Inhumations at the Hallstatt burial site

Inhumations were common throughout the life of the cemetery. The bodies were normally buried in a west-east direction, that is to say with their heads resting on the west side of the grave, looking eastward. This may be connected with religious and ritual ideas. The dead lay on their backs, with their arms alongside their bodies.

Sometimes, the corpses were buried in a south-west, or a north-south direction, and the limbs were sometimes arranged in a different way. The arms and legs were occasionally bent in rather curious positions. The grave goods were placed close to the body or next to it, frequently around the head and hip areas.

(Kern, A.)
: Ansichten verschiedener Körpergräber des Hallstätter Gräberfeldes aus der Dokumentation von J. G. Ramsauer (Bild: Fundaktenarchiv des NHM)
Ansichten verschiedener Körpergräber des Hallstätter Gräberfeldes aus der Dokumentation von J. G. Ramsauer (Bild: Fundaktenarchiv des NHM)
: Grab N45 – Körperbestattung einer ca. 60 Jahre alten Frau: Ihre Bestattungslage weicht um 90°Grad von der üblichen W-OOrientierung ab; der Kopf liegt im Süden mit Blick nach Norden. (Foto: PA NHM)
Grab N45 – Körperbestattung einer ca. 60 Jahre alten Frau: Ihre Bestattungslage weicht um 90°Grad von der üblichen W-OOrientierung ab; der Kopf liegt im Süden mit Blick nach Norden. (Foto: PA NHM)
  
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