The paper is dedicated to the generalisation of the investigations results for the 13th–15th Curonian Spit archaeological sites, with the analyse of the main types of finds and supposed Prussian and Curonian contact zone problem. Last decade’s established theories about the 13th–15th Curonian Spit archaeological sites populaton are also reviewed and revised. Unpublished till now new archaeological investigations and archival data is reflected in this study.
The final phase of the Viking Age in the Prussian material culture was marked by the proliferation of media in the retinue of the Prussians and Curonians bronze and iron products, coated (plated) of silver. By the XIV century from the Prussian nobility extends the custom of wearing “knightly” zones, as the Order’s decorated and traditionally Prussian images. Later burials of Christianized Prussians plated items disappear along with the main array of other burial items.
This article examines cremation cemeteries in west Latvia from the end of the Late Iron Age and the Middle Ages (12th–14th/15th centuries). During this period, cremation graves constituted the dominant burial form in the region. We have selected as a case study Lapiņi cemetery, which reveals additional details relating to cremation cemeteries of west Latvia. The aim of the article is to provide further insights into burials of this kind in the Baltic region, which correspond in time to the Curonian expansion in northwest Latvia, followed by the conquest by the Crusaders and the change of religion and burial practices in present-day Latvia. For a better understanding of the environmental conditions at the time of use of the cemetery, taxonomic analysis has been undertaken of the charcoal used as fuel for cremation, as well as an analysis of pollen and non-pollen palynomorphs from cremation graves. Lapiņi is so far the only Curonian cemetery in present-day Latvia where such analyses have been conducted. This has given us a new understanding of the funeral rituals performed on the burial site, and the formation process of cremation cemeteries.
Journal:Archaeologia Baltica
Volume 17 (2012): People at the Crossroads of Space and Time (Footmarks of Societies in Ancient Europe) I, pp. 34–42
Abstract
The Grobiņa archaeological complex includes multiple Curonian and Scandinavian first millennium burial sites, dwellings and hill-forts. Until now, more extensive research has been carried out on the Scandinavian barrow and flat burial fields, and on a small scale on the Curonian burial grounds; but less attention has been paid to examining dwellings. Excavation materials have only been partly publicised. During the latest research, the habitation period of the hill-fort has been determined, and the dwelling areas on both banks of the River Ālande have been determined and specified. Multiple issues have been overviewed in relation to Grobiņa archaeological site complex: the population in the Grobiņa region during the middle and latter part of the first millennium; and the interaction between Curonian and Scandinavian cultures.
In the 12th century, the Curonians dwelt in the east Baltic region between the Rīga area in the north and Klaipėda in the south. They reached the peak of their economic, political and cultural achievements in the 11th century and the first half of the 12th century. The roots of piracy as a phenomenon have a social character. The most active period of the Curonian Vikings begins in around the mid-tenth century, and lasts until the arrival of the Germans in the 13th century. The well-organised piracy of the Curonians became dangerous to navigation on an important maritime trading route along the east Baltic coast. The Curonians attacked traders’ boats, robbed coastal churches, devastated Danish and Swedish coastal areas, and even stayed for a while. In the times of the Teutonic Order, in periods of diplomatic and military conflict or trading competition, even officials did not avoid robbery at sea. The Palanga coastal population used to plunder shipwrecked boats, and went marauding in coastal waters until the middle of the 18th century.
Journal:Acta Historica Universitatis Klaipedensis
Volume 22 (2011): 1260 metų Durbės mūšis: Šaltiniai ir istoriniai tyrimai = The Battle of Durbe, 1260: Sources and Historical Research, pp. 20–25
Abstract
The crusades of the 13th century in the Baltic region represented a conflict between different social systems: on the one hand, the feudal system of Western Europe, and on the other hand, a social model closer to that of the Viking Age society. In the military conflicts of the early 13th century, the Curonians made use of the tactics and experience developed during the Viking Age. That included swift attacks at sea and a rapid change from fighting at sea to fighting on land, tactics that seriously threatened the crusader forces in the Baltic, including Riga, which was attacked by the Curonians on 13 July 1210.
Journal:Acta Historica Universitatis Klaipedensis
Volume 22 (2011): 1260 metų Durbės mūšis: Šaltiniai ir istoriniai tyrimai = The Battle of Durbe, 1260: Sources and Historical Research, pp. 9–19
Abstract
In the 13th century, the territory of Samogitians, Curonians, Prussians, and Semigallians was in a constant state of war. The offensive and protective wars prevented natural economic and cultural development. Saulė, Semba, Durbė, Karuse, Aizkraukle, Turaida, Klaipeda, and other battles; the Order marauding campaigns into the territories of Samogitians, Curonians, Prussians, and Semigallians; the campaigns and raids of Samogitians, Curonians, and Sambians into the lands already occupied by the Order; and the revolts in the Order-occupied lands occurred almost every year. All that devastated the lands of Curonians, Samogitians, Prussians, and Semigallians, undermined demography, and weakened the economic capacity of Western and Northern Baltic tribes. The advanced armament and war tactics used in the offensive campaigns by the Order forced Curonians and Samogitians to take arms and resist. The structure of the army and the fighting methods were in the process of change, because in the mid-13th century Lithuania emerged as a state which already used conscription, and the nature of the army action was often offensive. Sometimes the Lithuanian historical literature mocks at the armament of Curonians and Samogitians, and their chargers Zemaitukai are considered as horses. That is why the historians who choose never to question a single word in the chronicles by the authors who eulogize the Order sometimes face the following questions: what kinds of armament were used by Curonians and Samogitians and what their battle methods were in the 13th century, when the attacked ones bravely went to fight their conqueror the Order. We will explore those questions in the article by employing the archaeological, historical, and cultural landscape research data.
The Ėgliškiai-Anduliai cemetery is the largest Curonian burial site ever researched. However, during the Second World War this cemetery’s artefacts and archival material were scattered throughout museums, archives and various institutions in several countries. In this article, the authors present an intricate reconstruction of this burial monument based only on the surviving archival material of the research by German archaeologists, and only on a small collection of artefacts, as well as the research by Lithuanian archaeologists in recent years.