Ancient DNA, Strontium isotopes, and osteological analyses shed light on social and kinship organization of the Later Stone Age

In 2005 four outstanding multiple burials were discovered near Eulau, Germany. The 4,600-year-old graves contained groups of adults and children buried facing each other. Skeletal and artifactual evidence and the simultaneous interment of the individuals suggest the supposed families fell victim to...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS 2008-11, Vol.105 (47), p.18226-18231
Main Authors: Haak, Wolfgang, Brandt, Guido, Jong, Hylke N. de, Meyer, Christian, Ganslmeier, Robert, Heyd, Volker, Hawkesworth, Chris, Pike, Alistair W.G, Meller, Harald, Alt, Kurt W
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Anthropology
Archaeology
Biological Sciences
Bone and Bones
Bones
Child
Children
Cultural anthropology
Deoxyribonucleic acid
DNA
DNA - genetics
Fossils
Funeral Rites
Funerals
Germany
Graves
History, Ancient
Human remains
Humans
Isotopes
Kinship
Mitochondrial DNA
Molecular genetics
Molecular Sequence Data
Social Behavior
Social Sciences
Strontium isotopes
Strontium Isotopes - analysis
Tooth enamel
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Summary:In 2005 four outstanding multiple burials were discovered near Eulau, Germany. The 4,600-year-old graves contained groups of adults and children buried facing each other. Skeletal and artifactual evidence and the simultaneous interment of the individuals suggest the supposed families fell victim to a violent event. In a multidisciplinary approach, archaeological, anthropological, geochemical (radiogenic isotopes), and molecular genetic (ancient DNA) methods were applied to these unique burials. Using autosomal, mitochondrial, and Y-chromosomal markers, we identified genetic kinship among the individuals. A direct child-parent relationship was detected in one burial, providing the oldest molecular genetic evidence of a nuclear family. Strontium isotope analyses point to different origins for males and children versus females. By this approach, we gain insight into a Late Stone Age society, which appears to have been exogamous and patrilocal, and in which genetic kinship seems to be a focal point of social organization.
ISSN:0027-8424
1091-6490
DOI:10.1073/pnas.0807592105