Book contents
- Death and the Body in Bronze Age Europe
- Death and the Body in Bronze Age Europe
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Acknowledgements
- One Introduction
- Two A Brief History of Urns, Urnfields, and Burial in the Urnfield Culture
- Three Theoretical Framework
- Four The Bronze Age
- Five The Changing Bronze Age Body
- Six The Treatment of the Body
- Seven The Construction of Graves
- Eight After the Burial
- Nine Conclusions
- References
- Index
Two - A Brief History of Urns, Urnfields, and Burial in the Urnfield Culture
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 22 December 2022
- Death and the Body in Bronze Age Europe
- Death and the Body in Bronze Age Europe
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Acknowledgements
- One Introduction
- Two A Brief History of Urns, Urnfields, and Burial in the Urnfield Culture
- Three Theoretical Framework
- Four The Bronze Age
- Five The Changing Bronze Age Body
- Six The Treatment of the Body
- Seven The Construction of Graves
- Eight After the Burial
- Nine Conclusions
- References
- Index
Summary
In this chapter, we trace the diverse manners in which cremation urns and urnfields have been interpreted through time; how their discoveries gave rise to ideas of changing beliefs and spreading cultures. For the periods until the development of professional archaeology, we use examples ranging widely within Europe, whereas from the mid-nineteenth century onwards we shall focus more specifically upon discussions within central Europe and especially the German tradition, due to their significance for the historiography of the introduction of cremation as a research topic. The aims are to search for and reflect on the assumptions that still affect the framework within which we work, and the terminology used within Bronze Age mortuary studies. We shall not detail the parallel distinct historiography of how the cremated remains themselves have been perceived and analysed (but see Schafberg 1998).
- Type
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- Information
- Death and the Body in Bronze Age EuropeFrom Inhumation to Cremation, pp. 15 - 35Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2023