Archaeologia Baltica

In the Middle to Late Neolithic, pile-dwellings existed in Russia only in the Dnepr-Dvina basin and in the European region, in the Alpine zone, and probably in the western Baltic region. Investigations of sites in the Dnepr-Dvina region with underwater excavation methods have been conducted since the 1970s. The history of the development of these methods is presented here. The preliminary results of complex investigations of the Serteya II site are also covered in this article. An analysis of the remains of fauna, palynological analysis, and traceological analysis of bone tools, and modelling with GIS-technologies, allowed us to recreate the economic activities of the inhabitants of the Serteya II settlement. It had a complex character: it was a hunter-gatherer economy that existed alongside a small productive economy. The latter probably had a prestigious character, and did not play a significant role in the economy of ancient people. A comparison of data from typo-technological pottery inquiries with dendrochronological and radiocarbon dates allowed the determination of peculiarities of the material culture of every construction, and the distinguishing elements of local and newly arrived cultures. An analysis of types of wood allowed us to determine the areas of their origin, and to understand when and from what kind of forest repairs were made. Research shows that further investigation in this region will lead to uncovering other pile-dwellings.

The article presents the latest data on ships sunk in Lithuanian territorial waters of the Baltic Sea obtained during archaeological research conducted by the Underwater Archaeology Group of Klaipėda University. The article contains detailed descriptions of the ways these ships were wrecked as found in historical sources from the 14th to the early 20th century, the localisation of newly found remains of wooden ships, data of their study and possibilities for dating them.

This article draws a comparison between the Stone Age zoomorphic and anthropomorphic images that have been found in present-day Lithuania and similar finds from across the Baltic region. Both the attribution of these artefacts to archaeological cultures and their dating are discussed. The article raises the question whether the different archaeological culture that each article belongs to is reflected in its form and style. The article also questions if the concept of archaeological culture is necessary when writing about Stone Age art.

This study focuses on artefacts with serrated edges made of scapulae occurring in assemblages from Late Bronze Age fortified settlements in Estonia. They have usually been interpreted in Estonia as flax-working tools; but recently some doubts have been raised about this use. The article gives an overview of these finds both in Estonia and elsewhere, and discusses possible areas of their use.

This paper discusses Bronze Age exchange contacts in Latvia. Changes in the directions of contacts and the nature of the exchange are investigated, looking back at the Neolithic for comparison, and at developments in the Early and Late Bronze Age, focussing on the routes by which bronze arrived and the mechanisms by which objects spread. In the Late Neolithic, directional commercial trade is observable, something that is no longer characteristic of the Early Bronze Age, but which appears again in the Late Bronze Age, when bronze-working centres, which had an important role in the regulation of social relations, developed along the River Daugava. During all of these periods, a prestige chain remained in existence.

The fortification character of the double-ring palisade-structure of Ridala is discussed here. A crucial factor is the legend of the decline and desertion of the site, due to an outside attack. Bone arrowheads as possible explanations for this attack theory are examined, and the events behind the palisade-structure and inhabitation (formation, duration and break-up) are reconsidered. In the end, the function and purpose of the palisades are regarded as being of a symbolic character (religious and political) rather than sanctioned by military threats.

At the end of the Neolithic and during the Early Bronze Age, trans-regional exchange networks were already functioning in Europe, many of them covering the entire continent. One consequence of them was the rise of multi-directional ties between groups, and exchange on a scale which transcended individual culture groups. One exchange route that was in existence at the end of the Neolithic was associated with the distribution of amber. It followed the line of the River Vistula, from the Bay of Gdańsk to its headwaters. During the Early Bronze Age, this situation underwent a change. Drawing on older and more recent findings from the Mazury Lake District, I have tried to make the case for the existence during this period of an alternative communication route which traversed the Mazury region of northeast Poland.