Published: 2017-11-28

Social stratification of the population of the forest-steppe area of the Dnieperland in the Early Scythian period (VII – first half of VI cent. BC)

Marcin Burghardt
Sprawozdania Archeologiczne
Section: Articles
DOI https://doi.org/10.23858/SA69.2017.007

Abstract

The paper raises the question of the reconstruction of the social structure of the Early Scythian population of the forest-steppe area of the Dnieperland, based on materials from burials. In the course of analysis, it was established that the most important elements of funeral rites among the population related to this group, as well as based on ancient writers (The Histories by Herodotus), are the size and the complexity of burial and mound construction, and the diversity in quantity and quality of grave goods. The classification of 197 burial complexes carried out in relation to the above-mentioned these features, with the use of statistical inference methods (cluster and correspondence analyses), has led to separation of seven classes of graves, which may be combined within different social classes. The higher (military leaders and chieftains) and the lower aristocracy, the ordinary population with the distinguishing class of warriors and the poorest population are numbered to these classes. Apart from these classes, connected with the free, fully-fledged population, a group of the partly dependent population with limited rights has been also differentiated.

Keywords:

burials, social stratification, Scythian archaeology, Early Scythian Culture, Early Iron Age, Forest-Steppe zone

Citation rules

Burghardt , M. (2017). Social stratification of the population of the forest-steppe area of the Dnieperland in the Early Scythian period (VII – first half of VI cent. BC) . Sprawozdania Archeologiczne, 69, 133–183. https://doi.org/10.23858/SA69.2017.007

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