Waste management and household’s organisation: the LBK site of Těšetice-Kyjovice (Czech Republic), in R. Iversen, M. Bjørnevad-Ahlqvist and D. Hofmann (dir.), Depositional Practices in the Neolithic: Contacts, Interactions and Transformations, Session 97
Résumé
In the LBK area, the population settling down led to villages, where farming communities inhabited longhouses which share similar features across Europe. However, in contrast to the uniform architecture, different conclusions are related to waste management and the activities connected with the life organisation within the village. These opposing views can be summarised as follows: (1) archaeological material contained in the lateral pits is interpreted as directly related to the house activity; (2) contrasting to that, discards are interpreted as not directly related to the house activity but to other occupation phases of the village. The consequences of interpreting the house’s activity and the economic organisation within the villages are enormous and need to be clarified to understand better the social organisation of the farming communities. These issues will be discussed in the example of the LBK site of Těšetice-Kyjovice (Czech Republic). Refitting analysis, in particular, is used to assess the relationships between a house and four pits. A particular approach, coined “Topological Study of Archaeological Refitting”, will be applied to the pottery material. This method draws on concepts and procedures from graph theory to model the network of connections observed between refitting ceramic fragments. It will help to understand better the rhythm of filling formation and help to discuss the waste management system. The observation will be supported via the technological analysis of lithics and the identification of learning networks. Understanding the waste management of pottery and lithics will help test different scenarios of potential household interactions.