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Corded Ware Culture

European culture

Quick Summary

The Corded Ware culture was a Late Neolithic to Early Bronze Age European culture that emerged around 2800 BCE. This culture is primarily identified by its distinct burial rites, which emphasized individual burials with prestige grave goods, particularly for adult males. The first phase of these rites is characterized by the presence of Corded Ware pottery and stone battle-axes, found mainly in central and northern Europe. The second phase, from 2500 to 2200 BCE, is marked by Bell Beaker pottery and copper daggers in graves, with a wider distribution across Europe.1

While some scholars attribute these changes to invading populations, others suggest they represent a new ideology of social status emphasizing resource control over ancestral descent, indicating a slow internal development within European society. The Corded Ware culture's material culture and settlement patterns laid the groundwork for the subsequent Bronze Age society in Europe.1

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