Human Skeletons, Grave Goods and Textual Sources: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Southwestern Switzerland’s Late Iron Age Communities through the Study of their Funerary Rites

This paper’s primary focus is the investigation of Late Iron Age funeral practices. This is carried out by means of a multidisciplinary study of two necropolises, Randogne – Bluche and Sion – Parking des Remparts, which are located in southwestern Switzerland. The overall purpose of this paper is to enhance the socio-cultural understanding of this period through an integrated approach that combines the fields of bioanthropology, archaeology and ancient cultural history. Consequently, sex, age, pathologies and biological proximity first were assessed for the individuals found in the two studied necropolises. Next, data from these necropolises was contrasted with the archaeological and cultural environment from the surrounding regions. Finally, a combined perspective was developed in order to consider and combine the data collected through these different approaches. The obtained results appear to point to a regional particularism present in southwestern Switzerland’s funerary practices during the Late Iron Age. However, cultural influences from both northern and southern neighbouring regions can be identified in southwestern Switzerland’s funerary rites and material productions, which sheds light on the innerworkings of the Celtic communities populating this region.

Exploring the Use of Virtual Funerals during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Scoping Review

The COVID-19 pandemic and physical distancing limitations have had a profound impact on funeral practices and associated grieving processes. The purpose of the present scoping review is to summarize the existing literature on the emerging use of virtual funerals. Five medical databases, five social science databases, and five grey literature databases were searched, identifying 1,351 titles and abstracts, of which 62 met inclusion criteria. Four themes, each with various subthemes emerged: (a) Impact of virtual funerals on coping with death; (b) Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the funeral industry; (c) Benefits and disadvantages of virtual funerals; and (d) Future implications for health and social work practitioners. Virtual funerals are an evolving resource for individuals, families, and communities to mourn in response to the interruptions to traditional grieving practices due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cultivating Corpses: A Comparative Approach to Disembodied Mortuary Remains

Disembodied remains of corpses are often found in the archaeological record but seldom interpreted and understood. This mortuary practice challenges our traditional understanding of funerals and what constitutcs a "grave". Through a comparative analysis of prehistoric Bronze Age and Iron Age mortuary remai ns and contemporary funeral practices in Nepal, it is argued that the disembodiment is a cosmogonic act whereby the corpse is an intrinsic part of the agricultural and hydrological cycle. An explicit combination of the past and present for interpretations of the past is a premise for understanding and knowledge production in archaeology, and this theoretical stance is developed and explored.

RITUAIS DE SEPULTAMENTO DOS SÍTIOS LAJEDO DO CRUZEIRO E PEDRA DA TESOURA, PARAÍBA: Um Estudo Comparativo Entre Sítios com Deposições Funerárias

Este artigo apresenta preliminarmente uma caracterização dos Lajedo do Cruzeiro e Pedra da Tesoura, procuramos contextualizar os resultados, ainda que iniciais, através de informações etnohistóricas e pesquisas arqueológicas realizadas na Paraíba. Analisamos as informações existentes sobre as populações que habitavam o interior no período Pré- histórico na área conhecida hoje como estado da Paraíba, especialmente os dados concernentes a contexto funerário. Os resultados dispostos nos estudos arqueológicos realizados nos sítios Barra (Camalaú), Serrote da Macambira (São João do Cariri), Pinturas I (São João do Tigre) e Furna dos Ossos (São João do Cariri), foram utilizados, porém, percebe-se que uma das principais dificuldades é estudar um sítio com sepultamento que apresente contexto de deposição preservado, impossibilitando, em grande parte dos casos, inferências seguras acerca das práticas funerárias. BURIAL RITUALS OF THE LAJEDO DO CRUZEIRO AND CRUZEIRO DA PEDRA SITES, PARAÍBA: A Comparative Study Between Sites with Funerary DepositionsABSTRACTThis paper presents a preliminary characterization of the Lajedo do Cruzeiro and Pedra da Tesoura, we seek to contextualize the results, even if initial, through the ethnohistorical information and archaeological research carried out in Paraíba. We analyzed the existing information about the populations that inhabited the interior in the Pre-historic period in the area known today as the state of Paraíba, especially the data concerning the funeralcontext. The results obtained in the archaeological studies carried out at the Barra (Camalaú), Serrote da Macambira (São João do Cariri), Pinturas I (São João do Tigre) and Furna dos Ossos (São João do Cariri) sites were used, one of the main difficulties is to study a buried site that has a preserved deposition context, making it impossible to obtain reliable inferences about funeral practices in most cases.Keywords: Death; funeral rituals; Tapuias; Paraíba

Reference and Reverence: An Exhibition of Photographic Works

Reference and Reverence is a two-year long photographic project on the emerging trend of ecological burial in the United States. The body of work is a photo-based documentary that considers natural burial as an alternative to standard funeral practices. My thesis project is in book form as well as an exhibition installation. The work addresses green burial’s newfound re-emergence as well as the examination of visual culture regarding death, dying, and funeral practices. In an era of environmental concern, the importance of planet stewardship and modern industrial burial practices are questioned. The reflection is one of re-visiting death as tradition, as well as one of contemplating our co-existence with the world.

Reference and Reverence: An Exhibition of Photographic Works

Reference and Reverence is a two-year long photographic project on the emerging trend of ecological burial in the United States. The body of work is a photo-based documentary that considers natural burial as an alternative to standard funeral practices. My thesis project is in book form as well as an exhibition installation. The work addresses green burial’s newfound re-emergence as well as the examination of visual culture regarding death, dying, and funeral practices. In an era of environmental concern, the importance of planet stewardship and modern industrial burial practices are questioned. The reflection is one of re-visiting death as tradition, as well as one of contemplating our co-existence with the world.

Digital innovation and funeral practices: Māori and Samoan perspectives during the COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 worldwide pandemic has caused the world to stop. It has disrupted traditional funeral processes for Māori and Samoan peoples. Their collective ways of mourning were particularly affected, as social distance restrictions and travel bans meant they were unable to physically gather in large numbers. Despite the disruption caused by COVID-19, digital innovation has meant these groups have been able to remain socially connected, at a physical distance. This cohort has also been able to maintain collective interconnectivity with their family and friends during times of grief. Through the digital space, funerals are still able to be a communal time of mourning, support and comfort. As insider researchers, we present our stories, chants and oratory during times of sorrow, while centring our collective digital resilience.

3D Reconstruction and Geostatic Analysis of an Early Medieval Cemetery (Olonne-sur-Mer, France)

A preventive excavation performed in 2018 prior to development work led to the discovery of more than 213 subjects buried from the 4th to the 11th centuries in the 1850 m2 dug area. This is a cemetery located in Olonne-sur-Mer in France (46.53723, −1.77603). The complex is limited to the south by a ditch. To the north, no limits were observed during the excavation and, to the west, ancient archaeological surveys suggest an extension of the burial area. Biological analysis of the skeletons reveals a demographic characterizing a natural community, with an under-representation of children under 5 and with subjects under 20 appearing to be grouped together in the center of the area. The place where the youngest are buried often testifies to a strategic position in Christian contexts (near church doors, under sub stillicidio gutters, etc.). Funeral practices are characterized by numerous skeletal alterations, especially in the western area of the site where their concentrations are particularly significant. These are not ossuaries but rather supernumerary bones present in the fills of graves of subjects in place or old tombs where no skeletons in place are preserved. These alterations mark the areas where burials are most frequent. The 3D reconstruction is coupled with geostatistical analyses (heatmap and Moran’s index), considering the digging of the land, the concentration of residual artefacts found in the graves, but also the biological characteristics of the sample and the funeral practices uncovered. From 2D entities generated with GIS software, the process of the elevation and sculpture of the volumes is innovative, because even if it is carried out by precise but classical computer graphics techniques, it is led by advanced taphonomical and anthropological reflections. This makes it possible to propose empty spaces, a potential gathering area for the village community and circulation paths. These elements are essential in order to go beyond the storytelling often proposed in archaeology and propose a vision based on the coherence of the observed facts. Even when the archaeological remains are only sunken (no preserved elevation), the integration of multisource archaeological data (biological anthropology, funerary, artefacts and pit size) allows relevant 3D reconstructions as a formidable tool for discussing past occupations. Three-dimensional technologies make it possible to recreate a lost environment to allow a better understanding of the site. They are didactic and help to share data between researchers and/or the public, especially when they are invisible such as the presence of empty space.