Namen knjige je prikazati pomen orientacije grobov za srednjeveško arheologijo smrti in pokopov. Pri tem sta poudarjeni dve ključni točki. Prvič, orientacija grobov je bila v srednjem veku pomemben in v nekaterih primerih najpomembnejši način izražanja simbolnega pomena pokopov. Drugič, da bi arheologi razvozlali ta pomen, mora biti analiza izvedena z metodološko strogostjo, pri interpretaciji pa je potrebno upoštevati širši kontekst. Blejski otok je otoček na Blejskem jezeru, ki ima za sodobne Slovence poseben pomen, za lokalno prebivalstvo pa je imel poseben pomen že od prazgodovine dalje. Zato ni presenetljivo, da sta srednjeveški pokopališči in cerkev na otočku prežeti s simboliko. In veliko te simbolike je bilo izražene z usmeritvijo posameznih grobov, skupin grobov in cerkvene stavbe. V knjigi je zbranih deset besedil – sedem antropoloških hodopisnih esejev, pospremljenih z dvema daljšima uvodnima tekstoma ter epilogom o hoji in pisanju kot dveh utečenih, a na tem mestu sveže premišljenih metodah antropološkega in etnološkega razisko­vanja. Sedem esejev se sprehodi po obmejnih pokrajinah Istre, Goričkega, Porabja, Koroške in Julijskih Alp, predhodi jim dialoška faza brušenja misli med različno formi­ranimi raziskovalci, končno pa vseh sedem izriše svojo sled v vmesnem prostoru med znanstvenim tekstom in esejistiko. Z osredotočanjem na korake, besede in poti, bodisi prehojene ali zapisane, poskuša knjiga osvetliti vmesni prostor, hojo in pisanje pa pri tem razume kot spoznavni proces, terensko izkušnjo, kot del dolgega pogovora, ki me­andrira med okljuki življenja. Gre za hibridno, robno, tudi mejno in drzno meditativno hodopisje, ki bralcu ponudi nedokonč(a)ne eksperimentalne antropološke tekste.

Medieval Networks in East Central Europe explores the economic, cultural, and religious forms of contact between East Central Europe and the surrounding world in the eight to the fifteenth century. The sixteen chapters are grouped into four thematic parts: the first deals with the problem of the region as a zone between major power centers; the second provides case studies on the economic and cultural implications of religious ties; the third addresses the problem of trade during the state formation process in the region, and the final part looks at the inter- and intraregional trade in the Late Middle Ages. Supported by an extensive range of images, tables, and maps, Medieval Networks in East Central Europe demonstrates and explores the huge significance and international influence that East Central Europe held during the medieval period and is essential reading for scholars and students wishing to understand the integral role that this region played within the processes of the Global Middle Ages.

The Croatian medieval archaeological heritage from the 8th to the 15th century consists mostly of jewelry (earrings) findings from cemeteries. This book uses vertical and horizontal stratigraphy, on the basis of around 20,000 burial assemblages from 16 cemeteries (out of several hundred so far excavated in Croatia), to establish relative and absolute chronology of jewelry and burial architecture divided into three horizons and four phases in comparison with materials from neighboring regions of Europe.

For most students in medieval studies, Eastern Europe is marginal and East European topics simply exotica. A peculiar form of Orientalism may thus be responsible for the exclusion of the Avars, Bulgars, Khazars, and Cumans from the medieval history of the European continent. This collection of studies is an attempt to stimulate research in a comparative mode and to open up a broader discussion about such key themes as material culture, ethnicity, historical memory, or conversion in the context of social and political developments in early medieval Europe. Another goal of this volume is to introduce a number of new approaches to the study of what is known as “medieval nomads.” Without explicitly rejecting the model of raid vs. trade famously introduced by Anatoly Khazanov, many contributions in this volume shift the emphasis on internal developments that have received until now little or no attention. Contributors are: Tivadar Vida, Peter Stadler, Péter Somogyi, Uwe Fiedler, Orsolya Heinrich-Tamaska, Bartłomiej Szymon Szmoniewski, Florin Curta, Valeri Iotov, Veselina Vachkova, Tsvetelin Stepanov, Dimitri Korobeinikov, and Victor Spinei.

The Huns, invading through Dariali Gorge on the modern-day border between Russia and Georgia in AD 395 and 515, spread terror across the late antique world. Was this the prelude to the apocalypse? Prophecies foresaw a future Hunnic onslaught, via the same mountain pass, bringing about the end of the world. Humanity’s fate depended on a gated barrier deep in Europe’s highest and most forbidding mountain chain. Centuries before the emergence of such apocalyptic beliefs, the gorge had reached world fame. It was the target of a planned military expedition by the Emperor Nero. Chained to the dramatic sheer cliffs, framing the narrow passage, the mythical fire-thief Prometheus suffered severe punishment, his liver devoured by an eagle. It was known under multiple names, most commonly the Caspian or Alan Gates. Featuring in the works of literary giants, no other mountain pass in the ancient and medieval world matches Dariali’s fame. Yet little was known about the materiality of this mythical place. A team of archaeologists has now shed much new light on the major gorge-blocking fort and a barrier wall on a steep rocky ridge further north. The walls still standing today were built around the time of the first major Hunnic invasion in the late fourth century – when the Caucasus defences feature increasingly prominently in negotiations between the Great Powers of Persia and Rome. In its endeavour to strongly fortify the strategic mountain pass through the Central Caucasus, the workforce erased most traces of earlier occupation. The Persian-built bastion saw heavy occupation for 600 years. Its multi-faith medieval garrison controlled Trans-Caucasian traffic. Everyday objects and human remains reveal harsh living conditions and close connections to the Muslim South, as well as the steppe world of the north. The Caspian Gates explains how a highly strategic rock has played a pivotal role in world history from Classical Antiquity into the twentieth century.

In this volume the archaeological, anthropological and radiocarbon data from selected sites of the Middle Helladic period are integrated to determine if there was variation between individual burials, groupings and cemeteries and to reconstruct change through time. This work was done for selective Argive sites, namely Lerna, Asine and Aspis.

This book is devoted to the Old Rus’ dress of the Upper Volga area, as gleaned from the archaeological evidence of the burial sites. The organic remains of dress and metal and glass ornaments and fasteners are considered. Issues such as the social status and age of the buried individuals, as well as the influence of various ethnic groups (including East Slavic groups, Finno-Ugric tribes and the Balts ) on the dress of the Old Rus’, are addressed through the study of variants of male and female headdresses, clothes and accessories. Furthermore, a detailed study of the evolution of the headdress and the structure of jewelry from the late 10th century to the 13th century is offered.

Bringing together knowledge accumulated from historical, archaeological and literary sources, Daniell paints a vivid picture of the entire phenomenon of medieval death and burial. A big contribution to medieval and early modern studies.