The Mediaeval Cemetery at 6 Bokšto St. The Orthodox Community’s Social Arena in Vilnius

Abstract

Each burial site is a reflection of the community that left it; thus the burial rite features allow assumptions to be made about the society, its social structure, its distribution of power, the social status and economic situation of the deceased, and possible gender and age differences. The Bokšto St. inhumation cemetery, which dates to the last third of the 13th – early 15th centuries, is unique in the context of mediaeval Vilnius due to being a Christian cemetery that appeared while Lithuania was still a pagan country. It is primarily a place where the Orthodox community could demonstrate its religious affiliation in pagan Vilnius by burying its dead in accordance with its own traditions. This cemetery also reflects the community’s internal features and was a place where its members could interact, i.e. a social arena. Therefore, investigation of the cemetery’s various elements and its burial rites allows for hypotheses to be made not only about the community’s religious affiliation but also about its social structure, its connections, cultural environment and distribution of power, as well as allowing one to talk about past traditions and rituals. The wealth of assembled information makes it possible to examine this cemetery as a place that reflects the traditions of not only death but also of life.