Description
The Linear Pottery culture (LPC) settlement of Schletz, Lower Austria (5400-5000 BC), which was fortified with a double oval and an adjoining trapezoidal ditch, was partially excavated between 1983 and 2005. The site attracted international attention primarily because of the human remains recovered from ditch II: Their atypical location (the dead were not buried), injuries and perimortem changes (e.g., animal gnawing) suggest a violent attack on the settlement around 5000 BC. Since more recent LPC settlement traces are lacking, the settlement may have been abandoned after this event. First results of a molecular genetic analysis seem to indicate an unexpectedly small number of kinships. Therefore, the question arises as to the origin of the dead: They had died together, but had they also lived together? To elucidate on their possible region(s) of origin, the Sr isotope ratio (87Sr/86Sr) will be assessed in tooth enamel and dentine and compared to the isotope landscape (isoscape) of the local bioavailable Sr signatures of the surrounding area. Based on its extent, its spectrum of finds, its duration of occupation and its earthworks, Schletz can be addressed as a central site, which must have been surrounded by a cluster of smaller settlements. However, this cluster is completely unexplored. The project aims to look beyond the site of Schletz. We assume that knowledge of the surrounding settlements, their structure and development, is crucial for understanding the social development that led to the violent events on the central site, especially since the final massacre was probably only the end point of a longer development. Together with archaeologists, citizen scientists will survey individual sites known from find reports or suspected because of landscape features. They will recover and document the finds. Local middle school students will extract and process soil samples from the area of the LPC sites to create an isoscape mapping of Sr isotope ratios. This procedure is a prerequisite for determining the origin of the individuals recovered from the Schletz settlement, which, according to our hypothesis, could include a high proportion of non-local inhabitants from the settlement cluster or regions beyond. We expect to be able to estimate the extent of the violent conflict and its effects – which may not have been limited to Schletz alone; we also expect to increase knowledge on the economic and social structure of an early Neolithic society based on a broad data base.
Details
| Duration | 01/10/2022 - 30/09/2025 |
|---|---|
| Funding | Bundesländer (inkl. deren Stiftungen und Einrichtungen) |
| Program |
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| Department | |
| Principle investigator for the project (University for Continuing Education Krems) | Mag. Jakob Maurer |
| Project members | |
| Project website | https://www.united-by-crisis.at/ |
Publications
Maurer, Jakob; Längauer, Julia; Hascher, Cornelia; Irrgeher, Johanna; Teschler-Nicola, Maria; Prohaska, Thomas; Puschenreiter, Markus; Schober, Michael; Pieler, Franz (2023). United by Crisis? Eine transdisziplinäre Untersuchung der frühneolithischen Siedlungskammer von Schletz. In: Laussegger, Armin; Sam, Sandra, Im Bestand. Sammlungswissenschaftliche Einblicke. Tätigkeitsbericht 2022 der Landessammlungen Niederösterreich und des Zentrums für Museale Sammlungswissenschaften: 30–33, Landessammlungen Niederösterreich, St. Pölten
Maurer, Jakob (2023). United by Crisis? Dörler, Daniel; Heigl, Florian, Citizen Science Network Austria. Leistungsbericht 2022: 38–39, Wien
Maurer, Jakob; Längauer, Julia (2023). Forschung mit Freiwilligen: 7.000 Jahre alter Kriminalfall im Weinviertel. https://www.derstandard.at/wissenschaft/wissensblogs/archaeologieblog
Lectures
Uralt oder doch was neues? Citizen Science in der Archäologie
Jahresrückblick 2023 "Archäologie in Niederösterreich", 23/11/2023
Chemie und Bodenkunde – mit Kindern in die Steinzeit!
MAMUZ-Finissage, 17/11/2023
Erste Ergebnisse der Line Walking Surveys mit Citizen Scientists im nördlichen Weinviertel
MAMUZ-Finissage, 17/11/2023
Linien – Daten – Zeit. Verarbeitung von Line Walking Survey-Daten in GIS und Ausblick auf die C14-Beprobungen
MAMUZ-Finissage, 17/11/2023
Waterways in the Early Neolithic Weinviertel – small rivers and rivulets usage in the LBK of Lower Austria
Central Europe TAG (Theoretical Archaeology Group) 2023, 10/11/2023
Wie erkenne ich archäologische Funde?
Forschungsfest Niederösterreich, 22/09/2023
Analyse von Erdproben
Science-Workshop des Projekts "United by Crisis?" mit dem Schulzentrum Asparn/Zaya, 12/09/2023
Lurking on the edge of practice: Vocabulary instincts from between archaeological research, museum documentation and development-led archaeology
29th Annual Meeting of the European Association of Archaeologists, 01/09/2023
Evidence of Cranial Surgery 5000 BC at Schletz/Lower Austria
29th Annual Meeting of the European Associaton of Archaeologists, 31/08/2023
Walk the line: First experiences with multiple Citizen Science target-groups in the transdisciplinary LBK research project “United by Crisis?”
29th Annual Meeting of the European Association of Archaeologists, 31/08/2023
“Centres and peripheries” of the LBK in northern Lower Austria – current projects and first results
29th Annual Meeting of the European Association of Archaeologists, 31/08/2023
Chemie und Bodenkunde
Science-Workshop des Projekts "United by Crisis?" mit dem Schulzentrum Asparn/Zaya, 24/05/2023
Ernährung in der Jungsteinzeit
Science-Workshop des Projekts "United by Crisis?" mit dem Schulzentrum Asparn/Zaya, 03/05/2023
Das Projekt "United by Crisis?" - Tätigkeiten und Organisation
Eröffnungsworkshop des Projekts "United by Crisis?" mit Citizen Scientists, 04/03/2023
Funderkennung und Surveymethodik
Eröffnungsworkshop des Projekts "United by Crisis?" mit Citizen Scientists, 06/02/2023
Interdisziplinäre Entwicklung neuer Methoden zur Digitalisierung & United by Crisis?
Jahresrückblick 2022 "Archäologie in Niederösterreich", 01/12/2022
Durch die Krise vereint
Mamuz Finissage, 17/11/2022
Interdisziplinäre Entwicklung neuer Methoden zur Digitalisierung & Durch die Krise vereint?
MAMUZ-Finissage, 17/11/2022
United by crisis? A transdisciplinary look at the early Neolithic communities in the Schletz settlement cluster, Austria
28th Annual Meeting of the European Associaton of Archaeologists, 03/09/2022
United by crisis? A transdisciplinary look at the early Neolithic communities in the Schletz settlement cluster, Austria
28th Annual Meeting of the European Associaton of Archaeologists, 03/09/2022
Asparn-Schletz. Die Erforschung einer steinzeitlichen Siedlungslandschaft im Weinviertel
Erlebniswochenende "Archäo Basis: Neu im MAMUZ Schloss Asparn/Zaya", 21/08/2022