Funnel Beaker Pottery

This article investigates ›monumental landscapes‹ by comparing two different expressions of ritual that can be observed in the same Neolithic landscapes and are seen as typical traits of the Funnel Beaker Culture (TRB): megalithic tombs and wetland depositions. The rich archaeological evidence from an area on the Danish islands, north-west Zealand with a special focus on the area around Lille Åmose will serve as background for discussing the complex ritual use of space in the earlier part of the Southern Scandinavian Neolithic (TRB). The different chronological development of ritualised practices is shown, with the wetland depositions starting already in EN I and the megalithic tombs later in EN II. Beside these chronological differences, the different material character of the two groups of finds, their
distribution and their spatial relation to each other are discussed. For the case study area, it can be shown that the wetland deposits mark settlement areas that date back at least to the EN I – if not to the Late Mesolithic – located at lake sides. The megalithic tombs are placed differently, witnessing a broadened use of the inland from the late EN I and EN II onwards, indirectly indicating agrarian economy. They are often placed close to communication routes. These results are discussed regarding the neolithisation process. The question of whether wetland depositions and megalithic tombs witness a break in ritual expression or a change or inversion of ritual opens up new perspectives of understanding social, ritual and economic changes in the 4th millennium BC.

This paper is a preliminary report on the recent
discovery of the FBC longhouses at Líbeznice
in Central Bohemia. The rescue excavation,
carried out during motorway bypass construction
produced evidence of more than ten ground plans
of FBC longhouses and their remains. According to
the finds associated with the houses, it is possible
to date the houses to the Salzmünde phase of the
FBC. Analogical finds are very rare in Bohemia.
Two very similar dwelling structures were discovered
by Ivana Pleinerová at Březnoin in Northwest Bohemia and
another yet unpublished example
was recovered at Milan Zápotocký’s excavations
at Kozly (Mělník district). In Central Europe,
there is only a limited number of similar examples
from Poland, the Saale Region and Lower Saxony
but overall numerous examples of FBC houses
are known. It is likely that the longhouses with
post construction were the most prevalent type of
dwelling throughout the Neolithic/Copper Age in
Central Europe, even if evidence of them is very
limited for some periods.

Dutch hunebedden often contain large assemblages of TRB pottery deposited over a long period of time. Many fragmentary vessels are represented by this sherd material and many distinctive vessel types are identifiable. The material is essentially domestic (rather than made specifically for ritual deposition) and results from periodic feasting accompanying burial rituals.

Bij een archeologische begeleiding direct westelijk van hunebed D4 te Midlaren (gemeente Tynaarlo, Drenthe) is een mogelijke uitruimkuil, een mogelijke offerkuil en een paalspoor gedocumenteerd, daterend uit het Midden-Neolithicum. De vondsten bestaan uit Trechterbekeraardewerk, waaronder een complete versierde kom en fragmenten van een trechterbeker, en een terrine of amfoor. De vondsten wijzen erop dat hunebed D4 in gebruik is geweest tussen 3200-2950 v. Chr.

Co-author J.N. Lanting.  Re-investigation of three hunebedden excavated by A.E. van Giffen in 1918 are described and changes to the original conclusions given. o1 is shown to have had a minimum of seven pairs of side stones. The mounds of D40 and D30 are shown t have been constructed in several phases; the primary mounds did not completely cover the chambers. The finds have been re-analysed and placed within Brindley's Horizon typochronology.