harryfokkens.bsky.social
Em. Professor of European Prehistory at Leiden Universty.
Interested in the cultural transformations in the 3rd Millennium BCE
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Congratulations. Fascinating paper.
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Read the original #ProjectGallery in Antiquity 🆓 https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2024.107
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and present heritage...
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I agree. I would expect regional or rather tribal variation. Which is why we need many similar thoughtful studies. A pity IA continentals burnt all of the genetic evidence in urnfields.
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Indeed, were not! Because founder burials, status goods, patrilinearity are our interpretation of burial rites and grave goods. Which are a warped impression of the real society. Especially because women are much less 'visible' in grave goods. So we need other arguments to support such claims.
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What a truelly great paper. Apart from the force of the genetic IBD analysis especially also because of the careful and thoughtful conclusions about women as the driving force in farming societies.
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Rachel, for the sake of discussion, I think Lara's comment is essential. The very strength of the paper is it identifies women as THE driving force in IA farming society.
Whether or not they also had political power is another discussion, and burial evidence in my view is not a conclusive argument.
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Very true. So we should not now go on, and interpret every 'rich' female burial as evidence for IA matriarchy.
In this respect the conclusions of the paper are really thoughtful: matrilinearity testifies of women as driving force in farming societies especially when men are engaged in warefare.
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This was already in evidence when we wrote that paper in 2017/18: there was only one unburnt 'grooved ware' bone in the study. Yet the archaeologists in the lead maintained the massive immigration narrative.
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It sure is. Sadly, this is what happens to some of us at the end of a career: you start making up grand narratives. And loose your credibility at the same time.
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Sorry folks, sorry.... 'researchers' have now 'proven' that Stonehenge was our fault. So sorry we invaded your beautiful country back then.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017...