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14C Dating of “Brandgrubengräber” from the Bronze Age to the Roman Period in Western Flanders (Belgium)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 February 2016

Guy De Mulder ,
Mark van Strydonck  and
Wim De Clercq
Guy De Mulder*
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology, Ghent University, Sint-Pietersnieuwstraat 35, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium
Mark van Strydonck
Affiliation:
Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage, Jubelpark 1, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium
Wim De Clercq
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology, Ghent University, Sint-Pietersnieuwstraat 35, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium
*
2Corresponding author. Email: Guy.Demulder@Ugent.be.
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Abstract

A Brandgrubengrab entails a specific way of depositing human remains whereby the cremated remains of the deceased and other remnants of the funeral pyre, such as charcoal and burnt objects, are jointly deposited onto the bottom of a pit. This type of burial became increasingly popular during the Late Iron Age and the Roman period, when it was the main basic funerary structure used in western Flanders. In recent years, more attention has been paid to establishing a more precise chronology for these funerary structures by applying radiocarbon dating. A set of 40 14C dates obtained from samples originating from small cemeteries and isolated cremations now offers new insights in the development of this specific cremation burial ritual.

Type
Archaeology of Eurasia and Africa
Information
Radiocarbon , Volume 55 , Issue 3: Proceedings of the 21st International Radiocarbon Conference (Part 2 of 2) , 2013 , pp. 1233 - 1245
Copyright
Copyright © 2013 by the Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of the University of Arizona 

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