The excavation enabled a thorough examination of the individual elements in the preserved part of the enclosure, their particular parameters, the nature of the fill and overall contexts. On the basis of radiocarbon dating and scarce archaeological material, it is possible to attribute the enclosure to the early phase of the Funnel Beaker culture. The main interval of the calibrated radiocarbon dating ranges between 3800–3500 BC. Despite the spatial distance between test pits 01 and 03, the established chronological intervals seem to overlap to a large extent. Therefore, the feature represents the second certain trench enclosure from this period in Bohemia, after Makotřasy. Two inhumation graves were uncovered in test pit 03. The burial rite and radiocarbon dating enable us to attribute these graves to the Corded Ware culture. The example of the Hrdly site explicitly demonstrates the benefits of interdisciplinary cooperation between archaeology and relevant natural science disciplines.
Kubálek, P. – Bergerová, A. – Baloun, L. – Kukla, M. 2022: Záchranný archeologický výzkum v jesky... more Kubálek, P. – Bergerová, A. – Baloun, L. – Kukla, M. 2022: Záchranný archeologický výzkum v jeskyni Martině v Českém krasu. In: "Český kras včera, dnes a zítra", AOPK ČR, Správa CHKO Český kras. 3. a 4. 11. 2022, Svatý Jan pod Skalou, ČR.
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The article summarizes knowledge about graves, their nomenclature and possible disturbances of graves. Its main focus is the interred human body. The article recommends to analyze excavation situations comprising graves professionally, using appropriate techniques but, at the same time, critically. The simplest explanations are in most cases usually correct. Evidence of disturbance can often be explained with reference to natural processes.
Kubálek, Pavel 2023: Problematika narušení pohřbů pohledem antropologa. Archeologie ve středních Čechách / Praha : Ústav archeologické památkové péče středních Čech Roč. 27, č. 1 (2023), s. 329-334.
Due to a water pipeline failure, a trench was dug in which dislodged human skeletal remains in a secondary position were documented. The location of the find next to the church of St. Catharine seems to conform to a medieval multi-layered cemetery whose beginnings might date back to the 11th–12th century. The assemblage contains incomplete remains of seven individuals. A skull fragment belonging to an adult woman can be regarded as a curiosity. The shape and dimensions of the nasal bones, the piriform aperture (i.e. the nose's shape) and the arrangement of the alveoli show distinct negroid features. It is therefore likely that these remains belonged to a black woman or to a woman of mixed race. This theory should be tested with the help of DNA analysis and complemented with trace elements analysis to specify her origins. This find can also be regarded as evidence of the region's broader contacts with the outside world. Small apophyses in the cavities of the upper jaws indicate a chronic inflammation of the nasal cavities, which, with a certain degree of exaggeration, can be interpreted as a consequence of a long cold (or of a stay in unsuitable conditions, smoke-filled
rooms, close contact with other people, etc...). Thus the above woman might have lived in an environment she was not adopted to.
English by Jan Machula
In the paper, the results of the anthropological investigation of graveNo. 7 fromthe earlymedieval cemetery at Tetín are published. At the same time, the partial results of a pilot archeogenetical project are presented. According to the basic data, the individual was of the male gender, belonged to the adultus I stage (20–30 years), and was about 167 cmtall. According to the pathological finding, he suffered froma congenital cerebral herniation (cephalocele, hernia cerebri) between parietal bones, caused by a congenial limited fissure of the skull (cranioschisis). For the purpose of prediction of geographical origin, an analysis of the Y chromosome was carried out and theG2 haplogroup was predicted (defined by theM201mutation), which probably arose in the Near East or in South Asia from the F haplogroup. Its spread took place during the Neolithic agricultural revolution.
In the course of 2019, three exploratory international expeditions to the Kačna jama Cave were organized by the Plánivy group in collaboration with caving friends from the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovenia. They were directed to new spaces in the inflow part of the cave, called Lamák – Lamski rov. The expeditions were aiming especially at documentation of the newly discovered spaces and prolongation of further continuations of the cave. The spaces newly surveyed in 2019 reached a length of ca. 1.3 km. Lamski rov thus reached an interim length of 2.5 km and continues yet further! With the inclusion of new discoveries, the length of the polygon of the Kačna jama Cave reached 20.2 km. This met our long-term objective of exceeding the cave length of 20 km! Since the beginning of our activities in the Kačna jama Cave in 2005, we have extended the cave length from the official figure of 12.75 km by 7.45 km! In the past 2 years, a relatively extensive labyrinth of overflow corridors related to the main stream of the Reka River was discovered, interconnected with the meandering inflow corridor called Nova jama with an unknown tributary yielding 10 to 30 l·s-1. As this region is characterized by extensive karstification along numerous tectonic fractures, a considerable prolongation of the cave polygon can be expected in year 2020, too.
The International CzechHungarian Kačna jama exploration team, in collaboration with the local Slovenian Gregor Žiberna Club from Divača, continued systematic exploration of the Kačna jama Cave and surrounding caves in 2018.
Our objective was to find spaces related to the active flow of the Reka River and to its flood channel. The Kačna jama Cave was fixed with new anchoring and traverses at many places for an effective caving gear transport.A promising opening with draught was discovered in the inflow tract of the cave behind the Ogabno Lake, in a side corridor of the active flow called Kokodrili, during the revision of the known parts of the cave. In the fall of 2018, the Czech team managed to discover an extensive system of phreatic passages 5 m in diameter at the upper level above this opening. At the same time, a completely new strong tributary cca. 20 to 30 l.s1 was discovered to feed the system from the northeast. This tributary was associated with a prominent meandering inflow corridor and a labyrinth of passages under the waterfall in the direction of drainage to the Reka River. Two exploratory campaigns were undertaken in the new spaces so far. They resulted in a map showing some of the discovered 550 m of the Lamski rov Corridor, in a measured polygon of the main meandering Inflow Corridor to a distance of 490 m and in a measured polygon of the Outflow Corridor under the Berger Waterfall to the outflow sump, 166 m in length. Revision mapping involved the survey of the side corridor of Kokodrili with a length of 94 m. As a result, the polygon of the Kačna jama Cave was extended by 1,300 m. At the end of 2018, the unofficial length of the Kačna jama Cave was extended from 17,676 km to 18,976 km. It is clear enough that the latter figure will not remain an ultimate one in 2019.
We wish to thank the following groups for their collaboration in the Kačna jama project: all friends from the Czech Republic from different caving clubs as well as cavers not organized in caving clubs, all friends from Hungary – especially those from the Papp Ferenc Budapest Club, and all Slovenian friends – especially those from the Gregor Žiberna Club from Divača village. Details on the individual expeditions are available from webpage: www.planivy.cz.
An archaeological excavation of the development area U zámeckého parku estate was carried out in
2005–06 at Prague 18 – Čakovice. The site is located north of the current village in fields
delimited by Schoellerova, Šircova, Tryskovická street and by the Mratínský stream in the south
(fig. 1). The main component of human activity represents the Late La-Tène settlement followed by
the settlement of the Early Roman Period. The Bronze Age is represented by the Únětice a Štítary
Culture settlement (Kostka 2007, 13–14).
The most distinctive and also the earliest example of rare funerary activity were two isolated
inhumation burials – features 123 and 180. The distance of both graves from Mratínský stream was
140 to 150 meters in the north direction. The distance between both burials was 12 m folowing the
north-west – south-east line (fig. 2). The feature 123 contained two skeletons, one of a male of
age group (40–60 years), stature about
183 cm with a robust figure. This individual was holding in its arms a sub-adult individual of age
group infans II (6 years), which is a child without sex determination (fig. 6–7) Feature 180
contained a female skeleton in age group maturus I (40–50 years). Both adult skeletons were buried
in crouched position, on their right side, head orientated to the south.
The analysis of the funerary rite and burial assemblage of the two burials it is possible to date
them to the very beginning of the Únětice Culture (Proto–Únětice), which is a complicated period of
the Final Eneo- lithic Period. An eloquent gesture of the buried man holding the child suggests
their close relationship and perhaps reflects strong emotive personal bond to the child, which was
perhaps mans offspring. However considering the average life expectancy of prehistoric populations
he might have rather been a grandfather. The relationship between buried man and woman and about
the interpretation of the event represented by
this group of burials we can only theoretically speculate.
Results of anthropological research into the Migration Period burial ground in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic)
This article summarizes the results of basic anthropological research into a part of a multi-period site located in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic). Human remains from the burial ground are dated to the Migration Period (approximately 6 th century AD).
These human remains were obtained during a rescue excavation in 2011 and the research was conducted by the Museum of Central Bohemia in Roztoky.
The collection of 92 burials comprised 77 individuals (3 admixtures), where 18 individuals were determined as immature and 47 as mature. From the total of 47 mature individuals, 6 individuals were interpreted as males and 12 individuals were interpreted as females. In 30 individuals it was not possible to determinate neither sex nor age by the method used. Enamel hypoplasia at various levels was identified with 19 individuals.
For sex determination, the morphological method based on J. Brůžek (2002) and morphological determination of skull (by Acsádi – Nemeskéri 1970) were
used. For age determination, tooth abrasion based on Lovejoy’s scheme (1985) was applied. Determination of immature individuals was based on mineralisation of teeth (by Walkhoff-Hess 1954, in Fiala 1968) and tooth eruption (by Ubelaker 1978). For the estimation
of height, the method by Sjøvold (1990) was applied.
One male and one female cranium were found which exhibit intentional deformation of cranial vault (Aymara deformation).
Tab. 1. Age-classe distribution by sex
(English by Joanne Strobachová)
Results of anthropological research into the early medieval burial ground in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic)
This article summarizes the results of basic anthropological research into a part of a multi-period site located in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic). Human remains from the burial ground are dated to the Early Middle Ages (approximately 9 th – 10 th century AD). These human remains were obtained during a rescue excavation in 2011 and the research was conducted by the Museum of Central Bohemia in Roztoky.
The collection of 156 burials comprised 131 individuals (1 admixture), where 22 individuals were determined as immature and 102 as mature. From the total of 102 mature individuals, 32 individuals were interpreted as males and 54 individuals were interpreted as females. In 16 individuals it was not possible to determinate neither sex nor age by the method used.
Enamel hypoplasia at various levels was identified with 33 individuals.
For sex determination, the morphological method based on Brůžek (2002) and morphological determination of skull (by Acsádi – Nemeskéri 1970) were used. For age determination, tooth abrasion based on Lovejoy’s scheme (1985) was applied. Determination of immature individuals was based on mineralisation of teeth (by Walkhoff-Hess 1954, in Fiala 1968) and tooth eruption (by Ubelaker 1978). For the estimation
of height, the method by Sjøvold (1990) was applied.
Tab 1. Age-classe distribution by sex
(Translated by Joanne Strobachová)
The paper summarises the results of a rescue excavation carried out in Dětenice (Jičín District) in 2012. A group of nine sunken features and a clay pit (feature 1), located 100 m south-southeast from the main group, were excavated. Features 2, 3 and 12 formed a superposition and a human inhumation burial was found in a deposit in settlement feature 3. The finds belong to the Late Neolithic, more precisely to phase IV of the Stroked Pottery culture. Finds were especially made in features 1 and 3. Post-holes 10 and 11 did not contain any finds.
The buried body was strongly crouched and deposited on the left side with the head facing the east-south -east, in the already partly backfilled settlement pit (Fig. 7 and 8). Anthropological analysis has shown that the buried person was an adult individual aged 40–50 years, probably of the male sex, and the body height was about 164 cm. Analysis of carbon isotope ratios (C 13 /C 12 ) has indicated that his diet had been rich in animal proteins and poor in plants. Additionally, analysis of strontium isotope ratios ( 87 Sr/ 86 Sr) has also been carried out for samples from a tooth (molar), a bone of the buried individual and a pig bone from feature 3. The results have shown that the individual had been born in an area with chalk bedrock, with a higher representation of Tertiary volcanic rocks, such as the Bohemian Paradise or the Česká Lípa region. He spent the last 7–10 of his life in the place where he was buried.
(English by Jan Machula)
Both aerial prospecting and magnetometric measurements helped to identify an enclosed area of unclear origin near the village of Hrdly. The surviving part of the enclosure consists of an arc-shaped pointed trench and the foundations of an inner palisade. Its preserved length is about 200 m. In one place, there was observed a max. 15 m long interruption which is complemented with a 20 m long trench in the forefield. In 2013–2014, the Institute for Classical Archaeology of the FF UK carried out an excavation of the aforementioned feature. The excavation enabled a thorough examination of the individual elements in the preserved part of the enclosure, their particular parameters, the nature of the fill and overall contexts. On the basis of radiocarbon dating and scarce archaeological material, it is possible to attribute the enclosure to the early phase of the Funnel Beaker culture. The main interval of the calibrated radiocarbon dating ranges between 3800–3500 BC. Despite the spatial distance between test pits 01 and 03, the established chronological intervals seem to overlap to a large extent. Therefore, the feature represents the second certain trench enclosure from this period in Bohemia, after
Makotřasy. Two inhumation graves were uncovered in test pit 03. The burial rite and radiocarbon dating enable us to attribute these graves to the Corded Ware culture. The example of the Hrdly site explicitly demonstrates the benefits of interdisciplinary cooperation between archaeology and relevant natural science disciplines.
The article summarizes knowledge about graves, their nomenclature and possible disturbances of graves. Its main focus is the interred human body. The article recommends to analyze excavation situations comprising graves professionally, using appropriate techniques but, at the same time, critically. The simplest explanations are in most cases usually correct. Evidence of disturbance can often be explained with reference to natural processes.
Kubálek, Pavel 2023: Problematika narušení pohřbů pohledem antropologa. Archeologie ve středních Čechách / Praha : Ústav archeologické památkové péče středních Čech Roč. 27, č. 1 (2023), s. 329-334.
Due to a water pipeline failure, a trench was dug in which dislodged human skeletal remains in a secondary position were documented. The location of the find next to the church of St. Catharine seems to conform to a medieval multi-layered cemetery whose beginnings might date back to the 11th–12th century. The assemblage contains incomplete remains of seven individuals. A skull fragment belonging to an adult woman can be regarded as a curiosity. The shape and dimensions of the nasal bones, the piriform aperture (i.e. the nose's shape) and the arrangement of the alveoli show distinct negroid features. It is therefore likely that these remains belonged to a black woman or to a woman of mixed race. This theory should be tested with the help of DNA analysis and complemented with trace elements analysis to specify her origins. This find can also be regarded as evidence of the region's broader contacts with the outside world. Small apophyses in the cavities of the upper jaws indicate a chronic inflammation of the nasal cavities, which, with a certain degree of exaggeration, can be interpreted as a consequence of a long cold (or of a stay in unsuitable conditions, smoke-filled
rooms, close contact with other people, etc...). Thus the above woman might have lived in an environment she was not adopted to.
English by Jan Machula
In the paper, the results of the anthropological investigation of graveNo. 7 fromthe earlymedieval cemetery at Tetín are published. At the same time, the partial results of a pilot archeogenetical project are presented. According to the basic data, the individual was of the male gender, belonged to the adultus I stage (20–30 years), and was about 167 cmtall. According to the pathological finding, he suffered froma congenital cerebral herniation (cephalocele, hernia cerebri) between parietal bones, caused by a congenial limited fissure of the skull (cranioschisis). For the purpose of prediction of geographical origin, an analysis of the Y chromosome was carried out and theG2 haplogroup was predicted (defined by theM201mutation), which probably arose in the Near East or in South Asia from the F haplogroup. Its spread took place during the Neolithic agricultural revolution.
In the course of 2019, three exploratory international expeditions to the Kačna jama Cave were organized by the Plánivy group in collaboration with caving friends from the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovenia. They were directed to new spaces in the inflow part of the cave, called Lamák – Lamski rov. The expeditions were aiming especially at documentation of the newly discovered spaces and prolongation of further continuations of the cave. The spaces newly surveyed in 2019 reached a length of ca. 1.3 km. Lamski rov thus reached an interim length of 2.5 km and continues yet further! With the inclusion of new discoveries, the length of the polygon of the Kačna jama Cave reached 20.2 km. This met our long-term objective of exceeding the cave length of 20 km! Since the beginning of our activities in the Kačna jama Cave in 2005, we have extended the cave length from the official figure of 12.75 km by 7.45 km! In the past 2 years, a relatively extensive labyrinth of overflow corridors related to the main stream of the Reka River was discovered, interconnected with the meandering inflow corridor called Nova jama with an unknown tributary yielding 10 to 30 l·s-1. As this region is characterized by extensive karstification along numerous tectonic fractures, a considerable prolongation of the cave polygon can be expected in year 2020, too.
The International CzechHungarian Kačna jama exploration team, in collaboration with the local Slovenian Gregor Žiberna Club from Divača, continued systematic exploration of the Kačna jama Cave and surrounding caves in 2018.
Our objective was to find spaces related to the active flow of the Reka River and to its flood channel. The Kačna jama Cave was fixed with new anchoring and traverses at many places for an effective caving gear transport.A promising opening with draught was discovered in the inflow tract of the cave behind the Ogabno Lake, in a side corridor of the active flow called Kokodrili, during the revision of the known parts of the cave. In the fall of 2018, the Czech team managed to discover an extensive system of phreatic passages 5 m in diameter at the upper level above this opening. At the same time, a completely new strong tributary cca. 20 to 30 l.s1 was discovered to feed the system from the northeast. This tributary was associated with a prominent meandering inflow corridor and a labyrinth of passages under the waterfall in the direction of drainage to the Reka River. Two exploratory campaigns were undertaken in the new spaces so far. They resulted in a map showing some of the discovered 550 m of the Lamski rov Corridor, in a measured polygon of the main meandering Inflow Corridor to a distance of 490 m and in a measured polygon of the Outflow Corridor under the Berger Waterfall to the outflow sump, 166 m in length. Revision mapping involved the survey of the side corridor of Kokodrili with a length of 94 m. As a result, the polygon of the Kačna jama Cave was extended by 1,300 m. At the end of 2018, the unofficial length of the Kačna jama Cave was extended from 17,676 km to 18,976 km. It is clear enough that the latter figure will not remain an ultimate one in 2019.
We wish to thank the following groups for their collaboration in the Kačna jama project: all friends from the Czech Republic from different caving clubs as well as cavers not organized in caving clubs, all friends from Hungary – especially those from the Papp Ferenc Budapest Club, and all Slovenian friends – especially those from the Gregor Žiberna Club from Divača village. Details on the individual expeditions are available from webpage: www.planivy.cz.
An archaeological excavation of the development area U zámeckého parku estate was carried out in
2005–06 at Prague 18 – Čakovice. The site is located north of the current village in fields
delimited by Schoellerova, Šircova, Tryskovická street and by the Mratínský stream in the south
(fig. 1). The main component of human activity represents the Late La-Tène settlement followed by
the settlement of the Early Roman Period. The Bronze Age is represented by the Únětice a Štítary
Culture settlement (Kostka 2007, 13–14).
The most distinctive and also the earliest example of rare funerary activity were two isolated
inhumation burials – features 123 and 180. The distance of both graves from Mratínský stream was
140 to 150 meters in the north direction. The distance between both burials was 12 m folowing the
north-west – south-east line (fig. 2). The feature 123 contained two skeletons, one of a male of
age group (40–60 years), stature about
183 cm with a robust figure. This individual was holding in its arms a sub-adult individual of age
group infans II (6 years), which is a child without sex determination (fig. 6–7) Feature 180
contained a female skeleton in age group maturus I (40–50 years). Both adult skeletons were buried
in crouched position, on their right side, head orientated to the south.
The analysis of the funerary rite and burial assemblage of the two burials it is possible to date
them to the very beginning of the Únětice Culture (Proto–Únětice), which is a complicated period of
the Final Eneo- lithic Period. An eloquent gesture of the buried man holding the child suggests
their close relationship and perhaps reflects strong emotive personal bond to the child, which was
perhaps mans offspring. However considering the average life expectancy of prehistoric populations
he might have rather been a grandfather. The relationship between buried man and woman and about
the interpretation of the event represented by
this group of burials we can only theoretically speculate.
Results of anthropological research into the Migration Period burial ground in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic)
This article summarizes the results of basic anthropological research into a part of a multi-period site located in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic). Human remains from the burial ground are dated to the Migration Period (approximately 6 th century AD).
These human remains were obtained during a rescue excavation in 2011 and the research was conducted by the Museum of Central Bohemia in Roztoky.
The collection of 92 burials comprised 77 individuals (3 admixtures), where 18 individuals were determined as immature and 47 as mature. From the total of 47 mature individuals, 6 individuals were interpreted as males and 12 individuals were interpreted as females. In 30 individuals it was not possible to determinate neither sex nor age by the method used. Enamel hypoplasia at various levels was identified with 19 individuals.
For sex determination, the morphological method based on J. Brůžek (2002) and morphological determination of skull (by Acsádi – Nemeskéri 1970) were
used. For age determination, tooth abrasion based on Lovejoy’s scheme (1985) was applied. Determination of immature individuals was based on mineralisation of teeth (by Walkhoff-Hess 1954, in Fiala 1968) and tooth eruption (by Ubelaker 1978). For the estimation
of height, the method by Sjøvold (1990) was applied.
One male and one female cranium were found which exhibit intentional deformation of cranial vault (Aymara deformation).
Tab. 1. Age-classe distribution by sex
(English by Joanne Strobachová)
Results of anthropological research into the early medieval burial ground in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic)
This article summarizes the results of basic anthropological research into a part of a multi-period site located in Hostivice (near Prague, Czech Republic). Human remains from the burial ground are dated to the Early Middle Ages (approximately 9 th – 10 th century AD). These human remains were obtained during a rescue excavation in 2011 and the research was conducted by the Museum of Central Bohemia in Roztoky.
The collection of 156 burials comprised 131 individuals (1 admixture), where 22 individuals were determined as immature and 102 as mature. From the total of 102 mature individuals, 32 individuals were interpreted as males and 54 individuals were interpreted as females. In 16 individuals it was not possible to determinate neither sex nor age by the method used.
Enamel hypoplasia at various levels was identified with 33 individuals.
For sex determination, the morphological method based on Brůžek (2002) and morphological determination of skull (by Acsádi – Nemeskéri 1970) were used. For age determination, tooth abrasion based on Lovejoy’s scheme (1985) was applied. Determination of immature individuals was based on mineralisation of teeth (by Walkhoff-Hess 1954, in Fiala 1968) and tooth eruption (by Ubelaker 1978). For the estimation
of height, the method by Sjøvold (1990) was applied.
Tab 1. Age-classe distribution by sex
(Translated by Joanne Strobachová)
The paper summarises the results of a rescue excavation carried out in Dětenice (Jičín District) in 2012. A group of nine sunken features and a clay pit (feature 1), located 100 m south-southeast from the main group, were excavated. Features 2, 3 and 12 formed a superposition and a human inhumation burial was found in a deposit in settlement feature 3. The finds belong to the Late Neolithic, more precisely to phase IV of the Stroked Pottery culture. Finds were especially made in features 1 and 3. Post-holes 10 and 11 did not contain any finds.
The buried body was strongly crouched and deposited on the left side with the head facing the east-south -east, in the already partly backfilled settlement pit (Fig. 7 and 8). Anthropological analysis has shown that the buried person was an adult individual aged 40–50 years, probably of the male sex, and the body height was about 164 cm. Analysis of carbon isotope ratios (C 13 /C 12 ) has indicated that his diet had been rich in animal proteins and poor in plants. Additionally, analysis of strontium isotope ratios ( 87 Sr/ 86 Sr) has also been carried out for samples from a tooth (molar), a bone of the buried individual and a pig bone from feature 3. The results have shown that the individual had been born in an area with chalk bedrock, with a higher representation of Tertiary volcanic rocks, such as the Bohemian Paradise or the Česká Lípa region. He spent the last 7–10 of his life in the place where he was buried.
(English by Jan Machula)
Both aerial prospecting and magnetometric measurements helped to identify an enclosed area of unclear origin near the village of Hrdly. The surviving part of the enclosure consists of an arc-shaped pointed trench and the foundations of an inner palisade. Its preserved length is about 200 m. In one place, there was observed a max. 15 m long interruption which is complemented with a 20 m long trench in the forefield. In 2013–2014, the Institute for Classical Archaeology of the FF UK carried out an excavation of the aforementioned feature. The excavation enabled a thorough examination of the individual elements in the preserved part of the enclosure, their particular parameters, the nature of the fill and overall contexts. On the basis of radiocarbon dating and scarce archaeological material, it is possible to attribute the enclosure to the early phase of the Funnel Beaker culture. The main interval of the calibrated radiocarbon dating ranges between 3800–3500 BC. Despite the spatial distance between test pits 01 and 03, the established chronological intervals seem to overlap to a large extent. Therefore, the feature represents the second certain trench enclosure from this period in Bohemia, after
Makotřasy. Two inhumation graves were uncovered in test pit 03. The burial rite and radiocarbon dating enable us to attribute these graves to the Corded Ware culture. The example of the Hrdly site explicitly demonstrates the benefits of interdisciplinary cooperation between archaeology and relevant natural science disciplines.