Image Credit : BSSzmoniewski & St. Georgescu
Posted on 06/27/2023 5:18:41 AM PDT by SunkenCiv
The mound dates from around 2,000-years-ago and has been mostly ploughed out, however, a geophysical study indicates that it originally had a diameter of up to 75 metres.
A burial at the centre of the grave had a pit covered with wooden boards where the deceased was cremated inside a wooden structure. This is evidenced by small amounts of bone, a fragment of a clay lamp, and partially burnt wooden remains from the structure which was joined with nails and decorated with bronze fittings.
Excavations also revealed a large number of burnt walnut seeds, pine cones and other plant remains, which is common in cremation burials from the early Roman period. Barrows with similar cremation burials were discovered in the town of Hârșova, known in the Roman period as Carsium on the lower Danube.
The grave was robbed during antiquity, with the grave robbers depositing a wolf's skull on a pile of stones which closed their robbery ditch...
According to Dr Szmoniewski, the burial was likely robbed by the Getae, a Thracian-related tribe that once inhabited the regions to either side of the Lower Danube.
A second burial was also discovered in the barrow, where the researchers found a skeleton inside a wooden structure. Placed upon the skeleton is a glass unguentarium, a container for holding fragrances and perfumes, and a bronze coin from the reign of Hadrian (issued in AD 125-127) that was placed in the deceased's mouth.
"Placing a coin in the mouth refers to the ancient custom of Charon's obol, when a coin was used as payment to Charon for transporting the deceased's soul across the River Styx in Hades," said Dr Szmoniewski.
(Excerpt) Read more at heritagedaily.com ...
Cool!
I have been reading about the pastoralists from modern ukraine that moved across europe during a 1000 year period from 3000 bc to 2000 bc. It took them that long rather than a generation or two like the mongols—because these pastoralists did something different.
One generation after another they pushed west into europe by taking over the local villages, killing all the men and taking their women for wives. Today all men of european ancestry from scandenavia to southern europe to spain and ireland carry only these genes on their fathers side.
The boys in among these people would be raised by their mothers until about age 7. then they would go off with their fathers and hunt with them and learn all their skills. then at age 16 or so there would be a big midwinter ceremony in which the boys were taken to the woods and left there. they could not return to their home village until at least the summer. sometimes it would be much longer. sometimes they would not return at all. they were bound in a dog or wolf ceremony to the leader of their young male group.
Archeaologists find the remains of those mostly dog bones heaps from time to time. Its thought the dogs were usually the boys companions through out their youth. During the ceremony they were called on to kill their dog.
Then go hunt with the other young men who were called to do the same in that ceremony.
“...there would be a big midwinter ceremony in which the boys were taken to the woods and left there. they could not return to their home village until at least the summer. sometimes it would be much longer. sometimes they would not return at all. they were bound in a dog or wolf ceremony to the leader of their young male group.”
Yeah, I had an ordeal induction back in my Boy Scout days, sounds similar to this.
Yeah, I had an ordeal induction back in my Boy Scout days, sounds similar to this.
yeah, that’s what I thought of when I read the stories.
here’s a couple articles on the wolf dog midwinter sacrifices among the yamnaya of ukraine.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alRlPt1zvg4
also the female wolf in roman origin stories
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitoline_Wolf
The bronze suckling wolf statue is vintage Roman Empire, hmm sez here actually Etruscan in origin, while the Romulus and Remus are more recent additions (Renaissance Italian). Looks like another legacy from the Etruscans; in high school I first read of them, in an article subtitles, “an historic people who left no history”.
seems to me that I’ve read that etruscans were a colony of greeks from the eastern medeterranian. I did a quick google search and came up with this.
In summary, there are two main theories about the origin of the Etruscans. The first is that they migrated from Anatolia. The second is that they were natives of Italy who gradually formed a distinctive culture. A supposed third theory — that they migrated from the north — never really existed. The Anatolian theory seems to have been the most popular one in ancient times. It was supported by many archaeologists in the early part of the 20th century due to the profound Anatolian influence seen among the Etruscans. However, this has now been dismissed as the result of trade and cultural influence. The migration was supposed to have occurred some five centuries before this Anatolian influence is seen among the Etruscans in the archaeology. Genetic evidence also supports continuity between the Etruscans and their precursors. Nonetheless, it is not impossible that a small migration did occur, only much later than the ancient Greeks believed.
https://www.thecollector.com/where-the-etruscans-come-from/
I have a better theory—which merges the two theories above. The greek attack on troy happens at the same time as the great bronze age collapse when the sea peoples invaded the near east. One of those peoples may have been the Tyrrhenians who were later called the Etruscans.
Here the point is not that the Lydians settled northern italy—but rather, during the sea people invasions— some Tyrrhenians from northern italy settled Lydia. And some Tyrrhenians stayed home to later become etruscans.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etruscan_origins
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