Living on the edge(s). Settlement revival in the Sacharewo microregion (Białowieża Forest, E Poland) during the Iron Age and Roman Period (1st c. BC/1st c. AD – 5th/6th c. AD)

Abstract

Abstract The article presents the results of research carried out at Sacharewo in the Białowieża Forest, involving excavations of a barrow cemetery associated with the Roman Period and the nearby settlement, which delivered finds from the Early Bronze Age, the Iron Age, the Roman Period and the Modern Period. Noteworthy was a significant amount of material from the Iron Age and the Roman Period, linked with the Hatched Pottery and Wielbark cultures, possibly indicating a certain revival of settlement in that area between the turn of the eras and the 5th/6th century AD. Thanks to the analysis of airborne laser scanning data, it was also possible to identify a complex of ancient arable fields in the surroundings of the barrow cemetery. The excavations were conducted along with sampling for geoarchaeological and archaeobotanical analyses. A significant pool of 14C dates was also collected. The studies idientified the remains of a stable and continuous (though not very developed and intensive) settlement on the left side of the Leśna River, a barrow cemetery and a field system, possibly used at the same time. This microregion functioned in the first centuries AD, although materials linked to the early Middle Ages were also found. At this stage, however, it is not possible to determine their continuity with finds from the Roman Period. The discoveries also provide an insight into the external cultural influences on the area during the Roman Period. The conducted research complements other recent findings from the Białowieża Forest, which, given its primeval nature and the limited role of human activity during past centuries, is an excellent area for further investigations of settlement and economy patterns from different periods.