Tombs – Mirrors of Life?

Tombs – Mirrors of Life?

Late bronze age

The grave goods associated with prehistoric tombs can range from humble to elaborate. This is almost always attributed to the different levels of wealth or social status of the person buried. Crockery sets comprising several pieces are thought to signify that the deceased would be a wealthy host in the afterlife. Whether these explanations are correct, remains at times questionable.

The richest burial in the Erlangen-Büchenbach necropolis was placed in an elaborate stone tomb. Some of the bronze jewellery and a crockery set consisting of several vessels had been cremated on the pyre with the body. A child was buried in this richly endowed grave – according to anthropological investigations a new-born or stillborn infant.

Rich grave goods associated with child burials are a frequent phenomenon. What remains uncertain is whether the child was to be compensated for a life unlived, or the parents intended to demonstrate their own social status.