Horses in the Early Medieval (10th–13th c.) Religious Rituals of Slavs in Polish Areas—An Archaeozoological, Archaeological and Historical Overview
Knowledge about horses from early medieval (10th–13th c.) Poland has been largely based on historical and archaeological data. Archaeozoological information has only been used to a limited extent. Therefore, this article aims to present the current state of knowledge on this subject, drawing on arch...
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MDPI AG
2022-09-01
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| Series: | Animals |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/12/17/2282 |
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| author | Daniel Makowiecki Wojciech Chudziak Paweł Szczepanik Maciej Janeczek Edyta Pasicka |
| author_facet | Daniel Makowiecki Wojciech Chudziak Paweł Szczepanik Maciej Janeczek Edyta Pasicka |
| author_sort | Daniel Makowiecki |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Knowledge about horses from early medieval (10th–13th c.) Poland has been largely based on historical and archaeological data. Archaeozoological information has only been used to a limited extent. Therefore, this article aims to present the current state of knowledge on this subject, drawing on archaeozoological data from studies of horse bones. Apart from confirming earlier reflections regarding the sacred significance of the horse, additional information was obtained about specific individuals who were the subject of magical treatments. It turned out that sites with horse skeletons and skulls are few compared to the familiar presence of horse remains among kitchen waste. This contrasts with the neighbouring regions, where horses were buried more frequently among the Germans, Scandinavians and Prussians. Some new data have been obtained thanks to taphonomic analyses, which demonstrated that horse skulls of apotropaic status were not only exposed to public viewing but were also deposited under stronghold ramparts. Horses suffering from infectious diseases could also be buried under such ramparts. Considerations in the article lead to conclusions that horses were used in religious rituals as sacrificial animals, apotropaic deposits, as fortune-telling animals and cosmological figures. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T03:06:45Z |
| format | Article |
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| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T03:06:45Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-95bdb35499304ebb84941abb90ca52f82023-11-23T12:38:21ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152022-09-011217228210.3390/ani12172282Horses in the Early Medieval (10th–13th c.) Religious Rituals of Slavs in Polish Areas—An Archaeozoological, Archaeological and Historical OverviewDaniel Makowiecki0Wojciech Chudziak1Paweł Szczepanik2Maciej Janeczek3Edyta Pasicka4Institute of Archeology, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Szosa Bydgoska 44/48, 87-100 Toruń, PolandInstitute of Archeology, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Szosa Bydgoska 44/48, 87-100 Toruń, PolandInstitute of Archeology, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Szosa Bydgoska 44/48, 87-100 Toruń, PolandDepartment of Biostructure and Animal Physiology, Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Kożuchowska 1, 51-631 Wrocław, PolandDepartment of Biostructure and Animal Physiology, Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Kożuchowska 1, 51-631 Wrocław, PolandKnowledge about horses from early medieval (10th–13th c.) Poland has been largely based on historical and archaeological data. Archaeozoological information has only been used to a limited extent. Therefore, this article aims to present the current state of knowledge on this subject, drawing on archaeozoological data from studies of horse bones. Apart from confirming earlier reflections regarding the sacred significance of the horse, additional information was obtained about specific individuals who were the subject of magical treatments. It turned out that sites with horse skeletons and skulls are few compared to the familiar presence of horse remains among kitchen waste. This contrasts with the neighbouring regions, where horses were buried more frequently among the Germans, Scandinavians and Prussians. Some new data have been obtained thanks to taphonomic analyses, which demonstrated that horse skulls of apotropaic status were not only exposed to public viewing but were also deposited under stronghold ramparts. Horses suffering from infectious diseases could also be buried under such ramparts. Considerations in the article lead to conclusions that horses were used in religious rituals as sacrificial animals, apotropaic deposits, as fortune-telling animals and cosmological figures.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/12/17/2282horsereligionearly medievalSlavsPolandarchaeozoology |
| spellingShingle | Daniel Makowiecki Wojciech Chudziak Paweł Szczepanik Maciej Janeczek Edyta Pasicka Horses in the Early Medieval (10th–13th c.) Religious Rituals of Slavs in Polish Areas—An Archaeozoological, Archaeological and Historical Overview Animals horse religion early medieval Slavs Poland archaeozoology |
| title | Horses in the Early Medieval (10th–13th c.) Religious Rituals of Slavs in Polish Areas—An Archaeozoological, Archaeological and Historical Overview |
| title_full | Horses in the Early Medieval (10th–13th c.) Religious Rituals of Slavs in Polish Areas—An Archaeozoological, Archaeological and Historical Overview |
| title_fullStr | Horses in the Early Medieval (10th–13th c.) Religious Rituals of Slavs in Polish Areas—An Archaeozoological, Archaeological and Historical Overview |
| title_full_unstemmed | Horses in the Early Medieval (10th–13th c.) Religious Rituals of Slavs in Polish Areas—An Archaeozoological, Archaeological and Historical Overview |
| title_short | Horses in the Early Medieval (10th–13th c.) Religious Rituals of Slavs in Polish Areas—An Archaeozoological, Archaeological and Historical Overview |
| title_sort | horses in the early medieval 10th 13th c religious rituals of slavs in polish areas an archaeozoological archaeological and historical overview |
| topic | horse religion early medieval Slavs Poland archaeozoology |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/12/17/2282 |
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