Five rivers, five stories: Regional diversity and peripheries in the Neolithic and Bronze Age

0577907 - ARÚ 2024 RIV SK eng A - Abstract
Vondrovský, Václav - Hlásek, Daniel - Chvojka, O. - Šída, Petr - John, J. - Ptáková, M.
Five rivers, five stories: Regional diversity and peripheries in the Neolithic and Bronze Age.
Central Europe TAG (Theoretical Archaeology Group) 2023. The Role of Rivers: Frontiers, mobility corridors, or central place ecosystems. Abstracts book. Bratislava: Faculty of Arts, Comenius University, 2023. s. 3. ISBN N.
[Central Europe Theoretical Archaeology Group 2023. 09.11.2023-10.11.2023, Bratislava]
R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA21-16614S
Research Infrastructure: AIS CR III - 90231
Institutional support: RVO:67985912 ; RVO:68081758
Keywords : inner periphery * radiocarbon dating * archaeological culture
OECD category: Archaeology; Archaeology (ARUB-Q)
https://fphil.uniba.sk/fileadmin/fif/katedry_pracoviska/ketn/Archeologia/CE-TAG-2023-Bratislava_Abstracts_Book-final-1.pdf

Archaeological culture as a monothetic entity representing a homogeneous group of people has been deeply rooted in archaeologists' minds. However, it has been challenged by those who argue for a high degree of socio-cultural diversity in prehistory. Our paper introduces radiocarbon dating into the debate. Employing formal modelling on an extensive dataset, we track the distinct socio-cultural phenomena that define of archaeological cultures of the Early Neolithic, Late Neolithic, and Early Bronze Age Central Europe. We then compare their absolute chronology across the five regions situated along the Danube, Elbe, Vltava, Morava, and Berounka rivers. The results reveal long-term resilience patterns in two upland regions of the Upper Vltava and Upper Berounka rivers. Their development significantly deviated from conventional schemes as the distinctive socio-cultural phenomena, which were shaping the surrounding lowlands, had delayed or minimal impact in these particular areas. Despite that, the archaeological record shows that these regions were not fully isolated from interregional distribution networks. Based on that, the concept of the inner periphery and polythetic model of archaeological culture is advocated as an explanatory framework for understanding diversity within past societies.
Permanent Link: https://hdl.handle.net/11104/0346995