Tracing the Materiality of Feathers in Stone Age North-Eastern Europe

Peer reviewe

Kansalaistiede on todellista tieteen avoimuutta

Asiantuntijoiden ja tutkimuksesta kiinnostuneiden yhteisöjen toteuttamat tutkimusprojektit ovat suositumpia kuin koskaan aikaisemmin. Tutkijoita haastava kansalaistiede on herättänyt myös säätiöt toimimaan. Ne ovat ottaneet aktiivisen roolin kansalaistiedettä hyödyntävien hankkeiden rahoittajina ja edesauttavat näin tieteen avoimuuden toteutumista

A Pre-Roman Burial Site in Puijonsarvennenä, Kuopio, Eastern Finland: Preliminary Results and Interpretations

In 2019, a metal detector hobbyist found an iron spearhead, a knife, and some burnt bones from an ambiguous stone structure situated on the scenic cape of Puijonsarvennenä in Kuopio. Archaeological excavation and sub- sequent analyses of the find material confirmed that the site was a single cremation burial, which was radiocarbon dated to 410–355 calBC, in the Pre-Roman Iron Age. The find material included several fragments of bone artefacts and a small amount of asbestos-tempered ceramics. The burial and its finds seem to indicate that the deceased person engaged in hunting and possibly fur trading, setting Puijonsarvennenä into a continuum with similar burial sites known from interior and northern Finland from the Early Bronze Age to the Late Iron Age. Currently, Puijonsarvennenä is the only Iron Age burial site to have been excavated in the North Savo province.Peer reviewe

On the scent of an animal skin : new evidence on Corded Ware mortuary practices in Northern Europe

The Late Neolithic Corded Ware Culture (c. 2800–2300 BC) of Northern Europe is characterised by specific sets of grave goods and mortuary practices, but the organic components of these grave sets are poorly represented in the archaeological record. New microscopic analyses of soil samples collected during the 1930s from the Perttulanmäki grave in western Finland have, however, revealed preserved Neolithic animal hairs. Despite mineralisation, the species of animal has been successfully identified and offers the oldest evidence for domestic goat in Neolithic Finland, indicating a pastoral herding economy. The mortuary context of the goat hair also suggests that animals played a significant role in the Corded Ware belief system.The Late Neolithic Corded Ware Culture (c. 2800-2300 BC) of Northern Europe is characterised by specific sets of grave goods and mortuary practices, but the organic components of these grave sets are poorly represented in the archaeological record. New microscopic analyses of soil samples collected during the 1930s from the Perttulanmaki grave in western Finland have, however, revealed preserved Neolithic animal hairs. Despite mineralisation, the species of animal has been successfully identified and offers the oldest evidence for domestic goat in Neolithic Finland, indicating a pastoral herding economy. The mortuary context of the goat hair also suggests that animals played a significant role in the Corded Ware belief system.Peer reviewe

Hevoshaudat ja kansalaisnäytteet biologisena kulttuuriperintönä

Our project, Interdisciplinary research strategies of biological cultural heritage – surveying, archiving, analyzing and sharing historical DNA from Finnhorses, aims to study the influences of modern horse breeding on the genetic diversity by analyzing historical DNA samples from the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. We have analyzed horse teeth, main and tail hairs, hooves and skins, which have been donated to us by private horse owners and museums. The material has been complemented by excavating historical Finnhorse burials. The aim is to study this stage by analyzing historical DNA samples in order to understand the influences of modern breed improvement on local horse populations and on their genetic diversity. Historical bone and hair samples as a whole are biological cultural heritage, which carries DNA-information from the early stages of our native breeds and especially on the effects of modern breeding on the populations. Therefore, it is urgent to collect and catalogue these samples as they are threatened and in danger to disappear.Peer reviewe