Religion and ritual key sites
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- Created by: zoe
- Created on: 28-12-12 15:15
Vedbaek
- Mesolithic cemetery in Denmark dated around 4330BC
- 17 Burials with 22 skeletons, similar to ertebolle culture at skateholm
- Diversity in Burials suggest 'tomb of the different'
- Often Children under 1, Women who died during Childbirth and the elderly
- Graves East-west with the body facing either way
- Children mainly buried elsewhere
- Lack of goods in Childrens burials; status earned?
- Red Ochre - Return to Earth/rebirth/blood?
- Grave 8 had a mother and child; the child lain on a swans wing - Ascribed status? Possibly Religious specialist. Possibly resembling a faster journey to the afterlife
- Males not with children, Women carers in death?
- 2 adults with a child inbetween; body on childs left possible third gender - tools and ornaments. Possible Religious specialist.
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Thornborough Henges
- Built over a pre-existing cursus
- Already an important ritual centre
- Monument consists of 3 Henges
- Banks constructed from the earth of two ditches; one around the outside and one on the inside of the Henge
- Kept clear from everyday usage
- Henge was only used for special occasions
- Banks of henge covered in gypsum
- alignment shows resemblance to Orions belt
- Eastern end aligned to the midsumer solstice
- Very close to a river, possibly liminal boundary?
- some evidence for possible propitiation
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Maeshowe
- Neolithic Chambered tomb
- Built to a much higher standard than the other megalithic tombs in the Neolithic - Burial site for the elite of society?
- Built upon leveling ground, thought to have previously stood a house and then a stone circle
- Layout of the tomb similar to skara brae, suggesting a 'house of the dead'
- society believed that the dead would continue into the spirit world and required a place to reside in death
- Tombs shape possibly suggests a link to fertility of the Mother Earth Goddess
- Narrow entrance could also suggest a rite of passage due to the difficulty when entering
- Human remains inside the tomb probably excarnated, but difficult to positively identify due to a lack of remains
- Tomb had been looted and had graffiti on from vikings
- Bones possibly used in rituals
- Entrance had been made to mark winter solstice
- Built by putting 4 posts up in the middle first
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Hochdorf Chieftain burial
- Iron age tumuli
- Consists of a double-planked wooden chamber reinforced with stone
- immediately apparent that whoever was in the tomb should not be disturbed
- Burial itself was very rich indicating a person of high wealth and power
- Bronze couch within the burial
- Timber wagon used to carry him to the grave and to the afterlife
- Loaded with everyday items suggesting he was going somewhere
- Body was richly decorated with a gold neck ring, shoes and bracelets
- All jewellery were fashioned nearby especially for the funeral
- Birch bark hat was found like at Hirschlanden
- Few weapons, war did not nessecarily mean power
- Body was embalmed, possibly due to the amount of time to produce such burial goods, possibly because the body needed to be preserved for the afterlife
- Nearby burials suggested slaves went to the afterlife with their master
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Seahenge
- Bronze age period
- Very few similar structures
- Circular wooden palisade surrounding an upturned tree stump
- Bronze axe found nearby, possibly an offering or propitiation
- Tree stump has loops cut into it to allow the threading of honeysuckle rope probably used to move the stump to its final position
- otherwise rather unremarkable
- stump kind of excarnation platform
- Nothing remains to imply bodies were kept there
- Stump could be an offering to the spirit world
- wooden palisade around the stump arranged so it was impossible to see inside
- Whatever went inside was possibly sacred
- Coastline possibly liminal boundary
- splitpost entrance aligned to the mid-winter sunset
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