All things bright : copper grave goods and diet at the Neolithic site of Osłonki, Poland

• Understanding socioeconomic inequality is fundamental for studies of societal development in European prehistory. This article presents dietary (δ13C and δ15N) isotope values for human and animal bone collagen from Early Neolithic Osłonki 1 in north-central Poland (c. 4600–4100 cal BC). A new series of AMS radiocarbon determinations show that, of individuals interred at the same time, those with copper artefacts exhibit significantly higher δ13C values than those without. The authors’ results suggest a link between high-status goods and intra-community differences in diet and/or preferential access to the agropastoral landscape.

Subject headings

HUMANIORA  -- Historia och arkeologi -- Arkeologi (hsv//swe)

HUMANITIES  -- History and Archaeology -- Archaeology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

copper burials

social status in prehistory

dietary isotopes

radiocarbon dating

Poland

North European Plain

Neolithic

Brześć Kujawski Group

Archaeology

arkeologi

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)