Interdisciplinary analyses of Bronze Age communities from Western Hungary reveal complex population histories

Abstract

AbstractIn this study we report 21 ancient shotgun genomes from present-day Western Hungary (3530 – 1620 cal BCE), from previously understudied Late Copper Age Baden, and Bronze Age Somogyvár-Vinkovci, Kisapostag, and Encrusted Pottery archaeological cultures. Our results indicate the presence of high steppe ancestry in Somogyvár-Vinkovci culture that was replaced by the Kisapostag group having an outstandingly high (up to ∼47%) Mesolithic hunter-gatherer ancestry, despite this component being thought to be highly diluted by the time of the Early Bronze Age. The Kisapostag population was also the genetic basis of the succeeding community of the Encrusted pottery culture. We also found an elevated hunter-gatherer component in a local Baden culture associated individual, but no connections were proven to the Bronze Age individuals. The hunter-gatherer ancestry in Kisapostag is likely derived from two main sources, one from a Funnelbeaker or Globular Amphora culture related population and one from a previously unrecognised source in Eastern Europe. We show that this ancestry not only appeared in various groups in Bronze Age Central Europe, but also made contributions to Baltic populations. The social structure of Kisapostag and Encrusted pottery cultures is patrilocal, similarly to most contemporaneous groups. Furthermore, we developed new methods and method standards for computational analyses of ancient DNA, implemented to our newly developed and freely available bioinformatic package. By analysing clinical traits, we found carriers of aneuploidy and inheritable genetic diseases. Finally, based on genetic and anthropological data, we present here the first female facial reconstruction from the Bronze Age Carpathian Basin.SignificanceThe hunter-gatherer ancestry we recovered in this study promotes the rethinking of the survival dynamics of Mesolithic populations, especially in the region of East-Central Europe. Despite strong genetic ties of patrilocal populations recovered at Balatonkeresztúr site toward groups of completely different social structure, high flexibility in social organisation can be assumed during the Bronze Age of the region. The newly presented bioinformatic tools ease the routine analysis of clinical and phenotype traits and help a yet underresearched part of the field. Reconstruction of a mass grave and a burial along with a forensic facial reconstruction bring closer past populations to our understanding of the prehistory.