Early La Tène elite burials from the Lower Rhine-Meuse region and their Northwest European context
This project was kicked off by the discovery of a new chariot burial at Heumen in the Netherlands and grew into a large interdisciplinary investigation into all known elite graves from the Lower Rhine–Meuse region and the social transformations taking place in northwest Europe during the Middle Iron Age. The finds and cremation remains from all such burials were re-examined from a practice-oriented perspective, combining detailed material studies with scientific analyses including use-wear analysis, XRF-analysis, physical anthropology, and strontium isotope research.
One of the central aims of the project was to move beyond static typological studies and instead investigate how these objects actually functioned and were used in life. Approaching the material from a practical equestrian perspective revealed the presence not only of chariots with draught horses, but also riding horses equipped with highly elaborate harnesses and tack. This research challenged several long-standing assumptions surrounding Iron Age mobility, transport, and elite display.
At the same time, the project explored broader patterns of social and cultural change during the 5th century BCE. This was a remarkably dynamic period in the southern Netherlands: traditional urnfields were abandoned, new cemeteries emerged, inhumation burial practices appeared, and new material styles such as Marne pottery spread rapidly through the region.
Rather than viewing these developments as isolated phenomena, we proposed a model centred on intense interregional connectivity, demographic fluctuation, and small-scale migration. In this interpretation, not only elite individuals, but also broader groups of people contributed to reshaping the cultural landscape of the Lower Rhine–Meuse region during the Middle Iron Age.
The resulting publication presents the first comprehensive study of 5th century BCE elite burials from the Lower Rhine–Meuse region. Characterised by imported bronze vessels, horse tack, weapons, and occasionally two-wheeled chariots, these exceptionally rich cremation graves represent the northernmost expression of an elite culture connected to the Late Hallstatt and Early La Tène worlds of France and the German Rhineland.
You can read more about — or order — the resulting book via Sidestone Press.