jan 1, 9000 BC - Oleostrovni Mogilnik
Description:
Oleostrovni Mogilnik, Russia (The Human Past. 391) (Date unknown)
"In northern and eastern Europe, the emergence of the first cemeteries suggests that Mesolithic communities here were developing larger and more complex social structures. The earliest date to the tenth millennium bce, but by the later Mesolithic period, such cemeteries had become more numerous and more complex. The cemetery at Olenii Ostrov in Karelia, Russia numbered probably 300 burials [12.2]. In the northern part of the cemetery, elk effigies predominated [12.3], whereas in the south, social identity was reflected in human and snake figurines. Some of the burials, in upright or standing position, were identified as those of ritual specialists or shamans. The grave goods indicate social differentiation, which has been interpreted in terms of clan moieties, or a society divided into two separate descent groups (O’Shea and Zvelebil 1984)"
Added to timeline:
World Archaeology - Europe. Mesolithic to the Iron age
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