The rite choice: an osteoarchaeological investigation of cremated remains to understand the factors behind its use as a funerary rite in communities of the past

Abstract

Cremation is a long-standing funerary mode that has become an increasing point of interest within archaeology over the last 20 years. The aim of this project was to understand why past communities in Britain decided to cremate their dead over other funerary modes. This study used two ethnographical case studies (Modern South Korea and Ancient Greece) and four archaeological sites from different periods in British history to try to uncover what factors may have affected mortuary choice within the past. From the ethnographical studies, the following key factors were identified: social (including religion and politics), economic, and geographical. From this groundwork the archaeological sites of Manton (Early Bronze Age), South Lawn (Middle Bronze Age), Lankhills (Romano-British) and Great Chesterford (Anglo-Saxon) were analysed. Through both individual site analysis, and comparisons to other sites from the same period in Britain, it was able to be established that these key factors likely contributed to mortuary choice within the past, each factor to varying degrees depending on the period studied. Although there is no one answer, this project demonstrates the importance placed upon the dead and their mortuary rites in the past.

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ORCID for Elizabeth Jane Aubin: orcid.org/0009-0005-6842-2394

ORCID for Sonia Zakrzewski: orcid.org/0000-0003-1796-065X

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