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3,500-year-old grave reveals: change in Bronze Age history around 1500 BC in Central Europe
Source: ScienceDaily
The multidisciplinary research, based on the Bronze Age cemetery excavated at Tiszafüred-Majoroshalom, which was used in both the Middle Bronze Age (Füzesabony culture) and the Late Bronze Age (Tumulus culture), allowed researchers to compare the subsistence strategies before and after the change of era.
The bioarchaeological investigation of the Bronze Age cemetery of Tiszafüred-Majoroshalom reveals new insights into an important period in Central European history.
Bronze Age life changed radically around 1500 BC in Central Europe. New research reveals that diets narrowed, millet was introduced, migration slowed, and social systems became looser, challenging old ideas about the nomadic Tumulus culture herders.
Scientists discover how bronze age people lived, ate, and moved around 1500 BC
According to Science Daily, an international research team—led by Tamás Hajdu, associate professor at the Department of Anthropology at ELTE, and Claudio Cavazzuti, senior assistant professor at the University of Bologna—has shown that around 1500 BC, radical changes occurred in people's lives: they ate and lived differently, and the social system was also reorganized.
The research, supported by the Hungarian National Research, Development and Innovation Office, examined whether the archaeologically observed settlement changes around 1500 BC indicated a lifestyle change—whether people began to follow a way of life based on animal husbandry and frequent migration instead of settled farming.
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The team also sought to answer whether the spread of the Tumulus culture meant the arrival of new groups, or whether the local population continued their lives with only the material culture changing.
Outcomes of the archaeological results
Diet Changed:
Scientists studied ancient bones and found that during the Middle Bronze Age, people ate a wider variety of foods, and some had better access to meat and animal products than others. This showed a clear difference between rich and poor.
But in the Late Bronze Age, diets became more uniform but poorer. Most people ate similar things—mainly plant-based—and animal protein became less common in their meals.
Broomcorn Millet Was Introduced:
Researchers found evidence that broomcorn millet, a fast-growing, energy-rich grain, started being eaten around the start of the Late Bronze Age.
The cemetery at Tiszafüred shows the earliest known use of millet in Europe. This grain probably helped communities feed themselves more reliably, even if their diet became simpler.
Mobility Decreased:
People traveled and moved around less. By looking at the chemicals in people's teeth and bones, scientists discovered that fewer people moved into the area during the Late Bronze Age compared to earlier times.
In the Middle Bronze Age, some people living in Tiszafüred had come from nearby regions like the Upper Tisza area or the Carpathian Mountains.
But in the Late Bronze Age, most people were locals, and those who did move in likely came from farther away, such as Transdanubia or the Southern Carpathians.
Social Relations Changed:
Society became less structured. At the beginning of the Late Bronze Age, the long-used tell settlements were abandoned, and people lived in less centralized settlement networks.
This change created a looser, less organized social system, which is also reflected in dietary habits. According to microremains found in dental calculi and the aforementioned isotopic analyses, significantly less animal protein was consumed during this period than before. This contradicts the earlier idea that people belonging to the Tumulus culture were mainly engaged in animal husbandry
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