Mesolithic burials and mortuary practices: Traditions, developments and individuality of the early postglacial hunter-fisher-gatherers in Europe

Abstract

Currently, more than 280 Mesolithic burial sites with the skeletal remains of about 2400 individuals are known in 25 European countries. This contribution reviews the various graves and mortuary practices between ca. 9700 and 3800 cal BC, when the period ended in Northern Europe. Cultural traditions, regional differences and chronological developments are summarised. The diversity of individual treatments concerning sex, age, status and circumstances of the death of the deceased is examined to obtain information about the social structures of the early postglacial hunter-fisher-gatherer communities.