Ranutovac, an Early Bronze Age Necropolis in southeastern Serbia

Description

This volume presents the finds from an Early Bronze Age necropolis in the Južna Morava Basin in the heart of the Balkans holding exclusively incinerated deceased. A total of 21 deceased were registered in the same number of graves, distributed in three segments. The remains of the deceased, along with grave goods, were covered by a small circular stone construction (c. 1 m) and then with a bigger circular stone structure between 1.5 and 3 m. The grave goods comprised fragmented or completely preserved vessels of which ember containers were the most specific. Besides a traditional archaeological approach to the topic, such as studies of necropolis architecture, burial rites, grave goods, and absolute dates, the book contains two analytical reports which approach the topic from a multidisciplinary perpspective. The first one (Filipović, Filatova) analyses the remains of wood from the pyre and the second one (Gajić et al.) deals with the physical-chemical composition of pottery from the necropolis. Cover Title page Copyright page Of Related Interest Preface Contents List of Figures List of Plates List of Tables 1. Introduction 1.1. Position and characteristics of the site 1.2. History of research and stratigraphy of the site 2. The Characteristics of the Early Bronze Age Necropolis 2.1. The architecture of the necropolis and graves and burial customs 2.1.1. The northern segment of the necropolis 2.1.2. The eastern segment of the necropolis 2.1.3. The southern segment of the necropolis 3. Finds from the Graves 3.1. The northern segment of the necropolis 3.1.1. Grave 1 3.1.2. Grave 2 3.1.3. Grave 3 3.1.4. Grave 4 3.1.5. Grave 5 3.1.6. Grave 6 3.1.7. Grave 7 3.1.8. Grave 8 3.1.9. Grave 9 3.1.10. Grave 10 3.1.11. Grave 11 3.1.12. Grave 12 3.1.13. Grave 13 3.2. The southern segment of the necropolis 3.2.1. Grave 14 3.2.2. Grave 15 3.2.3. Grave 16 3.2.4. Grave 17 3.2.5. Grave 18 3.2.6. Grave 19 3.2.7. Grave 20 3.2.8. Grave 21 3.2.9. Grave 22 3.2.10. Grave 23 3.3. The eastern segment of the necropolis 3.3.1. Grave 1 4. The Analysis of the Necropolis Inventory 4.1. Cups 4.2. Bowls 4.3. Beakers 4.4. Amphorae 4.5. Ember containers 4.6. Other types of vessels and the remaining finds 4.6.1. Double-vessel 4.6.2. Askos 4.6.3. Vessel on a high foot 4.6.4. Stone axe 5. The Anthropological Analysis and Burial Rites 5.1. The anthropological analysis 5.2. The analysis of the architecture of the necropolis and burial rites 6. The Dating of the Necropolis 7. Interpretation of the Necropolis through the Social and Cultural Processes in the Central Balkans in the Early Bronze Age 8. Conclusion Bibliography Appendix 1. Wood charcoal from Early Bronze Age funeral pyres in Ranutovac, southeast Serbia Introduction Methodology Selection and processing of the archaeobotanical samples Sorting of the samples and identification of the plant remains Results of the analysis Plant remains from flotation samples Hand-collected wood charcoal Discussion The availability of wood in the area of Ranutovac The choice of wood for funeral pyres at Ranutovac Conclusions References Appendix 2. Characterization of Early Bronze Age pottery fragments from the Meanište site in the village of Ranutovac near Vranje, Serbia 1. Introduction 2. Materials and methods 2.1. Pottery fragments and preparation for analysis 2.2. Analytical techniques 3. Results and discussion 4. Conclusion References