Chronology and social significance of the "princely" barrow cemetery in Leki Male and the Central European Early Bronze Age.

ABSTRACT

The "princely" barrows of Leki Male, Greater Poland are the oldest such monuments within the distribution area of Únetice societies in Central Europe. While in the Circum-Harz group and in Silesia similar rich furnished graves under mounds have appeared as single monuments as early as 1950 BC, Leki Male represents a chain of barrows constructed between 2150 BC and 1800 BC. Of the original 14 mounds, only four were preserved well enough that their complex biographies can now be reconstructed. They included ritual activities (before, during, and after the funeral), and also subsequent incursions, including robberies. The long lasting barrow cemetery at Leki Male can be linked to a nearby fortified site, Bruszczewo. Together, Leki Male and Bruszczewo represent a stable, socially differentiated society that existed for no less than 350-400 years. Therefore, it can be argued that the Early Bronze Age societies of Greater Poland were extremely sustainable in comparison to those of other Únetice regions.