Week 9: The Archaeological Record:
Social Structure and Funerary Customs
This lab provides an introduction to the archaeological evidence for
various features of Neandertal society. You will be comparing material
remains from one site to those found at an amHs site dating to about 28,000
years ago. One goal is to understand how archaeologists can try to
reconstruct social roles from the consideration of ethnographic examples
combined with evidence provided by ancient burials, and also to see some of
the limits of archaeological evidence. You may want to refer back to "Tips
for Reading an Archaeological Site Report" from the Week 7 lab.
----BEFORE YOU COME TO LAB----
READ THIS LAB AND CHAPTER 11 IN THE TEXTBOOK, especially pages 292-296.You
should also think about and try to answer the following questions before
you come to lab:
1. Why do people do anything at all with dead bodies? What different ways
do you know that people around the world use today for disposing of dead
bodies?
2. For the funeral customs of people you know, who participates? What
ceremonies are involved? Is there a grave? How is it marked? Where is it
located? What is near it?
3. People's personal appearance and material possessions always reflect
aspects of social status, social roles, and social relationships. List
five material objects that can serve as markers of one's place in society.
Can you think of burials in which these kinds of markers are included with
the individual?
4. In what ways can social status be indicated in burial customs? Think of
at least one example of a high status and one of a very low status burial.
1. Neandertal site: Shanidar Cave
Shanidar Cave is located in the rugged
Zagros Mountains of Iraq. The cave is in an area prone to earthquakes and
has attracted people seeking shelter for 70,000 years. The large
triangular opening of the cave faces south, allowing ample sunshine to
enter the cave. Bluffs also offer protection from winter winds. The
interior is large enough to hold four tennis courts and has a vaulted
ceiling approximately 35 feet high. The cave sits above a valley with an
intermittent stream. Springs above the cave offer a year-round water
source.
Evidence of prehistoric occupation in the cave is preserved in 50
feet of sediments that have accumulated on the cave floor during the past
100,000 years. There are no distinct shelters or rock-lined hearths, but
the lower layers of sediment do include hearths (concentrations of ashes),
Mousterian stone tools, and several Neandertal skeletons. See the next
page for illustrations of the three skeletons discussed here.
Modern Inhabitants
When Ralph Solecki began excavating Shanidar in 1951, several Kurdish
families maintained winter residences in the cave. Six families had small
huts built of sticks and branches inside the cave. Each hut contained a
small cooking fire. The residents also occasionally lit a large communal
fire of dried dung near the mouth of the cave. Much social activity took
place here. The people shared their shelter with their horses, goats,
donkeys, and chickens.
During his first excavations, Solecki observed the arrival of the
pastoral (animal herding) Kurds as they moved into the cave for the winter.
The first individuals to arrive were the men and children with some pack
and herd animals. Later, the women arrived bearing heavy loads of copper
cookware, weaving, and other possessions. The activities of the Kurds
centered around preparations for the winter. Each day the women and girls
cut and stored grasses for feeding the animals. They gathered wood for
fires, and collected water in goatskin bags from the springs. Women also
spent time milling wheat, making yogurt, and baking bread. They did the
spinning and weaving, although some men impressed Solecki by knitting their
own socks. When it was warm enough they went barefoot, but during the
colder periods they wore slipper-like footwear made of animal skin. These
shoes were laced around the ankle and had fur on the inside.
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Shanidar I
This male skeleton dates to approximately 45,000 years ago. The
articulated skeleton was found underneath large limestone blocks that had
fallen from the ceiling of the cave. This collapse crushed the man to
death. Close examination of the skeleton revealed that Shanidar I had also
suffered some injuries well before being crushed. A blow to the head
resulted in substantial bone scarring on the left side of his face, causing
blindness in one eye. Evidence of healing in the bone demonstrates that he
survived this mishap. A study of his muscle attachments suggests that
nerve damage may have caused some paralysis on the left side of the body.
His right foot also shows evidence of a severe, but healed, fracture. He
also suffered from arthritis in many joints. Additionally, he had limited
use of his right arm, which had been withered from birth. Despite these
injuries and disabilities, this individual survived to an old age for
Neandertals (40 years).
Shanidar III
Another adult male skeleton was found crushed under a rockfall in the cave.
Careful analysis of its bones revealed a partially healed wound to the
ribs, probably made by a wooden spear. Researchers estimate that the man
received the wound approximately a week prior to the rock fall.
Discussion Questions for Shanidar I and III.
1. Based on modern examples of hunter-gatherers and cave dwellers, what
are some of the daily activities that would have been required for
Neandertals to survive in Shanidar Cave? (Note: The Kurds that Solecki
observed were pastoralists, not hunter-gatherers.)
2. Would it have been possible for the man in Shanidar I to have
participated in all of the activities you discussed in question 1? How
would such an individual have survived to become a senior citizen in the
Neandertal population?
3. What human activities are suggested by the Shanidar III skeleton?
4. Is there reason to think that modern and ancient cave dwellers behaved
in similar ways? What are some other kinds of archaeological information
you would need to accurately reconstruct the daily lives of Neandertals?
Shanidar IV Group
Four skeletons were found in a pit between several large stone blocks. The
group was not under any substantial rock fall. The skeleton of a
Neandertal child was found at the bottom of the pit. Above it were the
disarticulated, incomplete remains of two adult Neandertal females. To the
side of the
females and slightly higher, the excavators found the nearly complete
skeleton of an adult male lying on his left side.
Analysis of the surrounding soil revealed the presence of
extraordinary levels of pollen from at least 8 different types of wild
flowers. The clusters of pollen grains were from colorful, ornamental
spring flowers such as grape hyacinth, bachelor's buttons, and hollyhocks
(a medicinal plant as well). In other parts of the cave, soil samples
contained very little pollen.
Discussion Questions for Shanidar IV
1. Is there evidence of intentional burial at this site? How might the
high concentrations of flower pollen have gotten into the Shanidar IV
burial? Which explanation do you believe is most likely? Why?
2. List the reasons the Shanidar IV group might be in the same pit. Do you
think they all died at the same time?
3. If treating dead individuals in different ways gives insight into status
and treatment of the living, what does the Shanidar IV group suggest about
Neandertal society? What relationship(s) do you think are indicated by
this group? Does it make a difference if they all died at the same time,
or at different times?
2. amHs site: Sungir
This site dates to 28,000 years ago and is located in Russia. In addition
to occupation evidence, the site contains several burials dug into the
living surface of the site. All of the bodies were laid on their backs
with their hands crossed over their pelvises.
One pit contained the skeleton of a 60-year-old man. He was buried
with 2,936 ivory beads in strands all over his body, including what appears
to be a bead cap on his head. The "cap" also contained 6 fox teeth. A
series of bone bracelets was found on his arms. The bracelets were painted
both red and black. Around his neck, he wore a small stone smeared with
red ocher. (Ocher is a naturally occurring pigment that is often found in
burials.)
Two other burials were found placed head to head in one trench.
Researchers estimate these children were 13 and 8 years old. The
13-year-old was buried with 4,900 ivory beads, including a bead cap with
fox teeth. This individual, which is often thought to be a boy, also wore
a belt with 250 fox canine teeth. On the chest was an ivory pendant carved
in the shape of a mammoth, and on its left shoulder was a sculpture of a
mammoth. Next to the skeleton was a full-sized lance made from a mammoth
tusk.
The 8-year-old, which is thought by many to be a girl, was buried
with over 5,200 beads and a bead cap without any fox teeth. This burial
also lacked any pendant or necklace. It does, however, have several
miniature lances and a pierced object made from antler and decorated with
drilled holes. This grave also contained four ivory disks that have a
latticework pattern carved into them and a hole drilled into their centers.
Discussion Questions
1. Researchers estimate that each bead took one hour to make. Using this
measure, which burial represents the most labor? The least? What might
these differences suggest about the relative value of each individual to
their group?
2. What do these differences in individual burials suggest about the
social organization of the group at Sungir? (Why do they value one
individual more than another?
3. Why might the children have been buried head to head? Do you think
they died at the same time?
4. What human activities are suggested by the burials and the grave goods
at Sungir?
3. Comparison of Shanidar and Sungir
1. List the major differences you can see in technology and material
culture between the burials at Sungir and at Shanidar.
2. List the major differences you can see between the treatment of the
individuals in the burials at Sungir and at Shanidar.
3. What differences do you think existed between Neandertals and the
people at Sungir in their social organization and relationships?
4. If you had access to the skeletal materials and grave goods from these
sites, what other questions would you ask of it? How would you attempt to
examine or investigate it?
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