Pit-digging and Structured Deposition in the Neolithic and Copper Age

Abstract

In this article, the author identifies the concentration principle for the accumulation of large quantities of objects in the settlements of the Balkan Neolithic and Copper Age and suggests reasons for this principle. One of the chief examples of this principle is the structured deposition of objects in pits. After the characterisation of the location of such pits – whether under houses or in the open air, there is a discussion of the forms of deposits in pits – including human bone deposits, burnt deposits and unusual combinations of rare and quotidian objects, as related to different manifestations of the life-cycle of the pits. The structure of the deposits is investigated in the light of their immense variability. Rather than attempting to ‘explain’ all the cited examples in a global, structuralist manner, the pits and their contents are interpreted in terms of local strategies of categorisation of everyday and exotic materials used in social practices. This does not exclude broader forms of prehistoric rationality, which appear to endure over a long period of time and in many different regions. These findings are related to the wider social dynamics of enchainment and accumulation – two important long-term social practices characterising the Balkan Neolithic and Copper Age.