Численні поховання маріупольського типу (Україна) супроводжувались багатим поховальним
інвентарем. Окремі дитячі поховання мали особливий інвентар, зокрема, прикраси, які можуть
слугувати джерелом для визначення соціального
та сакрального статусу дитини (Маріуполь, Вовниги, Ненаситець, Осипівка, Вільнянка тощо).
The region of the Lower Dnieper was an outstanding
landscape phenomenon in prehistoric times. During
the Stone Age, this area had great economic and
sacral significance. There are more than 20 Mesolithic
and Neolithic cemeteries of the so called Mariupol type,
located along the Lower Dnieper Rapids. The anthropological
analysis demonstrated that the population of
Middle Dnieper region belongs to the Proto-European
large Europoid race. Periodisation of the Mariupol
type cemeteries have two periods: Early Mariupol:
7000—5500 cal BC and Late Mariupol: 5500—4000 cal
BC. The burials of the Mariupol type have outstanding
grave goods. Raw materials used for used for manufacturing
adornments were deer canines, carp fish
teeth, stone, pearls and shells. Some burials yielded
notched decorated canines. The most outstanding
feature of the Mariupol type funerary adornments is
the large number of items made from modified boar
tusks. Most of them were found in the Mariupol cemetery.
These artifacts, which may have marked the
membership to a certain group, occurred equally both
in adult and children burials. Child burials of the
Mariupol type yielded specific funerary adornments.
Sometimes they were as rich as those of the adults,
but in some cases they were the richest. Personal ornaments,
semantically identifying the important parts of
a child’s body, were the marker of clan or lineage affiliation,
age differentiation or biological stage. Burials
with indicating features of a special sacral character
are very significant also. The availability of children
burials, which have more abundant funerary adornments
then the adults, or were the only burials with
grave goods in the cemetery need a more thorough
study.
