Osteological Analysis of the Tumular Cemetery of the 4th Century A.D. from Gura Secului – Nemţişor (Neamţ County, Romania) Cover Image

ANALIZA OSTEOLOGICĂ A CIMITIRULUI TUMULAR DIN SECOLUL IV P.C. DE LA GURA SECULUI – NEMŢIŞOR (JUDEŢUL NEAMŢ, ROMÂNIA)
Osteological Analysis of the Tumular Cemetery of the 4th Century A.D. from Gura Secului – Nemţişor (Neamţ County, Romania)

Author(s): Angela Simalcsik, Luminiţa Bejenaru
Subject(s): Anthropology, Archaeology, Ancient World
Published by: Editura Academiei Române
Keywords: Gura Secului – Nemţişor; Carpathian Tumuli Culture; tumular cemetery; osteological inventory

Summary/Abstract: The tumular cemetery from Gura Secului – Nemţişor (Neamţ county) attributed to Carpathian Tumuli Culture (CTC), consisted of nine tumuli. CTC monuments contain a rather poor material which did not help too much to chronological explanation. The remains of cremated bones of human and animal origin coming from the tumuli found in Gura Secului –Nemţişor have been investigated in the present paper. Only five tumuli, from the total of nine, contain human remains. There has been identified a number of minimum 11 individuals (the maximum being of 18) – six of them being children under the age of 7. Four of them are new born children which means a very high infant mortality, especially in their first six months of life. Five from the total number of 11 individuals that have been identified, died at the ages between 20–35 years. From an archaeozoological point of view, all the 9 tumuli archaeologically investigated contain remains of animal bones as well: domestic bovines (3 cases), a horse (one case), birds (3 cases), unidentified mammals (4 cases), other unidentified animals (6 cases). There have not been identified remains belonging to any wild animal species.

  • Issue Year: 35/2012
  • Issue No: 1
  • Page Range: 325-337
  • Page Count: 14
  • Language: English, Romanian