David Fontijn | Universiteit Leiden (original) (raw)

Books by David Fontijn

43rd Kroon Lecture, 2021

Why do people fight each other? How is it possible that people who are able to peacefully live to... more Why do people fight each other? How is it possible that people who are able to peacefully live together at one moment, can kill each other at another? These are questions that have been occupying philosophers and social scientists for a long time. This small book shows that answers to these fundamental questions on the human condition tend to be looked for in our deep past. Since archaeology is our prime source of information on that past, it is the investigation of prehistory that should concern us when dealing with such questions. This text aims to do so, by contrasting a case of extreme violence in relatively peaceful Early Neolithic society, to ways people had to resolve social tensions in violent societies of the Bronze and Iron Age in Europe. Using insights from psychology, it shows people are first and foremost social beings, and that both violence and peace are rooted in sociality.

Death Revisited. The excavation of three Bronze Age barrows and surrounding landscape at Apeldoorn-Wieselseweg, 2019

This book presents a group of small and inconspicuous barrows that were recently discovered in th... more This book presents a group of small and inconspicuous barrows that were recently discovered in the forest of Apeldoorn, the Netherlands. They are part of an extensive barrow landscape of which little was yet known. Fieldwork carried out in and around them yielded a wealth of new data. It was discovered that even the most inconspicuous and heavily damaged mound of this group still contained many special features. This special place was anchored around a site that probably had a particular significance in the Late Neolithic, and where special rituals were carried out during the Bronze Age, resulting in the construction of an enigmatic row of pits-rituals the likes of which have not previously been attested around barrows in the Netherlands, but which are known elsewhere in Europe. The dead were buried at locations that were probably only later covered by monuments. During the Bronze Age (between the 18 th and 15 th centuries BC) the mounds of this small barrow group were used as collective graves for what was probably perceived as one specific 'community of ancestors'. The burial practices in the mounds show strong similarities and it is argued that these barrows were each other's successors, representing the funeral history of people who wished to unite their fore-bears in death as one unproblematic whole without distinctions. The fieldwork showed that even small-scale, partial excavations of a seemingly minor barrow group can inform us on the significance of the extensive barrow landscapes they are part of-a knowledge that can help us to understand the prehistoric legacy of the Netherlands and to protect it for the future as heritage.

Local Societies in the Big World of Prehistoric Northwest Europe, 2018

This volume of Analecta Praehistorica Leidensia focuses on how local communities in prehistory de... more This volume of Analecta Praehistorica Leidensia focuses on how local communities in prehistory define themselves in relation to a bigger social world.
Communities from the deep past managed to make a living in landscapes we tend to perceive as inconvenient, build complex and elaborate monuments with relatively simple tools, and by shaping their landscape carved out a place for themselves in a much bigger social world. The contributions in this volume underscore how small worlds can be big at the same time.

Why do people destroy objects and materials that are important to them? This book aims to make se... more Why do people destroy objects and materials that are important to them? This book aims to make sense of this fascinating, yet puzzling social practice by focusing on a period in history in which such destructive behaviour reached unseen heights and complexity: the Bronze Age and Early Iron Age in Europe (c. 2300–500 BC).

This period is often seen as the time in which a ‘familiar’ Europe took shape due to the rise of a metal-based economy. But it was also during the Bronze Age that massive amounts of scarce and recyclable metal were deliberately buried in the landscape and never taken out again. This systematic deposition of metalwork sits uneasily with our prevailing perception of the Bronze Age as the first ‘rational-economic’ period in history – and therewith – of ourselves. Taking the patterned archaeological evidence of these seemingly un-economic metalwork depositions at face value, it is shown that the ‘un-economic’ giving-up of metal valuables was an integral part of what a Bronze Age ‘economy’ was about. Based on case studies from Bronze Age Europe, this book attempts to reconcile the seemingly conflicting political and cultural approaches that are currently used to understand this pivotal period in Europe’s deep history. It seems that to achieve something in society, something else must be given up.

Using theories from economic anthropology, this book argues that – paradoxically – giving up that which was valuable created value. It will be invaluable to scholars and archaeologists interested in the Bronze Age, ancient economies, and a new angle on metalwork depositions.

Analecta Praehistorica Leidensia (49), 2018

Bakels, C.C., Q.P.J.Bourgeois, D.R.Fontijn, R.Jansen (eds.) 2018. Local Communities in the Big World of Prehistoric Northwest Europe, Analecta Praehistorica Leidensia 49, Sidestone Press, Leiden.

The hills overlooking the north flank of the Rhine valley in the Netherlands are dotted with hund... more The hills overlooking the north flank of the Rhine valley in the Netherlands are dotted with hundreds of prehistoric burial mounds. Only a few of them were ever investigated by archaeologists, and even nowadays the many barrows preserved in the extensive forests of the Utrechtse Heuvelrug are the oldest visible witnesses of a remote, but largely unknown prehistoric past. In 2006, a team of archaeologists of the Ancestral Mounds project of Leiden University set out to investigate these age-old monuments. Parts of two neighbouring mounds at Elst, in the municipality of Rhenen, were excavated, and numerous finds collected by amateur archaeologists were retrieved and studied. As a result, the research team was able to reconstruct the formation and histories of this barrow landscape from 2000 BC onwards. Contrary to what was initially thought, the Elst barrows appeared not to have been situated within a separate ceremonial landscape, but were rather closely linked with the world of daily living. Throughout the Bronze Age and Iron Age, people had been ‘living near the dead’.
The finds discussed in this book include a rare example of an Early Bronze Age burial mound, examples of pottery deposition, remains of a Middle Bronze Age ‘Hilversum– Period’ settlement and many indications for mundane and ritual uses of the barrows in the later Iron Age.

Groups of burial mounds may be among the most tangible and visible remains of Europe’s prehistori... more Groups of burial mounds may be among the most tangible and visible remains of Europe’s prehistoric past. Yet, not much is known on how “barrow landscapes” came into being . This book deals with that topic, by presenting the results of archaeological research carried out on a group of just two barrows that crown a small hilltop near the Echoput (“echo-well”) in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands.
In 2007, archaeologists of the Ancestral Mounds project of Leiden University carried out an excavation of parts of these mounds and their immediate environment. They discovered that these mounds are rare examples of monumental barrows from the later part of the Iron Age. They were probably built at the same time, and their similarities are so conspicuous that one might speak of “twin barrows”.
The research team was able to reconstruct the long-term history of this hilltop. We can follow how the hilltop that is now deep in the forests of the natural reserve of the Kroondomein Het Loo, once was an open place in the landscape. With pragmatism not unlike our own, we see how our prehistoric predecessors carefully managed and maintained the open area for a long time, before it was transformed into a funerary site. The excavation yielded many details on how people built the barrows by cutting and arranging heather sods, and how the mounds were used for burial rituals in the Iron Age.

Non multo post in Cantabriae lacum fulmen decidit repertaeque sunt duodecim secures, haud ambiguu... more Non multo post in Cantabriae lacum fulmen decidit repertaeque sunt duodecim secures, haud ambiguum summae imperii signum.

One of the most puzzling phenomena of the European Bronze Age, is that many communities buried or... more One of the most puzzling phenomena of the European Bronze Age, is that many communities buried or otherwise hid large numbers of valuable bronze objects, but never returned to retrieve them. This book focuses on the metal finds of one small European region, the southern Netherlands and the adjacent part of North Belgium. Fontijn considers the question of why so many elaborate bronze objects have been found in watery locations in this landscape, such as rivers, streams, and marshes, while so few have been found in the controlled excavations of local settlements and cemeteries. He looks at the evidence for the selective deposition of metal objects, and discusses the "cultural biographies" of weapons, ornaments or dress fittings, and axes respectively. He considers how different depositional contexts might be related to the construction of various forms of social identity, such as male or female, or of belonging to local or non-local communities. He also looks at the way the land itself may have been defined and structured by the act of object deposition.

"Some 2800 years ago, a man died in what is now the municipality of Oss, the Netherlands. His dea... more "Some 2800 years ago, a man died in what is now the municipality of Oss, the Netherlands. His death must have been a significant event in the life of local communities, for he received an extraordinary funeral, which ended with the construction of an impressive barrow.

Based on the meticulous excavation and a range of specialist and comprehensive studies of finds, a prehistoric burial ritual now can be brought to life in surprising detail. An Iron Age community used extraordinary objects that find their closest counterpart in the elite graves of the Hallstatt culture in Central Europe. This book will discuss how lavishly decorated items were dismantled and taken apart to be connected with the body of the deceased, all to be destroyed by fire. In what appears to be a meaningful pars pro toto ritual, the remains of his body, the pyre, and the objects were searched through and moved about, with various elements being manipulated, intentionally broken, and interred or removed. In essence, a person and a place were transformed through destruction.

The book shows how the mourners carefully, almost lovingly covered the funeral remains with a barrow. Attention is also given to another remarkable monument, long mound 6, located immediately adjacent to mound 7. Excavations show how mound 7 was part of an age-old ritual heath landscape that was entirely restructured during the Early Iron Age, when it became the setting for the building of no less than three huge Hallstatt C barrows. Thousands of years later, during the Late Middle Ages, this landscape underwent a complete transformation of meaning when the prehistoric barrows became the scenery for a macabre display of the cadavers of executed criminals."

Papers by David Fontijn

Power from Below. The dynamics of Political Complexity in the Archaeological Record, 2021

This paper argues that most applications of political economies risk focusing too one-sidedly on ... more This paper argues that most applications of political economies risk focusing too one-sidedly on individual power. However, political economies are also about collectively accepted notions on order, symbols and positions that can only exist by virtue of them being socially recognized (Searle 1995). Two examples from Europe's deep past are used to illustrate this. The first is on the role of 'commons' in Bronze Age and Iron Age landscape use. The second is on how collective conventions shape elite burials from the Early Iron Age. Both demonstrate that, in a way, 'power' may come 'from below' (cf. Searle 1995)

The Routledge Handbook of Archaeology and Globalization, 2017

This article discusses whether elite identities were globalized in Early Iron Age Europe using th... more This article discusses whether elite identities were globalized in Early Iron Age Europe using the princely burials of the Hallstatt Culture as a case study. A cluster of Early Iron Age elite burials with Hallstatt culture imports in the Low Countries is compared with the Hallstatt Culture princely burials of Central Europe. The practices represented by both is considered, focusing in particular whether communities in one locality treated objects in a similar way as in the other. It is argued that a coherence between practices in one region and another is a one empirically verifiable way to recognize globalized behavior.

Oxford Journal of Archaeology 38(2), 2019

One of the biggest challenges for students of the European Bronze Age is to understand the reason... more One of the biggest challenges for students of the European Bronze Age is to understand the reason behind the massive deposition of large amounts of recyclable metal in non-metalliferous regions. Such depositions are particularly puzzling when material was buried in a manner which directly seems to refer to trade itself, in so-called trade hoards. Starting from the observations on a recent find of such a hoard, in Hoogeloon (NL), we zoom out to Bronze Age metalwork economy in general and the deposition of trade stock in particular. We argue that Middle Bronze Age metalwork circulation in Northwest Europe may be understood as an aes formatum system, with the serially produced axes in hoards displaying a koinè with a particular social evaluation: a ‘brand’. We suggest that objects were selected on brands during deposition in the landscape and that this ‘ritual’ act was integral to the ‘practical’ economy of circulation.

Exploring the archaeological heritage of the Uddeler Heegde: an experiment, 2020

In the summers of 2013 and 2014 the Faculty of Archaeology of Leiden University has carried out a... more In the summers of 2013 and 2014 the Faculty of Archaeology of Leiden University has carried out archaeological fieldwork in a rather exceptional environment. Where since the implementation of the Valetta Treaty most excavations are aimed at ex-situ preservation of archaeological sites threatened by building activities, the
site that was under investigation in 2013 and 2014 found itself in a nature reserve.
As nature reserves are aimed at the very purpose of preservation, why then investigate an archaeological site that could easily profit from such a protected status? The recent access to high resolution LIDAR data for the entire surface of the present day Netherlands is only just beginning to reveal the richness of archaeological sites hidden beneath the foliage and undergrowth of the forests and heaths crammed in between the vast field systems of the Dutch countryside. From late prehistoric
barrow landscapes and celtic fields to Medieval cart tracks, all these features still find themselves at the very surface in these nature reserves. These sites of various age can provide a unique glimpse into the past but their location at the very surface also makes these sites vulnerable and, as is becoming more clear in recent years, are
threatened by nature itself. Tree roots, burrowing animals and ongoing podzolization are all examples of natural processes that gradually obscure these sites from sight.
To map both the state as well as the research potential of such an archaeological ‘palimpsest’ an archaeological field experiment was carried out in one of the largest nature reserves of the Netherlands at a site called ‘Apeldoorn – Uddeler Heegde’. This article reports on the most important new insights of the fieldwork in the form of a
landscape biography

Lay-out: Sidestone Press Cover design: Stijn Arnoldussen Photograph cover: IJzertijdpotje met pse... more Lay-out: Sidestone Press Cover design: Stijn Arnoldussen Photograph cover: IJzertijdpotje met pseudo-schrift (sgrafitto), uit: Van den Broeke (deze bundel) ISBN 978-90-8890-864-4 (softcover) ISBN 978-90-8890-865-1 (hardcover) ISBN 978-90-8890-866-8 (PDF e-book) Afdeling Stadsontwikkeling Bureau Archeologie en Monumenten Inhoudsopgave Mens, mobiliteit en materiële cultuur: Peter van den Broeke's 9 bijdragen aan studie van de metaaltijden

Metaaltijden 6. Bijdragen in de studie van de metaaltijden, 2019

In the autumn of 2018, through the intervention of archaeologist Tom Hazenberg, Mr. Jan Robert Zi... more In the autumn of 2018, through the intervention of archaeologist Tom Hazenberg, Mr. Jan Robert Zijp contacted the National Museum of Antiquities (RMO) in Leiden to report the find of a Bronze Age sword. The sword was found during dredging activities along the Meuse in the 1960s and had been in his family for decades. The owner agreed on loaning the object to the museum for an in-depth study. This contribution reports the results of that study. We argue that the object belongs to the final phase of the Late Bronze Age, that it was probably produced in more southern regions, had been intensively used, and ended its itinerary by being deposited in the river Meuse.

Analecta Praehistoric Leidensia, 2018

Dedicated to our tèacher, coileague and friend, prof. dr Harry Fokkens. In the natural resert;es ... more Dedicated to our tèacher, coileague and friend, prof. dr Harry Fokkens. In the natural resert;es of the veluwe in the centre of the Netherland,s, there are hundreds of mounds that are registered. as 'prehístoric burial mound.s, (Fontijn 2011, table 1.1). some are protected as Natíonal Heritage, but many are not. only a small part has ever seen professional archaeological ínvestigation, and there are many for which no more is known than tha.t they are likely to represent ,prehistoric burial sites'. rhis applies particularly to mound"s in the munictpalitlt of Apeldoorn, where Iarge numbers are known to exist and fortunately protected as neitøge, butwhere in most cases not much is known on their d.attng, nature or potential sígnificance as source of knowledge on the past. Thís article presents the results of a fi.eldwork campaign where three newly di.scoveree small barrows were investigated. thqt are part or a much larger barrow landscape on which so far nothing *oi kno*n. In spite of their small síze and the føct that some were heavily damaged by forest ptoughing, the research yielded detailed. ínformatíon on their use history ona int social 6¿nd, ritual sígnifi.cance that they had in the Bronze Age. Even the most ínconspicuous mound. of which it was initialty seriously d.oubted. whether it was a prehisioric monument, appears to contqin the remains of many special prehístoríc features.

43rd Kroon Lecture, 2021

Death Revisited. The excavation of three Bronze Age barrows and surrounding landscape at Apeldoorn-Wieselseweg, 2019

Local Societies in the Big World of Prehistoric Northwest Europe, 2018

Analecta Praehistorica Leidensia (49), 2018

Bakels, C.C., Q.P.J.Bourgeois, D.R.Fontijn, R.Jansen (eds.) 2018. Local Communities in the Big World of Prehistoric Northwest Europe, Analecta Praehistorica Leidensia 49, Sidestone Press, Leiden.

Power from Below. The dynamics of Political Complexity in the Archaeological Record, 2021

The Routledge Handbook of Archaeology and Globalization, 2017

Oxford Journal of Archaeology 38(2), 2019

Exploring the archaeological heritage of the Uddeler Heegde: an experiment, 2020

Metaaltijden 6. Bijdragen in de studie van de metaaltijden, 2019

Analecta Praehistoric Leidensia, 2018

Wereldgeschiedenis van Nederland, 2018

De bronstijd was een tijd van opkomende ‘rationele’ economieën en globalisatie, maar ook van een ... more De bronstijd was een tijd van opkomende ‘rationele’ economieën en globalisatie, maar ook van een ‘rituele’ economie. Beide aspecten komen samen in de spectaculaire vondst van een heel bijzonder reuzenzwaard in Ommerschans.

World Archaeology, 2018

A fireplace represents one of the most fundamental and time-transgressive gathering points for hu... more A fireplace represents one of the most fundamental and time-transgressive gathering points for humans. However, when situated in pits that are orga- nized in lines running sometimes hundreds of metres, fire pits represent a significant challenge in terms of interpretation, and may evidence a particular perception of space. This paper argues that in a Bronze Age context, pits associated with fire remains marked out directionality and axiality in the landscape as part of ceremonial events of a temporary nature. Adopting a landscape approach and going beyond regional and chronological borders, the authors argue that in northwestern Europe such events took place in relation to unbounded barrow landscapes in open spaces and could often be linked to the orchestration of funerary events. In some regions, the deposi- tional activities evident in relation to these aligned pits have added signifi- cance. Furthermore, the authors argue that the aligning of fire pits is incompatible with divided or parcelled landscapes, thus challenging inter- pretations of pitted lines as territorial and field boundaries.

Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society, 2006

In many regions in north-west Europe, the Middle Bronze Age is seen as the first period in which ... more In many regions in north-west Europe, the Middle Bronze Age is seen as the first period in which a ‘humanly-ordered’ agrarian landscape took shape that has resonance with rural landscapes of historical periods. But what did this ‘ordering’ actually involve? Basing ourselves on a survey of the rich evidence from the Netherlands – including the evidence on everyday settlement sites as well as the use of the non-everyday ‘ritual’ zones in the land – we argue that from c. 1500 cal BC onwards the landscape was organised and structured by specific, ideological concepts of regularity and categorisation that are distinct from those of the preceding Neolithic and Earlier Bronze Age. We will show that elaborate three-aisled farmhouses of very regular layout emerged here around c. 1500 cal BC and argue that this profound architectural change cannot simply be explained by assuming agricultural intensification combined with indoor stalling of cattle, as conventional theories would have it. Also, we will argue that the way in which the settled land was used from this period onwards was also different than before. Neolithic and Early Bronze Age settlements, far from being ‘ephemeral’, seem to have been organised along different lines than those of the Middle Bronze Age-B (MBA-B: 1500–1050 cal BC). The same holds true for the way in which barrows structured the land. Although they were significant elements in the organisation of the landscape from the Late Neolithic onwards and do hardly change in outer form, we will show that MBA barrows played a different role in the structuring of landscape, adhering to long-term categorisation and zoning therein. A similar attitude can also be discerned in patterns of object deposition in ‘natural’ places. Practices of selective deposition existed long before the MBA-B but, because of different subsistence bases of the pre-MBA-B communities, their interpretations of unaltered ‘natural’ places will have differed significantly. The presence of multiple deposition zones in the MBA-B also must have relied on a unprecedented way of persistent categorisation of the ‘natural’ environment. Finally, the evidence from ‘domestic, funerary and ritual’ sites is recombined in order to typify what the Dutch Middle Bronze Age landscape was about.

The Earlier Iron Age in Britain and the Near Continent

PAST The Newsletter of the Prehistoric Society, 2018

Some objects are more mysterious than others. This definitely goes for the Ommerschans dirk and a... more Some objects are more mysterious than others. This definitely
goes for the Ommerschans dirk and associated objects that
form part of a Middle Bronze Age hoard discovered in the
eastern Netherlands in 1896. Its mystery in part relates to
the extraordinary character of the impressive giant sword
or dirk, which could only have been used for ceremonial or
ritual purposes, to the fact that only six of these objects are
known, and equally to the phantom-like status it achieved
after being ‘lost’ and in private possession for over 120
years. This all changed last July when the entire hoard was
auctioned at Christies in London. The most special find of
the entire Dutch Bronze Age finally came home.

Archaeological Dialogues, 1996

World Archaeology, 2007

... It might be that re-use of Neolithic deposition sites in the Bronze Age can also be explained... more ... It might be that re-use of Neolithic deposition sites in the Bronze Age can also be explained, not by genealogical memory of the former history of use of this place, but rather by a broad continuity in the cultural ideas on what constituted an appropriate deposition site. ...

Archeologie in Nederland, 2017

In februari ontving het Rijksmuseum van Oudheden een bijzondere nieuwe aanwinst: een koperen dubb... more In februari ontving het Rijksmuseum
van Oudheden een bijzondere
nieuwe aanwinst: een
koperen dubbelbijl uit het laatneolithicum.
Het is een van de
oudste metalen objecten van ons
land en heeft meer dan vierduizend
jaar geleden een bijzondere,
symbolische functie gehad. De
bijl (k 1992/9.1) was sinds de jaren
negentig in het museum te zien
als langdurige bruikleen, maar
is onlangs door de familie geschonken
aan de Rijkscollectie.
Het archeologische verhaal van
de dubbelbijl van Escharen is
interessant, net als de geschiedenis
van haar ontdekking.

Analecta Praehistorica Leidensia. EXCERPTA ARCHAEOLOGICA LEIDENSIA II ANALECTA PRAEHISTORICA LEIDENSIA, 2017

Three important Bronze Age copper-alloy artefacts from the permanent exhibition of the National M... more Three important Bronze Age copper-alloy artefacts from the permanent exhibition of the National Museum of Antiquity in Leiden (NL) have been studied by neutron-based methods. These artefacts are known as the Buggenum sword, the Jutphaas dirk, and the Escharen double axe. All three objects have been studied with neutron resonance capture analysis (NRCA), a non-destructive method to determine the bulk elemental compositions. The Buggenum sword is also studied with time-of-flight neutron diffraction (TOF-ND) giving additional information about crystalline properties and internal material structures, and neutron tomography (NT), showing details of the construction of this sword and voids inside the material. The composition of the Jutphaas dirk is compared with the compositions of two other dirks belonging to the group of six Plougrescant-Ommerschans (PO) ceremonial dirks. The Escharen double axe, identified as being of the Zabitz type, variant Westeregeln, is a rare object in the Low Countries. It is compared to finds from Central Europe. The results for all three objects are discussed with regards to their archaeological contexts and their relation to other finds.

EXCERPTA ARCHAEOLOGICA LEIDENSIA II ANALECTA PRAEHISTORICA LEIDENSIA

Nederland wemelt van grafheuvels uit de prehistorie. Een groot aantal daarvan is beschermd als ar... more Nederland wemelt van grafheuvels uit de prehistorie. Een groot aantal daarvan is beschermd als archeologisch monument. Over wat er zich in het verre verleden rondom die heuvels afspeelde en hoe al die grafmonumenten met elkaar samenhingen, is echter maar bitter weinig bekend. Samen met gemeenten en erfgoedinstellingen doet de universiteit Universiteit Leiden hiernaar onderzoek. Deze bijdrage geeft enkele resultaten van dat onderzoek weer, waarbij het accent ligt op uitkomsten die belangrijk zijn voor de vraag hoe we grafheuvellandschappen als erfgoed kunnen bewaren en beleefbaar kunnen maken. We laten zien dat de omgeving rondom grafheuvels nieuwe en belangrijke informatie herbergt, maar ook dat juist in natuurgebieden de archeologische gegevens uit deze omgeving bedreigd worden en soms al sterk aangetast zijn. We eindigen positief met een voorbeeld waarbij door een combinatie van wetenschappelijk onderzoek, initiatieven van overheden en betrokken bewoners een grafheuvellandschap weer in prehistorische luister beleefbaar is gemaakt.

sen aan het licht zijn gekomen. 2 Duidelijk werd dat, gezien de geringe diepte van de vindplaatse... more sen aan het licht zijn gekomen. 2 Duidelijk werd dat, gezien de geringe diepte van de vindplaatsen ten opzichte van het maaiveld, archeologisch vervolgonderzoek noodzakelijk was. De provincie heeft een aantal vindplaatsen geselecteerd voor nader onderzoek, de meeste hiervan bevinden zich ten westen en zuiden van het dorp Hoogkarspel (afbeelding 2).

This report describes the result of the first fieldwork campaign into the newly discovered mounds... more This report describes the result of the first fieldwork campaign into the newly discovered mounds of the Apeldoorn Uddeler Heegde site. The fieldwork focused on gaining insight into the nature and quality of the archaeological evidence in order to safeguard it for the future in a sustainable way. it is concluded that the four mounds recognized at LIDAR images indeed are prehistoric burial mounds that are worthy of further protection. The research focused on its immediate environment, which appeared to be heavily disturbed by forest plowing. Nevertheless, traces of a Late Bronze Age urnfield were found in one corner of the area. As these are heavily threatened by bioturbation in the forest and forestry activities in the future. It is advised to find ways to safeguard these traces. A search for palaeolithic traces did not yield anything.

This report describes the results of the second year fieldwork campaign at the newly discovered b... more This report describes the results of the second year fieldwork campaign at the newly discovered barrows of the Uddeler Heegde and is meant to present basic data on the fieldwork. It is concluded that there is a second group of barrows next to the barrow row discovered one year previously. Fieldwork was aimed to assess the quality of the evidence and, if archaeological features appear to be present, to safeguard these in a sustainable way. The research shows that in the area around the only protected burial mound, no. 5, there are features of other prehistoric activities (Iron Age), including at least two other prehistoric burials. Also, the remnants of a large Late Mediëval charcoal production site, related to iron production was found, dated to the 11th century AD. It is advised that this entire area is to become protected heritage in view of the high quality of the features. Another potential mound (no. 6) appeared to be a natural dune. The newly discovered mound 7 is a Bronze Age barrow that was heavily disturbed in recent times and ought to be safeguarded from further destructive forestry related activities. New insights were gained into the genesis of a Late Pleistocene elevation, though no traces of palaeolithic activities were found.

This paper present excavation data that allows one to reconstruct the relative chronology of Bron... more This paper present excavation data that allows one to reconstruct the relative chronology of Bronze Age burials in mound 2 and 3 of Apeldoorn-Wiesselseweg. It shows the limitations and possibilities of the excavation data, illustrated by pictures and drawings. It is a preliminary report in anticipation of a more encompassing, forthcoming site report and a publication in Radiocarbon (2015)

Cremating the deceased became the norm in the Netherlands during the Bronze Age. After burning th... more Cremating the deceased became the norm in the Netherlands during the Bronze Age. After burning the body, the remains were collected and buried. The weight of a cremation provides information on the completeness of an individual, and enhances our knowledge of past burial rituals. This paper aims to demonstrate the significance of weight in reconstructing social roles in Bronze Age Dutch populations. In general, the weight of excavated Bronze Age cremations in the Netherlands is far less than what would be expected from complete cremated adult individuals. The difference in weight cannot be explained by post-depositional damage alone. Rather, it seems to be indicative of choices made by the mourners regarding the amount of bone to be buried. For this paper, 35 cremated remains from Ermelose Heide in the province of Gelderland dating to the Middle Bronze Age were analysed. The average weight of the cremated adult remains was 617g, which is less than half of the average weight of a complete cremated modern adult, 1625,9g (McKinley 1993). Although the weight of an archaeological cremated adult is expected to be less, the difference is striking. Further variations in weight could be observed. Not sex, but rather age influenced the amount of bone material to be deposited. The remains of older adults weighed twice as much as the younger ones. This implies socials roles to be of influence, further supported by two pars pro toto burials of an adult and a subadult.

With archaeogenetic data becoming ever more widespread, it is time archaeologists once again took... more With archaeogenetic data becoming ever more widespread, it is time archaeologists once again took the issue of ethnic identity in the past seriously. We now have the tools for identifying migration events, both individual and at the group scale, but we have a limited set of theoretical models of how these events actually worked, as well as a very restricted vocabulary to describe processes of difference, mixing, change, encounter, (dis)continuity and innovation, hybidization and how these affect the self-identification of social groups. This session therefore focuses on the transformation of Neolithic societies at moments of 'rupture', i.e. where significant changes in many or all aspects of life are apparent over a larger area and in a short time window. More specifically, we want to address whether such ruptures were associated with the formation of new ethnic identities (here defined as identity groups beyond the scale of the individual site or lineage/clan and with which people self-identify in opposition to other groups). In particular, we wish to critically discuss the relation between ethnicity, material culture and migration events.

We therefore welcome contributions which reflect on:
• the specific social mechanisms which may connect ethnic groups at larger spatial scales
• the role of material culture in sustaining and altering these mechanisms
• the way in which ruptures relate to reorientations of group identities, whether as cause or effect
• the kinds of situation in which new ethnic identities may arise, including, but not being limited to instances of migration
• the extent to which traditions of practice and behaviour are ways of mediating culture change

Contributors are requested to present their research into the aforementioned topics.

Important dates
The deadline for the submission of papers is 15 March 2017
The deadline for early bird registration is 30 April 2017

Organisers: Ivo van Wijk (Archol BV, The Netherlands), Luc Amkreutz (National Museum of Antiquities, The Netherlands), Daniela Hofmann (University of Hamburg, Germany), Fabian Haack (Landesmuseum Württemberg, Germany) and David Fontijn (Leiden University, The Netherlands)

Supervisors: Ivo van Wijk, Luc Amkreutz, Daniela Hofmann and Fabian Haack
Address: http://www.eaa2017maastricht.nl/

More information E-mail: i.vanwijk@archol.nl
23th EAA Meeting Maastricht 2017

The Bronze Age hallmarks the rise of a globalized metalwork exchange. New technologies involved s... more The Bronze Age hallmarks the rise of a globalized metalwork exchange. New technologies involved such as copying, re-cycling even suggest that it was sustained by new, more economic-rationalistic attitudes towards material. This seems in marked contrast to the deliberate deposition and giving-up of metalwork across Europe. Understanding the rationale behind these practices remains one of the major challenges of European Archaeology. Research by scholars from different countries has shown that this ‘giving up’ was not arbitrarily done, but shows particular patterns: specific objects seem to have been placed in specific places only. In this session, we aim to chart the general characteristics of this ‘selective deposition’ of metalwork during the Bronze Age, by inviting scholars from different ends of Europe to present overviews and interpretations of this remarkable practice. Questions to focus on will include:
Are there general, widely-shared aspects to this practice across Europe, or is the ‘phenomenon’ no more than an array of local practices that differ substantially from region to region? Was it a cultural phenomenon that is ‘unique’ for Europe, and if so, what exactly is it distribution? Was deposition of metalwork in metalliferous regions essentially different than in non-metalliferous regions? We invite archaeologists to present the patterns of their region, and aim to cover Europe from the far West (Ireland) to the Far East (Ukraine,Russia). The focus will be on different periods of the Bronze Age, starting from the Early Bronze Age until to the Late Bronze Age with the aim, to recognize variable tendencies of metalwork depositions across time and space.

A one-day workshop to be held at Leiden University. Initially scheduled to take place on the 9th ... more A one-day workshop to be held at Leiden University. Initially scheduled to take place on the 9th of April, 2020, the workshop will now take place on 11 December 2020. Contributions will focus on Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age migration, mobility and interaction between Europe and the Near East. The aim is to identify and highlight patterns of knowledge exchange between these distant regions, who were responsible for this, why it happened and how.

Beyond Egyptomania. Objects, Style and Agency, 2020

The deep influence Ancient Egypt has on the modern world is a well-rehearsed topic. The Bible, Gr... more The deep influence Ancient Egypt has on the modern world is a well-rehearsed topic. The Bible, Greek and Roman sources, and in general a particular modern conceptualizations of the so-called 'western world' have all been identified as key to this. But could it also be that the agency of ancient Egyptian objects themselves played a decisive role? Reflecting on a new book on this theme, attention is given to the question what we actually mean by stating that 'things have agency'. Is this a useful subject at all, and if so, how could it be studied?