Evidence for dynastic succession among early Celtic elites in Central Europe.

The early Iron Age (800 to 450 BCE) in France, Germany and Switzerland, known as the 'West-Hallstattkreis', stands out as featuring the earliest evidence for supra-regional organization north of the Alps. Often referred to as 'early Celtic', suggesting tentative connections to later cultural phenomena, its societal and population structure remain enigmatic. Here we present genomic and isotope data from 31 individuals from this context in southern Germany, dating between 616 and 200 BCE. We identify multiple biologically related groups spanning three elite burials as far as 100 km apart, supported by trans-regional individual mobility inferred from isotope data. These include a close biological relationship between two of the richest burial mounds of the Hallstatt culture. Bayesian modelling points to an avuncular relationship between the two individuals, which may suggest a practice of matrilineal dynastic succession in early Celtic elites. We show that their ancestry is shared on a broad geographic scale from Iberia throughout Central-Eastern Europe, undergoing a decline after the late Iron Age (450 BCE to ~50 CE).

Pathogen genomics study of an early medieval community in Germany reveals extensive co-infections.

BACKGROUND: The pathogen landscape in the Early European Middle Ages remains largely unexplored. Here, we perform a systematic pathogen screening of the rural community Lauchheim "Mittelhofen," in present-day Germany, dated to the Merovingian period, between fifth and eighth century CE. Skeletal remains of individuals were subjected to an ancient DNA metagenomic analysis. Genomes of the detected pathogens were reconstructed and analyzed phylogenetically. RESULTS: Over 30% of the individuals exhibit molecular signs of infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV), parvovirus B19, variola virus (VARV), and Mycobacterium leprae. Seven double and one triple infection were detected. We reconstructed four HBV genomes and one genome each of B19, VARV, and M. leprae. All HBV genomes are of genotype D4 which is rare in Europe today. The VARV strain exhibits a unique pattern of gene loss indicating that viruses with different gene compositions were circulating in the Early Middle Ages. The M. leprae strain clustered in branch 3 together with the oldest to-date genome from the UK. CONCLUSIONS: The high burden of infectious disease, together with osteological markers of physiological stress, reflect a poor health status of the community. This could have been an indirect result of the climate decline in Europe at the time, caused by the Late Antique Little Ice Age (LALIA). Our findings suggest that LALIA may have created an ecological context in which persistent outbreaks set the stage for major epidemics of severe diseases such as leprosy and smallpox hundreds of years later.

The dynamics of Early Celtic consumption practices: A case study of the pottery from the Heuneburg.

The Early Celtic site of the Heuneburg (Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany) has long been understood as a hallmark of early urbanization in Central Europe. The rich collection of Mediterranean imports recovered from the settlement, the elite burials in its surroundings and the Mediterranean-inspired mudbrick fortification wall further point to the importance of intercultural connections with the Mediterranean as a crucial factor in the transformation of Early Iron Age societies. We describe a new facet of this process by studying the transformation of consumption practices, especially drinking habits, brought about by intercultural encounters from the late 7th to the 5th century BC through the analysis of organic remains in 133 ceramic vessels found at the Heuneburg using Organic Residue Analysis (ORA). During the Ha D1 phase, fermented beverages, including Mediterranean grape wine, were identified in and appear to have been consumed from local handmade ceramics. The latter were recovered from different status-related contexts within the Heuneburg, suggesting an early and well-established trade/exchange system of this Mediterranean product. This contrasts with the results obtained for the drinking and serving vessels from the Ha D3 phase that were studied. The consumption of fermented beverages (wine and especially bacteriofermented products) appears to have been concentrated on the plateau. The ORA analyses presented here seem to indicate that during this time, grape wine was consumed primarily from imported vessels, and more rarely from local prestigious fine wheel-made vessels. In addition to imported wine, we demonstrate the consumption of a wide variety of foodstuffs, such as animal fats (especially dairy products), millet, plant oils and waxy plants, fruit and beehive products as well as one or several other fermented beverage(s) that were probably locally produced. Through this diachronic study of vessel function from different intra-site contexts, we inform on changing and status-related practices of food processing and consumption.

New insights into Early Celtic consumption practices: Organic residue analyses of local and imported pottery from Vix-Mont Lassois.

The rich Mediterranean imports found in Early Celtic princely sites (7th-5th cent. BC) in Southwestern Germany, Switzerland and Eastern France have long been the focus of archaeological and public interest. Consumption practices, particularly in the context of feasting, played a major role in Early Celtic life and imported ceramic vessels have consequently been interpreted as an attempt by the elite to imitate Mediterranean wine feasting. Here we present the first scientific study carried out to elucidate the use of Mediterranean imports in Early Celtic Central Europe and their local ceramic counterparts through organic residue analyses of 99 vessels from Vix-Mont Lassois, a key Early Celtic site. In the Mediterranean imports we identified imported plant oils and grape wine, and evidence points towards appropriation of these foreign vessels. Both Greek and local wares served for drinking grape wine and other plant-based fermented beverage(s). A wide variety of animal and plant by-products (e.g. fats, oils, waxes, resin) were also identified. Using an integrative approach, we show the importance of beehive products, millet and bacteriohopanoid beverage(s) in Early Celtic drinking practices. We highlight activities related to biomaterial transformation and show intra-site and status-related differences in consumption practices and/or beverage processing.