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Early piercings
A study recently published in Antiquity (https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2024.28) has identified more than 100 ornaments used in body perforation as early as 11,000 years ago. The artefacts come from burials at the Neolithic site of Boncuklu Tarla, in Turkey, and were found near the ears and chins of individuals, indicating they were used both in ear piercings and in lower-lip piercings known as labrets. Wear patterns on the lower incisors of some skeletons further support this interpretation. The finds represent the earliest in situ evidence for body perforation in south-west Asia, and challenge previous assumptions that the practice did not begin until around the 7th millennium BC. Similar objects have been found at other sites in the region, but these lacked any direct evidence linking them to piercings. Interestingly, the body perforation ornaments from Boncuklu Tarla are exclusively found in adult burials, suggesting that they may have been connected to some sort of rite of passage.
An unexpected coin hoard
A collection of 170 early medieval silver coins has been found in Brahe Church on the Swedish island of Visingsö. The discovery was made during excavations by the county museum’s archaeologists in advance of a geothermal installation in the church. The coins were found in the burial of a man believed to be aged between 20 and 25 years old; this is unusual, as such grave goods are rarely found in Christian burials. Initial assessments indicate that the coins date to c.AD 1150-1180 and that some of them are types currently unknown in the archaeological record. The find therefore has significant potential to enhance our understanding of the early medieval period in the Götaland region, about which not much is known. It is hoped that further research will shed more light on this young man, too, and his unexpected grave goods.
Rich burial in Panama
The burial of an important Coclé lord, dating to c.AD 750, has been found at El Caño Archaeological Park in the province of Coclé, Panama. The deceased was accompanied by a lavish assemblage of grave goods, including an array of gold objects – five pectorals, two bead belts, a bead necklace, four bracelets, two earrings in the shape of human figures and one in the shape of a double crocodile, five earrings made of sperm-whale teeth with gold sheaths, and a set of circular gold plates – as well as bracelets and skirts made of dog teeth, a set of bone flutes, and hundreds of ceramics. The tomb also contains the remains of other people, intended to accompany the high-status male to the afterlife. Excavation of the grave has not yet been completed, so the exact number of individuals it contains is currently unknown.
Text: Amy Brunskill
