Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from the Republic of Macedonia 9781407303932, 9781407334226

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BAR S1910 2009

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from the Republic of Macedonia

NAUMOV

Goce Naumov

PATTERNS AND CORPOREALITY

BAR International Series 1910 2009 B A R

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from the Republic of Macedonia Goce Naumov

BAR International Series 1910 2009

ISBN 9781407303932 paperback ISBN 9781407334226 e-format DOI https://doi.org/10.30861/9781407303932 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

BAR

PUBLISHING

Contents

Preface & acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................ ii List of figures and plates ....................................................................................................................................... v Introduction ........................................................................................................................................................... ix Chapter 1: Neolithic cultures from the Republic of Macedonia ............................................................................ 1 Chapter 2: Painted White: Stylistic diffusion of the white painted decoration and development of Early Neolithic local identities on the territory of the Republic of Macedonia ................................................................ 4 Chapter 3: Neolithic painted ornaments in Skopje region .................................................................................. 11 Chapter 4: Imagery Structures: Neolithic patterns and their role in the painted compositions on the pottery.................................................................................................................................................................... 24 Chapter 5: Imprints of the Neolithic Mind: Decoration and function of the stamp seals..................................... 34 Chapter 6: Neolithic Anthropomorphism ............................................................................................................ 47 Chapter 7: Body as a Vessel: The corporeal concepts of the anthropomorphic vessels ...................................... 59 Chapter 8: Housing the Dead: Burials inside the houses and vessels in the Neolithic Balkans ......................... 73 Conclussion: Between Geometry and Corporeal Hybridity ................................................................................ 81 Bibliography ........................................................................................................................................................ 88 Plates ..................................................................................................................................................................... 95 Plates Description ................................................................................................................................................ 138

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Preface and Acknowledgements This book is an effort to present certain segments of the Neolithic in the Republic of Macedonia in one volume. Although there is still the need for a general monograph which would elaborate the Neolithic of this region as a whole, this work includes those elements which enter the sphere of visual culture. The research of the past sixty years has provided enough data for this category of material culture to be concentrated into one publication and explored from several aspects. Numerous finds which lay unpublished in museums and also those which were partially represented in the archaeological reports, allowed me to gather enough data from which I could define the features of the Neolithic visual culture from the Republic of Macedonia. As a result I was given the opportunity to represent current understanding from the past several years, as well as to explain and discuss them in several presentations, papers and journals. Thus, this book represents a compilation of several papers and works published or presented from conferences and the lectures in recent years. At conferences I often presented papers that were left unpublished, but were used as references in my future works. That is why it becomes necessary to elaborate them into a concrete written form which will further serve as an additional source of data. On the other hand, some of the presentations from conferences were published (or are in the process of publication) in certain journals and monographs, so that it was my consideration that it would be helpful to include them in one publication referring to a concrete theme, i.e. the Neolithic visual culture. Among them there were papers written in the Macedonian language, which, as a result, apart from the illustrations, unfortunately could not reach the wider group of researchers dedicated to these archaeological subjects. For these reasons, the papers have been presented here in English and I hope that they will reach all those interested in the specific visual culture of the Republic of Macedonia. Although I have tried to maintain the time span of the writing and the presentation of the papers, nevertheless some of them were slightly changed and include certain data which I considered to suit the new and improved versions. In some of the chapters I kept the references used at the time of their writing, but I also updated them with some new publications from colleagues who I have consulted and used after the presenting or publication of the works and papers. Although in the present form almost all previous papers have been slightly changed and supplemented with new chapters and considerations, still, on this occasion I would like to thank the publishers and the editors for allowing me to re-publish them as new, improved versions. During the period of gathering information for the research, most of the available data was provided by the journals and monographs. The rest of the material was provided with the kind permission and courtesy of the archaeologists (listed below) from museums throughout the Republic of Macedonia. Therefore diverse findings offered different and mostly partial information. Some of the ceramic objects were published with the complete documentation, while the majority was only illustrated, without any information on their dimensions or context where they were discovered. For that reason some of the finds mentioned in this book do not have dimensions or section drawings. Those well documented, presented and illustrated are indicated by the scale or size of their dimensions in the plates and figures or list of illustrations. To provide more space for illustrations, some of figures in the text and complete plates at the rear of the book are enclosed without references, mainly because they are composed of a large number of finds. Complete references for all used illustrations are given in the lists of figures and plates. In the text there are references to my presentations or works (related to the actual chapters), which are kept as they were used at the time of writing so that a certain consistency to the original research could be followed. Within this monograph there are several chapters which represent ‘refreshed’ versions of already existing works or a synthesis of several papers presented at some conferences and lectures. Thus, except for the first chapter which is a short introduction to the Neolithic of the Republic of Macedonia, the remaining chapters will be given in their original form: Painted White: Stylistic Diffusion of the White Painted Decoration and Development of Early Neolithic Local Identities is a paper which was presented at the 13th annual conference of the European Association of Archaeologists at the University of Zadar, Croatia, 2007.

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The Middle Neolithic Decoration of the Painted Vessels from the Region of Skopje is a paper presented at the Institute for the History of Art and Archaeology, University of Skopje, the Republic of Macеdonia in 2004, and also at the Institute for Archaeology and Ethnology, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, 2005. Imagery Structures: Neolithic Patterns and Their Role in the Compositions Painted on the Pottery is a paper published in the Macedonian language as: ‘Neolitski slikani ornamenti’. Kulturen Život 3/2005, 6677. Skopje, 2005. Imprints of the Neolithic Mind: Visual Dynamism and Significance of the Clay Stamps is a synthesis of papers presented at the 14th Neolithic Seminar in Ljubljana, Slovenia, 2007, as well as at the XIXth symposium of the Macedonian Association of Archeologists in Delčevo, the Republic of Macedonia, 2006, under the title ‘Neolitskite pečati od Republika Makedonija’. At this time the previous version of the same paper is in a process of publishing under the title: ‘Imprints of the Neolithic Mind: Decoration and function of the stamp seals from The Republic of Macedonia’, in Documenta Praehistorica 35, Ljubljana (in print). Neolithic Anthropomorphism: The Corporeality of the Neolithic Miniatures and Models of the FigurineHouses is a result of papers presented in different forms at several conferences: ‘The Domestication of the Human Body: The treatment of the human body in the Neolithic of South-East Europe and contemporary ritual implications of the Neolithic corporeality’ – presented at the 3rd symposium of the Department for the Research of Populations, Niš, Serbia, 2007 as ‘Small breasts – big buttocks: Gender determination of the Neolithic figurines from the Republic of Macedonia and the Balkans’, presented at the 13th annual conference of the European Association of Archaeologists at the University of Zadar, Croatia, 2007, and as ‘Architectural Hybrids: Anthropomorphic Models from the Republic of Macedonia’, presented at the 6th World Archaeological Congress, Dublin, 2008. In part the Macedonian version of this paper will be published as: ‘Neolitski antropomorfizam: Tretmanot na teloto vo neolitot na Jugoistoćna Evropa i sovremenite obredni implikacii na neolitskiot koncept na telesnosta’, in Žunić D. (ed.) Tradicionalna Estetska Kultura, Nish (in print). Body as a Vessel: The Corporeal Concepts of the Anthropomorphic Vessels is a work previously published in Macedonian as: ‘Sadot, pećkata i kukjata vo simbolićka relacija so matkata i ženata (neolitski predloški i etnografski implikacii)’. Studia Mythologica Slavica 9: 59 – 95. Ljubljana. It was also presented in a similar form as: ‘The Vessel As a Human Body: Neolithic Antropomorphic Vessels and Their Relationship With Archaeological and Ethnological Records’ at the conference for prehistoric ceramics, ‘Breaking the Mould, at the University of Manchester, England, 2006. Housing the Dead: Treatment of the Human Body Within Burials Practiced Inside Dwellings and Settlements’ is a paper presented as: ‘Homing the Death: Burials inside the houses and vessels in the Neolithic Balkans’ at the conference ‘Cult in Context’, held at the University of Cambridge, England, 2006; but also published as ‘Housing the Dead: Burials inside houses and vessels from Neolithic Balkans’, in Malone C. & Barrowclough D. (eds.), Cult in Context, 255-65, Oxford, 2007. All these chapters have been presented or published in the above-mentioned proceedings of the institutions, conferences, journals and monographs mentioned. For these reasons I would like to acknowledge all those who were included in the constructive discussions of these presentations, thus enabling me to present a more systematic and argumentative approach in the defining of the character and structure of this book. Therefore my gratitude goes to all those who have invited me and allowed me to participate in their stimulating conferences and also to publish with them: Andrej Pleterski (University of Ljubljana), Mihael Budja (University of Ljubljana), Ina Berg (University of Manchester), Irena Kolištrkovska – Nasteva (Museum of Maceodnia), Dragi Mitrevski (University of Skopje), Caroline Malone (Mc Donald Institute for Archaeological Ressearch, Cambridge University), David A. Barrowclough (Mc Donald Institute for Archaeological Ressearch, Cambridge University), Dragos Gheorghiu (University of Bucharest), Dušan Borić (University of Cambridge), Dragan Zunić (University of Niš), Jessica Smyth (The Heritage Council) and Fay Stevens (University Colledge London). In this context I would also like to acknowledge the institutions who provided me with the opportunities to participate in the above conferences, as well as to those who made it possible for me to work on my research: The Prehistoric Society, The Wenner-Gren Foundation, The Prehistoric Ceramic Research Group, The Macedonian Ministry of Culture, The Neuwaldegg Institute, The European Association of Archeologists, and The World Archaeological Congress. I would also like here to express my gratitude to all those who have helped me with my further research into the Neolithic material culture of the region. Above all my thanks goes to Miloš Bilbija (Museum of iii

Skopje), who allowed me to work on several campaigns at the site of Govrlevo, and to document, process and discuss the Neolithic finds, as well as to include them in this publication. I would also like to acknowledge Catherine Commenge (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique) with whom I worked on the site of Madjari and from whom I have learned much about the new aspects in the archaeological theory and methodology. Trajče Nacev and Mite Šterjov (Museum of Štip) supported and allowed me to work on the finds excavated in the 1960s at Amzabegovo by Gimbutas and Garašanin. Thanks are also due to Trajanka Jovčevska (Museum of Veles) for the material from Pista-Novo Selo; Marija Vasileva (Museum of Bitola) for allowing me to document the Neolithic finds from Pelagonia; Marija Atanasova (Museum of Macedonia) for her understanding and for opening the museum’s cabinets of Neolithic finds from the regions of Skopje and Polog; to Fanica Veljanovska (Museum of Macedonia) for pointing out to me the numerous details in the anthropological remains; Milka Krstevska (Museum of Macedonia) for consultations concerning contemporary bread seals; to Jasemin Nazim and Sanja Dimovska (Museum of Macedonia) for the numerous data and references to the contemporary folklore rituals; to Ljiljana Šalamanov-Korobar (Museum of Macedonia) for information on the Palaeolithic and the figurines from that period; as well to Miško Tutkovski and Darko Karasarlidis for photographs. My special gratitude goes to the people which in several occasions or constantly enabled me to discus different subjects which have opened to me new perspectives in the Neolithic cultures: Ljubo Fidanovski (University of Sofia) and Igor Tolevski (University of Skopje) for the consistent urge to interpret the infinitive frames and possibilities of defining the Neolithic populations and their material and cognitive remainings; to Aleksandar Mitkoski (Museum of Prilep) who make accessible the material in his institution, and with whom I have had long discussions concerning the ritual aspects of the Neolithic constructions and finds discovered in their context; to the now late and respected Voislav Sanev (Museum of Macedonia) with whom I have had the opportunity to define the features of the Neolithic cultures from Macedonia in several occasions; to Ivan Vaisov (Institute of Archaeology), John Robb (University of Cambridge) and Colin Renfrew (University of Cambridge) for the discussions and the suggestions about the Neolithic miniatures and the corporality; Robin Skeates (University of Durham) and Agni Prijatelj (University of Ljubljana) for the wonderful examples and the new perception of the Neolithic seals. My special gratitude goes to Jovanka Popova (University of Skopje) for her support and understanding; to Orhideja Zorova (University of Skopje) and Jana Kuhar (University of Skopje) for the translation; Dafina Gerasimovska (University of Skopje) and Maja Rusomaroska (Museum of Macedonia) for constant provision of the required literature from the libraries. I would also like to acknowledge David Davison for including this work in BAR, as well as to Trajan Gocevski (Dean of the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Skopje) who kindly funded the translation from Macedonian to the English language. Although all the above-mentioned researchers and institutions contributed hugely to the development of this book, my warmest gratitude and respect goes to Nikos Chausidis (University of Skopje), the professor from whom, over so many years, I have learned so much about the cognitive aspects of archaic cultures and the systematic approach towards exploring them. To him I am also most thankful for the numerous discussions that have given me a real understanding of the complex processes of the past, for the numerous recommendations of further publications of interest, and, lastly, for suggestions with regard to the required illustrations.

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List of Figures: Fig. 1. 1. Position of the Republic of Macedonia in Europe. Fig. 1. 2. Map of the Republic of Macedonia with regions mentioned in the text. Fig. 1. 3. Map of the Republic of Macedonia with sites mentioned in the text. Fig. 2.1. Indicated regions in the Republic of Macedonia where white painted pottery is recorded. Fig. 2.2. Çatal Höyük patterns on seals also present on Early and Middle Neolithic pottery from Macedonia: 1: Amzabegovo (Photo by author); 2, 3: Çatal Höyük (after Budja 2003, fig. 2); 4: Veluška Tumba (Photo by author). 1. – w. 10.7 cm; 2. – w. 4.7 cm; 3. w. 6.2; 4. – w. 4.1cm. Fig. 2.3. The compositional principles on the white painted vessels: 1 – 6: Amzabegovo (after Garašanin 1979, T. XIII: 1, 3, 6; Tasić 2006, figs. 3, 8; Korośec 1971, 135, fig. 1); 7, 8. Govrlevo (Drawing by author); 9. Nemanjica (Drawing by author). 1. – w. 21.1 cm; 2. - w. 19.8 cm; 3. – w. 25.1 cm; 4. – w. 10.2 cm; 5. – w. 10.3 cm.; 6. - no scale; 7. – w. 13.3 cm.; 8. – w. 12.4 cm; 9. – no scale. Fig. 2.4. Reconstruction of white painted composition from Veluška Tumba (Drawing by author). Fig. 2.5. The Four Rigid Motions in the Plane: translation, rotation, mirror reflection and glide reflection (after Washburn 1999, fig. 1). Fig. 2.6. Regional Neolithic comunities and their visual identities manifested through white painted pottery (Design by author). Skopje region (1 – 5: Govrlevo, 6 – 8: Zelenikovo); Polog (9 – 15: Stenče, 16: Dolno Palčište); Ovče Pole (17 – 21: Amzabegovo, 22: Nemanjica); Pelagonia (23 – 26: Veluška Tumba, 27, 28: Vrbjanska Čuka). Scales indicated in the list of plates. Fig. 2.7. Regional cultural unions developed in Middle Neolithic: I: Velušina – Porodin group; II: Amzabegovo – Vršn grik oup. Fig. 2.8. Middle Neolithic pottery from Amzabegovo – Vršnik group: 1 – 5: Madjari; 6: Gorobinci (Sanev 2004, T. III: 2, 3, 4; Zdravkovski 2006a, figs. 4, 5, 7). No scales in the publications. Fig. 2.9. Painted potttery from Mexico and Arizona (after Penney 1998, 122, 124; and Fewekes 1975, Pls. CXXI, b; CXLV, b). Fig. 3.1. Map of the Neolithic sites in the region of Skopje (after Zdravkovski 1995, 16). Fig. 3.2. Typology of patterns from Amzabegovo (after Gimbutas 1976, T. III). Fig. 3.3. Typology of patterns in the Amzabegovo - Vršnik Group (after Garašanin1979, Fig. 9). Fig. 3.4. House II from Govrlevo (photo by M. Bilbija). Fig. 3.5. Plan of the excavated dwellings in Madjari (after Moskalewska and Sanev 1989, 57). Fig. 3.6. White painted vessel from Madjari (Photo by the author). Scale indicated on figure. Fig. 3.7. Painted patterns and compositions from Mrševci (after Sanev 1989a, fig. 1). Fig. 3.8. Middle Neolithic cup from Mrševci (Photo by author). Scale indicated on figure. Fig. 3.9. Reconstructions of painted patterns and compositions from Zelenikovo (after Bregant 1968). Fig. 3.10. Painted ‘paw – like’ patterns on cups (Photos by author). Scale indicated on figure. Fig. 3.11 Biconic vessel from Zelenikovo (Photo by author). Fig. 3.12. Amphora like vessel from Zelenikovo (Photo by author). No scale. Fig. 3.13. White painted vessels from Zelenikovo (Photo by author). a. – w. 23.2 cm; b. – w. 13.3 cm. Fig. 3.14. Reconstruction of horizontal and vertical belts on the bigger amphora like vessel from Madjari (Drawing by author). Fig. 3.15. Amphora like vessel from Madjari (Photo by author). Scale indicated on figure. Fig. 3.16. Reconstruction of horizontal and vertical belts on the smaller amphora like vessel from Madjari (Drawing by author).

Fig. 4.1. Middle Neolithic cup from Madjari (Photo by author). Scale indicated on figure. Fig. 4.2. Several models of trade and exchange of goods (after Renfrew and Bahn 2000, 368). Fig. 4.3. Reconstructions of the Middle Neolithic rectilinear compositions (Drawing by author). Fig. 4.4. Basic constructive wholes of patterns painted on cups (Drawing by author). Fig. 4.5. Rectilinear compositions on Early and Middle Neolithic pottery (Drawing by author). Fig. 4.6. Patterns from the upper zones in the rectilinear compositions (Drawing by author).

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Fig. 4.7. Combination of curved and rectilinear patterns (Drawing by author). Fig. 4.8. Oblique patterns in the rectilinear compositions (Drawing by author). Fig. 4.9. Curved compositions on the Middle Neolithic cups (Drawing by author). Fig. 4.10. Upper zones with curved patterns (Drawing by author). Fig. 4.11. Fragment of Middle Neolithic cup from Madjari (Photo by author). Scale indicated on figure. Fig. 4.12. ‘Garland’ pattern in the curved compositions (Drawing by author). Fig. 4.13. Cluster of Y motifs in curved composition (Drawing by author). Fig. 4.14 Types of symmetry (after Hoder 2003, fig. 2, according to Washburn 1999, fig. 1): A) Translation; B) Double rotation; C) Horizontal mirror reflection; D) Reflection with ‘sliding’. Fig. 4.15. Modularity in the first zone of the rectilinear compositions (Drawing by author). Fig. 4.16. Reconstruction of a rectilinear composition from Zelenikovo (Drawing by author). Fig. 4.17. Reconstruction of curved composition from Govrlevo (Drawing by author). Fig. 5.1. Neolithic seals from the Republic of Macedonia: 1. Amzabegovo; 2. Golema Tumba – Trn; 3. Gorobinci; 4. Nikuštak; 5. Porodin; 6. Dolno Trnovo (Drawings by author). 1. – h. 1.9 cm; 2.- h. 3.5 cm; 3. – no scale; 4 – w. 6.3 cm; 5. – no scale; 6. – w. 4.6 cm. Fig. 5.2. Seals – figurines (1, 3, 5) and figurines with decoration on top: 1: Medvednjak (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 21); 2: Amzabegovo; 3: Kurilo (Todorova and Vajsov 1993, fig. 175.15); 4: Zelenikovo; 5: Szentes (Makkay 1984, fig. XXX. 1); 6: Gorobinci. Photos 2, 4, 6 by author and 4 by M. Tutkovski, Courtesy of Museum of Štip and Museum of Skopje. 1. – h. 6.2 cm; 2. – h. 12.4 cm; 3. – no scale; 4. – h. 4.2 cm; 5. – w. 4.5 cm; 6. – h. 8.3. Fig. 5.3. Excavated dwelling from Govrlevo (Photo by M. Bibija). Fig. 5.4. Wooden ‘contemporary’ seals (poskuri/šaralki) from Macedonia.1: Galičnik; 2: Misleševo; 3: Vevčani; 4: Vevčani; 5: Lazaropole; 6: Vevčani (Krstevska 2005, figs. 3, 8, 13, 21). Fig. 5.5. Ritual loaves from Bulgaria. 1, 6. Gorni Lom (Yaneva 1989, 81); 2. Trnovsko (Yaneva 1989, 83) . 3. Gabrovsko (Chausidis 2008b, Pl. VI. 7); 4. Maraški Trstenik (Chausidis 2008b, Pl. VI. 12) 5. Mihailovgradsko (Yaneva 1989, 82).

Fig. 6.1. Statistic data and sexual relation of published figurines from Republic of Macedonia. Fig. 6.2. Figurine with perforations and engravings on genital area: Ali Čair – h. 5.5 cm. (Kolištrkovska - Nasteva 2005, fig. 24). Fig. 6.3. Male and female figurines from Cernavoda (after Gimbutas 1982, figs. 247, 248). Male – h. 11.5 cm; Female – h. 11. 3 cm. Fig. 6.4. Perforated figurines from: 1. Stobi; 2, 4: Optičari and 3: Porodin (after Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, figs. 4, 6, 12, 15). 1. – h. 8.5 cm; 2 – h. 8.4; 3. – h. 10 cm; 4. – h. 6.2 cm. Fig. 6.5. The back side of the figurines from: 1, 2. Velušina; 3. Porodin 4. Dzuniver and 5. Gurgur Tumba (after Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, figs. 3, 5, 7, 11, 25). 1. - h. 6 cm; 2. – h. 7cm; 3. –h. 9.5 cm; 4. – h. 4.2 cm; 5. – h. 5.5 cm. Fig. 6.6. Principle of modeling on the Middle and Late Neolithic figurines from Aşaği Pinar (after Hansen 2004, fig. 1). Fig. 6.7. Depiction of the techinic details on figurines from Karanovo II – II (after Berger 2004, fig. 7). Fig. 6.8. Construction method of clay half – seated figurines from Dimitra (after Marangou 1997, Pl. 62). Fig. 6.9. Miniature from Madjari (after Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 16). Scale indicated on figure. 1. Protokorynth vase (Cermanović–Kuzmanović 1977, fig. 6); 2. Peru (Neumann 1963, Pl. 40); 3. Peru, Chausidis 2005, Pl. V15: 12); 4. New Guinea (Adаm 1963, Pl. 18).

Fig. 7.1. Later anthropomorphic vessels from Europe, Pacific and South America: Fig. 7.2. Fragment of anthropomorphic vessel from Amzabegovo (Photo by author). Scale indicated on figure. Fig. 7.3. Anthropomorphic vessel from Damjan (after Sanev 1996, 325). No scale. Fig. 7.4. Anthropomorphic foot of a vessel from Trn – h. 6 cm. (Simoska and Sanev 1976, fig. 191)

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Fig. 7.5. Anthropomorphic vessels from Hungary, Serbia and Bulgaria: 1. Ráckeve (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 66); 2. Medvednjak (Stalio 1977, fig. 165); 3. Tell Azmak (Gimbutas 1982, Pl. 63); 4. Galabnik (Chohadzhiev 2007, Pl.6: 1). 1. – h. 20.3 cm; 2. – no scale?; 3. – h. 6.9 cm; 4. – 6 cm. Fig. 7.6. Anthropomorphic vessel from Vršnik – h. 11.1 cm (after Garašanin 1979, Т. XIV: 1). Fig. 7.7. Prosopomorphic lid from Vinča – w. 13.7 cm (after Gimbutas M., 1989, fig. 88.3). Fig. 7.8. Burial of infant inside vessel from Kovačevo (Bačvarov 2004, fig. 1: 2). Fig. 7.9. Small vessel from Vrbjanska Čuka – 8.5 cm (after Temelkovski and Mitkoski 2005, T. XI, 43). Fig. 7.10. House – like urns from Azor (after Müller – Karpe 1968, Т. 108: 9, 11, 14). Scale 1 : 20 on reference plate. Fig. 7.11. Anthropomorphic storage construction from Toptepe - (after Özdoğan and Dede 1998, Pl. 1). Scale indicated on figure. Fig. 7.12. Anthropomorphic vessel from Kökénydomb – h. 23 cm (Gimbutas 1982, fig. 210). Fig. 7.13. Antrhopomorphic grain storage construction from Togo (Frelih , 2007, fig. 93). Fig. 8.1. Intramural burials from Lepenski Vir (after Budja 2004, fig. 20). Fig. 8.2. Infant burial next to the south wall of the dwelling in Madjari (photo by D. Karasialidis). Fig. 8.3. Neonate burials in the house 24, Lepenski Vir (after Borić and Stefanović 2004, fig. 10). Fig. 8.4. Exhumated burials inside the dwelling from Prodromos (after Baćvarov 2003, fig. 6.19). Fig. 8.5. Burial in the vessel next to oven, Azmak (after Bačvarov 2004, fig. 2). Fig. 8.6. Neonate burial iside the bag from Lepenski Vir (Borić and Stefanović 2004, fig. 13). Fig. 8.7. Burial inside pithos, Vardatski Rid (Papazovska 2006, fig. 3).

List of Plates: Plate I. Comparisons between Anatolian Lake District and Macedonia. Plate II. Pottery fragments from Amzabegovo – Vrśnik group. Plate III. Pottery fragments from Veluśina – Porodin group. Plate IV. White painted vessels from Pelagonia. Plate V. White painted pottery from Govrlevo. Plate VI. Rectilinear dark painted pottery from Govrlevo. Plate VII. Curved dark painted pottery from Govrlevo. Plate VIII. Rectilinear and curved dark painted pottery from Madjari. Plate IX. White and dark painted pottery from Zelenikovo. Plate X. Curved dark painted pottery from Zelenikovo. Plate XI. Clay stamps from the Republic of Macedonia. Plate XII. Clay stamps from the Republic of Macedonia. Plate XIII. Neolithic stamps from Greece. Plate XIV. Comparisons between stamp patterns from the Republic of Macedonia and Anatolia. Plate XV. Similar patterns represented on different types of material culture. Plate XVI. Seals, wall paintings and reliefs from Çatal Höyük. Plate XVII. Comparisons between patterns on seals and figurines. Plate XVIII. Comparisons between patterns on Neolithic and ‘contemporary’ stamps. Plate XIX. Models of bread loaves. Plate XX. Neolithic clay loaves from Govrlevo. Plate XXI. Palaeolithic figurines. Plate XXII. Neolithic figurines from the Republic of Macedonia. Plate XXIII. Neolithic figurines from the Balkans and Anatolia. Plate XXIV. Engraved genitalia on figurines from the Republic of Macedonia. Plate XXV. Engraved genitalia on figurines from Balkan Peninsula. Plate XXVI. Male figurines from the Balkans. Plate XXVII. Figurines modelled with hands on the abdomen. Plate XXVIII: Figurines modelled with hands on the breasts. Plate XXIX. Fragmented figurines from the Republic of Macedonia. vii

Plate XXX. Fragmented figurines from the Republic of Macedonia. Plate XXXI. Fragmented figurines from Greece. Plate XXXII. Fragmented figurines from Bulgaria. Plate XXXIII. Neolithic and Eneolithic figurines without heads. Plate XXXIV. Models of figurines – houses. Plate XXXV. Anthropomorphic vessels from South – East Europe. Plate XXXVI. Fragments of anthropomorphic vessels from the Republic of Macedonia. Plate XXXVII. Fragments of anthropomorphic vessels from the Republic of Macedonia. Plate XXXVIII. Anthropomorphic vessels from South – East Europe. Plate XXXIX. Anthropomorphic vessels from later prehistoric periods. Plate XL. Prehistoric urns from Europe. Plate XLI. Anthropomorphic vessels related to models of figurine – house. Plate XLII. Neolithic vessels with remainings of buried individuals. Plate XLIII. Models of anthropomorphic ovens.

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Introduction The numerous Neolithic finds from the territory of the Republic of Macedonia show an abundance of data which can be concentrated into different relations. They all approach certain ideas through which we partially or completely attempt to learn about the character of Neolithic populations, their way of life, as well as their mutual relations and the explaining of their surroundings. Thus, the remains of their architectural constructions provide data about the dwellings which were inhabited by these populations; the stone and bone tools speak about the way through which they prepared the necessary survival materials; and their ceramic objects allow us a deeper penetration into their efforts to cultivate their space, and thus, through this media explain the essential cognitive principles. Almost all these objects and constructions, produced or processed by human hand, were mutually intertwined with human activities and functioning, thus explaining the social relations which were included in the dynamic life of Neolithic communities. However one group of ceramic objects goes beyond the mere strengthening of these social relations and the development of the visual communication between the social groups. Within the context of the explored Neolithic settlements from the Republic of Macedonia, there have been discovered a large number of ceramic decorated vessels, figurines, seals, models of houses and ‘altars’, which directly communicated with the individuals and the groups, using the visual features of their form and surface. Thus, they were included inside the repertoire of the Neolithic visual culture through which numerous links and complex relations between the members of one or several communities were manifested. Accomplishing the basic level of the visual communication, all these objects further explained the Neolithic understanding and perceptions of the surrounding environment, but also of the symbolic processes which took place in the domain of one smaller or wider space. They were probably daily engaged in the mediating through which the Neolithic populations attempted to define the specific functions of the human body, but also the functions of the objects which they used. Therefore an amazing imaginary world of shapes and images was created, which built the visual iconography incorporated inside the very precise representations about the human’s role in the symbolic processes, as well as about his position in relation to the surrounding space. In this process the space with all its abstract manifestations was skillfully incorporated in the highest aesthetic levels of the material culture. In this way the elements which compose the Neolithic visual culture in the Republic of Macedonia represent an abundant introduction into the spheres which present the complex cognitive reality of the Neolithic populations. On one side it must be confessed that the Neolithic from the Republic of Macedonia is not widely familiar outside the frames of the Balkan archaeology, so that for some researchers this might represent a completely new introduction with the most elementary characteristics of the material culture. On the other side, a large part of the finds represented in the illustrations and elaborated in the several chapters, so far have not been presented, nor included in more detail research, so that on this occasion there was an endeavor to group them according to their basic features, and to elaborate them in context of the manifestations of the visual culture. Hence, on one place are presented probably the most crucial aspects of the Neolithic visual culture from Macedonia i.e. the patterns and the corporeality as most specific forms of expression in this prehistoric period. Although apparently unrelated due to their different visual sensibility, still the patterns and corporality were mutually included into the several forms of symbolical communication. While the patterns manifested several abstract ideas, the body was used in the transposition of the concrete messages. Still, both media were equally included inside the processes which defined the identity, the social relations and the symbolical concepts through which one culture, community, smaller social group or an individual is recognized or defined. Thereafter all the components which compound the Neolithic visual culture from the Republic of Macedonia were partially elaborated in different chapters. Inside this abundant imagery repertoire all objects which in their time were included in the domain of the symbolic communication were separated and elaborated: the decoration of painted vessels, Neolithic geometry, engraved patterns on the seals and their possible function, than the several aspects of the corporeality present on the figurines and the models of figurines - houses, the models of ovens, anthropomorphic vessels, as well as the burials practiced inside the dwellings, vessels and ovens, which in a specific way interweave with the concept of corporeality. Although mostly objects originating from Macedonia are given elaboration, still, since this region and its cultures are deeply linked to the synchronic visual and symbolic manifestations in the surrounding area, there are also used numerous Neolithic ceramic objects and burials from the region of Southeastern Europe. Thus, it was possible to confirm that the events in the domain of the visual culture from the Republic of Macedonia, sooner or latter were also present among the remaining regions of this wider area (Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece, Albania, etc.), and in certain stage Anatolia as ix

well. It is certain that all these visual occurrences contain specific local manifestations, which in this case benefited the defining of the numerous identities in this entire region. Consequently certain chapters accent exactly those aspects which in the material culture and in some of its visual features were used as a media through which the categories of identification were built, but which were also included in the symbolic communication. The first chapter gives a brief introduction and acquaintance with the territory of the Republic of Macedonia and its condition during the time of all Neolithic phases. Thus, all the Neolithic cultures acknowledged in this region and defined by the previous researchers are represented, furthermore clarified with their fundamental characteristics. In addition a map with the sites which were used in the text and the illustrations is enclosed, which will allow most readers to detect and locate the most significant settlements in which the complex processes of the visual culture took place. The next chapter elaborates the white painted vessels originating from whole territory of the Republic of Macedonia. Special accent is given to the characteristics of the patterns and their function in the building of the decorative compositions on the vessels. In this process there is an interpretation of several elements of the so called Neolithic geometry through which the potters of the period managed to dispose the patterns into visual entireties and to create a specific iconography. It is exactly this iconography which opens numerous discussions concerning the questions about the identity in the Early Neolithic, and about the way in which the patterns were used in the manifesting of the local insignias. Further this chapter elaborates the aspect of the visual transformations in the Middle Neolithic and the approach that this phase realizes the changes on the level of the material culture and the painted decoration. The third chapter begins accurately with the painted compositions from the Middle Neolithic. Here also is an elaboration of all integral elements which build one composition and the way that it was performed on the several vessel forms. In this context there are only the vessels and motifs elaborated which belonging to the settlements discovered in one defined region i.e. the region of Skopje, since this region, similarly to the most of the Macedonian regions, belongs to a cultural group which during the Middle Neolithic possessed similar visual display. Hence the painted patterns from the region of Skopje are selected as a reference for the events within the imagery level during this Neolithic phase, although partial imagery analyses are certainly possible for the remaining regions with similar compositional features. The next chapter continues to elaborate the Middle Neolithic painted compositions, but in this case the accent is given to the stylistic and the geometric aspects. At this point the strait-lined and the curve-lined compositions present on the painted jugs are defined, but also the patterns which are represented on the amphora like vessels. Furthermore, in certain scale there is an effort to elaborate the segments of the Neolithic geometry and the way in which through the patterns and their modularity it accomplishes precise functioning within the frames of the Neolithic iconography. In the chapter Imprints of the Neolithic Mind the ceramic stamps from the Republic of Macedonia and the patterns which are usually engraved on them are presented. Thus also enclosed are several possible analogies of these stamps with those from Anatolia and Greece, as well as their visual relations with the remaining elements of the material culture. Further also elaborated are certain semantic aspects of these objects which benefit their function, through the usage of several ethnographic data referring to the stamps used for decorating bread loaves. Especially relevant segments of this chapter are the hybrid forms of the stamps - figurines, which actually introduce the second part of this book. The second part of the book elaborates the concepts of corporeality present in the several ceramic figurative forms, but also in the burials. Thus this part begins with the chapter Neolithic Anthropomorphism in which gives detail explanation of the miniature anthropomorphic figurines and the models of figurine-houses. In addition there is an contribution to the statistic data of the gender affinity present in these objects, and on the manner in which it reflects in the ideas and the processes included in these objects. There is a special accentuation of their intermediating character within the social relations between the individuals and the communities, mostly through the deliberate fragmentation as a crucial segment of their dynamical functions. Their potent character of the visual emanation is accented through the hybrid anthropomorphic objects, which also include the models of figurine-houses. Accurately these objects represent an introduction in the next chapter which more broadly elaborates the theme of the hybrid forms. This chapter is dedicated to the anthropomorphic vessels from the Republic of Macedonia, placed in a wider context with those excavated in the Neolithic from the Southeastern Europe, but also in the remaining prehistoric periods. This general trait of the whole region gives a survey of the specific features x

of the anthropomorphic vessels and their gender features strongly enclosed within the symbolic background of the corporeality. Additionally, as semantically most adequate, there is accent on the involvement of the female body in the realization of this concept, which in this chapter is followed through numerous mythical forms and ethnographic examples. In this context there is a contribution to the rare practice of burying the infants inside vessels, so that there is a presentation of seemingly more abstract symbolic forms of the female body, performed through certain vessels for inhumation burials, or for preservation of the remains belonging to the cremated individuals. The last chapter, Housing the Dead, completes the concept of burying inside vessels, ovens and houses, but this time seen through the treatment of the human body included into several different contexts. At the center of this ritual practice are the dwellings in which these funeral rituals took place, but they are elaborated in the principles of the symbolic metamorphization of the components house and human. In this domain again is accented the element of the anthropomorphic hybridity as an essentially relevant segment in the more complex symbolic progression. Therefore this domain again includes the models of figurine-houses as a crucial reference in the interpretation of the more sophisticated forms of cognitive defining involving the human body and the space it inhabits. Generally this book compounds most of the elements engaged in the Neolithic visual culture which is detected on the territory of the Republic of Macedonia. Although all these themes demand further explorations and analyses, still here are represented the efforts to introduce the fundamental components of this specific category of the material culture. On one hand, the material as well as the visual culture of this region, are not sufficiently presented and known among the researchers of these archaeological issues, so that this monograph represent an attempt to show the highest aesthetical and ideal segments of the Neolithic populations which inhabited this region. But on the other hand, this book also elaborates the objects which emanated messages into different directions and were included in the different contexts of mediating. Their forms, details, as well as the decorated surface in that time clearly spoke of the identity of those people and their need to use mediums which defined and explained the complex processes between the individuals, communities, but also the complexity of the space in which they acted and existed. Certainly, it is on us to try and elucidate these dynamic spheres of communication and to contribute them in the clarification of the Neolithic populations. Therefore this book attempted to contribute in understanding the cognitive potential of the Neolithic cultures from the Republic of Macedonia, hoping that it will further benefit the future researchers in their efforts to define the functional and the symbolic aspects of the Neolithic visual culture.

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Chapter 1

Neolithic Cultures in the Republic of Macedonia As with previous époques, the entry into the Neolithic coincided with certain inventions that essentially changed the social and cultural structures of the Neolithic population inhabiting the Republic of Macedonia (Fig. 1. 1). Perhaps primarily because of more extensive exploration of the Neolithic, its cultural expansion within this territory is surprisingly distinguished from those of the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic. The abundance of Neolithic sites is probably a result of the intense scientific interest and researches of this period, but the possibility of a migration of the southeastern population, occurring at the beginning of the Neolithic, which changed the demographic picture of the region and automatically enlarged the population and number of settlements, should not be ignored. This is suggested by the ‘map’ of Neolithic cultures of the Balkans, which, with their specific and emphasized similarities, correlate to the socalled Balkan-Anatolian cultural complex (Garašanin 1979).

spatially disposes the Neolithic cultures into three regions: • North-Eastern Macedonian, represented by the Amzabegovo-Vršnik cultural group, primarily disposed in valley regions with settlements on the flattened ranges near the river valleys (Fig. 1. 2). This group includes parts of northern half of the Republic of Macedonia (i.e. Ovče Pole, Polog, Kumanovo, Skopje, Veles and Strumica regions), the north-eastern Albania (site of Kolsh), and west Bulgaria (the sites of Galabnik, Vaksevo, Balgaričevo, etc.). In some publications the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group is included as the most southern representative of the Starčevo group. • Pelagonian, with the Velušina-Porodin cultural group as its representative, and settlements disposed on the “tells” along the Crna Reka float. This group also encompasses parts of Polog region and territory of Pelagonia (Fig. 1. 2). In the Middle Neolithic phases part of this group is followed by the cultural group named as Trn. • Ohrid-Prespa region (Fig. 1. 2), with settlements on ‘tells’ placed in the valleys (during the Early Neolithic) and the palafits on the lake coast (during the Late Neolithic). Representatives in this region are the cultural group Zlastrana (Early Neolithic) and the Ustie na Drim (Late Neolithic). All these regions/cultural groups share the characteristic that they extend continuously over the whole Neolithic – Early, Middle, and Late. In the course of all three phases those elements which encompass the whole of one culture are present. Priority is given to the material culture and economic activities expressed through the production of ceramics and tools, as well as through the aesthetic and religious accomplishments manifested in the numerous decorated vessels, figurines, ‘altars’, models, seals, etc. Thus, in the Amzabegovo-Vršnik cultural group in the Early Neolithic phase (I a-c), the coarse monochromic ceramics usually decorated with barbotine and impresso technique dominates. The fine pottery, although less numerous, is qualitatively as good as the neighboring contemporary cultural groups Presesklo and Karanovo I. Thus, the monochromic red, fine pottery usually includes patterns such as triangles, steps, drops, meanders, and flowers with white decoration. As far as the figurines are concerned, they are often miniature anthropomorphic representations with accentuated proportions (Garašanin 1979).

Fig. 1. 1. Position of the Republic of Macedonia in Europe As part of this large cultural complex, the Neolithic of the Republic of Macedonia contains similarities with the neighboring Neolithic cultures, but it also possesses authentic characteristics, recognizable only in the Neolithic groups within this territory. The appearance and development of the numerous Neolithic settlements are primarily affected by the favorable climatic factors, the geomorphology and the agronomic potential of the territory. In this way the very configuration of the relief

1

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia the finger, while the pinching and ‘stinging’ appear characteristic of the impresso technique. Fine ware ceramics are polished, with red monochrome coloring, most often decorated with white patterns which also appear occasionally in the Amzabegovo-Vršnik I (triangles, ‘drops’, dots and ‘sigmas’ horizontally girdled). Among the most common figurative objects are ‘altars’ on high legs, with shallow recipient and applications of deer heads, as well as models in the form of a house with accented front sides. The most produced forms are the anthropomorphic females figurines with accentuated thighs, but zoomorphic representations of domestic animals are also present (Simoska and Sanev 1976). In the following phase, Velušina-Porodin II-IV, the Middle Neolithic population developed within the existing parameters, so that regarding ceramics the changes are not remarkable. Coarse ware vessels maintain the previous forms, but this time with rosettelike carvings, recessions and applications in the form of button-holes, while organized barbotine decoration is rare. On the fine ware pottery, especially plates, semicrescent motifs appear for the first time. In the same period we notice the manufacture of vessels on high bases, as well as semi-circle recipients and conical lids. However, the figurative forms differ from the traditional shapes, and although within the frames of the old repertoire, the ritual objects tend towards a more expressed naturalism. The models from the Middle Neolithic objectively represent the appearance of dwellings, but in place of the supposed ‘chimney’ there is a cylinder with an anthropomorphic face. These models are almost identical to their counterparts from Amzabegovo-Vršnik II-IV. Contacts with the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group are actually present in almost every segment of everyday life: the organization of settlements, the production of anthropomorphic and zoomorphic figurines, as well as tools made of stone and bone (Sanev 1995).

Fig. 2. 2. Map of the Republic of Macedonia with regions mentioned in the text. However during the Middle Neolithic (AmzabegovoVršnik II-IV), the artistic skills, as well as the way of life itself, were revolutionized. The repertoire of figurines enlarges, while the manufacture of anthropomorphic objects spreads. And for the first time models of figurinehouse are made, which only within the territory of the Republic of Macedonia exist as objects of specific construction (Sanev 1995). Pottery production during this phase is characterized by an abundance of new forms. Coarse ware ceramics begin to appear of higher quality, while the barbotine decoration on the jugs, pots, plates and especially on the askoi is presented in a more organised way. Fine ware ceramics also take on new and interesting shapes, in the form of jugs, amphorae and rounded plates. The decoration, besides the standard geometrical patterns, also includes motifs that end in the distinctive ‘paw’ shapes, as well as negative spirals (Sanev 1994).

During the Late Neolithic the Balkans was affected by large social and cultural changes, which strongly reflected on the region. Probably this is the reason why the territory of the Pelagonian and Ohrid regions, two different cultural groups, differentiated in this period. One is the Trn cultural group, which, by its characteristics, clearly differs from the previous phases of Pelagonia. Eastern Adriatic influences that reflect the decoration of the ceramic forms should not be neglected. The most common patterns are lozenges, triangles and squares filled with engraved net-like and parallel lines; wide bands filled with tiny dots and concentric canelures around the handles. The engraved patterns were filled with white color i.e. incustrated, in order to provoke a stronger visual effect. The other cultural group is the socalled Ustie na Drim, which mainly because of the way of life differ from the culture of the region (Fig. 3). As usual in these settlements the number of bone tools (harpoons, fish-hooks, awls) is enlarged, while the pottery shapes have a modest production. The vessels

During the Late Neolithic ceramic inventiveness gradually declines and vessels become uniform, while their decoration is slightly reminiscent of the Vinča culture. As a representative of this phase the cultural group Angelci-Zelenikovo II appears. The most common forms are the dark gray and dark brown monochrome shapes, decorated with incised wide belts in-filled with ‘stings’ and shallow canelures. The only invention being the deep plates with rounded profile and handles in the form of a horn. Production of the anthropomorphic female figurines was maintained, but in this period it is less numerous and miniature (Sanev 1995). The Pelagonian region, regarded as a divided entity, is also demographically active through all the phases of the Neolithic. Even in the 1st phase of the Velušina-Porodin cultural group, elements characteristic of the Early Neolithic appear. Among the most common coarse ware shapes are jugs, pots, rounded plates, and jars decorated with rough applications or vertical canelures, made using 2

The Neolithic Cultures in Republic of Macedonia usually have a polished surface and engraved ornaments filled with white color, which proves the relation to the Adriatic cultures, such as Blaz II and Kolsh III in Albania (Benac 1989).

four legs, and models of houses, pointing directly to the influences of the Velušina-Porodin group (Kuzman 1990; Kuzman et al. 1989). These contacts between the populations of different cultural groups (based on data available up until the 1990s), show that the populations did not define themselves as a part of some bigger, so-called ‘culturallysocial complex’, but as members of smaller and related tribal environments. They developed specific forms of communication, which were manifested through economic links and exchanges of ideas linked to ritual activities. In the following pages, emphasis will be given precisely to material culture as an essential factor in the realization of these relations, which not only outrun the elementary level of communication, but enter even more complex cognitive spheres and their symbolic manifestations.

Of interest in relation to this cultural group is that it belongs to a region which is treated as a unique cultural whole. It refers to the Ohrid region, in which, as well as Ustie na Drim (as Late Neolithic culture), there is also an Early Neolithic cultural group present (Zlastrana), where among the archaeological finds the monochrome pottery with impresso patterns often appears (shallow canelures, broken and thick lines in different directions). But, on the other hand, finds from the site in Dolno Trnovo (also within the definition of the Zlastrana group) have an entirely different character. Here the pottery production abounds with barbotine decorated vessels and painted with white color on red background, while the stylized female figurines are also present, as well as ‘altars’ with

Fig. 2. 3. Map of the Republic of Macedonia with sites mentioned in the text.

3

Chapter 2

Painted White: Stylistic diffusion of white-painted decoration and the development of Early Neolithic local identities

The beginning of the Neolithic in the Republic of Macedonia is often related to white-painted pottery and has been pointed as the main indicator of the Early Neolithic (Garašanin 2001; Sanev 1995, 29). Therefore all fragments containing white color were treated as a reference to the Early Neolithic, without fixing their stratigraphic position or comparing them to possible chronologic dating that should be performed at the sites where these ceramic fragments were found (Zdravkovski 2006a, 99–102). Nevertheless, white-painted patterns have not always found their identical analogies in the ceramic remains from Neolithic sites present on the whole territory of the Republic of Macedonia. Consequently Garašanin and Sanev have pointed these differences in their works and divided the Early and Middle Neolithic specific characteristics to sites that gravitate in the Amzabegovo–Vršnik group and ones that can be unified in the cultural group Velušina–Porodin (Garašanin 1979; Sanev 1994).

Thessaly. Especially noteworthy are the datings of sites in Topolčani and Nea Nikomedeia to the second half of the 8th millennia (Whittle et al., 2005, 348; Perles 2001, 108), although this data requires further revision. Regarding this chronological data, issues are raised about the motives for this abrupt and rapid ‘colonisation’ of the Pelagonia and Ovče Pole regions, as well as about the origin of the decorative patterns present on the Early Neolithic pottery from these areas (Fig. 2.1). A contribution to these issues comes from the newest discoveries about climate changes in the Near East and Anatolia that forced the local population in several short waves to ‘colonize’ very rapidly the area of the Balkan Peninsula (Perles 2001, 39–63; Keršak 2005, 82, 91). Some researchers state that there is an ideological basis for this mass migration of the population, which was closely related to climate changes, religion and economy (Settegast 2005; Cauvin 2002). Although these demographic movements and changes propose an even more detailed explanation of the Neolithization problem, this chapter exceptionally concentrates on the visual analogies that can be pointed to as possibly relating to the Anatolian population.

Therefore, this chapter aims to define style characteristics of white-painted decoration in Macedonia and to determine the decoration structures. By this it should be possible to elaborate the compositional structure of white design, its chronological variability and role as an indicator of the existence of a number of local identities within larger cultural groups. Considering the limited access to site data, as well as the insufficiently detailed reports found in recent journals or publications, all further analysis will be made on the level of typological characteristics of the painted patterns and compositions made available to this research directly (from museum collections) or indirectly (from publications).

The Origin of the Patterns A number of Early Neolithic pattern groups have been determined on the territory of the Republic of Macedonia. They have been related to those from Neolithic Thessaly and Anatolia, but on the other hand they also consist of authentic decorative features. It is interesting that before the beginning of white painting in Macedonia there are no documented phases of pre-ceramic or monochrome Neolithic. Consequently, the statements remain that the Neolithic indeed began in Macedonia with white painting as an already developed technological invention (Gimbutas 1976, 76; 412; Simoska and Sanev 1976, 14; Sanev 2004, 38; Tasić 2006, 164). According to the most recent reports, the beginning of the Neolithic in Ovče Pole dates between 6480 and 6220 cal BC (Reingruber and Thissen, on line; Tasić 2006, 163), a situation in close correlation to the sites of Northern Greece and

Fig. 2.1. Indicated regions in the Republic of Macedonia where white-painted pottery is recorded. In particular, some of the patterns present on Early Neolithic white-painted vessels in Macedonia can also be noticed in the material culture of Çatal Höyük, as well as in the early phases of sites from the Lake District region, Bademağaci and Kuruçay, as well as phases V–II of Haçilar (Pl. I; Fig. 2.2). Although these patterns underwent certain modifications in the process of 4

Painted White: Stylistic Diffusion of White Painted Decoration demographic expansion from Anatolia through Thessaly, still they maintain specific authentic characteristics. Most of these visual relations can be noticed on the level of similarities between stamp seals. A significant part of the patterns on the Çatal Höyük stamps are noticed on the stamp seals in Macedonia, although their analogies are present on sites in Thessaly and Northern Greece, i.e. the settlements included in the demographic expansion (Makkay 1984, 73 – 81; Budja 2003; Naumov 2008a). Although the presence of seals is related to the appearance of pottery in the Balkans, these small and portable objects served also as mobile ‘keepers’ of memories and visual tradition in the abandoned areas (Budja 2003, 119). In that context, a number of the specific engravings on the seals have been painted on some of the Early Neolithic vessels and they were maintained even until the Middle Neolithic phases of the black-painted pottery (Fig. 2.2: 1, 2). Part of the Early Neolithic painted patterns are related also to the wall painting of Çatal Höyük, which presents one of the most potent elements of symbolic expression and ‘archiving’ of current events. According to Hodder, these wall decorations appear less frequently in the upper levels of Çatal Höyük and as a result these elements are modified and transposed in the area of pottery decoration (Hodder 1990, 17). In this exact period part of these patterns appear in Macedonia as well, and very often on whitepainted vessels (Fig. 2.2: 3, 4).

eastern Europe (King and Underhill 2002; Budja 2004, 237). Certainly, within the domain of these penetrations of Anatolian and Near-Eastern populations, or their indirect manifestation, the Aegean influence should also be taken into consideration – especially the element of visual expression. In that context it can be stressed that, considering the typological and chronological parallels, the process of ‘visual Neolithization’ reached Macedonia through Thessaly, but only in the domain of patterns, while on compositional level, authentic structures are obvious to which no parallels existed in the neighboring regions of the Balkan Peninsula in their earliest phases.

Composition structures and patterns on the vessels with white painted decoration As it has been fairly emphasized by other researchers, white-painted pottery in Macedonia can be classified in two cultural groups: Amzabegovo-Vršnik (Ovče Pole, Polog and Skopje region) and Velušina-Porodin (Pelagonia and Ohrid region), although some of the patterns are found in both regions of Ovče Pole and Pelagonia (Sanev 1995, 40). Therefore this classification will also be referred to in this chapter.

Early Neolithic patterns and compositions of the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group In the hitherto existing presentations of the painted pottery of this group, the pattern characteristics have been emphasized most frequently, while composition marks have been ignored, except in rare occasions (Bregant 1968). In this chapter, patterns and compositions structures will be analyzed equally, although their presence in the Early Neolithic was limited to a couple of settlements. −

patterns:

As a result of the multitude of fragments found with white painting, at least ten can be distinguished. Most frequently found in Ovče Pole are inclined stripes with triangles, step-like triangles, zigzag lines, bent and vertical lines, angled lines positioned vertically or oppositely with the peaks to the front, as well as so called ‘vegetative’ patterns consisted of dots placed beside or on the line (Pl. II: 1-6). Part of these patterns, the stripes with triangles and the bent lines especially, are noticed also on some fragments from the Polog region (Pl. II: 10 - 12), although this region is considered to have gravitated to the Velušina-Porodin region in its earliest phases (Zdravkovski 2006a, 100). Apart from the regular repertoire of patterns, completely different patterns are applied in the Skopje region, where netted stripes and doubled triangles dominate (Pl. II: 7-9), which consequently, raise questions about their early chronological determination.

Fig. 2.2. Çatal Höyük patterns on seals also present on Early and Middle Neolithic pottery from Macedonia: 1: Amzabegovo; 2, 3: Çatal Höyük; 4: Velušina. The appearance of triticum monococcum and triticum dicoccum, the presence of specific kinds of goat and sheep, red and white color wall painting, construction with mudbricks, as well as the frequent burials of individuals of the Mediterranean type in the Early phases of Amzabegovo, resemble the Anatolian traditions (Hopf 1961; Sanev 2004, 36; Gimbutas 1976, 68; Bačvarov 2003, 223–248; Naumov 2007a; Mellart 1976, 99; Veljanovska 2000, 45; Veljanovska 2006). Even more, the recent analyses of the Y-chromosome haplotypes confirmed the migrations and the presence of 20-25% DNA lineages from the Near-East and Anatolia in south-

In that context, also interesting are the white-painted fragments from the newly discovered site of Pista-Novo 5

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia Selo. The vessels in the several layers of the settlement are painted with typical Middle Neolithic patterns, but with white color (Pl. II: 4), so that they can be classified as Middle Neolithic, but painted with an Early Neolithic technique which remained a later tradition. However, the same patterns can be pointed as an Early Neolithic presage for what would later become a usual Middle Neolithic style expression. −

Early Neolithic, (ii) an ‘announcement’ i.e. a prior phase to the following Middle Neolithic compositions, (iii) a typical Middle Neolithic composition that maintained the old tradition of white painting, very rare and almost extinguished in the phases of Amzabegovo-Vršnik II-IV.

Compositions:

As a result of the multitude of fragmented pottery, it is difficult to make a complete description of the compositions on white-painted vessels. However, several whole (reconstructed) pots there have been discovered in this group which can be used for defining the composition systems in Early Neolithic. Parts of the pots found in the early levels of Amzabegovo indicate the existence of three or four composition schemes. The simplest one is the composition scheme constructed of zigzag lines. In this composition one zigzag line is used as a pattern which is replicated all over the body of the pot (Fig. 2.3: 1). In the rest of the compositions, the horizontal arrangement is applied by using two ‘vegetative’ patterns with different functions. One of the patterns, consisting of a vertical stripe of angled lines, actually serves as a model in order to create two larger areas in which the central ‘floral’ pattern is positioned, duplicated on the other side of the pot as well (Fig. 2.3: 2). The third type of compositions uses another stylized pattern as an outline, but consist of empty areas where scaled triangles and inclined stripes with triangles are positioned alternately beside the outline (Fig. 2.3: 3).

Fig. 2.3. The compositional principles on the white painted vessels from Amzabegovo (1-6); Govrlevo (7, 8) and Nemanjici (9).

Patterns and compositions from the VelušinaPorodin group Unlike the painting tradition in the Ovče Pole, Skopje Plain and Polog region, white-painted pottery in Pelagonia is produced equally in Early and Middle Neolithic. Furthermore, black-painted patterns are almost omitted in Velušina-Porodin group’s Middle Neolithic, with the exception of several fragments from Porodin (Grbić 1960, T. XLI).

In the examples mentioned above, the so-called horizontal belt arrangement of the composition is applied, although in the domain of white painting the vertical belt arrangement is present, and it is very specific for the Middle Neolithic within the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group (Naumov 2005a, 68 - 71). This composition structure consists of at least two belts in which different types of patterns are positioned. In Amzabegovo there is a multitude of fragments with white painted patterns present, randomly arranged in the first belt (the rim). One pot has been found containing this composition (Korošec 1971), which unfortunately can not be defined as white painted because of insufficient documentation (Fig. 2.3: 6).

−

Patterns:

Recently there are a number of interpretations for the chronological data and arrangement of white-painted patterns in Pelagonia and its surrounding (Grbić 1960, 93; Simoska and Sanev 1976; Temelkoski and Mitkoski 2005, 51; Whittle et al. 2005, 348). However, a general conclusion can be made that despite the difference of shapes, they appear equally in the Early and Middle Neolithic (Sanev 1995, 41). Most frequent patterns are stretched triangles, step-like triangles and lines, triangles with lozenges, lozenges in negative, C and З patterns, multiple cross, as well as the so called ‘drops’ (Pl. III). It can be noticed from this pattern repertoire that they are almost comparable to the white-painted patterns in the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group.

Considering hitherto the only indubitable example from Govrlevo, it leads to the conclusion that this type of composition in the upper first belt consisted of connected triangles, while in the larger belt below netted angled stripes were positioned (Fig. 2.3: 7). Considering the pattern and belt arrangement, this composition is unusual for Early Neolithic white painting in Ovče Pole and Pelagonia, and it can be treated as: (i) exclusive for the

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Painted White: Stylistic Diffusion of White Painted Decoration

Fig. 2.4. Reconstruction of white-painted composition from Velušina (drawing by author). −

patterns (designs composed of regularely repeated elements). This way compositions are developed by the symmetries i.e. rigid motions that generate the patterns due to four elementary constructive movements: translation, rotation, mirrorreflection and glide reflection (Washburn 1999, 549) (Fig. 2.5). The geometrical approach implies that a number of psychological levels of clear perception and space organization were intensified through the decoration. Clearly, this mental potential reflected and intertwined with the other elements of social existence: settlement and habitats organization, definition of the hierarchical system, exchange of goods and the elements of religious practice and symbolic communication. Therefore it can be estimated that the semantic character of these painted compositions were incorporated in the spheres of social mediation.

Composition:

The composition domain is where the most significant differences are noticed between the Velušina-Porodin and neighboring groups. In Pelagonia, the belt division of the compositions vaguely exists, but only as organization of patterns in groups and areas (Pl. IV). A vertical disposing of patterns is noticed in the most simple compositions, and usually by multiple horizontal stripes of one pattern, vertically positioned all over the vessel, or only on the rim, the end of neck and around the handles (Pl. IV: 1-4, 9). Nevertheless, there is highly more precise positioning of patterns in the more compound and seemingly unorganized compositions, developed from several elements. Still, these complex large patterns are actually duplicated on the other side of the vessel creating entities on the whole surface (Pl. IV: 8; Fig. 2.4).

Neolithic eurhytmia Stylistic and morphological analyses of the motifs demonstrate that they are made very precisely and according to a scheme determined beforehand that positioned patterns symmetrically. Thus, the symmetry was used as a fundamental principle which disposes the patterns in organized compositions, that way establishing the sense of eurhytmia i.e. the harmony of the parts into one entity. In spite of the fact that some authors consider that these patterns and their arrangement are of entoptic origin (Lewis-Williams and Pearce 2005, 120 – 122; Budja 2004a, 62), there still has to be taken in consideration the geometrical flexibility of these patterns and their capability to be mathematically arranged on one concrete surface i.e. composition (Naumov 2005a, 71). The linear structures that build the composition are called modules and the symmetrical arrangement of the composition is constructed by their permutation and transposing. These principles of modularity, generative grammar, symmetry and asymmetry have been analyzed by several authors who emphasize the mathematical – logical approach of pottery decoration (Hagstrum 1985; Jablan 1989; Jablan 1995; Radović, on line; Washburn 1999; Hodder 2003, 61 - 74). Consequently, an Euclidean geometry was engaged, thus providing the structure of

Fig. 2.5. The Four Rigid Motions in the Plane: translation, rotation, mirror reflection and glide reflection (after Washburn 1999, fig. 1). 7

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia Thessalian patterns, but deployed in completely new compositions, thus creating an authentic decoration system which emphasized their local features and visual identity (Naumov 2005a).

Compositional structures as manifestation of the community’s identity Morphological and stylistic analysis demonstrates that white painted compositions in Macedonia were a result of firmly established rules of decoration. The creation of such rules indicates that in one settlement or culture these patterns were repeated for a long period. During the Early Neolithic, some of the compositions were applied for at least 200 years, while in the Middle Neolithic some compositions were maintained for around 400 years. As Nikolov suggests, during a continuity of 450-500 years there was change of some 27-30 generations that applied painted decoration as a system of communication (Nikolov 2003).

Consequently, Pelagonian design was specific only for that region: complex compositions with bent lines and triangles, С and З patterns, lozenges, dots, angled stripes, replicated crosses, etc. (Fig. 2.6). Although some of these patterns were used in Ovče Pole as well, they were developed in completely different compositions. The disposition and invention of new patterns, as well as the horizontal organization of compositions with zigzag and ‘vegetal’ patterns and step-like triangles indicate that the population of this region had a sense for visual ‘isolation’.

The long existence of painted patterns and compositions indicates that they were used as an essential element for preserving the tradition of the community. In that context, the tradition is a result of the creation of visual memory which strengthens the community’s identity. On one hand, painted vessels were used as an element of symbolic communication among the members of one community, but on the other hand, it created the visual identity of that community. In addition to this, there are stylistic analyses that point to the affinity of a certain community in a certain region towards concrete patterns and compositions. Considering the fact that Neolithization within the territory of Macedonia was a rapid process, it can be noticed that this rapid demographic or cultural activity built new local identities. This settling was probably performed by a group of several individuals who populated a defined area and independently, or in contact with the natives, created new settlements in which the elements of local identity were developed. Although these settlements were based on general Neolithic acquisitions (agriculture, cattle breeding, architecture and pottery), in the domain of mobile mediums authentic local features were developed. Therefore, it can be noticed that the Early Neolithic communities which were created in Pelagonia, Ovče Pole, Polog and Skopje Plain maintained some of the

In contrast to these two regions, completely new patterns and compositions appear in the Skopje Plain, including bound triangles and netted stripes. It is still too early to stress that they were synchronic with those from Ovče Pole, or that they as Early Neolithic tradition belongs to Middle Neolithic painted vessels. Similar patterns were also painted in Polog, except for the shards from Stenče where stretched triangles and stripes with triangles both resemble those from Pelagonia and Ovče Pole sites (Fig. 2.6). Regarding the patterns of stretched triangles, there are several indications which enable even chronological determination of this phase of the site. Although Stenče, because of its white painted pottery, is often established as an Early Neolithic site (Zdravkovski 2005, 25), still this pattern allows a later occupation of the settlement. Namely, at the site of Vrbjanska Čuka, dated to the Middle Neolithic, there are identical stretched patterns to those from Stenče (Pl. III: 9; Fig. 2.6: 9, 10), which indicates that if there were any communications between the Pelagonian and Polog plains, then they occurred in the Middle Neolithic. Despite the hypothesis that the process of Neolithization in the Republic of Macedonia was dispersed from Pelagonia to Polog and than to the Skopje region and Ovče Pole (Zdravkovski 2006a, 99, 100), this visual relation indicates that this is not the case.

Fig. 2.6. Regional Neolithic communities and their visual identities manifested through white painted pottery. 8

Painted White: Stylistic Diffusion of White Painted Decoration Furthermore there are few more Middle Neolithic white painted patterns from Pelagonia which were synchronically painted in the Skopje region. The lozenges from Pelagonia (Optičari, Porodin: Pl. III: 8, 12) were painted on ceramic lids which are determined as specific Middle Neolithic trait for Velušina-Porodin II-IV (Sanev 1995, 41), although this pattern also appears at the Middle Neolithic site of Vrbjanska Čuka (Pl. III: 10). This pattern in identical manner was disposed on two vessels from Zelenikovo (Fig. 3.13), to date the only settlement with such a unique decoration for the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group. Considering that this site was occupied in the Middle and Late Neolithic, it may be stressed that white painting remained as provisional for the Middle Neolithic within the Skopje and Polog plains. In addition, a few more white-painted fragments from Zelenikovo and Madjari, dated to the Middle Neolithic, suggest that white painting was not exclusive to the Early Neolithic (Pl. IX: 1-3; Fig. 3.6). The possible slight relation between the Pelagonia and Skopje regions is also visible in the range of ‘paw-like’ patterns, which are thought to be characteristic of the Middle Neolithic for the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group. The variations of this pattern were present both in Optičari and Zelenikovo (Pl. III: 10; Fig. 3.10), but also in the remaining sites of the Skopje region (Pl. VII: 8; Fig. 3.7; Fig. 4.11). These visual similarities assert that between the regions there was a certain pattern of communication that developed in the Middle Neolithic, although in this phase both the Amzabegovo-Vršnik and Velušina-Porodin groups deployed authentic and unique visual features.

differences in the selection of patterns and building of the compositional structures, i.e. what is typical for Ovče Pole is not present in the Skopje Plain (Fig. 2.6). Nevertheless, there are seemingly sudden changes in the domain of painted decoration in the Middle Neolithic. In all sites from the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group where different designs were present in the Early Neolithic, new unified compositions in brown and black color began to be painted (Fig. 2.8). In the Amza II phase, dots, step-like triangles and ‘vegetal’ patterns painted in white abruptly disappear. In almost all of the settlements of the upper territory of the Republic of Macedonia, compositions are painted in two vertical belts, including small and elongated triangles, vertical lines and spiral patterns (Naumov 2005a, 68-71) (Fig. 2.8). Recently, it can be noticed that only on the white-painted vessels from Govrlevo and Pista-Novo Selo there are eventual presages for the compositional structures from the Middle Neolithic (Fig. 2.3: 7; Pl. II: 4).

Fig. 2.8. Middle Neolithic pottery from AmzabegovoVršnik group: 1-5: Madjari; 6: Gorobinci (Sanev 2004, T. III: 2, 3, 4, and Zdravkovski 2006a, figs. 4, 5, 7). But in contrast to these regions, Pelagonian Middle Neolithic was unaffected by the design changes. The communities still retain white painting and change the repertoire of patterns and compositions only slightly. Still it remains interesting that in spite of this generalization of new compositions in the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group and maintaining the decoration traditions in Pelagonia, the settlements in these regions maintained certain symbolic communication in the domain of beliefs and figurine production. At the beginning of the Middle Neolithic specific clay models of figurine-houses were produced in both of the above mentioned regions (Pl. XXXIV). Although some regional and typological characteristics can be noticed in the sculptural expressions (Chausidis 2007; Naumov 2006a, 66; Naumov 2007a, 258), they integrate identical morphological and semantic features. This shows that in spite of the established communication, these communities used vessels in order to emphasize their authentic visual identity. Hence, the question about the semantic character of the painted decoration remains open, i.e. were they bearing the

Fig. 2.7. Regional cultural unions developed in the Middle Neolithic: I: Velušina-Porodin group; II: Amzabegovo-Vršnik group.

Visual transformations in the Middle Neolithic The settlements from these different regions existed partially at the same time, hence it can be assumed that there was an intention to emphasize the elements of visual identification. Even inside the domain of what will be later developed as the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group (Fig. 2.7), in the Early Neolithic there are perceptible 9

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia common idea communities?

despite

belonging

to

Social and symbolic semantics decoration as a conclusion

different

of

idea, but considering the identical elements of socioeconomic existence, it can be assumed that all these cultures were intended to represent similar perpetual processes.

the

The ethnoarchaeological and anthropological researches within the territories of the Prehistoric cultures of the Anasazi and Hohokam in North America, as well as that of Hopi and Zuni, show that these populations existed in similar economic circumstances and developed similar iconography painted on the vessels (Fig. 2.9). These populations depended on the cultivation of corn and consequently most of the painted patterns on pottery were related to the essential and complex significance of corn, but also including the logical relation between clouds, thunder and rain, and their important role for providing crops (Appleton 1971; Fewekes 1973, 154; Penney 1998, 120-122; Washburn 1999, 556-558). It is interesting that some of the patterns present on Neolithic vessels from Macedonia and Balkans, are almost identical to those on Prehistoric and recently painted pottery from New Mexico and Arizona. There are even similarities on the level of economy (grains) and social organization (tribes), making it possible to perform consistent and comparative analyses on the level of semantic significance of the design.

Stylistic analyses of the design show that the basic concept of the composition construction is symmetry. It is used for the disposition of the patterns and building the horizontal and vertical structure of the composition. Symmetry is a basic element of the perception of nature, and man uses these visual principles in every attempt to transpose it. The patterns and symmetry are also used as visual metaphor in the representation of the essential principles of one culture. In addition to this, one culture uses the symmetrical structure of patterns as an element of metaphoric transposition of the ideological principles over an artistic medium i.e. pottery. The role of the visual metaphor is fundamental for maintaining the basic codex and deepest concepts of the culture. Specific symmetry used for metaphoric visualization of the culture’s permanent values differs between cultures, depending upon the different approach toward the conceptualization of the essential life-processes and relations (Eber-Stevens 1980, 121-160; Chausidis 1994, 39-67; Washburn 1995, 14, 51; Washburn 1999, 548-553; Golan 2003, 259-269; Chausidis 2005, 16-129). Therefore, durable mediums are usually used as an ‘archive’ of these cognitive elements. These recognitions of the personal culture and also the world in which it exist, are most often in relation to beliefs, rites, cosmology and religion in general.

Through further stylistic and semantic analyses it can be determined if the model of metaphorical visualization could be applied in defining the Neolithic design. That way we can confirm or deny whether or how it functioned in the Neolithic cultures in the Republic of Macedonia. Already elaborated geometrical structures of decoration, as well as conceptual features of Neolithic anthropomorphic vessels are of exceptional importance (Naumov 2006a; Naumov 2008b); so that all information gained throughout comparative analysis with archaic tribal cultures abroad the world might contribute towards the explanation and understanding of the painted compositions on the Neolithic vessels.

The Neolithic white-painted pottery also generates metaphoric cognizance of the cultures and their surrounding. It is even noticed that this visual approach has specific local features in every region, so it leads to the conclusion that several authentic concepts existed in Pelagonia, Ovče Pole and Skopje Plain. It is still difficult to say whether these concepts were related to a common

Fig. 2.9. Painted potttery from Mexico and Arizona (after Penney 1998, 122, 124; and Fewekes 1975, Pls. CXXI, b; CXLV, b).

10

Chapter 3

The Middle Neolithic Decoration of Painted Vessels from the Skopje Region Man had always attempted to create an imaginary space where he could interpret reality in a different way, transforming it, complementing it and all that is visible and invisible in it will be included in a new, intuitively very strong vision of his surrounding and the world. Guided by the need to enrich the existing position and to introduce narration, he creates new media in which he incorporates partial systems, thereafter explaining the function of the nature and the human’s place in it. After the ability to speak, the visual interpretation of the reality is probably the most powerful media through which the cognition of the world remains permanently ‘engraved’.

complex painted compositions in its middle phase, till the Late Neolithic when this technique of patterning was rapidly replaced and transformed in the field of the engraved decoration. Thus, in the wider period of the Neolithic, the painted patterns are constantly present especially on the vessels with the highest technical production. Their presence on these vessels points that these patterns, as well as the vessels, were treated with consideration and processed a significant role in the life of the Neolithic communities, whether they were patterns with purely decorative role or with a certain visual semantics.

Thus even the ceramic vessels, besides their utilitarian function become mediators between their creator and the nature that creates. Primarily because of their aesthetical character, man painted these vessels in order to make his environment more beautiful, but also in order to add a part of the surrounding on them, a sensation especially present and powerful in the Neolithic, time when the ceramic compound of clay becomes a necessary for existence. Thus, not by chance, even Pittioni will try to name this époque ceramicum (Pittioni 1950), referring to it as a time when this rapid dispersion of vessel creation becomes as basic as the points of existence, communication and esthetical expression of man and his ideas.

Pottery production in the Skopje region The geographical convenience of the Skopje valley, even in the Neolithic, enabled the creation and development of settlements all over its territory. The fertile soil, the presence of several rivers and the suitable climate were sufficient enough for those populations to start the embryo of the communities which will create a distinguishing, recognizable culture with identity features that are composed on aesthetically high level. So far the archaeological excavations of the region of Skopje have registered 14 Neolithic settlements (Arheološka Karta 1996, 362-387), not including the new discovered settlements that had not yet been published. The number of the settlements asserts that in the Neolithic this region had a completely developed life. It is very interesting that the settlements mostly originate from the Middle Neolithic, but certainly this conclusion is not contributed by the small number of the so far conducted excavations with tiny probes. From the total number of Neolithic settlements in this region, only four sites have been systematically excavated: ‘Slatina’Zelenikovo (Galović 1967; Garašanin and Spasovska 1976; Garašanin and Bilbija 1988), ‘Cerje’-Govrlevo (Georgiev and Bilbija 1984; Bilbija 1986), ‘Tumba’Madjari (Sanev 1988) and ‘Sredselo’-Mrševci (Sanev 1989a), with the exception of ‘Tumba Bošnjaci’-Čair whose results have not yet been published. As far as the other sites, the information referring to their archaeological character are known only by prospection, and that is why their time continuousness can not be precisely determined.

The painted patterns make the basic element of the visual expression and the aesthetical principles. The logical disposition of the motifs and the sense of symmetry transformed in a complex composition, reflect a new, developed level of rational perceiving the geometrical and organic forms. In the Neolithic these free-standing geometric forms become precisely arranged in one organized system of patterns, properly inserted in different unique compositional structures. In a matter of fact, as it shall be elaborated below, especially the basic decorative forms have its evolution since the earliest beginnings of the Neolithic and until its latest phases. In certain stages certain patterns dominate above others so that their variations and combinations with other motifs become distinguishing for certain phases of the Neolithic. Thus, the Neolithic patterns can be treated also as a sort of ‘alphabet’ in the Neolithic. Their characteristics can successfully distinguish the phases of the Early, Middle and Late Neolithic, thus giving a specific image of the aesthetical concepts of the former population and in general for their cognitive development in the Stone Age.

Although in small number, the existing excavations of these several sites in the region of Skopje offer enough material and information for the determination of the chronological and the cultural belonging of these settlements. With the exception of the site of ‘Cerje’Govrlevo that (not including the layers belonging to the Metal Ages) gravitates from the Early Neolithic to the Late Neolithic (Bilbija 1986), the remaining settlements exist through the Middle and Late Neolithic, or even

The painted patterns on vessels compose a large percentage of the artefacts belonging to the Neolithic cultures in the Republic of Macedonia. The distinguishing decorative forms, their diversity and abundance of inventive designs are present from the oldest, earliest phases of the Neolithic, through the 11

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia ‘Tumba’-Madjari whose stabile existence is evident only in the Middle Neolithic (Sanev 1988). It is important to note that the systematic excavations elaborated outside this territory share similarities with the archaeological material belonging to the region of Skopje. In this way the sites from Polog, ‘Tumba’-Dolno Palčište (Saržoski and Zdravkovski 1991); the sites from Veles region, ‘Mramor’-Čaška (Jovćevska 1993) and those from Kumanovo region, ‘Amam’-Lopate (Sanev 1996, 212) and ‘Na Breg’-Mlado Nagorichane (Zdravkovski 1988) because of the cultural and chronological proximity to the material from the region of Skopje, can be defined as a separate variant in the borders of the Amzabegovo-Vršnik cultural group. But for clear evidence, based on firmer arguments, the elaboration of this chapter will concentrate on the settlements from the core of the Skopje Valley. That is also why the base of the pattern shapes and the typology will be elaborated through the pottery material from the sites on Zelenikovo, Govrlevo, Madjari and Mrševci. Although the mentioned material is poorly or not completely published, compared to the possibilities of the terrain excavations, still it is possible to create an elementary typological and chronological survey of the patterns from the region of Skopje and their relation to the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group and the eventual continuity within the Starchevo group (Korošec 1965, 168, 170; Bregant 1968).

character were usually decorated with a relief. A distinguishing specific belongs to the askos, with a form that is characteristic for the region of Skopje (Sanev 1994, 31; Fidanovski 2008). The vessels with a coarse and semi-coarse fabric in the Early Neolithic were usually imprinted with impresso patterns and engraved lines, while in the Middle Neolithic appears the barbotine, which can be randomly spread or organized in irregular or arcade disposition. The impresso and the engraved lines continue to be used as a common pattern through the Middle Neolithic also. The Late Neolithic appears as an entirely new stage in the way of life, so that is why it provokes certain changes in the material culture. In this period the vessels are given biconic forms, while the shallow canelures and the engraved lines with dotted indentations, sometimes incrustrated, become features of the decoration (Garašanin 1979, 93, 95). The fine pottery made of refined clay also possesses certain basic shapes that in the course of different stages vary. Thus, for the Early Neolithic the bowl-like vessels with a low bottom or with several short legs are characteristic, while in the Middle Neolithic on the bottom of the vessels one central high leg bearing the recipient is placed, that way representing the cup as the most typical vessel for this Neolithic phase. In the Late Neolithic, just like the case of utilitarian ceramics, the vessels with a finer fabric involves biconicity which breaks the basic forms. The semi bowl-like vessels are modelled with handles twisted above, while the amphorae, which are also present in the Middle Neolithic, in this period are modelled with longer, angular shape with handles placed in the position of the shoulder and up to the rim of the vessel (Sanev1995, 29–33). The decoration on the majority of coarse vessels consists of small shallows and applications, but without exception the most representative decorative technique of the fine vessels is performed with painting. The colour is applied using brush or some other tool on the smooth, usually red surface. It is characteristic that the patterns in the Early Neolithic are mostly painted with white colour, while in the Middle Neolithic they are created with the use of dark-red, brown and black colour.

Fig. 3.1. Map of the Neolithic sites in the region of Skopje (after Zdravkovski 1995, 16).

It can be noticed that the pottery production maintains the basic forms in the course of all the developing phases of the Neolithic. Their shapes very objectively refer to the practical character of the vessels and their function in the everyday life of the Neolithic people. That way it is possible to define a larger and wider image about the character of the population from the region of Skopje, regarding the quantity of their creative potential and its role in the conception and enrichment of the utilitarian environment, especially perceived in the relation between the form and decoration of the vessel. The abundance of pottery shapes and the disposition of the decoration doubtless point to the fact that the visual appearance of the vessel was appropriately related to its function, therefore including the practical or ritual use of the vessels.

As far as the Neolithic in the region of Skopje is concerned, it almost completely follows the elements of the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group, even chronologically in all the phases. Typologically, the vessels are almost identical to those on the eponymous sites of Amabegvo and Vršnik. Thus their way of production, including the architecture and the figurative sculpture, does not accidentally establish the region of Skopje as a NorthWestern zone of this cultural group. This is proven also by the way of decorative approach on the vessels, equally on the utilitarian and the fine ceramic. Within the utilitarian ceramic the most usual forms are amphorae, bowl-like vessels, jugs, jars, pots, shallow and deep basins, which mostly because of their practical 12

The Middle Neolithic Decoration of Painted Vessels from the Skopje Region

The painted patterns in the developing phases of the Neolithic

Painted Patterns The painted vessels were a media through which the creative potential of their creators was probably most suitably carried out and remain permanently preserved. The patterns were represented on the vessel with special attention, which is highlighted by their organized disposition on the most characteristic parts of the vessel. The sense of symmetry, rhythm, shaping of motifs and their linking into a composition, entirely speaks about the developed principle toward the surface of the vessel and certainly about the preceding forming of the aesthetic, which powerfully effected the creation of the pattern shapes. The abundance of shapes once more confirms the invention in the course of the entire Neolithic of the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group, which still remains a basic reference of the typological and the chronological survey of the patterns from the region of Skopje.

In the course of the Neolithic as a whole, several basic forms were in use, through which an objective microchronological division of the Neolithic can be made, as in the Amzabegovo-Vršnik cultural group, thus in the region of Skopje also. Although some of them are partially present in several phases of the Neolithic, yet the concentration of the most characteristic patterns forms the chronological limits of the developing periods. For the Early Neolithic of the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group in all its phases (I a, I b, I c), the most typical are the white-painted patterns, mostly triangles, net-like fields, geometrized leafs and buds, egg-shaped motifs, a row of dots ‘embroidered’ on a white line creating abstract floral patterns (Gimbutas 1976, 37, 43), or meanders, meandered motifs, motifs of drops, vertical and zigzag motifs, floral and twist-lined motifs in combination to others (Garašanin 1979, 92), then the so called ‘eyes’ or crescent patterns, not painted in the inner part, the freely dispositional motifs of triangles and bands which even pass over in the phase Amzabegovo-Vršnik II in the Middle Neolithic (Garašanin 2001). In the Middle Neolithic the white painting is maintained, but much less widely used. Some of the patterns from the early Neolithic are also present in the Middle Neolithic, only this time they are painted with darker colours: dark red, brown and black. In the course of the beginning Middle Neolithic phase Amzabegovo-Vršnik II (Garašanin 1989, 28) the most used patterns are dots, nets and the triangles. Dark painted patterns predominate in this period, but concerning the types of patterns that are most characteristic for Amzabegovo-Vršnik II-IV the researchers of the Neolithic still offer different interpretations. M. Garašanin in his work places the vertical parallel lines that alternate into thicker and thinner at Amzabegovo-Vršnik II (Garašanin 1979, 94; Garašanin 2001), while M. Gimbutas and V. Sanev determine alternated triangles into Amzabegovo-Vršnik III (Gimbutas 1976, 48; Sanev 1994, 31). According to Gimbutas, in the phase of Amzabegovo-Vršnik II curved and spiral patterns appear. For the first appearance of the spiral and the curved patterns painted in negative, Garašanin points to the phase Amzabegovo-Vršnik III, when the spiral was used parallel with the previous basic patterns (Garašanin 1979, 95). V. Sanev also agrees to this, including the curved patterns that end in a form of a ‘paw’ (Sanev 1994, 31; Sanev 1995, 30).

Fig. 3.2. Typology of patterns from Amzabegovo (after Gimbutas 1976, T. III, 64). It is certain that the patterns from the region of Skopje exist parallel to the most representative patterns of the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group. That which is present in all the developing phases of this group is also present in the region of Skopje. Therefore the further setting of the most characteristic patterns in certain chronological phases will define developing stages of the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group, irrespective of the different chronological interpretations (Bregant 1968; Gimbutas 1976; Garašanin 1979; Sanev 1994).

In the last Middle Neolithic phase, Amzabegovo-Vršnik IV, the spiral maintains its domination represented in negative (Sanev 1995, 30) or with an ending in a form of ‘paw’ (Garašanin 1979, 95). For M. Gimbutas the phase of Amzabegovo IV has penetrated into the period of the Late Neolithic where the painted decoration is abandoned or replaced in new fashions of channelling and incision, with the exception of the several fragments produced in 13

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia painted technique (Gimbutas 1976, 65). T. Bregant also reaches similar conclusions to those of Garašanin and Sanev. Bregant considers that within the chronological development of the patterns the main ones were the straight-lined patterns, and then followed the curved ones, gradually evolving into complex dynamic compositions (Brеgant 1968).

‘Cerje’-Govrlevo Regarding the patterns of this site, all the elements suitable for the determination of the chronological range of this settlement existence are present. For each Neolithic phase most characteristic patterns are noticeable. Although in the publications concerning this site the patterns are not assembled into determined chronological frames, still one general chronological position of the most representative pattern features can be established. Considering the Early Neolithic types of white painting, Govrlevo includes the net-like lines which horizontally wrap around the neck of the vessel, or are freely and at angles arranged on other parts of the vessel also (Pl. V: 4-6, 8, 9). On most of the fragments belonging to one bowl-like vessel with dark red base, white painted netlike triangles are visible, which spread from the rim vertically downwards toward the lower part of the vessel. On the rim of the vessel there is a horizontally placed row of triangles, which in their inner part have smaller empty or white-painted tiny triangles. These rows of triangles along with the continuous longitudinal net-like triangles form a very interesting rhythmic composition (Pl. V: 1, 2, 7).

Fig. 3.3. Typology of patterns in the Amzabegovo-Vršnik Group (after Garašanin1979, fig. 9, 91).

Painted patterns from the settlements in the region of Skopje

Fig. 3.4. House II from Govrlevo (photo by M. Bilbija). As for the Middle Neolithic patterns the straight and curve-lined forms are characteristic. Thus, from the rectilinear motifs, painted with dark brown or black colour on light ochre background, the most usual are those vertically disposed. It is interesting that the Early Neolithic tradition of positioning a line of triangles around the rim of the vessel continues through the Middle Neolithic. But, in the Middle Neolithic the dark painted triangles are filled with curved lines in the inner part. Within the same composition the vertically elongated triangle is also present, and it is being filled with oblique lines, but in the opposite direction to those in the smaller line of triangles. On the narrowest spot of these smaller triangles the gradual vertical spreading of the large triangle begins (Pl. VI: 5). This line of triangles can also run freely without constant attaching, in a way that from

From the above we can conclude that the sites from the region of Skopje posses almost identical Middle Neolithic character with the patterns from AmzabegovoVršnik, without regard to the different chronological interpretations. The shapes of the patterns are basically identified to those of the elaborated survey, but certainly there exist numerous variations and locally recognizable forms that mostly depend on the creativity and skill of those who painted and produced the vessels. These variations especially refer to the phases of the Early Neolithic since to a certain extent the white-painted patterns from the region of Skopje differ from those present on the vessels from Ovče Pole (Naumov 2007c).

14

The Middle Neolithic Decoration of Painted Vessels from the Skopje Region the bottom appears one straight vertical line beside which could appear several smaller parallel lines (Pl. VI: 6). Another variant of triangles in a line is the one in which they are arranged in a belt, and even get rhombic form. Beneath them, unbounded vertical parallel lines are arranged which follow the belly of the vessel (Pl. VI: 4). The parallel lines can be represented as alternated or combined with net-like triangles and triangles filled with oblique lines (Pl. VI: 1-3, 7- 9).

amphorae with different dimensions and a rare decoration are also published.

Regarding the curved patterns, they appear in several variants of more complex compositions, painted with black colour on red or lighter background. The lines usually start to be created from the rim of the vessel, and afterwards they continue to bend in different oval shapes. In the beginning the line is bold, but as the developing continues toward the rest of the vessel (usually toward the stomach) it becomes thinner and eventually ‘branches’ in several lines or it prolongs some other line (Pl. VII: 2, 5, 7, 9). Between the lines a net-like egg motif can be placed (Pl. VII: 4, 7). The spiral is also present, and in this case it follows the type with an ending in a form of a ‘paw’ (Pl. VII: 8). The pattern represented in a form of concentric circles is very interesting; it is probably a wound spiral, extremely rare for the typology of patterns in the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group (Pl. VII, 1). Perhaps that is why this pattern can be regarded as a unique local feature of Govrlevo and Zelenikovo.

Fig. 3.6. White painted vessel from Madjari (photo by the author). The painting of the cups is usually elaborated with black colour on red background or with dark red and brown colour on ochre base, as seen on the cup with triangles painted in opposite directions (Pl. VIII). On this example vertical triangles are represented alternating from abovedown and the other way. The triangles are filled with oblique lines placed in different directions beside the lower and the upper triangles (Pl. VIII: 9). On the inner side of the rim of the vessel oblique lines are also painted. A similar decorative approach was practised on few more vessels, where a group of vertical lines is alternated, resembling the most representative style for the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group (Pl. VIII: 4, 6). Regarding straight lined compositions, an exceptional decoration composed of groups of oblique lines is also present on the cups from Madjari (Pl. VIII: 3). On the other cups the spirals in negative appear dominant. On one of the cups, a spiral is modelled from a line that forms an egg net-like field (Pl. VIII: 1) towards the rim of the vessel and in the parts where the wave-like lines, merge down. The next, shallower cup repeats the spiral decoration, which is now modelled with a bold dark line, thus accenting the light wave-like patterns. The interior is richly decorated with bended lines (Pl. VIII: 7).

Fig. 3.5. Plan of the excavated dwellings in Madjari (after Moskalewska and Sanev 1989, 57).

‘Tumba’-Madjari Regarding the recently published editions it can be noticed that this site has the most representative vessels belonging to the Middle Neolithic. Although the assortment of presented material is modest, it illustrates all the most recognizable elements of the Middle Neolithic patterns. Most of them are cups, but two

Regarding the shards found in the settlement from Madjari there is one more fragment which raises interest. It is painted with white triangles in a row and up to now is the only fragment of this kind and color found in Madjari (Fig. 3.6). Although the usage of white paint is still employed for the Middle Neolithic, the patterns painted on the fragment are not typical for this period. On 15

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia the contrary, variations are mostly found on Early Neolithic vessels (Naumov 2007c). Special attention is attracted by the vessels of amphora shape with regard to their remarkably unusual and abundant decoration. The smaller amphora is very interesting because it shows patterns placed in two zones, which is very rare in Neolithic decoration (Pl. VIII: 5). In the upper, cylindrical part of the vessel’s neck, a horizontal motif of a concentric spiral is represented, while on parts of the shoulder and belly of the vessel, four vertical belts holding linked spirals are painted. Between the vertical lines there are empty fields, to which are applied four vertical handles. Around the handles two concentric circles expand radially. The bigger amphora from the dwelling in Madjari shows a similar concept of pattern design as the smaller one, but in this case there is no spiral on the neck of the vessel (Pl. VIII: 8). On the rim a horizontal belt of lozenges is painted, which is very similar to the one from Govrlevo (Pl. VI: 4). The same lozenges are also disposed on the base of the neck, but this time they contain a dot in the middle of every lozenge. From the belt of lozenges downward, to the base of the vessel, are vertical wide stripes which divide the belly of the vessel in four fields. In the inner part of the stripes ‘Ѕ’ lines in negative are placed, interweaving and thus creating egg-like shapes. In the fields between the wide vertical belts knob-like patterns are deepened, around which on one side appear crescent parallel lines linked in the upper part like a net.

Fig. 3.8. Middle Neolithic cup from Mrševci (photo by author). The straight-lined patterns consist of thinner and thicker vertical lines, placed parallel, or of elongated triangles also constructed of thinner and thicker lines (Fig. 3.7c-e). On the vessel’s rim there are hanging triangles, mat or filled with oblique lines; dots sometimes appear instead. The curve-lined patterns are represented with spirals in one very complex and dynamic composition. The potter probably started using one line and then continued with spiral motifs which are larger towards the central area of the belly and smaller towards the bottom of the vessel (Fig. 3.7a, b; Fig. 3.8). One other approach to the spiral composition is also used, where the potter in order to make the negative uses two separate lines which are continuously shaped, thus creating the illusion that the spiral is connected in the centre. It is very interesting for this type of compositions that the lines towards the bottom create a motif shaped like a ‘paw’ (Fig. 3.7b), which on the vessels belonging to the rest of the sites appears in the central part of the spirals on the belly.

‘Slatina’- Zelenikovo Fig. 3.7. Painted patterns and compositions from Mrševci (after Sanev 1989a, fig. 1).

Perhaps of all the sites from the region of Skopje, the site of ‘Slatina’ contains most of the published material, almost regularly published according to the several excavations campaigns (Grbić 1954; Galovic 1964; Galovic 1967; Garašanin and Spasovska 1976; Garašanin and Biblija 1988). This allows us to construct an extended survey concerning the patterns from this site.

‘Sredselo’-Mrševci The only excavations made on this site produced only a small amount of finds, which only included one painted vessel. V. Sanev made an effort to elaborate a short and very rare survey of the most typical Middle Neolithic patterns from this settlement, dated to AmzabegovoVršnik II-IV and Zelenikovo II (Sanev 1989a, 41). It can be seen that the straight-lined and curve-lined patterns in black color on red base were the main repertoire at this settlement.

It is interesting that this site, recognized as an eponymous (Zelenikovo II) for the Late Neolithic in the region of Skopje, abounds with Middle Neolithic painted pottery. There exist different forms and combinations of straightand curve-lined patterns. The straight lined, although not numerous, appear in examples that are not very characteristic for the region of Skopje. One such pattern 16

The Middle Neolithic Decoration of Painted Vessels from the Skopje Region is the one with oblique parallel lines, made with black color on light background (Pl. IX: 7). So far, this pattern is a unique manifestation in the region of Skopje.

Fig. 3.10. Painted ‘paw-like’ patterns on cups (photos by author). On the rim, which is the first zone of decoration, very often a spiral is placed, usually elongated (Pl. X: 3, 7; Fig. 3.9: 4, 5), but in rare cases it is combined with vertical parallel lines (Fig. 3.9: 7). The spiral is often present on the majority of the vessel, usually having the characteristic ending in a form of a ‘paw’ (Fig. 3.10). From the previous examples two fragments differ; one bearing a crescent-like motif, maybe a spiral in its beginning phase (Pl. X: 8), and another fragment on which a solid concentric spiral is noticeable, being so far a unique pattern of this type in the region of Skopje (Pl. X: 5). Fig. 3.9. Reconstructions of painted patterns and compositions from Zelenikovo (after Bregant 1968). In the corpus of straight-lined patterns, the alternated triangle is also maintained, and here it appears in its standard Middle Neolithic form (Pl. IX: 4-6). Within the same group of straight-lined patterns, the motif of dark, vertical zigzag lines painted on light background can also be placed (Pl. IX: 9). The lines are elaborated so that on one of the angles they separate. This unusual pattern is also rare in the settlements from the region of Skopje, especially if we observe that the zigzag motifs are typical for the Early Neolithic. The pattern with zigzag decoration, as well as the one with oblique lines indicates that in Zelenkovo very powerful local features appear, which are fairly well separated from the usual Middle Neolithic decorative shapes. Yet, the usual vertical parallel lines are also present, which in its early phases can represent a part of a composition with net-like fields on the top of the rim of the vessel (Fig. 3.9: 1-3). Groups of parallel lines alternating downwards have so far not been found on this site, despite their frequent presence at other settlements in Govrlevo, Madjari, and Mrševci.

Fig. 3.11. Biconic vessel from Zelenikovo (photo by author). The patterns noticed thus far at Zelenikovo, in most cases, are found on shards, thus lacking the possibility of precise determination of the vessel form on which they belonged. Still, from the past excavations of this site, only two partly preserved vessels with painted decoration are published. Regarding them we can conclude that in Zelenikovo also, as well as on cups, the most characteristic vessel form, painted decoration can be present on vessels with utterly different shapes. Namely, one biconical bowl (Galović 1964, Galović, 1967) and one bigger vessel in the form of an amphora (Garašanin and Biblija 1988). Regarding the reconstructed cup, it remains an open question whether it is really a bowl, or a poorly reconstructed cup without a leg.

It must be acknowledged that the curve-lined patterns surprise with their variety and exceptional inventiveness in their development. Whether because of the increased presence of painted material from Zelenikovo, we can conclude that an abundance of unusual shapes for the Middle Neolithic in the region of Skopje appear on this site. Those would be the twisted lines in different positions and forms (Fig. 3.9: 4-6; Pl. X: 2-9). Another novelty for the decoration of this region is also present. Namely, on the rim of one vessel, in the area where usually a free hanging triangle appears, this time a row of cloud-like shapes is present (Pl. X: 1).

17

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group, have not yet been discovered. Before the final survey of the patterns from Zelenikovo is completed, a few more patterns should be noted because they raises new questions (Fig. 3.9: 9). Namely, in the early phases of the settlement, a waved line in negative, possibly painted with white colour (?) on dark background is ascertained (Bregant 1968, appendix 2). It should be stressed again that several fragments painted with white net-like patterns also belong to the earlier phases of this settlement (Pl. IX: 1-3).Weather it is again an example belonging to the Early Neolithic or a continuous use of the old decorative tradition throughout the Middle Neolithic, will remain to be answered by future research. But despite this uncertain assumption two almost identical fragments are worth elaborating. Both are painted with white patterns disposed in two belts, one over the other (Fig. 3.13). The white-painted decoration in general is very rare for this settlement and shaped horizontal lozenges are absolutely unknown for the Neolithic within the northern half of Macedonian territory. Considering that this type of decoration is usual for the distant Velušina-Porodin group in Pelagonia, it opens many more possibilities for tracing the eventual communication between the Skopje Valley and Pelagonia.

Fig. 3.12. Amphora like vessel from Zelenikovo (photo by author). The biconical ‘bowl’, as much as it represents a surprise being a non-typical and rare vessel for painted decoration, it also surprises with its unusual patterns. On its left side, a spiral spreading from the rim downwards is noticeable. But, right of the spiral, in the central part, different curved and oblique lines spread, so that the shapes of the patterns cannot be defined with higher certainty (Fig. 3.11).

Neolithic design (imagery and patterns) Exploring the decorated Neolithic pottery, certain rules (i.e. canons that create recognizable imagery system) can be noticed. They are all based on certain models from which compositions will be made, entirely symmetrically placed on the body of the vessel. This organization of the space leads to the conclusion that the ‘patterning’ was aimed at creating an aesthetic that would be attractive to the eye. It can be said that these rules of creativity and symmetry form a certain shape of pre-design (Hodder 2003, 61). Hodder, using the analyses of Noam Chomsky, defined this process of creativity regarding rules as ‘generative grammar’, where the motifs construct words throughout which the language of the decoration is followed. As much as it appears abstract, this ‘grammar’ indeed opens the ‘dictionary’ of the conditionally defined ermineia (painters manual) which the Neolithic man when painting vessels. This is probably the origin of the first forms of Neolithic design. Almost every one of these ‘words’ was used on a determined place, in a determined period and especially on determined forms of vessels. The mutual binding of the ‘words’ creates more complicated decorative structures, since the Neolithic decoration strived towards the principles of visual entropy i.e. the use of maximally constructive visual simplicity and maximal symmetry (Jablan 1989, 37). The more we understand these words, the easier we will divide the constructions of the complex decorative structures.

This combination of spiral, curved and rectilinear motifs is very rare (possibly unique). It is probable that the shape of the vessel itself allows a random, on first glance unorganized, disposition of the patterns, but certainly the partial preservation of the vessel does not give a complete image concerning its decoration. It should be mentioned that Galović, according to his chronology, also determined this vessel as ‘Old’ i.e. the Early Neolithic (Galović 1964, 139), a time when the appearance of the biconical (including painted) vessels is very rare. The amphorae-like vessel was discovered in ‘House I’, which belongs to the phase Amzabegovo-Vršnik IV (Garašanin and Biblija 1988, 38). Again this vessel and its pattern, surprise with its “exceptional appearance” (Fig. 3.12). The decoration consists of four basic fields composed of circles spreading concentrically outwards, thus accepting the rhombic shape. The painting of the fields, elaborated in black colour, begins somewhere on the base of the neck and continues downward with arched lines which in some way frame these fields. This decoration, although technically not so accomplished, in comparison to the rest of the painted vessels or to the amphorae from Madjari (Pl. VIII: 8), succeeds in accentuating the volume of the vessel. Recently, considering this decoration, Middle Neolithic analogies in the neighboring sites from the region of Skopje or from 18

The Middle Neolithic Decoration of Painted Vessels from the Skopje Region

Fig. 3.13. White painted vessels from Zelenikovo (photo by author). Doubtless the symmetrical conceiving of the compositions is also present on the Neolithic painted vessels from the region of Skopje. They were also decorated using strict rules, from which several typical stylistic features of the Neolithic in the Central-Balkan zone will emerge in the future. Most often these decorative canons are used on cups, but they also appear on the amphorae-like vessels too. That is why further in this study they will be separately elaborated, mostly because of the different approach used in the decorating of their surface.

this context the coloring (engobing) of Middle Neolithic figurines, stamps and vessels should not be neglected. White colour remained important to beautify or symbolically accent the objects used in certain domestic or communal ceremonies. On the other hand, red color was still used for the surface of the vessel, although rarely some patterns painted in white continued to exist throughout the Middle Neolithic. But, whatever the case, it can be concluded that during the creation of the decorative structure, the choice of color was important. With it the further construction of the pattern begun and it was a basic element, determining the intensity of the shape. Actually, the relation between colors was also important for the visual effect, especially for asymmetrical designs, where the duality between the color and the shapes created an illusion of a third dimension, also an illusion of the object (the pattern) and the space, when it becomes uncertain what represents a pattern, and what a background, what is in front, and what on the back (Pl. VII; Pl. VIII: 1, 7; Pl. X).

In the creation of the patterns the significant role of colors should not be ignored. Regarding their structure, the colors could have mineral origin, and were probably dissolved in some organic mixture (Chausidis 1995, 21). After the modelling of the vessel in clay, the basic color was painted over it, after which it was partially baked. Afterwards a pigment was used to paint patterns, and in the end the whole vessel was polished (Bregant 1968, 31). It is interesting that five basic colors were known at that time (white, ochre, red, brown, black and their nuances), but in most of the cases during painting only two basic colors were combined, usually: red and white, red and black, ochre and brown, or ochre and black. Examples where more colors were combined are almost unknown. The reasons for this preferred bi-chromism cannot yet ascertained with certainty. The selection of colors is not questioned, although maybe the use of such polychromy could lead to a lack of contrasts: i.e. insufficient accent of the motif compared to the background. The presence of white beside black and red surely made for strong contrasts, but here another important question arises: why was white coloring gradually lost in the Middle Neolithic when it provided enough possibilities for the improvement of the decoration? It can be supposed that the preparation of the white substance had not yet been discovered by the new communities, or more possibly, an interruption of the traditional decorating was made, so that new styles were determined, afterwards the white color was avoided as unpopular. Certainly this would be the simplest answer to the question concerning the use of the white color, but in

In the same way as with asymmetrical painting, the ‘regular’ painting also uses color (usually red or ochre), which becomes a color covering the surface and a color (white, black, brown) that forms the design. The lighter colors are used to ennoble the background space, while the darker (with the exception of the white) are those that construct the motifs shape. The relation between the two colors, the background and the constructive colors, becomes characteristic for certain patterns in certain periods of the Neolithic. Still, because of the insufficient stratigraphic data about the position of the shards and the vessels with painted patterns, this field of interest becomes secondary and it will not be given further elaboration in this study. The primary role of colour emerges as central to the development of the imagery. Color first creates the shapes, but the already painted forms are those that themselves speak about the imagery structuralism. It is where the building of the elements begins, that gradually turn into complete composition. But, if we search for a 19

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia certain motive or idea that provoked the potter to use one such imagery approach, in both cases of the Neolithic composition there are several modes of interpretation. In order to determine this Neolithic idea or imagery logic, throughout the analyses we should use a reversible approach i.e. we have to go back to what the potter did in the process of painting and constructing the composition, therefore to define the basic elements, the positions and their relations. The creator of the composition possessed also a whole image of the patterns disposed on the vessel’s surface, but in its realization he begun by constructing the basic elements, which were then given different positions, according to the main model. These basic elements are actually patterns which were previously determined, so that they multiplied or were combined with others, thus creating a whole composition.

Basic constructive elements in the compositions Exploring the decoration of the Neolithic painted vessels it can be noted that in the process of building composite shapes, the potter used the simplest geometrical elements. Although the compositions often seem complex, they were started with basic forms in order to create the whole composition. Among them, the most important role is given to the line. It is often several times repeated in a group of two, three, four or more lines (Pl. VI: 1, 4-6; Fig. 3.9: 1, 7), with determined boldness or combined as thicker and thinner counterparts (Fig. 3.9: 2, 3; Fig. 3.7d). It also usual that it is placed obliquely (Pl. VI: 3; Pl. X: 1) or inside some geometric form (Pl. VI: 5, 6; Fig. 3.7c; Pl. VIII: 9), often a triangle. However, with its shape modification (strained in the lower half), it creates an illusion of a triangle (Pl. X: 3, 4; Fig. 3.7e). This triangle is always combined with one or two vertical straight lines. Often repeating the oblique lines a net-like field (Pl V: 1, 4-9; Pl. X: 2).

It should be noted that the approach in the decoration of the heterogeneous vessels differed. In that sense, the logic of decorating cups differs completely from that of amphorae, although similar motifs can be equally regarded on both vessel shapes. But, since this study elaborates only the published ceramic material from the Neolithic sites of the Skopje region, it would not be suitable to speak about the pattern relation between cups and amphorae. Only three whole amphorae have so far published, and not even one fragment can certainly be attributed to this ceramic form, contrary to the forty that can be treated as probable cups.

With regard to these net-like fields, it is noticeable that they enclose rhombic forms. The lozenge is yet another basic geometric form which is characteristic for the Neolithic decoration. But it almost never dominates as a main compositional motif (with the exception of the amphorae and white-painted pot from Zelenikovo). Apart from the net-like fields, the lozenge is usually placed within the belt of similar geometric forms (Pl. VI: 4). At any rate it remains an open question whether the creator of the patterns intended to paint lines forming angle-like fields, or lozenges which decoratively or symbolically should compose fields or belt.

On the other hand, the precise position and dimensions of the published fragments are not always determinable, mostly because of the low quality of the photographs in the published papers, or due to the insufficient data concerning the shards. In most cases the position is mainly consistent, so that the actual placing of the pattern can be objectively regarded.

Another constructive element with rectilinear compositions is the triangle. It can be of different dimensions, disposed in different positions, filled with net-like field or empty i.e. filled with color (Fig. 3.7e; Pl. V: 2). Often, the alternated lines are also imagined as triangle, so that is why this motif is sometimes referred as ‘alternated triangle’.

In most of the publications referring to the chronological sequence of the patterns, most common are the observations that for the Neolithic patterning the rectilinear patterns appeared first, and than followed the curved ones (Jovanović 1968, 152; Bregant 1968, 48; Garašanin 1979, 94). Although these chronological interpretations of the patterns are not final, mainly because in one chronological stratum both compositional types could be found, still in this publication they are given place in the further representation of the patterns.

Regarding the curved compositions, as their basic constructive elements, different twisted lines, circles, netlike fields are being recognized (Pl. VII; Pl. VIII: 1, 7; Pl. X). They all create groups that multiply and combine so that they form complex wholes which create the painted composition of the cups.

Considering their visual character elaborated by flat lines, the rectilinear patterns are named as static, while the curved ones that associate movement are named dynamic (Bregant 1968, 104). This does not mean that the rectilinear patterns are in constant ‘tranquillity’, or that the dynamic patterns are in constant movement. On the contrary, there are examples when the character of the static and the dynamic patterns is completely contrasted. But, due to the first visual suggestion that they give, they will remain to be named according to the existing divisions of rectilinear and curved.

Painted patterns on the amphorae-shaped vessels Unlike the cups, the amphorae-like vessels have apparently different principles of decorating, but still the organizational system remains similar. Perhaps due to the construction of the body of the vessel, the decorating approach transformed significantly. The amphorae itself consists of three unequal parts, neck, shoulder and belly, 20

The Middle Neolithic Decoration of Painted Vessels from the Skopje Region which lead toward the presenting of the compositions on the vessel in several levels. Although there are two basic zones for decoration and one smaller between the neck and the shoulder, still they altogether compose a unique whole. From the recent examples it can be noted that on the neck a horizontal decoration is being used, and on the belly a vertical one. In this way it can be detected that the canons of patterning are being followed in the same manner as the rectilinear compositions on the cups. Toward the rim of the vessel, horizontal belts are painted, and on the belly vertical motifs are disposed. If the logic of patterning is to be analysed in this way, it can be noted that the decorative approach of the cups and the amphorae-like vessels was almost the same, and even certain patterns of the first zones are repeated. A distinguishing difference of the decorative characteristics of the cups and the amphorae are the patterns painted on the belly, so far ascertained only through the examples from the region of Skopje. Unfortunately, at this time only four painted Neolithic amphorae discovered in the region of Skopje have been published (Sanev 1988, Fig. 9, 20; Zdravkovski 2006a, Fig. 6, 104; Garašanin and Biblija 1988, Fig. 5, 38), so that it is impossible to give a complete comparative analyses of the pattern relation between the cups and amphorae. But what ever the case, these four examples allow certain conclusions concerning the basic rules of patterning, with which a firmer image of the decorative character present on the painted amphorae can be elaborated. In the archaeological publications only the amphorae from Zelenikovo (with damaged neck) and Madjari are presented (one without neck and two complete: one bigger and one smaller). On the more preserved bigger amphorae from Madjari there are three zones of painting (Pl. VIII: 8). One is on the very rim of the vessel, and it consists of a belt of lozenges, also present in the first zone of the cups (Fig. 3.14 a). The lozenge belt is painted with dark color and it spreads over the whole rim. An almost identical belt is placed at the start of the neck, but this time every rhomb has a dot in its middle (Fig. 3.14 b). In the remaining part of the vessel the decoration is completely different. The lower third of the vessel contains four vertical bands, while in the fields between them four arched motifs are painted. The vertical bands with black color consist of ‘S’ motifs in negative, which intertwine. Toward the bottom, with the thickening of the bands, the ‘S’ motifs also thicken and are complemented with yet another curved line in the middle (Fig. 3.14 c). Throughout the intertwining, these ‘S’ motifs compose three egg-like (i.e. oval) fields, which on two of the bands are filled with oblique lines or net pattern. On the amphorae, these two lines with decorated egg-like fields are placed one opposite to the other, in the same way as the bands without decoration in the egg-like forms. In each of the empty fields between the bands, a curved motif is painted. This pattern consists of three parallel arched lines which in the upper part are interrupted by four oblique lines that form a net-like field.

Fig. 3.14. Reconstruction of horizontal and vertical belts on the bigger amphora like vessel from Madjari (drawing by author). Similar decoration is practised on the amphorae without neck (Fig. 3.15; Pl. VIII: 2). The body of the vessel is also divided into four larger fields therefore using wide vertical bands composed of intertwined ‘S’ patterns, this time completely filled with net-like ‘background’. In the center of all four larger fields a horseshoe-shaped pattern is disposed that rounds the central recess on the vessels, in the same way as the amphorae mentioned above. On the small amphorae the decoration differs from the one on the bigger amphorae (Pl. VIII: 5). Although its decoration is partly damaged, it can still be noted that the neck has a wide horizontal band with wave-like lines in negative, almost identical to those on the cups. On the shoulder and the stomach, the same as with the big amphorae, four vertical bands are painted, but with different patterning (Fig. 3.16). Again the bands have wave-like ‘S’ lines in negative, but this time modified and connected between. On the left and right of the ‘S’ 21

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia lines there are several triangle motifs in negative. If the vertical line is placed downwards, than it will be noted that the composing of the ‘S’ patterns was actually performed by the opposite placement of the ‘Y’ pattern. Due to the condition of the decoration, it cannot be certainly defined how these patterns continued towards the bottom. Here also the four bands (connected in the upper part with a horizontal line, probably a variation of the lozenges belt) compose four fields in which vertical handles are attached. Around the handles two radial circles are painted. The lines are performed with dark color, while the background is in ochre shades, which is also the case with the big amphorae.

Fig. 3.15. Amphora like vessel from Madjari (photo by author).

Fig. 3.16. Reconstruction of horizontal and vertical belts on the smaller amphora like vessel from Madjari (drawing by author).

The amphorae-like vessel from Zelenikovo with its decoration also has a stomach divided in four fields (Fig. 3.12). Here the vertical bands are replaced with triangle patterns, which thicken from the root of the neck downward. Toward the middle of the belly this motif divides into two lines which continue in opposite directions. They eventually form circle-ellipse or rhombic motifs, which create the four fields by comprising almost the whole surface of the belly. In these fields smaller circle or rhombic shapes are painted radially. The lines are executed in greenish-black color on the background with nuances in red. Unfortunately the neck of this vessel is completely broken and at this moment it is impossible to determine whether it also possessed a decoration.

coincidental inspiration, but strictly justified practice which was the result of developed artistic skill. Furthermore this ability to decorate the vessels precisely is much more than a simple beautification of these handmade objects. As was case with Middle Neolithic painted cups and amphorae from the Skopje region, the similar or even identical compositions were painted on the same type of vessels in the regions far from the settlements in Govrlevo, Madjari, Zelenikovo and Mrševci. These similarities include the regions of Polog, Kumanovo, Ovče Pole and Veles where the inhabitants of the settlements located on the sites in Dolno Palčište, Nikuštak, Mlado Nagoričino, Amzabegovo, Gorobinci, Novo Selo, Čaška etc., use the same patterns. Therefore it can be noticed that during the Middle Neolithic the settlements over a much wider area than during the Early Neolithic were using a unified repertoire of patterns and compositions. Thus distant communities developed specific ways of visual communication which were mainly manifested through the material culture, and especially through the decoration of the vessels.

Conclusion Analysis of the visual features of the painted vessels from the Skopje region confirms that during the process of decorating the vessels there were several principles of developing the compositions. The compositions are mainly based on straight and curve lined patterns disposed on the main areas of the body, often divided into two main decorative zones, i.e. belts. Considering these principles it should be asserted that this kind of visual perceiving proves that decoration of the vessels was not a

In order to strengthen the ‘alphabet’ of the visual language, the potters defined certain patterns which could 22

The Middle Neolithic Decoration of Painted Vessels from the Skopje Region indicate the identity and cognition of their community or even wider, Middle Neolithic unity. The following chapter will present an effort to transcribe the Middle Neolithic compositional ‘alphabet’ and to distinguish the patterns used for painting the vessels. Thus, the analysis of visual features of the pottery can help to provide new

data which enters into the cognitive abilities and symbolic spheres of the populations inhabiting the territory of the northern half of Macedonia in the period from the end of the seventh millennium until the end of the sixth millennium BC.

23

Chapter 4

Imagery Structures: Neolithic patterns and their role in the painted compositions on pottery During the Neolithic man gradually changes the organization of living into new communities; creates settlements, cultivates plants, domesticates animals and for the first time forms a completely new relation toward the earth (soil/clay) by cultivating it and creating from it. Also referred as ceramicum, the Neolithic presents yet another dimension in the intensive use of the media, which will strongly manifest itself in the aspects of the everyday life, but also in its ritual activities – two categories equally related to existence. . In contrast to those vessels with defined utilitarian use (basins, jugs, jars, pots, amphorae and askoi) yet another very interesting type of vessel is produced, one which is separate from the rest with utilitarian use and retreats from the usual way of relief decorating. Named also as cups, these vessels are at the same time outstanding in terms of the quality of their technical manufacture and unique construction (Fig. 4.1).

recognizable characteristics of the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group,* i.e. the cultural group which in the Neolithic, among others, included the region of Skopje.

On numerous cups, patterns are painted with pigments made of iron oxide or coal, which actually open a new possibility for permanent marking of the creative potential and aesthetic knowledge of the beautiful and essential. The oval body of these vessels allows a specific perception in order to experience the sensation of the painted forms, as well as to precisely define their disposition on the flat surface. In this way a visual effect is produced, which revives the structure of the vessel, accentuates its curved walls and due to the glowing cover of the surface, creates an illusion which affects the user, i.e. the viewer.

Fig. 4.1. Middle Neolithic cup from Madjari (photo by author). The principles of decorating the Neolithic ceramic from this region, including the local variations, can be established in the whole ceramic industry of the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group, because it considers a cultural group which unites several neighboring regions: Polog, Skopje, Kumanovo, Ovče Pole and partly Veles and Strumica regions (Sanev 1995; Zdravkovski 2006b). This certainly points to the fact that between the settlements in these regions a dynamic developed communication was developed, including exchange of goods, trading, beliefs, but also a possible frequentation of migrations (Fig. 4.2).

Thus justified, the appearance of the vessel reflects a very essential image about the conception of their creator, the one who had a strong motive to dedicate special attention to the manufacture of these types of vessels and to use all his or her senses for aesthetic experience. The use of new painting techniques, the defining of certain patterns and their organization, represented a type of unity between the practical, the beautiful and the collective thoughts. Actually, the last prerequisite is the one that especially differs the cups from the rest of the vessels, and is probably a turning point which explains the patterns, and simultaneously the idea that stood behind them.

Directly, in this kind of cultural surrounding the styles of decoration also spread, which certainly lead to the expansion of ideas which ‘traveled’ parallel with the ideas, rituals and the tradition of the inhabitants of the Neolithic settlements. The old defined shapes gradually changed, evolved and under the influence of the new generations maintained a new appearance. But the base always remained the same, at least until the beginning of the Late Neolithic. As the life experiences enriched, the

In this chapter, as with the previous one, only the patterns from the Early and the Middle Neolithic from the region of Skopje will be explored, but in this case it will be done along the compositional structures that constitute the decoration on this type of vessels. Although in cultural terms they belong to a Neolithic micro-region, still the features they posses are manifested as the most

*

In recent publications this cultural group is named as AnzabegovoVršnik, but due to the toponymic exactness of the site’s eponym, (Amzabegovo), according to which this group is named, it will be referred to here as the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group.

24

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia explaining of the environment and its effect on the essential cycles developed. These sensations from the surrounding were necessary to be documented, evidenced and permanently noted, so that they could gradually develop into tradition, which will affect communication between the individuals, communities, settlements or following generations.

Visual analyses of the patterns What is most impressive with the Neolithic painted vessels is their steady and organized decoration. These are early beginnings when such disposition of the images is noticeable. Possibly the globular shape of the vessel itself demanded such organized decorative visualization, but on the other side the shape itself allows cyclical movement and intertwining of the forms. The organized dividing of motifs which form variegated compositions placed in symmetrical relations, obviously demonstrate that Neolithic man possessed completely logically developed perception of space. He skillfully figured in which amount and measure the relation between certain forms should appear, so that they could impact on the observer. The vessels themselves were of a great importance to the communities, and that is why they tried to modify their surfaces so that a potent suggestive impression could be created, thus accenting the value, but also the function of these objects. Therefore the potters tried to accomplish all possible symmetrical principles, to embody them and create visually suggestive composition. These compositions sometimes are represented in a rudimentary manner, but often they were complexly executed with exceptional skill. All this leads to a gradual evolution in the range of imagery, and above all, to the development in the human experiencing, understanding and justification of space. The manner in which one imagery composition is transposed on the surface of the vessel, suggests a further another innovation which is introduced by Neolithic evolution. Namely, it is referred to firmly defined rules of decorating and disposing of imagery forms, determined and repeated during the period of a dozen generations. This certainly points toward some aspects of Neolithic design. It represented a kind of confirmed combination of patterns, which on the one hand corresponded to the imagined idea or figure which was to be represented, but on the other, they created an entity through which one cultural group identified itself. That is why the vessels from the several Neolithic cultural groups on the Balkans provide characteristic and unique designed compositions, which in some way produce perhaps the most distinctive creative mark of the inhabitants settling the Neolithic communities. Regarding the region of Skopje, numerous data about decorated cups are provided through the excavations of the already elaborated sites of ‘Slatina’-Zelenikovo (Galović 1964; Galović 1967; Garašanin and Spasovska 1976; Garašanin and Bilbija 1988), ‘Cerje’-Govrlevo (Georgiev and Bilbija 1984; Bilbija 1986), ‘Tumba’Madjari (Sanev 1988), and ‘Sredselo’-Mrshevci (Sanev 1989a). From the publications, which partly explore the archaeological material, it is possible to define several elemental characteristics of the construction of painted compositions, and on some of them even the chronological phases can be determined. In this way it can be seen which patterns were typical for the Early

Fig. 4.2. Several models of trade and exchange of goods (after Renfrew and Bahn 2000, 368).

25

Imagery Structures: Neolithic patterns and their role in the painted compositions Neolithic, which for the Middle Neolithic, and how the patterns of the Early Neolithic developed in the following period.

they directly relate to the upper zone of decoration, the one on the rim of the vessel (Fig. 4.4). Most often they are composed when the patterns of the two decorative zones merged, but examples appear when they do not ‘touch’ each other, yet they mutually complement. Due to the horizontal multiplication of these wholes, the ornamental composition of the vessel is actually created. Usually, the groups of patterns were placed vertically, which probably allowed the potters easier multiplication and thus creation of a horizontal belt. Still, sometimes this canon was abandoned, so that obliquely disposed linear wholes were created. If in the Early Neolithic these were the triangles of the lower zone, than in the Middle Neolithic those are the groups of mostly parallel lines, which although with different structure or number, in every group they maintain the same shape (Fig. 4.4).

Fig. 4.3. Reconstructions of the Middle Neolithic rectilinear compositions (drawing by author). Among the abundance of painted compositions on the cups, there are two types evident – i.e. compositions performed with straight-lined patterns, which are named as rectilinear (static), and curved compositions with twisted lines, defined as curved (dynamic) (Bregant 1968, 104). However, despite the etymology of the terms, examples appear where the character of the rectilinear and curved patterns is quite opposite or is combined. Therefore in the following these two basic types of compositions will be simply referred to as rectilinear and curved.

Although the basic wholes of patterns are independently separate during the pictorial analyses, still on the vessel they function as a unity of the continuous patterned whole. If the patterns are thus observed, than it will be noticed that within the rectilinear compositions they are actually placed in two horizontal zones/belts. Even the basic types of these wholes often consist of two lines of patterns: upper with smaller dimensions, and lower which are larger and wider. Mutually separated, they appear as partial horizontal bands: the upper as a thin frieze on the rim, and the lower zone which spreads over the belly of the vessel – i.e. on the larger and the most characteristic part of the cup’s decorated surface (Fig. 4.5).

In both basic types there exist primal or basic constructive elements which compose the entirety. Most often those are geometric patterns (straight and oblique lines, triangles, lozenges, net-like bands, circles, semicircles and freely twisted forms), which multiply in a certain rhythm. Actually they initiate the decorative structure of the painted compositions on the cups.

In the upper, first zone, even since the Early Neolithic, it was standard to paint a belt of small triangles, and in some examples oblique lines, lozenges and net-like bands also appear (Fig. 4.6). The second zone is composed of motifs which are the most recognizable part of the pattern (thin and bold vertical and oblique lines, as well as triangles). On numerous examples of the painted cups, the triangles of the first zone are joined to the motifs of the second zone, while the upper bands with net-like fields and lozenges (for which there are indications that they also belong to the fragments of the painted amphorae), are sometimes distinguished in relation to the rest of the motifs.

Fig. 4.4. Basic constructive wholes of patterns painted on cups (drawing by author).

Rectilinear compositions For this type it is characteristic that they are composed of motifs placed individually or combined with other motifs (Fig. 4.3). In the majority of compositions, painted vertical and oblique lines appear, but often triangles are painted, again fulfilled with oblique and vertical, i.e. netlike crossed lines. In the core of the composition there exist basic wholes of patterns, which actually represent a unity of several geometric elements, disposed vertically through the entire wideness of the belly of the vessel, or

Fig. 4.5. Rectilinear compositions on Early and Middle Neolithic pottery (drawing by author).

26

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia appear more massive, and they strive to spread and develop equally, horizontally and vertically. Regarding the rectilinear compositions, so far this rule is partly avoided by examples from Madjari and Zelenikovo, where in the second zone oblique lines appear, which are disposed parallel across all the belly of the vessel (Fig. 4.8).

Fig. 4.8. Oblique patterns in the rectilinear compositions (drawing by author). It is still uncertain how the basic whole of patterns was acquired (which was further multiplied). Were the basic modules abandoned in the very beginning and the painting of the entire pattern undertaken? Or did this motif have its own chronological evolution? It is still hard to find the answer. In addition to this view, hard evidence relating to the chronology of the settlements and the stratigraphic position of the painted vessels in them is still needed. With it the developing course of the patterns could be defined, and the way in which in certain periods they were conceived as a compositional whole. Thereafter it could be proposed how and in which way they were reshaped and restructured. In any case, the creation of the rectilinear compositions proves that during the decoration of a ceramic surface, the Neolithic craftspeople incorporated a certain logic, a prehistoric sequence of forms, which enabled the creation of a definite symmetry on the globular body of the cup, and thus refined and ennobled the vessel.

Fig. 4.6. Patterns from the upper zones in the rectilinear compositions (drawing by author). Besides the usual painting of rectilinear patterns, there existed certain exceptions from the rules. Sometimes the combinations of rectilinear and arched, i.e. twisted motifs in one rectilinear composition, are evidenced. Almost always, the circular, the semicircular and the wave-like motifs, were placed above in the first zone (Fig. 4.7).

Curved compositions These compositions are assembled of curved patterns which cover almost the whole surface of the rim and the belly of the cups. Curved patterns rarely appear. That is why it is seldom that the motifs in these compositions can be divided into zones. Inside them, one entirety of pattern constructs the entire composition, starting from the rim to the foot of the vessel, although into this entirety smaller ‘linking’ motifs can be incorporated. Here actually the existence of a large difference between the structure of the rectilinear and the curved compositions could be noticed. If the rectilinear compositions were made of vertical multiplied patterns, often placed in zones, then within the curved compositions one pattern tends to spread in several directions (Fig. 4.9: c). Although sometimes it seams that the dynamic composition avoids the usual multiplying logic, yet the concept of repetition is also applied with the complex wholes of patterns. To render this effect even more remarkable, the Neolithic potters during the painting of such compositions used a

Fig. 4.7. Combination of curved and straight lined patterns in rectilinear compositions (drawing by author). Within the rectilinear compositions, during the organizing of the patterns, vertical tendencies are present, while within the curved compositions, the compositional structure differs. In relation to those curved, basic motifs 27

Imagery Structures: Neolithic patterns and their role in the painted compositions

Fig. 4.9. Curved compositions on the Middle Neolithic cups (drawing by author). concept of asymmetry – i.e. the representing of certain patterns in negative (Jablan 1989, 12) (Fig. 4.9: a). Since the motifs were usually painted with dark color (black, brown), the lighter color of the background, as a contrast, was used to accentuate the wave-line twisted motifs.

are placed. As an exception to this principle, recently only the fragment from Madjari has been distinguished (Fig. 4.11). Namely, it bears a curved pattern disposed in two strict zones which are evidently divided with one horizontal line. On the upper belt there is a variation of the often-used ‘Y’ motif, whilst on the rest of the vessel a unique representation of ‘paw’-like patterns is remarkable. As for now this composition remains as most unusual considering the Middle Neolithic curved compositions in the Skopje region, but also for the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group in general. Therefore due to the lack of more precise stratigraphic records, the fragment from Madjari indicates one possible earlier appearance of the later complex curved compositions, or at least a synchronic rudimentary depiction of what should be a very skillful and firmly executed Middle Neolithic style.

The curved compositions are usually created of wave-like lines (frontal, with black color), which if painted mutually connected, then those in negative (positioned in at the rear, on the background) are not connected, and vice versa. The painted patterns can end in the form of a ‘paw’, i.e. egg (Fig. 4.9: a; Fig. 4.9: b). Some of these motifs even twist within themselves, so that sometimes they appear as spiral in inception (Fig. 4.9: c).

The eventual existence of zones in the complex compositions can be detected through one other very interesting pattern, which although mostly present, does not appear as a separate entirety. This includes the pattern referred as the ‘garland’, placed along the middle part of the belly of the vessel (Fig. 4.12). In some way it participates in the creation of the wave-like lines in negative, and it separates the composition into several conceived zones. When connected to the stylized and twisted triangles (‘Y’ motifs) from the upper zone, it actually constructs and divides the whole composition. In that case we notice that the ‘garland’ itself is built of several ‘Y’ motifs which extend into several positions (Fig. 4.13). It can be ascertained that this practice concerns one basic motif which is repeated, so that it can be turned downward with the twisted end, or it can be placed upside down.

Fig. 4.10. Upper zones with curved patterns (drawing by author).

From this it can be concluded that during the construction of the compositions, there existed clearly based and contemplated rules, throughout which the imagined ideas could be painted. This asserts that during the Neolithic, some kind of unwritten ermineia – i.e. imagery, painting matrix existed, which was based on the regulations of some ‘archaic mathematics’. According to it, the appearance of the mentioned organized disposition of the forms and space within the ornamental composition is not at all coincidental. The selection of basic decorative wholes (combined of patterns and motifs), their multiplication, the existence of decorative zones, and

As can be noticed, the character of the complex curved compositions is such that it does not allow painting of patterns in two horizontal levels. Although in some way imagined levels exist, still the patterns, because of their shapes, cannot be concentrated into one zone only. On the contrary, they are created and developed into different directions, entering different layers. Divided into zones, the curved motifs can only be noticed in the rectilinear compositions, usually in the first zone (Fig. 4.10). Then, on the rim, a round, semi-round or twisted lines in row 28

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia even the asymmetrical representation in negative, clearly points to the painting tradition which can conditionally be termed as ‘Neolithic geometry’.

certain positions and combinations produce new and interesting forms. In every case, they were not perceived as mathematically determined forms, but as linear structures throughout which the patterns could be created (Bregant 1968; Nikolov 2002). Starting with these most elemental constructive units, the Neolithic ‘designers’ managed to develop one entirely symmetrical composition. Actually the symmetry was the criteria that in most cases produced the proportionality of the depicted patters. Only through it the proportional relations between the patterns could be accomplished, and as was noted in the previous chapters, in the Neolithic painted compositions usually one pattern was used in a simple manner or multiplied in different variations. This presence of the so-called ‘horizontal symmetry’ is most dominant in the straight-lined compositions and in certain complex curved compositions. There is a group of researchers that explored the rules of symmetry which were used during the creating of a design. They all contribute with the most adequate approach toward the defining of this so-called ‘Neolithic geometry’. For example, Washburn uses the formal analyses in her work in order to define the principles of symmetry (Washburn 1983; Washburn 1977; Washburn 1999). These analyses offer several basic types of symmetry used during the repeating of the patterns. Some of these are also present in the painting of the Neolithic vessels from the region of Skopje. The most present is the ‘translation’ (Fig. 4.3; Fig. 4.5), especially in the rectilinear compositions, while ‘the double rotation’ appears in the ‘Y’ motifs of the ‘garland’ in curved compositions. ‘The gliding reflection’ and ‘the horizontal mirror reflection’ are so far unknown, although generally they can be detected in the Amzabagovo-Vršnik group.

Fig. 4.11. Fragment of Middle Neolithic cup from Madjari (photo by author).

Fig. 4.12. ‘Garland’ pattern in the curved compositions (drawing by author).

Neolithic geometry Does the organization of patterns in one composition result from free, random decorating, or it is a result of so called ‘archaic mathematics’? Certainly, the accidental decorative solutions which were suitable for the potter and other ‘consumers’ of the vessel are probable. But, on the Neolithic painted vessels, although their decoration may seem variegated, inside the decoration itself there exist determined regulations through which the whole surface could be entirely used for painting. In addition all the inner elements are adequately related and create a proportional visual whole. Precisely disposed patterns in the construction are composed of basic elemental units that actually represent geometric forms. The presence of different kinds of triangles, rectangles, circles, nets and lines, proves that certain geometric shapes placed in

Fig. 4.13. Cluster of Y motifs in curved composition (drawing by author). In an attempt to define the Nubian designs, Hodder uses the rules of the generative grammatical (Hodder 1982), so that every motif is treated as a triangular ‘word’ which is supplemented with another ‘word’ of that type (Hodder 2003, 62 - 63). Hodder’s conclusions are quite close to 29

Imagery Structures: Neolithic patterns and their role in the painted compositions those of Jablan and Radović, which consider that throughout the patterning of the Neolithic vessels there exists a modularity i.e. combining of several basic elements (modules), in order to create a larger number of (different) modular structures (Jablan 1989; Jablan 1995; Radović on line).

the fact that in the ambition to enrich the decorative assortment, a profound observation was used. These Neolithic observations guided toward a series of complex decorative keys, through which a visual ‘choreography’ of two kinds of patterns was detected, one painted with dark color, and the other performed in negative. The changing of the pattern colors creates an illusion of what is: ‘in front-behind’, ‘up-down’, ‘above-below’, thereafter composing a contrast between the repeated figure and the background (Jablan 1989, 12). These complementarities of patterns, which shape or are shaped, lead toward probably one of the most beautiful painted techniques of all Neolithic vessels. Even in contemporary art, one of the most interesting artists of the 20th century, the Dutch graphic Mauritzs Echer, developed this technique of asymmetry to perfection. In almost all of the Neolithic sites the technique of asymmetrical painting is present. Usually it is a variation of one defined key with wave-like lines in negative (Pl. VII; Pl. VIII: 1, 2, 5, 7, 8; Pl. X: 2, 6, 7). But what is even more exiting, these wave-like lines are made out of patterns executed with dark color (composed of smaller joined ‘Y’ motifs). The structure of this kind of compositions shows that the surface of the vessel is quite practically defined, so that on it both kinds of patterns could be precisely placed.

Fig. 4.14 Types of symmetry (after Hodder 2003, fig. 2, according to Washburn 1999, Fig. 1): A) Translation; B) Double rotation; C) Horizontal mirror reflection; D) Reflection with ‘sliding’. In some concrete examples the principles of the generative grammatical or the modularity, can be also noticed on the painted vessels from the region of Skopje. Thus, all those geometric structures which on the vessels appear in belts or fields, within themselves contain one basic ‘word’ or module from which they develop (Fig. 4.15). For example, in the belts of lozenges and triangles from Govrlevo and Madjari, there appears one module which will be repeated, or if we move further, the lozenges themselves from within and without are composed of small triangles (words-modules) which supplement in several ways (Pl. VI: 4; Pl. VIII: 8). On the other hand, a whole basic motif that can be treated as a module from which repetition modularity is created, even in the empty fields between the motifs, it can be regarded as a module in negative. These modular principles continue to be used throughout the whole history of the cultures and civilizations, and even today they are often present in the design of the commercial industry.

Fig. 4.15. Modularity in the first zone of the rectilinear compositions (drawing by author). All this demonstrate that the Neolithic potters organized and arranged the compositions with previously defined matrixes and regulations. Regardless of the complexity of the compositions, these regulations provided the precise required construction. That is why the repetition of identical compositions is often seen, which on the other side speaks of the powerfully rooted tradition of decorating. As with the majority of cultures, in the Neolithic almost every tradition relies on strongly determined convention. These regulations, on one hand are based on the cognitively-associative system, but on the other they were also effective in terms of the technical manufacture of the conceived images. The geometrical regulations consider the calculation, multiplication and negation of the determined units used for creating the compositions. This is established by the presence of the so-called ‘archaic mathematic’, which apart from the

Certainly we cannot consider if the Neolithic potters approached their decoration analytically, but what is certain is that they worked with several basic forms which they rotated, combined and placed in symmetrical wholes. Therefore it can undoubtedly be confirmed that there existed a determined type of primary geometry throughout which the patterns were organized. The examples on the numerous systematized compositions prove this. Indisputably the dividedness of the painted surface itself points to the fact that the vessel was considered as a geometric entirety in which relations between two or more groups of patterns existed. On the other hand, the presence of asymmetry during the embellishing of the vessels is once more an affirmation of 30

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia painted ceramic, was also present in many other sectors of Neolithic life (agriculture, architecture, production, and also in rituals and taboos).

reconstruction, especially those that are most characteristic and which belong to the style with alternated lines in a form of a triangle, and those belonging to the style with wave-like lines in negative. In the example from Zelenikovo, patterns from both zones are perceptible. In the upper zone there are the little triangles, and in the lower one, the recognizable vertical lines are painted. Knowing the features of this style, consistent reconstruction can be easily performed (Fig. 4.16). On the fragment from Govrlevo a pattern which is in the central part of the curved compositions appears the one that separates and unites the lines in the ‘garland’ (Fig. 4.17). After the reconstructions from the fragments are performed, then it can very easily be approached towards the placing of the reconstruction on the surface of the cup. When the fragments are consistently transformed into a reconstruction of a cup, a completely different image concerning the ceramic production in the Neolithic is obtained. When the fragment is virtually transformed into a vessel, the quantity of vessels in one dwelling or settlement is directly experienced. This way it becomes even more interesting, that, after eight thousand years, through reconstructing the fragments, these vessels and their patterns still excite with their inventiveness, uniqueness and visual narration.

Fig. 4.16. Reconstruction of a rectilinear composition from Zelenikovo (drawing by author).

Reconstruction of the patterns The defined canons, the careful selection of patterns and their independent and group-ordered relations with other patterns, allow the recurrent revival of the painted patterns on the cups. Gathering the data provided by this small number of preserved compositions, we can recognize whole patterns even in the fragments on which elements of the defined styles are being noticed. If within the fragments, elaborated patterns that already exist appear, and if they are organized in an already defined compositional whole, then the non-preserved remains of the composition can be envisaged. That way the feasible reconstruction could be approached with certain probability, mostly because one composition is not always identically repeated. It often happens that variations of some details appear. The sequence on some cups with rectilinear patterns does not have to be constant. For example, in the rectilinear composition with oblique lines from Madjari, the number of lines is constantly changed (Pl. VIII: 3). Certain groups of patterns can be composed of 5, 8, 9, 10 and even 12 oblique lines in an irregular rhythm. On the other hand, in the most complex dynamic compositions with wave-like lines and ‘Y’ motifs, variations always exist. Thus, the lowest ‘Y’ motif can, but does not necessarily have to have a ‘paw’ with several ‘little fingers’. This paw-like motif includes a number of variations present on diverse and distant Neolithic artifacts (Chohadzhiev 2004).

Fig. 4.17. Reconstruction of curved composition from Govrlevo (drawing by author).

The symbolism of compositions on cups

But, detailed analysis of the imagery of the patterns, the defining of the most present principles and styles, allows us to establish the most important elements of one composition. As a matter of fact, they are the ones that give the main character to the composition. Nevertheless the construction that gives the style is meaningful, while the details can only fulfill the painting. Two examples will be given so that the possibility of a reconstruction of compositions, based only on fragmented information, can be illustrated. Each of them, regardless of the dimensions, possesses enough elements for

the

patterns

and

The huge climate changes, the cultivating of the plants and domestication of animals, as well as the new inventions in the material culture (dwellings, ovens, vessels), they all influenced the development of the religious consciousness. All new experiences were to be interpreted and built into the tradition. The nature was changed, but also the population inhabiting certain environments. During this process they adjusted to the 31

Imagery Structures: Neolithic patterns and their role in the painted compositions newly created condition, therefore completely merging with the surrounding and thus creating specific functional spheres in which the receptive system (experiencing sensations) and effective system (reacting to the sensations) are intertwined (Kasirer 1998, 44). These activities become symbolically intertwined with those of the nature and the cultural environment, following the sense of development and degradation. Projecting itself in the cultivated and broader space and vice versa, most of the symbolic human manifestations acquire a ritual or magical character.

of the idea and the symbolic cognition, gathered from the mystical experiences and sensations of the Neolithic communities. Realized through imagery forms, the mediations of the numinous can possibly be enclosed through the symbolic images in the logically conceived shape, symmetrical construction and function of the cup. The Neolithic cups were not only everyday practical or exclusively ceremonial. However its use was merely everyday, on it the ideas of the time were carried. On the other hand, even if its function was to be accomplished through rituals, the cups, because of their often presence in the dwellings and their convenient use, became a consistent part in the meetings and the communication between individuals or groups. Perhaps unintentionally, these contemplations and dynamics were reflected in the shape and the manifestation of the cups, but also on the visual features and significance of the patterns.

In one such world, every action appears as faceless power, manna (the invisible force), which is tightly related to the consciousness of the numinous presence (Blekho et al. 1995, 15). In order to explain to a certain degree this mystery of the relation between themselves and the surroundings, the archaic cultures attempted to incarnate it through the art. Since that which is called manna is invisible, but still present, Neolithic man reacts to this formless manifestation through his inner, intuitive apparatus. Therefore guided by the need to explain the untouchable power in the nature, he creates at first glance abstract paintings, so that he could approach the numinous and indicate its existence. The numinous, however unreachable, can still be felt, since it uses elements from nature, throughout which it accomplishes itself. For example, if the sun, the wind, earth, rain or the mountains possess that function, the artist will represent them only through the most elemental recognizable forms, because he does not care for their real, visible feature, but for their substance which balances the emanation of the numinous. This distortion of reality, synairesis (Hourmouziadis 1973), often leads towards the creation of a symbolic universe, which exists parallel to the physical one, one that allows the creation of the new dimension of reality, a new method in the adjustment to the environment. He creates a symbolical system, through which he associates the receptive and the effective systems, thus going a step further turning himself into animal symbolicum (Kasirer 1998, 44-46). This position allows the individuals or groups to interpret the sensible essence of the nature, and to transmit the experience among the rest of the community.

The complex symbolism of the becoming and the creating of life is just an addition to the basic idea, accompanied with several practices developed ever since the Early Neolithic. Mediating about the essence of life, the people of that time also thought about the creative logic in the nature. Since he considered himself for its compound part, all was equally relevant to the rest of the organisms, but also for himself. In order to maintain and to implement his cognition concerning the relevant processes in the nature, this comprehension as a symbolic image was further transposed through ‘frequent’ and permanent media. Thus, the more these symbolic images are transferred, the more the symbolism of the decoration is developed. But on the other hand, the more these symbolic images expanded from the source of the idea, the more they lose their significance, or at least they are modified. Thus in some way, from generation to generation, they transform from symbolic images, to decorative patterns. It is the reason that the question remains open, as to how these compositions incorporated and maintained, or modified and lost their earliest semantics. It is difficult to determine when and why a pattern acquires or loses its symbolic role, although in future it continues its function of a decorative element. Although throughout several generations, it is modified with certain variations in the form, but its basis remains the same. Consequently it transforms into a distinctive mark, during which the tradition of one local culture is developed. As the culture spreads, thus its distinguishing features are recognized, styles are being engaged (the painted cups from the region of Skopje posses at least three styles), which depend on the spiritual or the aesthetic concepts, with certain variations, accent the identity of one cultural entirety. If during these processes the new environment (or the new generation) loses the necessity for emanating the religious aspect through the pattern, it still retains the pattern, but in this case as an experimented decorative principle, ‘fashion’ or tradition, which during the time, distancing from the source, completely degrades.

All the constructive parts of the man’s symbolic universe (the art, myth, religion, and even the language), are reactions to his cognition. Simultaneously and mutually they intertwine in order to define the matters that essentially explain the human existence, but also the purpose and existence of his surroundings. Creating these experiences, he transposes them to the next generations, thus developing a mythical consciousness. Within the already developed mythical consciousness, man incarnates his ideas through mythical images, with which all of his experiences and sensations gather a symbolic form, so that the mythical image maintains a ritual or religious character, and thus also a semantic (i.e. symbolic) significance (Chausidis 1994, 40, 51). The presence of these mythical images is accomplished in certain segments of the visual expression as a reflection 32

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia But, if the religious or the artistic (aesthetic) sensibility is identified to the ‘imported’ impulses of the predecessors, than an evolution of the religious concept, but also of its imagery follows. In the Neolithic, the development of the possible religious imagery concept would move forward to the fact that even the second-rate media (the vessel), through which the idea of the primal media (the patterns) was accomplished, would become incorporated in the conceived cognitive entirety of meanings.

massages which were part of the Neolithic mind. This way they allow the observer to come a step further from the common corresponding, to observe the ideas that can only be carried through an image, and to experience the massages and knowledge about the complex environment and dynamic processes of social groups. Thus, even at a time that is far from the Neolithic, using semantic analyses, we are able to determine the features of the cognitive and the perceptive profile of Neolithic man. Sensing the contours of his spirit and ethics (firmly built through the tradition throughout several hundred years), we have the opportunity to understand the essence of human existence, and to conceive how it was skillfully created and developed over a huge timeframe, through the creative folklore of Neolithic populations.

In this context, even the patterns disposed on the certain vessels (including the cups), had the characteristic to intervene between the cognitive and the secular, between the urge for material and spiritual existence. They beautify the surface and the object, but also carry the

33

Chapter 5

Imprints of the Neolithic Mind: Visual Dynamism and the Significance of Clay Stamps The presence of clay stamps inside the Neolithic settlements and their unusual structure often induce multi-directional interpretations, in order to define their character. The small dimensions and specific shape of the stamps assert these portable objects as part of social relations and visual communication between the members from one, or even more communities in distant regions. This feature is especially emphasized by the decoration most often incised on their bottom side. The presence of definite patterns also distinguishes their function in maintaining the visual traditions of the populations inhabiting the South–East Europe. In addition, they had an important role in building the Neolithic image modularity, so that they completely fitted into decorative structure of the Neolithic iconography. Therefore the patterns present on the stamps are in relation with several aspects of the Neolithic material culture from the Balkans and Anatolia. This homogeneity of patterns indicates that they were actively included in the transposition of the cognition into the visual metaphor. Both the imagery and practical character of the stamps were incorporated in the interaction between the members of the community, so that it could be assumed that they were used for imprinting the decoration over surfaces and materials, which further had an active role in correspondence among the practitioners in certain ceremonies. Although recently the stamps were interpreted differently, still on this occasion their relation with ethnographic data would be strengthened, including for domestic rites practised among Slavic populations in the Balkans.

basic definition of the characteristics of stamps from South-Eastern Europe and Anatolia (Makkay 1984; Budja 2003; Dzhanfezova 2003; Naumov 2005b; Türkcan 2006; Naumov 2006b; Skeates 2007; Prijatelj 2007; Türkcan 2007), thus pointing to their multifunctional character and their role in the visual culture of the Neolithic communities in this regions.

Between function and significance So far the definite function of the stamps has not been determined. There are many hypotheses, mostly emphasising their socio-economic or ritual character. Regarding their most elementary feature – decoration – they were often related to the tattooing of human skin, and thus to the term pintadera (Cornaggia-Castiglione 1956; Mellart 1967, 220; Makkay 1984, 91). Two questions concerning Neolithic tattooing still remain open. Was it at all necessary to create a tattoo using stamps, when this could be done with other tools much more convenient for coloring the body? And on the other hand, bearing in mind the small dimensions of the stamps, how could they decorate large areas of the human body? But the authors mentioned above point that on a number of stamps the remains of color are still visible; several examples from Macedonia were found with these pigments, so that the possibility that they were used to decorate the human body is not excluded (see also Prijatelj 2007, 242, Fig. 6). Several authors treat the remains of color on the stamps as an indication of their use perhaps for coloring textiles (Mellart 1967, 220; Makkay 1984, 91; Perles 2001, 252; Budja 2003, 119).

In attempt to enlarge our understanding of stamps from South-Eastern Europe, some published and unpublished Neolithic stamps originating from Republic of Macedonia will be presented here, as well as short introduction to those found in the neighbouring regions from the southern half of the Balkan Peninsula (Greece, Bulgaria, Albania and Serbia). The main focus will be on their decoration, which enables us to discern the visual dynamics of the patterns and their links with the remaining elements of the material culture. On the other hand, emphasizing the context and location of some of the stamps, emphasis will be given to the possibility of their role as objects used for imprinting motifs.

The use of the stamps for imprinting patterns on ceramics is still discussed. Regarding South-Eastern Europe, and especially Macedonia, for the time being the remains of pottery and statuettes associated with the imprinting of patterns belonging to the stamps are not yet confirmed. But in the Early- and Late-Neolithic phases of the site of Tell Sabi Abyad (Syria), a large number of ceramic fragments bearing imprints from stamps were excavated (Akkermans and Verhoeven 1995, 21–25; Akkermans et al. 2006, 131). It is interesting that in one Late Neolithic dwelling where many imprinted fragments were found, not one seal appeared, thus accentuating the high status of these ‘tools’ – i.e. that they were taken by those who used them. It is assumed that these patterns denoted the origin, the way of distribution or the contents of the material preserved within the pots. In this way, throughout a stylized symbolical intercession, as the author marks, there was a probable link between two groups over large distances (Akkermans and Verhoeven 1995, 23). Although discussing the ritual links and identification

The history of research of the Neolithic stamps shows that these objects were always approached through several lines of observation, due to their unconventional appearance and form. The stamps are often interpreted as objects belonging to several categories, which can be regarded in their utilitarian or ritual sociological context. Within the frames of these analyzes and interpretations several important researches are made, trying to offer a 34

Imprints of the Neolithic Mind: Visual Dynamism and Significance of the Clay Stamps through symbols, the distance between the recipients of these signs does not play a meaningful role, since the symbols were directly pointed towards the members of one or several communities. On the same site, a fragment of a vessel bearing an imprint in the form of a human body was discovered; so that the possibility that this region was the origin of the anthropomorphic stamps is reopened. This anthropomorphic stamps were supposed to represent the owners of the containers and the contents, or the mythical character in whose domain was the protection of the goods.

communities were executed (Perles 2001, 289; Bailey 2000, 110). In this way, throughout the communication between the Neolithic villages, the stamps and other objects were used as mediators in different contracts, exchanges of goods, even in the marriages, when two families made an ‘exchange’ of the young members of the family (Talalay 1993, 46; Budja 2003, 116). So far, the imprinting of stamps on ceramics from the Macedonian Neolithic has not been confirmed, but we should not exclude the possibility that on such occasions the imprints were made on organic materials: leather, textile, dough, and even animals.

This tradition of marking of the ceramic containers with stamps was maintained through the Bronze Age on the Balkan, but also over a wider area (Dickinson 1994, 189193; Vasilakis 2001; Kircho 1989, 123-125; Joshi and Parpola 1987, XV). However, the researchers do not exclude the possibility that these objects in the Bronze Age could also posses magical or apothropaic character together with their use for administrative control of the products. The patterns and the representations of the mythical characters, figures and ritual scenes on the stamps, point towards their magical influence over the goods contained in the pots and bags, or that they functioned as talismans for the people that possessed them (Dickinson 1994, 189-192; Joshi and Parpola 1987, XV-XVII; Kerśak 2005, 94). In contribution to these ideas belong the stamps discovered as inventory in the graves from the Neolithic and the Bronze Age. Namely, on several Balkan sites and wider, stamps were discovered in the form of deposits to the male and female individuals whose number is equal, mostly in relation to the head, the pectoral and the haunches (Mellart 1967, 209; Türkcan 2006, 46; Kircho 1989, 123, 124; Baćvarov 2003, 82, 220; Skeates 2007, 186, 195).

In the period of the Chalcolithic and during the Bronze Age, clay bulls imprinted with the patterns of the stamps were being made. They were all discovered within the dwellings (Kircho 1989, 124). This shows that through the Neolithic, especially in its late phases, there existed a developed system of symbols through which an identification and recognition of the house ‘inventory’ was being made, but also a system of meanings that could move in several directions. On one hand the analyses of the Vinca settlements show that in 79 houses objects with symbols were discovered, which surely implies the common use of symbols in household activities (Starović 2005, 258). But on the other hand, stamps do not equate to a certain region and period, but similar patterns appear in relation from Anatolia, through the Balkan, all the way to Hungary. Thus, the system of meanings and functions of these stamps developed in parallel to the Neolithization and strengthened their role in the interaction between individuals, families and settlements. In this way the stamps gradually defined their interactive character that had dominated the ‘administrative’ relations, but found its way in the ritual sphere also. These two apparently different categories were probably not so different in the Neolithic period, and the remaining of this practice continues in the Bronze Age, as mentioned above. Similar ethnographic examples, where the ‘documentation’ of the household inventory in ritual purposes is made, are familiar between the Slavic populations in the Balkans, which shall be presented below.

But besides the double function that could be attributed even to the Neolithic stamps, it is important that through these objects messages concerning some sociological relations could be sent, thus giving information on the mutual co-functioning of the Neolithic groups and individuals. It is interesting that the largest number of stamps were discovered in, or around the dwellings, thus pointing their intermediate function between the members of one family. But if we consider that a great number of the patterns used on stamps present a part of the general ‘decorative Neolithic alphabet’, then we can confirm that they represented a media through which some sort of interaction between the family or the community, or between the settlements in the surrounding environment was performed. This wide use of patterns points to the developed links between several settlements in a larger area in which they wanted to acclaim their origin and to define their identity. The painted vessels from the Balkans and the similar patterns on the stamps confirm these ideas (Naumov 2006b).

Moreover, the context in which the Neolithic stamps are excavated speaks more of their dual function. Very often they are found together in an overall assemblage, i.e. when several different objects create a whole as a result of economic or ritual purpose (Budja 2003, 124; Prijatelj 2007, 247, 248). In one house in Syria, dated 5900-5800 BC, ceramic fragments with imprints made by stamps are discovered together with c. 1600 tokens, counters, and statuettes of animals and humans. It is supposed that all these objects represented a part of the early administrative system where the tokens represented the goods and their quantities, whereas the figurines replaced the animals and the persons that were in some administrative relation (Akkermans et al. 2006, 131, 132). But on the other hand, on several Neolithic sites these assemblages, in which the stamps also belong, can be interpreted differently. In the explored houses from Nea

In any case, they do not have to present signs of individual recognition, but of a collective one, of the whole community, by which it would be logical to expect that using these signs the connections between different 35

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia Nikomedea, Rakitovo, Donja Branjevina, Divostin, Vashtemi and Podgorie, the stamps are almost always discovered together with female figurines, anthropomorphic vessels, vessels painted with white patterns, clay tablets, zoomorphic amulets, pins and female figurines with intentionally divided legs (Budja 2003, 124-126). It is understandable that the question regarding the number of these objects in one compact context remains open, so that it cannot be claimed that the objects mutually formed an assemblage or that they were randomly arranged through the house, a situation very typical for the Neolithic houses in the Balkans. In any case, the concentration of this type of objects in one defined space points towards their mutual symbolical function, probably related to domestic rites.

Neolithic stamps from the southern half of the Balkan Peninsula

Regarding the stamps from Macedonia, some of them can be denoted as belonging to assemblages, although the publications of the excavations do not always give precise contexts of discovery. In most of the published or partially published Neolithic dwellings where stamps were discovered, there is a concentration of a larger part of the objects that formed these symbolic assemblages (white-painted vessels, female figurines, sacrificial altars, anthropomorphic vessels, and even models of figurinehouses). Until the complete publication of the excavations is done, it remains an open discussion whether the stamps correlate to the symbolic function of the surrounding objects, or if they functioned separately as objects with independent role in domestic utilitarian or ritual activities.

Stamps were used in all of the Neolithic phases, so that decoration in the Early Neolithic has a preference for geometric patterns; a range of maze-like patterns appeared in the Middle Neolithic, whilst the Late Neolithic is represented with more complex decoration (Skeates 2007, 186). Still in general, there is a predominance of patterns composed of straight and zigzag lines, pseudo-labyrinths, concentric lozenges and circles, spirals, dots and crosses, which are engraved on circular, oval, rectangular and amorphic bases.

Greece As result of intensive excavations, recently in Greece more than 60 Neolithic stamps were found, which still represents the highest amount of stamps found in the region of the Balkan Peninsula. In addition to this number, also clay cylinders are included. Most of the stamps are made of clay, although there are several modelled in stone (Perles 2001, 252; Makkay 1984, 9, 22, 41, 42, 47, 52, 66; Skeates 2007, 185), which is exclusive to this region only.

Despite these patterns, decoration on clay cylinders from Sitagroi and Dikili Tash consists of similar repertoire, but with completely different disposition (Makkay 1984, Fig. XXV: 1-3, 5, 7). The authentic shape of cylinders provides patterns to be arranged in horizontal belts, so that with rolling they will be imprinted on larger surfaces. Perforation in the middle of the cylinders probably enabled a smaller stick to be inserted inside, used for rolling of these ‘stamps’. This perforation might be used also for stringing the cylinder on a necklace or any other part of the body (waist, ankles, wrists, etc.).

In one of the shrines in Çatal Höyük, four stamps together with seven figurines, fragments of vessels, tools and grain-mill were discovered placed around a fireplace (Türkcan 2006, 45). This group of objects connects the stamps to the house activities performed around the fireplace, most probably in the domain of activities referring to the preparation and decoration of bread.

It is interesting that the numbers of stamps found on Neolithic sites in Greece vary from two to 20 approximately. In Nea Nikomedeia there are even 21 stamps found, mostly in Early Neolithic phase of this settlement, whilst approximately three of the complete number could be dated to Late Neolithic (Makkay 1984, 36-40). This situation indicates that in certain communities stamps had an important role in the manifestation of identity and developing of symbolic system. Many authors point out that stamps from this settlement, and also those from Thessaly, have obvious similarities with the decoration of the stamps from Anatolia.

All the above-mentioned interpretations of the stamps depend on several factors: the context of discovery, the visual analogies, the traces of their imprints etc. It certainly does not mean that their function can be concentrated on one function only, on the contrary, it can be expected that a number of the stamps, despite the lack of visible traces, could have equally been used in the tactile and imaginary relation between people, as well as in those between people and environment. That is why in the following discussion only stamps from the Southern Balkans and the Republic of Macedonia will be presented, which in many cases belong to multi-layered segments in the category of visual analogues. This will certainly point to their multifunctional character, while the context of their position and ethnographic analogies with contemporary ritual stamps will enable yet another possibility for the definition their functions.

Bulgaria The stamps from Bulgaria are profoundly presented in two studies of Dzhanfezova (Dzhanfezova 2003a; Dzhanfezova 2003b), as well as the work of Makkay (Маkkay 1984), which still provide the most exhaustive data on stamps from SE Europe. According to basic typology, the stamps are composed of rectangular, oval, 36

Imprints of the Neolithic Mind: Visual Dynamism and Significance of the Clay Stamps circular and cruciform bases with engraved, indented and punctuated patterns: straight, zigzags and curved parallel lines, triangles crosses, concentric circles, meanders and dots (Dzhanfezova 2003a, 100–102).

settlement, a defined system of patterns was developed during the mediation of individuals or communities.

The complete repertoire of Bulgarian stamps is consisted of approximately 50 specimens, and some of them with outstanding features, unique for the Balkan region. Thus, as recently only stamps found with two bases, those from Kapitan Dimitrovo and Slatina should be asserted. The one from Slatina was placed in the grave of male individual, positioned next to his face (Baćvarov 2003, 82). The context of this seal clearly asserts the significance that these objects had in the domain of social classification and identity. The same practice has been noticed in Çatal Höyük where a seal was also found next to the lower jaw (Skeates 2007, 184).

Up to now, Serbia is a region with only little information related to stamps. According to several publications which include these objects, there are 15 stamps known, which refer to the general typology of Southern Balkans stamps. Usually present are stamps with circular, oval, and quadrant bases engraved with curved or zigzag lines, as well as meanders typical for Macedonia, Bulgaria and Greece.

Serbia

Within the group of specific stamps from this region a cylinder from Bikovo should also be included, which unlike the Greek and Albanian examples were not perforated (Makkay 1984, Fig. XXVI: 2). The cruciform seal from Slatina (Makkay 1984, Fig. IX: 233), along with that from Mala Tumba-Trn (Macedonia), again represent unique modeling, unusual for the Balkans, although regarding their shape, the closest analogies could be found in Anatolia. In that context of visual relations and similarities with Anatolia, there is also a foot-like seal from Bikovo (Makkay 1984, Fig. XXIV: 2), which partially resemble the decorated foot found in Çatal Höyük (see Türkcan 2007, Fig. 5).

Particular attention is raised by a seal-figurine from Medvednjak, which along with the one from Govrlevo in the Skopje region, are the only examples known so far. It is interesting that both were found in contexts related to grains and probably to the production of bread. The one from Medvednjak was found in a silo filled with wheat (Gimbutas 1989, 14), while that from Govrlevo was found next to a construction and ash remains used for baking of bread (Naumov 2006b). The specific anthropomorphic or zoomorphic stamps are included in the typology of artifacts with hybrid character which had potent symbolic ground manifested in several aspects of visual culture (Naumov 2007d). Therefore it might be proposed that these two stamps have semantic analogies with several stamps from Çatal Höyük, which in context of surrounding visual culture from the site are well observed (Türkcan 2007).

Albania

Stamps from Republic of Macedonia

During the excavations in Albania approximately 20 stamps were discovered, mostly from Maliq, where 17 stamps were found. Their fixed stratigraphic position to Maliq II phase indicates that they were often and actively used in definite periods of this settlement (Маkkay 1984, 32). From all known stamps, six belong to clay cylinders, whilst the rest are regular stamps with prevalent circular or oval bases, engraved with concentric circles, spirals and swastikas, which are very rare in the pattern repertoire in the southern half of the Balkans (Makkay 1984, Figs. XVII: 4, 5; XXVI: 1, 3 - 7). Among them is one small vessel from Madjari (Macedonia) which bears a deeply engraved swastika on the bottom (Naumov 2006b).

In the course of the excavations of Neolithic settlements in the Republic of Macedonia, approximately 25 ceramic stamps belonging to all three phases of this period were discovered. Most of them are tied to the Early and LateNeolithic stages. In order to gather more detailed knowledge about their character, data concerning their typological features, stratigraphic determination and context of discovery is required. This data is not always gathered for all accompanying stamps, since the information from the older publications does not give a clear account of the clay, chronological or contextual characteristics; in addition there are also several unpublished examples. In this way their characteristics will manifest mostly on the bases of the ornamentation and reflection within the socio-religious aspects of the Neolithic life, while the part concerning the content of the clay from which they are made and the finding place, on this occasion will remain neglected due to insufficient data.

Regarding the dimension of the cylinders, they are mostly larger than in the surrounding regions, sometimes reaching even 10 cm. In this context the decoration also highly differs from the synchronic cylinders in Greece. The decoration is usually composed of spirally curved lines, in contrast with zigzag lines and geometric patterns which dominate on cylinders from Sitagroi and Dikili Tash. The same pseudo-spiral lines are present on one seal from the same site (Makkay 1984, Fig. XXIV: 4), so it could be asserted that in a certain phase of this

Because of the variety of decoration, so far a complete typology can be made only in the range of the form of pintaderas, such as stamps with rectangular, oval, circle or amphoresque base (Pl. XI; Pl. XII; Fig. 5.1). Regarding the typology of patterns which are inscribed 37

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia on the stamps, it is much more difficult provide a typological classification of the patterns. Although most often the patterns are divided into two groups of geometrical patterns (rectangular and twisted), still there exists a large number of patterns that are unique. Because of that it is almost impossible to create one general typology of the patterns, since almost all the inventory of stamps from Macedonia have authentic and unique decoration. Regarding the geometrical rectangular patterns, the most common are those of flat lines, zigzag i.e. the triangular patterns, such as the stamps from the sites of Djumušica, Amzabegovo, Gorobinci, Stenće, ‘Golema Tumba’-Trn, Velušina and Porodin,1 while the meandric patterns appear in Ustie na Drim, Gorobinci, Madjari,2 and on two unidentified sites from the regions of Struga and Bitola.3 Within the more characteristic twisted patterns, the most selected are the spirals, the simple and concentric circles that appear on the stamps from ‘Mala Tumba’-Trn, ‘Golema Tumba’-Trn, Porodin and an unidentified site (probably Dolno Trnovo in the Ohrid region).4 The remaining examples are specific in their ornamentation, so that the amorphic and the cross patterns, and also the bases with attached warty patterns can be identified in Tumba Bara, Zelenikovo, Nikuštak, ‘Mala Tumba’-Trn and Porodin.5 The seal from Govrlevo for the time being remains unique regarding the method of organized decoration in several zones, but also because of its shape and plastic modulation.6 Considering the decoration we should mention that the most numerous stamps from Macedonia have deeply inscribed patterns, which certainly leads to the fact that they were used for imprinting patterns on soft surface (Pl. XI; Pl. XII; Fig. 5.1).

Fig. 5.1. Neolithic stamps from Republic of Macedonia: 1. Amzabegovo; 2. Golema Tumba – Trn; 3. Gorobinci; 4. Nikuštak; 5. Porodin; 6. Dolno Trnovo (drawings by author).

Regarding their dimensions they often vary, but most often the diameter, i.e. the base is wide c. 3 or 4 cm. The examples from Porodin and Velušina vary in that the dimensions of their bases are between 8 or 9 cm, which puts them in the group of Neolithic stamps with the largest bases in South-Eastern Europe. So far, the biggest

base belongs to the seal from Zelenikovo, with 12 cm (Pl. XII: 1). This leads to the conclusion that these objects were used for application to items that did not have standard dimensions or that their greatness had a secondary role in regard to the meaning of the pattern. It is interesting that on some of the stamp bases there are the remains of white and (rarely) red color (Pl. XI: 6, 7, 11; Pl. XII: 7). This information suggests that these objects were decorated with white color, a characteristic also noticed on some figurines and clay model-tables from the same region. The presence of color could be a result of the use of these objects for making tattoos, but for the time being, without serious chemical analyses these hypothesis cannot be confirmed. Regarding their features, the examples from Porodin, Gorobinci, Stenće and Madjari (Pl. XI: 4, 7; Pl. XII: 3, 4, 7), have little perforations on the handles, which suggests that they were suspended or carried around the neck. Perforations like these are present on several Neolithic examples from other states in South-Eastern Europe (Makkay 1984, Fig.I:6; Fig.IV:3,9; Fig.V: 7,9,10; Fig.VII: 7; Fig.XII:12; Fig.XIII: 2,6,8; etc.), and also in Japan (Kobayashi 2004, Fig. 7.3); only some determined stamps possess this

1

Basic data about these stamps: Korošec and Korošec 1973, 56, Т.XIII: 17; Garašanin et al 1971, 43; Gimbutas 1976, pl. 9; Zdravkovski 2006b, fig. 111; Simoska and Sanev 1976, 32, 44, fig. 2, 3, fig.153; Grbić et al 1960, 46, T.XXV: 1. The find from Djumušica has not yet been published. Photo of this seal used with kind permission of Aleksandar Mitkoski. 2 Basic data about these stamps: Garašanin et al 1971, 48, fig. 130; Sanev 1975, Т.X: 4, 5. The example from Madjari is not yet published, so that its data was taken from the exposition’s glass-cases of the Museum of Macedonia. 3 One part of the exposed stamps have not yet been pulished in the archaeological literature, so that their documentation was performed ad hoc through the exposition’s glass-cases. Due to the inappropriate noting of the glass-cases and the finds, part of this objects have no information about the site or the place of origin, or they are wrong. 4 Basic data about this stamps: Simoska and Sanev 1976, 34, 44, 45, fig. 51, fig. 154, Fig.170. 5 Basic data about this stamps: Simoska and Sanev 1976, 42, 45, fig. 148, fig. 171; Galović 1964, Т.XII: 1, 2; Zdravkovski 1992, 21, Т.IV: 1; Grbić et al 1960, 46, T.XXV: 3, 4. 6 Basic data about this seal: Bilbija 1986, 36.

38

Imprints of the Neolithic Mind: Visual Dynamism and Significance of the Clay Stamps characteristic, apart from the larger numbers of those with modelled handles.

This wide presence of identical decoration points to already accepted hypothesis that the Neolithization of the Balkans was developing in relation to Anatolia, through Thessaly, and from there directly to the region of Macedonia. But still the question remains open whether the presence of similar or identical patterns from different sites speaks of direct relations between the settlements, or the patterns are the result of local solutions which appear and develop independently of those present in this and other regions. It must be borne in mind that when we discuss simple geometrical motifs inscribed on the stamps, which are common all across Europe, it is sometimes difficult to confirm the right reasons of the appearance of identical patterns. In any case, in favour of the diffusion hypothesis stand the datings of the sites, so that it becomes clear that a gradation of appearance of inscribed patterns on stamps exists. There are indications that the presence of the stamps is synchronized to the appearance of white painting in the Balkans (Budja 2003, 123), which allows a detailed analysis of these patterns. Precise chronological analyses and the confirmed stratigraphy of context for some of the stamps lead to the conclusion that the appearance, and also the expansion of these objects and their decoration, took place rapidly within the early phases of the Neolithic.

Relations of the stamps from Republic of Macedonia with the visual culture from the Balkans and Anatolia Many of the stamps discovered in Macedonia share similarities or are identical to those from the neighboring regions, but also to examples discovered further north and in South-Eastern of Macedonia. Of great importance are the examples discovered on the territory of Greece and Turkey. Regarding that the chronologies of these sites belong to the wider region, considerations in relation to the spreading of the process of Neolithization through today’s territory of Macedonia can be contributed. Generally the decoration, which also presents a main indication pointing towards the cultural relations, to a large extent is repeated on stamps all across SouthEastern Europe (Budja 2003, 118, 121, 123; Perles 2001, 288; Bailey 2000, 109, 110), and that is why it is sometimes difficult to point the main connections between certain sites, i.e. Neolithic culture through engraved patterns. In such cases only the sites from Greece and Turkey will be referred to, for which it is certain that they chronologically and iconographically correlate to the stamps from the Neolithic settlements from Macedonia. In this way emphasis will be given to the eventual directions of the spreading of Neolithization, and of the further penetration of certain patterns in the regions north of Macedonia.

Significant imports such as triticum monococcum and triticum dicoccum, specific kinds of goat and sheep, red and white wall and pottery painting, mud-brick dwellings, as well as buried individuals of the Mediterranean type in the Early phases of Amzabegovo, resemble Anatolian traditions (Hopf 1961; Sanev 2004, 36; Gimbutas 1976, 68; Bačvarov 2003, 223-248; Naumov 2007a; Mellart 1975, 99; Veljanovska 2000, 45; Veljanovska 2006). Y-chromosome haplotypes confirmed the migrations and the presence of 20-25% DNA lineages from the Near-East and Anatolia in South-Eastern Europe (King and Underhill 2002; Budja 2004, 237). During this demographic diffusion from Anatolia to the Balkans, the Aegean influence should also be taken into consideration, including visual expression. Consequently the process of ‘visual Neolithization’ reached Macedonia through Thessaly.

Regarding the examples from the sites south of the Neolithic settlements in the Republic of Macedonia, it is noticeable that identical patterns (zigzag, concentric circles, applications, points) from the sites of Gorobinci, Amzabegovo, Djumušica, Govrlevo and Porodin are also present in Nea Nikomedea and Sesklo, which certainly suggest similarities and possible links between these regions (Pl. XI: 1, 4; Pl. XII: 4, 6, 8; Fig. 5.1: 1, 5 comparing to Pl. XIII: 1-5, 7, 9). On the other hand, the labyrinth represented on the Middle Neolithic seal from Madjari often appears in Thessaly on the sites in Achileion, Pyrasos, Tsangli, Nessonis, Philia and Sesklo (Pl. XIII: 6, 8, 10). Part of the decoration from the stamps in Macedonia was also present in the Anatolian examples. Four types of patterns from Macedonia (concentric circles, spirals, meanders and triangles) were also inscribed in Çatal Höyük (Pl. XIV). The concentric circles, the labyrinth and the parallel lines are also present on the stamps from Bademağaci and Haçilar, and even in the Levant, on the stamps from the sites in Tell Halula and Malaha. On the other hand some of the patterns from the Çatal Höyük stamps appear on the Early and Middle Neolithic painted vessels from Macedonia (Fig. 2.2), but also some of the Macedonian examples are in close relation to the decoration of the wall-paintings of the shrines in Çatal Höyük.

The frequent presence of the above-mentioned patterns can be noticed on many stamps discovered in various sites in the Republic of Macedonia, but also further north (Mаkkay 1984, Fig. I-Fig. XXXI, Dzhanfezova 2003, Fig.6). The use of identical patterns in several regions points to strong links, which offers information beyond the tracing of the developing stages of the Neolithization. These objects not only speak of the maintenance of the tradition in the eventual colonization or visual communication, but simultaneously they point to the tradition of preserving certain patterns which incorporated meanings for their manufacturers. The presence of the same patterns in the other spheres of the pictorial expression only confirms the considerations regarding the semantic background of the patterns imprinted by stamps.

39

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia dwellings in Macedonia, Bulgaria, as well as Anatolia. A similar decoration on the seal from Ustie na Drim (Pl. XI: 9) is also inscribed in the lower parts of the wall of a house discovered in Azmak, but it was also painted on some of the frescoes in the buildings from Çatal Höyük.

Patterns on stamps and their analogies with the decoration on other Neolithic objects The repertoire of patterns used for decoration of the stamps is also present in other pictorial techniques used in the decoration of the rest of the utilitarian ceramic inventory. A part of these patterns are painted or inscribed in different variations on vessels, figurines, ovens, clay tablets, but also on some of the walls of the Neolithic dwellings or shrines. Those are objects with the highest degree of technical production or were incorporated in the sphere of utilitarian objects. Whether the repetition of patterns on several media represents a defined cannon of patterns thereafter used in decoration, or whether they are created as insignia throughout which the local population recognizes and differs from the rest remains an open discussion.

The pattern on the seal discovered in Amzabegovo is also present on the upper corner of the house model from Vršnik. What is specific for both these examples are the details on the end of the right side which resemble the letter ‘E’ (Fig. 5.1: 1). This same pattern, identical or with variations, is inscribed on two fragments, which, in the same way as the seal, belong to the same stratigraphical layer from Amzabegovo (Korošec and Korošec 1973, 56). The frequent presence of this pattern in two settlements close to one another speaks about its peculiar meaning related to certain types of link between the communities of the region. At this moment it is still difficult to speak about it being a part of an alphabetical system, but its pictorial meaning should not be neglected. All the above-mentioned examples bearing the same pattern belong to the Late Neolithic phase of the settlements, a period in which for the first time the forming of the so-called Danube alphabet begun (Merlini 2005; Merlini 2007; Haarman 2005, 228-231; Starović 2004, 16 - 30; Winn 1981).

The inscribed patterns on the stamps are mostly present on the painted vessels from the Early and Middle Neolithic in Macedonia. It is interesting that these patterns correspond to elements of the painted compositions on the vessels. These complex painted compositions consist of patterns which in a way of peculiar or combined permutation build the structure of the painted vessels in one or two zones (Naumov 2005a, 68 - 71). A part of these patterns used in the development of the pictorial compositions are also inscribed on the Neolithic stamps. It shows that these patterns were not independent and individual, but that they were employed actively in the sphere of visual expression on several media. Such visual dynamics were manifested in many relations and on several types of material culture present in the Neolithic sites in Macedonia.

In this context, probably most interesting is the seal from Govrlevo, which on its base border has twisted and zigzag ideograms divided by spots, also partially inscribed on the ‘oven-altar’ from Zelenikovo. This detail is often presented on the removable material also, especially on the walls of constructions and the ceramic plates in the neighboring regions (Pl. XV: 9-12). The decoration of this seal opens many possibilities in further semantic analyses of these ideograms and in the defining of the specific function of the stamps. The presence of spots in determined numerical and spatial disposition, even more in an often relation to the zigzag lines, points to the existence of prescribed principles in the domain of ideogram communication.

Most representative are several analogies between the patterns on stamps and vessels (Pl. XV: 1 - 8). The zigzag motif inscribed on the stamps from Gorobinci and Djumušica was also painted on the Early Neolithic vessel from Amzabegovo. The stamps and vessels from Velušina have identical twisted patterns. The painted pattern on the Middle Neolithic vessels is also visible on the Pelagonian seal from Trn. The spiral inscribed pattern on this seal, in several variants also appears on the painted cups and amphorae belonging to the Middle Neolithic phases of the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group. The same motif is present on the small pot with inscribed decoration discovered in Madjari. On this example it is interesting that in the lower part a twisted swastika is represented – an element belonging to the repertoire of patterns found on several Neolithic stamps from Albania, i.e. the site Maliq (see Makkay 1984, Fig. XVII. 5). In the range of these similarities the above-mentioned similarities between the stamps from Anatolia and the painted vessels from Macedonia should be pointed out; these continued throughout the Bronze Age (Dickinson 1994, 191; Kircho 1989, 123).

Stamps - Figurines The above-mentioned seal from Govrlevo also belongs to another category of stamps which partially enter the sphere of the anthropomorphic and zoomorphic sculpture. These are objects which had unified the most elementary aspects of these two types of objects, and that is why they are referred to as stamps-figurines (Pl. XII: 5; Fig. 5.2). Perhaps the most remarkable example is the seal from Govrlevo, whose handle bears the form of a figurine. Its base is decorated in two zones with a connected or independent ideograms, which points to its symbolic function. It can be supposed for the figurines from Zelenikovo, Amzabegovo and Gorobinc that the inscribed patterns on the top of their heads were used for imprinting, and their ornamentation is almost identical to that presented on some of the stamps (Fig. 5.2: 2, 4, 6).

The decoration characteristic of the Neolithic stamps from Macedonia is also visible on the interiors of some 40

Imprints of the Neolithic Mind: Visual Dynamism and Significance of the Clay Stamps The pole-like figurines from the Balkans could be pointed as a different category, bearing on their tops patterns similar to the decoration of the stamps. Especially the example from Medvednjak and the context of its discovery supports the function of these objects (Fig. 5.2: 1). This object, which lacks a base so that it could be put on a plain surface, was discovered inside a silo, which, according to the chemical analyses, was filled with grain (Gimbutas 1989, 14). This information indicates that the figurine was used as an amulet protecting the grain; it probably also had a function in the activities related to the preparation and the decoration of the bread, a suggestion also made by the decoration on the top of its head. Identical decoration is also present on several Neolithic stamps discovered in Greece, Bulgaria and Hungary (Makkay 1984, Figs. XIII, XXIII, XXVII). However it is difficult to say whether all the figurines bearing decoration on the tops had a function of stamps. But if we consider the depth of the inscribed patterns, and also the symbolical relation between the human hair and the grain in contemporary archaic cultures (Chausidis 2005, 234), we can suppose that maybe some of them were used for imprinting of the patterns on the soft surface of the dough. Some of the ‘anthropomorphic stamps belong to the group of those made in a form of a foot or a palm. Such examples are discovered in Bikovo (Bulgaria), Çatal Höyük and Gura Văii, although the earliest forms of these stamps are discovered in Byblos (Makkay 1984, 26, Türkcan 2007, 261). The last example resembles a bear’s foot, so that the possibility that some of the figurinestamps represented animals cannot be excluded. Towards this discussion point the two stamps from Çatal Höyük made in a form of a bear and leopard (Türkcan 2007).

Stamps and animal imagery dynamics of Çatal Höyük Fig. 5.2. Stamps – figurines (1, 3, 5) and figurines with decoration on top: 1: Medvednjak; 2: Amzabegovo; 3: Kurilo; 4: Zelenikovo; 5: Szentes; 6: Gorobinci.

In the course of the campaigns that for several years were, and still are being excavated by Mellart and Hodder, several stamps were found that strongly related to the imagery dynamics of the decoration (Mellart 1967; Türkcan 2006, Türkcan 2007). The presence of stamps representing a ‘bear’ and leopard relates to the imagery traditions which were present in this settlement. Namely, these animals, in an almost identical position, are equally present in the domain of the wall decoration also, painted or sculptured, and yet, except for one example (Türkcan 2007, 261), are almost unfamiliar in the faunal remains (Pl. XVI). Moreover, some of the non-figurative stamps are shaped or inscribed with patterns that are equally remarkable on the bodies of the painted and sculptured animals. Thus, the shape of the four-pointed seal is often painted on the walls of the buildings, and even more interesting, it is painted on the head of some of the plastered leopards (Pl. XVI: 2-5). Surely this indicates that the four-pointed seal is in close relation to the representations of the leopard, and it probably had the

function of transposing some part of the character and the symbolic meaning of the leopard. In relation to this function is the leopard-seal which probably was used for the manifestation of these meanings onto the imprinted media. If we have in mind that the people painted on the walls were dressed in leopard skins (emphasized in a moment of a hunt, dance or trance), then we can suppose that these stamps had the function of concentrating the energy and skill of the leopard to the person decorated with the suitable patterns, or the one that consumed products decorated with such patterns, as will be mentioned later. On the other side, the repertoire of animals present on the stamps and the wall decoration also includes the ‘bear’, but in a totally different context. Namely, the position representing these animals is identical, but the 41

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia distinguishing features are the patterns painted or inscribed on their bodies. In the part of the stomach, equally on stamps and on one of the reliefs, patterns present on the non-figurative stamps are represented (Pl. XVI: 7-10). These similarities lead to the conclusion that specific characteristics on the bodies of the animals (especially the stomach) were deliberately isolated, so that through the decoration of the seal this characteristic could be transmitted to the new media. As it will be pointed out later, these specific similarities between the patterns on the stamps and the bellies will also be present in the corporeality of figurines.

was still wet, he engraved a triangle with a line that cuts in its middle. What is specific for these patterns is that both variations are often used in the representation of the female genitalia on the figurines. This seal is maybe the best example for the fact that a part of the stamps bore the patterns denoting the vulva i.e. its symbolic meaning (Chausidis 1996, 60). It remains an open question in which context this pattern was imprinted on the new media. But considering that engraving of the seal from Trn is very shallow, than it can be supposed that it was imprinted on soft surface or was simply worn as an amulet serving for symbolical transposition of the functions of the vulva, equally to the new media or its owner. The rudiment representations of female genitalia are also present on some other examples from Macedonia and the Balkans; even more that they are identical to the representations of genitalia on some of the Neolithic figurines from SouthEastern Europe.

Semantic relations between patterns on stamps and other media A large part of the decoration present on the stamps is also noticeable in different variations on figurines, cult tablets, ovens, cups, silos, wall reliefs and paintings, i.e. on media that entered the sphere of ritual objects or were decorated in order symbolically to protect, stimulate and multiply their contents. Since some of the patterns are precisely elaborated and repeated on different objects, it can be considered that they possessed specific meanings that can be suggested through semantic analyses. The repetition of these patterns suggests that in the Neolithic there existed a defined repertoire of patterns, which regarding the object and its shape, were multiplied or placed on a specific spot. In this context, the most interesting data comes from the figurines and the wall paintings, usually decorated with engraving or painting.

The question concerning the relations between the patterns on stamps and those engraved on the regenerative place of female figurines remain open for further interpretations that would benefit to the function of the stamps. Therefore it would be interesting to argue the media on which these patterns were imprinted and whether this media had a relation to the characteristics of the female abdomen. In this case, the benefit is made by several analogies and the context of discovery of some stamps, by which the eventual character of the object decorated with the stamps, could be explained.

It was stressed above that some figurines due to the deep engraving of the point, and because of the decoration of their base, also belong to the sphere of stamps used for imprinting of the decoration. But in the Neolithic, figurines bearing patterns known from the stamps from Macedonia in the part of the stomach i.e. the genitalia, are also produced.

In one of the recent excavations in Çatal Höyük, in the building A1, four stamps along with seven figurines, a grinding stone and tools for processing cereals were discovered (Türckan 2006, 45). The context of discovery of the seal-figurine from Govrlevo is very similar (Pl. XII: 5). It was left next to the big ceramic construction near which several grinding stones, models of loaves and remains of a mound of ashes were arranged (Fig. 5.3).7 Close to this area one more seal was discovered (Pl. XII: 6). On the same site the excavators found the remains of models of figurine-houses. On one of them the representation of the female has a navel and a stomach in a state of pregnancy, identical to the loaf discovered near the construction. According to the researcher of this site, this construction was used in the preparation and baking of the bread. It is interesting that the ideograms engraved on the seal-figurine from this dwelling correspond to those engraved on the big construction/oven, placed in the dwelling from Zelenikovo, a settlement near by Govrlevo (Pl. XV: 9, 10).

Regarding the patterns placed on the belly of figurines, but also on the stamps, most common are the pseudomeanders, the bordered lozenge and the concentric circles, analogue in the decoration to the stamps from Ustie na Drim, Stenće, Gorobinci and Porodin (Pl. XVII: 1 - 7). Concerning the patterns that represent the genitalia, most of them are composed of a long spiral, cut triangle and a vertical line with oblique or horizontal lines thickly placed. Such examples on stamps are discovered in Mala Tumba-Trn, Velušina, than on the two unfamiliar sites in the regions of Ohrid and Struga and in Golema Tumba-Trn (Pl. XVII: 8 - 15). For the last example, performing a detail observation on the authentic seal, it is interesting to point toward certain technical characteristics in the manufacture of its decoration (Pl. XVII: 10; Pl. XI: 5). Namely, through the engraving of the lines, the craftsmen intended to produce a motif identical to the one from Velušina (Pl. XVII: 13; Pl. XI: 10), but for certain reasons he changed the method of engraving and on the already placed lines, while the clay

This situation and the context of the seal-figurine from Medvednjak, discovered in a silo with grain, clearly suggest that part of the Neolithic stamps were in relation 7 The information about the context of this seal and the clay construction were obtained from the researcher of Govrlevo, Miloš Bilbija.

42

Imprints of the Neolithic Mind: Visual Dynamism and Significance of the Clay Stamps to the preparation of bread. The numerous ethnographic data, as well as the Neolithic models of loaves, indicate that some stamps were used for decorating the unleavened cakes, bread and the loaves prepared in the dwellings.

In context to this research, the relations between the shape, the decoration and function of the Neolithic and contemporary stamps for bread are important and have been previously stressed by several researchers (Chausidis 2005, 98, 128; Antonova 1984, 30; Naumov 2006b). It is interesting that some of the šaralki, as well as wood, were also made of ceramic, with engraved patterns that are almost identical to those of the Neolithic stamps (Pl. XVIII). Part of the pattern visible on one of the stamps from Çatal Höyük (Pl. XVIII: 7, 8), is almost always present on the proskurnici and it represents the Virgin Mary.8 As mentioned above, some of the patterns on the Neolithic stamps are related to the female genitalia; this brings to mind the connection with Balkan proskurnici and would provide an area for further research.

Neolithic stamp-stamps and their Slavic ethnographic implications The numerous ethnographic data show that in the Balkans in the 19th and 20th centuries, bread was used in many ceremonies and rituals, and for that purpose it was often decorated with imprinted or applied patterns. During the decorating of bread, while it was still dough, the woman that prepared it added patterns (domestic animals, people, tools, etc.) using the small leftovers of the dough (Svetieva 1997, 168). During this ritual process, always performed early in the morning, before dawn, the women usually decorated the bread using strictly defined patterns. For that purpose they used specially prepared bones of a sheep or wooden and ceramic stamps (Fig. 5.4), which between the populations of the Balkan are known as: proskurnik, poskurnik, šaralka, svaća, guguška, panagijče, pisalnik, slovo, krušno slovo, kruče, etc. (Krstevska 2005; Kostić 1967). Linguistically, some of these terms originate from the greek prosfora, which translated means ‘ritual bread’ or ‘offering’. Still, the researchers defined two terms referring to these stamps (poskurnik and šaralka, i.e. decorating tool), which both have independent roles in the process of the decorating of the bread. Namely, the šaralki are always used for imprinting of patterns on those breads that are for the living members of the community and the rituals concerning the birth-giving, the baptizing, engagement, weddings etc. In contrast to them, the proskurnici are always included in the rituals related to the deceased individuals and ancestors, i. e. the funerals, commemorations, domestic and village celebrations, zadušnica (‘day of the deceased’). According to the typology of the researchers, the šaralki mostly have circular or oval shape, while the proskurnici have rectangular base with engraved inscription ИС ХС NI КА (IS HS NI KA) i. e. ‘Jesus Christ the Victorious’ (Krstevska 2005, 17, 20; Kostić 1967, 99).

Regarding the shape, it is important to indicate yet another similarity between the archaeological and the ethnographic material. Several Neolithic stamps discovered in the Balkans have bases for decorating on both sides of the handle. Stamps with the same shape were used in Serbia in the 20th century, known as šaralki with proskurnik, i. e. objects which on one side had an oval seal – a šaralka, while on the reverse they had a rectangular seal – a proskurnik (Pl. XVIII: 13-17). Depending whether the ritual was performed ‘for the living or the deceased’, the suitable seal was used (Kostić 1967, 99, Т. V). These stamps were exclusively used for decorating of ritual breads, so that the question remains open whether the Neolithic stamps possessed the same use. In the context of these ideas, besides the mentioned decorative and typological similarities, there are also the so-called models of ‘loaves’ discovered on the sites in Anatolia and the Balkans. Namely, in Çatal Höyük, during the excavations by Mellart, two models of loaves bearing identical patterns with the stamps from the same settlement were discovered (Pl. XIX: 1; Pl. XVI: 8). Previously observed dynamic relations between the artefacts i.e. the miniatures and the wall paintings and reliefs from this site, strengthen the possibility of interpreting these stamps as ‘tools’ for decorating bread. Similar models of loaves, with local varieties, were discovered on the Neolithic sites in Serbia, Romania and Bulgaria, bearing patterns identical to those of the stamps discovered in the Balkans (Pl. XIX: 2-5). These patterns on the stamps, regarding their small dimension, could have been imprinted on the bread in combination with several other patterns, just as it is in the case of the contemporary ritual loaves (Pl. XIX: 5, 6). Still, as some other ethnographical data indicate, it cannot be excluded that one seal was imprinted on one loaf. If we consider the dimensions of several of the Neolithic stamps from Macedonia and Bulgaria (9-12 cm), and also the dimensions of the models of loaves discovered in Govrlevo (Pl. XX), whose size probably equals the real

Fig. 5.3. Excavated dwelling from Govrlevo (photo by M. Bibija).

8

About the meaning of this pattern in the Christian liturgy, (Mesnil and Popova 2002, 107, fig. 1).

43

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia one, then we can suppose that one seal was enough for the imprinting of the bread.

individuals in the rituals, but also in the framework of the material culture, ethnographical, as well as archaeological (Naumov 2006a, 81; Naumov 2007b). It is important to mention that a model of bread identical to the loaf ‘grandmother’ is discovered in a Neolithic house in Govrlevo, in the same context with the previously mentioned construction, five grinding stones, cereals, and also a large volume of ash (Pl. XX: 3). In the area of settlement, the number of these models is much larger. The ‘grandmothers’, as well as the model from Govrlevo, were made with small dimensions and with a hole for salt in the middle, and also prepared in hot ashes and embers (Petrović 1996, 26, 30). These similarities between the models, the Neolithic artifacts and the ‘grandmother’ loves, besides on the level of appearance and the process of real or homeopathic preparation, also continue on the level of ritual functions. Namely, the ‘grandmother’ loaf at the end of the ritual was split or and its parts are given to the present members (Petrović 1996, 23, 25). This practice of splitting is similar to the situation of the models of bread in Govrlevo, but also to the Neolithic figurines from the Balkans. For a large part of the figurines discovered in the settlements, the legs are deliberately split, and usually one leg is not in the close surrounding of the figurine. Some had reinforced ‘hips’, so that later, depending on the occasion, the legs could be easily reattached or attached (Naumov 2007b). This fragmentation of the figurines and the breads/loaves is often related to their involvement in different processes of exchange and relations, or to the rites of passage, when the fragmentation represents a temporal or spatial border (Svetieva 1997, 172; Talalay 1993, 45; Gheorghiu 2001, 76, 83; Bailey 2005, 102; Chapman 2000; Budja 2003, 124, 126; Skeates 2007, 195; Naumov 2007b). The active presence of the bread in the rituals (as a mediator between the living and the deceased, praying for rain, fortune telling, etc.) clearly points to its character of intervening in several spheres, but also to the necessity of its decorating or marking with ‘images and signs’ which will communicate directly with these spheres. On the other hand, in context to these rituals, the bread itself represents the property and its owners. Even the ‘grandmother’ loaf, which, until its division at the end of the three days’ ceremony, constantly is exposed on the table, representing the property of those who serve the table (Petrović 1996, 31). Very often on the other ritual breads, while they are being prepared, figurines made of dough are applied representing the owner, the landlord, ploughman, plough, cereals, vessels, shepherd, the shepherd’s cape, stable, threshing-floor, domestic animals, etc. Some of these breads used in the domestic rituals were called threshing-floor or stable (Fig. 5. 5), so that the bread symbolically represented what the landlords possessed, but also the landlords themselves and their agrarian or economic activities (Svetieva 1997, 169, 173; Chausidis 2008). In the domain of the decorating of these breads, the figurines are made of dough, so that it can be supposed that probably the šaralki used for imprinting represented in is symbols the

Fig. 5.4. Wooden stamps (poskuri/šaralki) from Macedonia: 1: Galičnik; 2: Misleševo; 3: Vevčani; 4: Vevčani; 5: Lazaropole; 6: Vevčani (Krstevska 2005, figs. 3, 8, 13, 21). In the Delčevo region (Macedonia), during funeral rituals, the small ritual loaves are called ‘dolls’ and they were decorated with the smaller seal on the handle of the poskurnik (Krstevska 2005, 17). In relation to the female character of the terms used for the šaralki and the ritual loaves, we should mention the examples from Macedonia and Serbia where some šaralki were named ‘sister-inlaw’, while the ceremonial breads were called ‘grandmother’ (Petrović 1996; Krstevska 2005, 21, Fig. 17). It is certain that these terms are related to those who prepared the bread, usually the elder women in the family, although we should not exclude the deeper symbolical significance related to the presence of these 44

Imprints of the Neolithic Mind: Visual Dynamism and Significance of the Clay Stamps these territories. After the Second World War, in Serbia, šaralki bearing a five-pointed star were manufactured (Kostić, 1967, 96), as a result of the new ideas and the accentuation of the identity through which the populations recognized themselves in this period. It is certain that the situation concerning the šaralki and the proskurnici shows that in the domain of their ritual activities also, one or several populations used the patterns on these objects as an element of their own identification. In this way, it can be perceived that even in the 20th century, the categories of everyday secular and sacred were not divided, but on the contrary intertwined in one another. This situation of parallel interaction between insignia of the cultural identity and religious behavior is also noticeable today in the numerous rites of passage and initiation in Macedonia. IX. Imprinted mind The function of the Neolithic stamps still remains an open question which might never be properly answered. In an attempt to demystify their function, there were presented several interesting and logical interpretations, which offer answers in several directions. On one hand, it can be noticed that the stamps from different regions are discovered in different contexts, so that it can be supposed that they had different uses. But on the other hand, some stamps, although discovered in settlements that are far from one another, still, mostly because of the similar shape, decoration and position in relation to the other finds, were probably used for similar purposes. That is why, because of the arguments given by most of the researchers, we can consider that the stamps were multifunctional, i.e. that their function was not limited on only one activity. In that direction, their impressions of signs of identity, property and the protection of the bread, also add to its complex function. According to the ethnographic examples we were able to notice that in the domain of intermediation between the members of one or several communities, the bread, and also its patterns, were convenient in the acts of interaction, especially in the rites of passage. In the context of the similar ritual, the decorative role of the Neolithic stamps and the eventual visual effect created on the imprinted surface should also be accented. Some stamps have very shallow engraved patterns, so that if they were to be imprinted on thinner surfaces (bags, skins, ceramics), then the question is how long the patterns could be distinguished. But if they were to be imprinted on dough, than during its rising, and also during the baking, the patterns would enlarge. Thus, in the lack of colored remains, bread appears the most suitable media for their recognition.

Fig. 5.5. Ritual loaves from Bulgaria: 1, 6. Gorni Lom (Yaneva 1989, 81); 2. Trnovsko (Yaneva 1989, 83) . 3. Gabrovsko (Chausidis 2008, Pl. VI. 7); 4. Maraški Trstenik (Chausidis 2008, Pl. VI. 12) 5. Mihailovgradsko (Yaneva 1989, 82). aspects of protection of the land and the security of the existence to the family. Even the proskurnici, which are the only one with Christian funeral connotations, have identical function of ‘guarding a protection’ of the deceased. Although the proskurnici have far more complex symbolical meaning, especially the inscription IS HS NI KA (Jesus Christ the Victorious) and the equalization between this mythical character and the bread and his function of protector, the character of these objects as markers of certain cultural identity should also be pointed. Namely, in the Balkans, in the region which during and after the rule of the Ottoman empire, which possessed a wide difference of ethnic groups, rituals and religions, it was necessary for certain populations to manifest their cultural identity, among other ways, by using Christian iconography. On the other hand, with the ending of the First World War and the domination of the Serbian kingdom, in Šumadija, Kosovo and Macedonia, but not further North, šaralki bearing two-headed eagles were being produced (Kostić, 1967, 92-94), with a purpose to mark the new identity of the populations from

From this we can conclude that the stamps, and mostly their patterns, possessed a potent symbolical significance, moreover their character provided them to be repeated on the soft media and to be imprinted many times. In this way they completely corresponded to the cognitive aspects of the community and are manifested as culturally developed symbols. That is why on this occasion we have 45

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia to disagree with the interpretations of Lewis-Williams, that in the case of the stamps, we are dealing with engraved patterns which represent ‘entopts’, i.e. a neuropsychological phenomenon which is the result of altered states of consciousness (Lewis-Williams and Pearce 2005, 46-59). On the contrary, the patterns on the stamps were used over a long period of time, and after that they matched the compositions of painted ceramic, and also those on other decorated artefacts and constructions. This interaction of the patterns present on several media and the similar context of their position on artefacts and constructions, completes their meanings in the domain of the most essential religious concepts. In this way they were completely embedded in the perception and the symbolical expression of the Neolithic populations, which used these symbols in several spheres of visual

culture. That is why it can be considered that the Balkan Neolithic, even in its early stages, had developed strongly defined patterns that were engraved, painted or applied for a period lasting over a millennium. In this case it is difficult to treat the patterns as the result of a altered state of mind, when they were used all over the wide space of South-Eastern Europe, even in Anatolia. Certainly, in the earliest phases these patterns were in close relation to the collective cognition and the perception of human existence, but probably over time these patterns gradually turned into signs of identity, although maintaining this double function. Thus the body and the patterns on the stamps were incorporated in the dynamics of social mediation, and in several directions they interfered with the symbolical complexity of human intelligence.

46

Chapter 6

Neolithic Anthropomorphism: The corporeality of Neolithic miniatures and models of figurine-houses The beginning of the Neolithic was a period when great transformations in the relation between man and his environment happened. The inhabiting of new places and the development of larger settlements appear as a result of the new sources of existence: agriculture and cattle breeding. These changes in demography and the organization of space also reflected in the Neolithic conception of the human body. Since man was the center of these changes, he used his body in order to define the functioning of the surroundings and to explain his position and relation to it. Because of that, in some selected spheres of manual work and manufacture, individuals used the model of his/her own body. Although we are familiar with this concept only through inorganic media (ceramics and stone), it is quite possible that it was also manifested in textiles, wood, and certainly verbal communication. Despite the limited access to the Neolithic material culture, still in the past years we have obtained numerous information about it, especially about the character of the objects made of ceramic – a raw material which is often successively related to the human body. This material (in a technical and symbolic sense), on one hand perhaps was the most suited to representing the human body, as well as the ‘anthropomorphization’ of his environment.

maintains a relationship with the continuous existence of the community that lives in it. The same concept of anthropomorphization and domestication in terms of the symbolic communication, continued its existence in the following prehistoric periods as well, and judging by the numerous analogies it also had a continuity and reminiscences in the rituals of the archaic cultures all over the world. Of special interest are the remains of this model, preserved in the traditional culture of the populations inhabiting the Balkans. In this case the spheres of the language (etymology and phraseology), oral traditions (proverbs and legends), and the ritual sphere (utilitarian rituals and the cult of the deceased) are considered.

Anthropomorphic figurines The most suitable way of representing the human body is through a simple copying of basic characteristics in a drawing or a sculpture. Although the drawing or the painting allows certain details to be skilfully accented, still, regarding the Neolithic, it should be mentioned that the most favorable media was sculpture. Undoubtedly the possibility that the human body was painted on some organic materials or on the walls of the dwellings and the shrines is not excluded, since that is the case with the synchronic buildings from Anatolia (Mellart 1967, 131177). In any case, during the Neolithic, the majority of representations of the human body were performed in sculptures; these differed according to the region and period. It is certain that ceramics is the most dominant media of the visual expression of the period was not accidentally used also in the anthropomorphic representations. Its tactile nature, as well as the possibility that a certain idea can be shaped in a third dimension, allowed the almost complete transfer of the human body in the new media, thus accenting details which emphasize the symbolic or the secular functions of the figurines. It is interesting that during the Neolithic, the individual elements of the face were largely neglected, while certain parts of the female and male body were accented or generalized, which certainly led to conclusions which have opened numerous discussions among the researchers of the Neolithic figurines (Bailey 2005, 156-166; Biehl 1996, 162-169; Chausidis 2007; Gheorghiu 2001, 75-79; Gimbutas 1989, 31-40; Talalay 1993, 46-50, Naumov 2007b).

The stated concept developed into several relations, but it probably started with the simple imitation of the body in the form of ceramic figurines, which soon expanded in the domain of vessels, with human representations. Such transposition of the body into the sphere of ceramics manufacture certainly had its ideological (i.e. symbolic) potential, so that it could be consistently practised in ritual communication between the members of one or several communities. In that way certain features of the human body, especially the female body, were linked to the utilitarian and ritual function of the ceramic figurines and vessels. That is why this model, as particularly logical and understandable, simultaneously expanded in other elements of the Neolithic material culture. Thus, the ceramic seals and the miniature ceramic models of ovens and houses are considered, as used in different activities inside the dwellings. In this context the appearance of the concept referring to the ‘domestication’ of the ‘human’ (i.e. the symbolic interaction of the components ‘human’ and ‘house’) is not accidental, and it extended into two symbolic directions: the anthropomorphization of the house as a center of human activity, and the burying of the members of the community beneath the houses, probably beneath those houses in which they were born, lived and died. The second of the mentioned aspects maintains a symbolic relation between the deceased and the regenerative elements of the house itself, but it also

It should be noted that besides the numerous discussions and interpretations, in this period over the whole Balkan Peninsula and abroad, the representations of the female 47

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia body in certain positions and gesticulations dominate (Bailey 2005, 151; Gheorghiu 2001, 76; Biehl 1996, 164; Naumov 2007b). Although by many the domination of the female body was conceived as a Neolithic exclusivity, still it should be asserted that the concept had its base in the Upper Palaeolithic, while the level remained high even after the Neolithic, during the Eneolithic and the Bronze Age. This indicates that the high production of ceramic, bone and stone female figurines existed in continuity from the upper Palaeolithic (25 000 B.C.) to the end of the Bronze Age (1200 B.C.), i.e. some 24,000 years!1 If the figurines are considered basic criteria, then this certainly indicates that the traditional speculative interpretations of the Neolithic as a unique period in which the female representations dominate, i.e. as a period of the ‘matriarchate’ and ‘the cult of the Great Mother’, should be abandoned.

Neolithic corporeality As far as the earliest phases of the Balkan Neolithic, inside the contexts of the Neolithic settlements and dwellings, figurines mostly produced of ceramic and rarely of marble, stone or bone, were used. In the domain of the ceramic figurines, the anthropomorphic miniatures are most numerous, while the animal representations, ‘altars’, seals and the models of houses, compared to the figurines, appear in smaller number, although their quantity should not be neglected. This domination of the representations of the human body in the visual culture suggests that Neolithic man on a large scale simply expressed himself through his own body. Regardless of the swings in the interpretations of the functions of the anthropomorphic figurines, it should be noted that they could equally be included in the secular and the ritual activities, so that the biological and symbolic aspects of one culture could be manifested through the body. This element of anthropocentricity automatically developed as first and primary system through which the individuals accomplished the building of complex relations with the living and deceased members of the community, and even to use it in the rationalization of his near and distant surroundings. It is interesting that as the mediator in these social and cognitive relations, the female body was usually given the role. Although the debates on the gender definition of the figurines remain open, still the multitude of confirmed female figurines and their typological characteristics, indicate the favoring of one sex in the domain of the ideas incorporated inside the visual culture. This treatment of the female body opens more related debates about the motives for the accentuation of the corporal characteristics on one preferred sex (Handsman 1991; Bailey 1994, 223-225; Hardie 2007; Skeates 1994, 206; Haaland 2007, 165, 166; Naumov 2006a; Naumov 2007b), so that on this occasion several further observations of the symbolic aspects of the gender in the Neolithic material culture will be supplemented. In this context, due to the more consistent elaboration of these observations, the artefacts of one determined region will be presented in detail, in order to define the local characteristics and specifics of the figurines, but also the remaining segments of the anthropomorphic representations in the ceramic production.

The Palaeolithic background The production of the anthropomorphic figurines began in the Upper Palaeolithic in certain parts of Europe, although at this moment Macedonia and the neighboring states in the Balkans are excluded. Very often, in numerous publications, the figurines with accented steatopygia were usually presented, so an impression that among the female figurines numerous were produced with emphasized thighs and breasts was made. This certainly benefited the early conceived schemes of gravidity as a crucial element in the conception of the female body and fertility. But the numerous reports of the archaeological excavations of the Palaeolithic sites prove that when representing the female body a unified approach did not exist, and it could diverge even within the contexts of one site. Thus, apart from the steatopygic figurines, thin and elongated bodies with sometimes hardly visible gender features, usually manifested by the engraving of the pubic area, were found (Pl. XXI). In this period in some regions, the human body was stylized to the measure of loss of its characteristics, or they are often equalized and mixed with the representations of some animals, especially birds. Regarding the complete inspection of the Palaeolithic figurative art, it can be regarded that the populations of the period, on the basis of sculpture, constituted the basic matrices for the conception of the human body, especially the female one. This basic concept of the corporeality was a visual reflection of the real bodily characteristics, so that its maintenance in the next Neolithic period was not accidental, and it was quantitatively and stylistically developed within the domain of the new socio-political, cognitive and religious systems.

Neolithic figurines Macedonia

from

Republic

of

In Macedonia, as well as the rest regions of SouthEastern Europe, the anthropomorphic figurines are mostly presented through the production of female miniatures (Pls. XXII; XXIV; XXIX; XXX; XXXIV), while the confirmed male figurines are much smaller in number (Pl. XXVI: 1-3, 5, 9). According to the most recently published studies of the Neolithic figurines in Macedonia (Karpuzova 2007; Chausidis 2007; Sanev 2006; Temelkovski and Mitkovski 2001; Kolištrkovska-Nasteva

1

It is interesting that this chronological range, to a certain measure exists also on the level of the burials in a foetal position, excavated in the prehistoric dwellings, settlements and necropolis from the Upper Palaeolithic, till the Bronze Age (Vandermeersch 2004, 36, 38; Baćvarov 2003; Naumov 2007b; Mitrevski 1997, 21, 36).

48

Neolithic Anthropomorphism: The corporeality of the Neolithic miniatures 2005), from a total of 274 published figurines, 127 have gender features (Fig. 6.1). Among them 115 figurines have female characteristics (they are defined below in the text), while only 9 male figurines with applied phallus appear. Three more figurines with gender features are confirmed, but in their case it can not be certainly determined whether they bear male or female sexual organs. The remaining 147 examples show fragments and whole figurines which remain sexually undefined. Unfortunately, inside the museums storages an even larger number of figurines have been evidenced, which can enter the above made categories, but due to the present inaccessibility of the material, they will not be elaborated on this occasion.

parts in contrast to the minimization of others, as well as the position of the upper extremities in relation to the regenerative organs, points that the figurines were conceived to mediate different situations and to transfer information which could reflect the semantic categories of the human body.

Corporal features During the production of figurines in the settlements explored in the Republic of Macedonia, several basic schemes appear, through which the female and male body and the characteristics of their ‘visual choreography’ are represented. The majority of the figurines have accented thighs, while surprisingly almost all of the so-far discovered examples with representations of breasts have small applications. The overemphasizing of the thighs, according to the Palaeolithic ‘traditions’ understandably suggests that the representations of large breasts should be expected, but so far that is not the case with the figurines from this region, although such rare examples are familiar in other regions of the Balkans and Anatolia (Pl. XXIII). It is interesting that only on the figurines with accented thighs is the pubis represented, i.e. carved, while examples with the representation of a penis applied on large thighs are not common. The pubis is usually represented in the form of a triangle, which can be simple or engraved with a line in the middle (Pl. XXIV: 1-3, 5, 6, 8; Pl. XXXIV: 6), or over dimensioned (Pl. XXIV: 4), thus opening the possibility that this form could also represent female clothing (Bailey 2005, 162; Chausidis 2008a). Its presence is not only related to the wide thighs, since it is sometimes noticeable on figurines with smaller buttocks also. It is remarkable that the pubis is sometimes represented with a convex application, so that this stylistic sexual feature is often irregularly interpreted as a penis. As it will be shown below, several figurines from Thessaly which have applied breasts and genitalia, raise attention because of their unusualness, i.e. their combining of female and ‘male’ sexual organs. But in this case it should be considered this specific characteristic of representing the female genitalia with an application. Probably the best example for this would be the figurine from Karanovo, on which the application with an engraved line in the middle is placed inside a pubic triangle represented with dots (Pl. XXV: 2).

Fig. 6.1. Statistic data and sexual relation of published figurines from Macedonia. It is interesting that among the 115 representations with confirmed female attributes, 86 belong to the miniature figurines, while 18 examples of cylinders and 8 of models together belong to the sculptures of the type figurinehouses. So far, only two examples of the sexually defined anthropomorphic vessels are evidenced in Macedonia, although their number is much larger (Naumov 2006a; Naumov 2008b). The statistic data shows that at least in territory of the Republic of Macedonia, the populations composing the Neolithic cultures had affinity toward the relatively real representation of the human body, although on sculptural level it was metamorphosized and symbolically developed in a smaller scale in the domain of the anthropomorphic vessels and the models of figurinehouse. The quantity of miniature figurines points to the fact that this media was most adequate for dynamic visual communication between the individuals and social groups, but it was also quite suitable for the simple transposition of the human body in its image. Their frequency, the small dimensions, as well as the typological characteristics, enabled them to be used in different contexts, which is confirmed by the numerous data of their preservation and their position inside the dwellings or the settlements. It is the variations of their production that explain the different treatment of the human body, as well as the ideas which exist in parallel with the functions of these objects. The intentional fragmentation of the lower extremities and the heads, the presence of genitalia, the accentuation of certain body

As far as the shaping of the regenerative space in a similar manner is concerned, several miniatures from Pelagonia should be noted, on which circles, with or without perforations, are applied (Pl. XXII: 4, 5, 7, 8). In addition, in this case the discussions of the probability that on these figurines their applications represent the pubis are opened. On the other hand, if that really is a pubis, than why is it circular and with dots? These questions open numerous discussions about the eventual motivation for the presence of these details, so that they can undoubtedly relate to the Neolithic trends of ‘hiding’ and protection of the genital area, and also to the specific symbolic functions of this part of the female body. In 49

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia favour of the second concept are the perforations which probably served for placement of plants, smaller branches, leaf or grains, which is in similar way suggested by the figurines with carved vegetable motifs on the genitalia. In this context is the figurine from Ali Čair, which on the reverse has an engraved motif of a branch/grain, while in place of genitalia and knees there are perforations probably used for the putting of the above-mentioned plants (Fig. 6.2). Thus, the grain placed in this area is closely related to the essential real and symbolical functions of the regenerative organs. Regarding these vegetative-symbolic features of the figurines, it should be also stated yet another example, a figurine discovered in Çatal Höyük. On the back part of the decapitated figurine, even before firing, a seed of grain was applied, which clearly includes the figurine in the ritual sphere (Aydingün 2005, Fig. 8, 17).

defining of sexual identity. Thus, these figurines could have been purposely shaped to break the normal biological differences of masculinity and femininity (Bailey 2005, 164). In this case the representation of hermaphrodites should be considered, where the androgenic possesses an extremely powerful symbolism, and it often refers to mythologized individuals which realize their semantic function exactly through the specificity of their own body (Chausidis 2005, 388).

The figurines from the surrounding Balkan regions possess similar corporal features, so that it could be referred to as a general iconography, specific for this region. Namely, on the figurines from Bulgaria, Greece and Albania the most often sexual representation is the pubis, which is also associated with the figurines bearing wide thighs and emphasized abdomen (Pl. XXV). In this case also the wide thighs and the emphasized abdomen appear only on the figurines with female sexual features, a characteristic which is also present on some of the figurines from Macedonia (Pl. XXII: 2; Pl. XXIV: 6). In this way it can be concluded that so far on this territory the standard Neolithic scheme of representing the female body has been defined, which has several basic elements placed in a mutual relation: small breasts, pubis, bulging abdomen and wide thighs.

Fig. 6.2. Figurine with perforations from Ali Čair (after Kolištrkovska-Nasteva 2005, fig. 24). Still, regardless of these very rare exceptions, at least in the territory of the Republic of Macedonia, the corporal specifics of the Neolithic figurines show that in this period there existed a clear distinction between the representations of the male and the female body, so that recently it can certainly be argued that the abovementioned features were used as defining ‘insignia’ of gender differentiation. In support of these observations are the two figurines from Cernavoda, which besides being discovered far from Macedonia, still clearly assert to the different approach in the representation of the male and the female body (Fig. 6.3). Namely, it includes two coexistent figurines which were discovered as grave deposits in the necropolis at Cernavoda, so that without a doubt they appear to be produced in a same period, and possibly by the same author, at least according to the suggestions made by the identical approach in the modelling. The male figurine is in a sitting position (on a chair), with arms twisted towards the head and without any exaggeration of the thighs. The female figurine is also seated (without a chair), but here the hypertrophy of the thighs and the usual carving of the pubic area is noticeable. In this case we could claim that in the Neolithic the ‘copying’ of the male and female body possessed a defined repertoire of details, which pointed to the sexual features of the figurines, so that the corporeality was manifested through easily recognizable elements. On the male figurines they were realized through the penis, the specific sitting position and the arm placed on the head, while on the female miniatures the

To date, none of the evidenced male figurines from Macedonia has any of the above-mentioned characteristics (Pl. XXVI). Regarding the male figurines, they contain two basic characteristics in their representation. A majority of them are ‘pillar’ shaped, with an applied penis to the lower part. The other type consists of several figurines represented in a sitting position, specific for the male miniatures from the Early to the Late Neolithic in South-Eastern Europe (Bailey 2005, 162-164; Hardie 2007, 85). Only in Thessaly a dozen sitting male figurines with penises and an arm twisted toward the head are discovered, so that it can be claimed that this was the usual position for the male figurines, which differs from the standard gesticulation of the female figurines. What especially commands attention are the several seated figurines discovered in Sarliki, Panagou and Koutsouro (Thessaly), on which beside the penis there is also a representation of breasts (Bailey 2005, 163). On one hand this situation points toward the necessity that the male body should be represented with all its details, including the ‘nipples’, although the fact that some male individuals have bigger dimensions of that particular area should not be neglected. But on the other hand, the presence of a penis and the small breasts, as well as the usual Neolithic female sexual features, indicate the significant role that these figurines had in the 50

Neolithic Anthropomorphism: The corporeality of the Neolithic miniatures pubis, the small breasts, the bulging abdomen, the wide thighs and the position of the arms compared to the torso were used. Thus, it is interesting that the position of the arms again benefits the accentuation of the gender features and the vital functions of the human body.

(Naumov 2008b), although rarely they can appear in an ‘orant’ position (Pl. XXXV: 6, 9; Pl. XXXVIII: 5, 7-9). This position of the arms can also be regarded on the miniatures which have stylized upper extremities, twisted toward the abdomen, so that they form small perforations (Fig. 6.4). It is often considered that these perforations were made in order to allow the figurines to hang on some part of the body, but the fact that almost all of these figurines are shaped on a flat base, and thus intended to stand on some surface, should not be neglected. In this case the perforations and recesses on the figurines could be used for placing plants in the same way with the above-mentioned examples from Ali Čair and Çatal Höyük. Thus, these objects were also included in the sphere of the imitation of dramatic activities, so that they could represent individuals or mythical characters that carried branches, leafs, grain (etc.) in their hands. Among the Balkan figurines there appears yet another interesting position of the arms, which are placed on the breasts, although so far in Macedonia none of these examples has been excavated. The arms/palms are sometimes placed onto the breasts or just below them, so that it cannot be certainly determined whether the purpose of this gesticulation is to cover (i.e. hide) the breasts or to accent their function and significance (Pl. XXVIII). In any case this position of the arms, as well as those of the remaining body parts indicate that in these Neolithic cultures the female body was conceived in a specific way and elements of gesticulation are used in order to point certain vital functions of the regenerative organs. Although the accenting of the genitalia and the covering/emphasizing of the breasts opens discussions in opposite directions (Bailey 1994, 223; Bailey 2005, 152, 159-162, 165), it should still be noted that these elements appear as a reflection of defined coding of the way in which certain ideas were transferred, and more associated to the functioning of the body than to a representation of its emotive sensibility, i.e. pleasure, fear, shame, etc.

Fig. 6.3. Male and female figurines from Cernavoda (after Gimbutas 1982, figs. 247, 248).

The archaeology of gestures The figurative ‘choreography’, i.e. the gesticulation of the upper extremities, is most noticeable on the miniatures, but it also appears on the models of figurine-houses. This includes modelling of the arms in specific positions, usually placed on the torso, genitalia, thighs, abdomen and the breasts (Pl. XXII: 1, 2, 4-8). These characteristics only appear on female figurines, while the male pillarlike figurines have their arms placed exclusively in two positions. It is interesting that on the male figurines there is a defined placement of the arms depending on the position of the body. If the figurines are seated, then the arms are placed on the lap or on the head, while if they are standing, i.e. pillar-like, then the arms always appear spread and never in relation to the torso (Pl. XXVI). In most of the cases, in Macedonia as well as in the Balkans, the arms of the female figurines are placed on the abdomen. They are sometimes positioned in the lower part of the abdomen, so that it remains uncertain whether the palms, which are never elaborated in detail, also cover the genitalia (Pl. XXII: 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8; Pl. XXVII). Actually the position of the palms onto the genitalia is one of the rarest gesticulations on the miniatures from Macedonia and often it can not be certainly determined (Pl. XXII: 6). This is partly due to the fact that the arms of several figurines are also placed on the thighs, and it is the non-detailed representation of the palms that often leads to difficulties during the defining of the position. This position with arms upon the thighs is most characteristic for the models of figurine-houses where if there is a representation of arms, they are almost always placed on the house, i.e. the thighs (Pl. XXXIV: 1, 3, 5). Similar characteristics appear on some of the anthropomorphic vessels in the Balkans, on which the upper extremities are usually shaped on the abdomen

Fig. 6.4. Perforated figurines from: 1. Stobi; 2, 4: Optičari and 3: Porodin (after Kolištrkovska-Nasteva 2005, figs. 4, 6, 12, 15).

The body as a mediator in social relations The production of anthropomorphic figurines with authentic attributes of the human body goes far from the aesthetical, the representative, or the likable. The imprecise modelling of the facial features, the unbalanced statics and the accenting on certain attributes of these 51

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia miniatures indicate that they did not posses the function of decorative objects which were to beautify the interior of one dwelling, as it is often wrongly stressed for several kinds of Neolithic ceramic products. On the contrary, in terms of the figurines the aesthetic character is deliberately neglected in order to accent the symbolic aspects of what the figurine represents. The enlarging of the thighs, the reduction of the breasts and facial details, as well as the assertion of definite body features, were all signals which these objects sent ‘in code’ in order that clear, understandable communication between two individuals, a small group or several communities can be accomplished. Thus the body of these objects was manifested as an ‘alphabet’ which mediates the language of the simple or the complex social relations between the people.

used as a powerful form of communication (Naumov 2005a). This particularly potent media was created on the bases of a visual system which directly correlated between the meaning and function of the figurines on one side, and the ideas and necessities of the individuals or the communities on the other. Thus a complex interweaving between the apparently abstract motifs and the clear messages which the representation of the human body emanates were created. In any case, beside the concrete representations of the female pubis, the remaining motifs engraved on the figurines have no associations to the real features of the body or to its accessories (jewellery, clothes, etc.) (Biehl 1996, 161). Several of the Macedonian figurines with specific motifs enter the general repertoire of the decoration used by the populations of the region. Among them the figurines from Mačevo and Senokos can be isolated (Pl. XXII: 3; see also Kolištrkovska-Nasteva 2005, Fig. 69), decorated with zigzag and rhombic motifs. It is interesting that identical motifs to those on the figurine from Mačevo also appear in a similar manner on the thigh area of the anthropomorphic vessel from Vršnik (Pl. XXXVIII: 1). This corresponding of identical motifs on different media again indicates the defined character of their significance, especially as far as the representation of a definite body part is concerned. The interaction between the patterns on the figurines and those on the vessels also appears in other cultures in the prehistoric Balkans (Biehl 1996, 158, Fig. 7), so that it can be undoubtedly considered that the patterns had a significant role in the accentuation of the figurine functions and the anthropomorphic vessels, as well as of their importance inside the communication and relations between one or several communities.

In favour of the definition of this body ‘language’ one should also take note of the data which designate the context of the figurines on the sites, as well as of their relation to other kinds of the material culture. That is why numerous interpretations and observations are attached, mostly because of the different context, as well as of the impossibility to generalize all of the figurine types. Almost all of them can possess features which give data independently of the rest and which appear in the same dwelling or settlement. Therefore several interesting interpretations concerning their functions appear, although there is a possible definition of certain basic typological-symbolic forms of the figurative representations which are related to certain actual ideas. Above all they are associated with the ancestors, fertility, relics, dancing, status, deities, the deceased, the clan relations and pressures, identity, ceremonies, etc. (Biehl 1996, 167, 170; Chausidis 2007, 53-59; Talalay 1993, 45 - 51, Gimbutas 1982, 112-168; Golan, 2003, 396, 416 Gheorghiu 2001, 76-79, 83; Bailey 2005, 159-162; Naumov 2006a, 80; Naumov 2007b). In any case they mediate between people and the deceased, ancestors or deities, and most often between people themselves. These different attempts for interpretation point that the human body was a suitable media in the communication between one determined group of individuals or community and some public group of people or imaginary beings. Certainly, it should be regarded that this communication is in the sphere of that which could be manifested through the body, which can refer to the direct representation of its real functions or to that which indirectly concerns the body itself, and is still in relation to the dynamic processes of its near surroundings. In this context the position of the arms and the accentuation of the genitalia and the thighs concentrate on the approach of one idea to the observer or practitioner, while the way of modelling, the context and the deliberate fragmentation refer to a different idea, the one concerning the object itself. In any case, all these ideas from and of the object, could exist in parallel and intertwine with the general function or the use of the figurine.

On the other hand, in attempting to interpret the mediating character of the figurines a significant role is given to some of the body parts which partly accentuate the possible functions of these objects. In contrast to the corporal characteristics that were given above, a large number of the miniatures have legs which were not modelled so that the figurines could stand on them (Fig. 6.5: 2, 4, 5; Pl. XXII: 8, 9; Pl. XXIV: 1, 7, 8). Namely, with these exemplars the leg ends are pointed, so that it is was not possible to secure the stability of the miniatures. Although these characteristics indicate that the figurines were placed in a sitting position, still it should not be neglected that they are modelled in a standing position, thus almost certainly excluding this option. There are two logical explanations for these characteristics. One is the assumption that the pointed legs could be inserted into a soft structure, and thus they could stand. In favour of these considerations are the figurines from Haçilar and Medvednjak, which were discovered inside storages and silos with grain (Aydingün 2005, 17; Gimbutas 1989, 14). In this way they could mediate in the relation between the settlers of the dwelling and the products they used, so that even the suggested obesity of the miniatures could also benefit the symbolic categories which they could represent. The other supposition is that they were probably primarily produced for carrying or holding in the hand, and not for placing on some platform in order to

The patterns, which apart from the numerous ceramic objects also appear engraved on the figurines, were also 52

Neolithic Anthropomorphism: The corporeality of the Neolithic miniatures

Fig. 6.5. The reverse of the figurines from: 1, 2. Velušina; 3. Porodin 4. Dzuniver and 5. Gurgur Tumba (after Kolištrkovska-Nasteva 2005, figs. 3, 5, 7, 11, 25). be observed over a longer period of time. Thus these miniatures probably possessed a short-term character and usage in the contexts of different ceremonies and rituals in which certain symbolic aspects could be manifested through the human body. This context enters the numerous deliberately fragmented figurines, which in a large scale point to the short-term usage of these artefacts in numerous forms of mediation between two or several social groups.

Аşаği Pinar, they were mutually attached to the torso (Fig. 6.5: 3; Fig. 6.6). These auxiliary means were also used for the attaching of the heads, which probably in the same way as the thighs, were deliberately taken of or placed on, depending on the ceremony (Pl. XXIX: 9). This ‘decapitation’ of the figurines heads was also present in the rest of the regions in the Balkans and Anatolia, and it continued forward into the Eneolithic period (Т. XXXIII).

Fragmented figurines

As the examples from Karanovo show, the body of some figurines was completely shaped on a wooden base (Fig. 6.7) composed of several parts (Berger 2004, 173). In contrast to this site, in Dimitra and in the remaining Balkan regions, only the legs were usually tied to the body with the help of an armature (Fig. 6.8). The same constructive affinity is also present in Macedonia, which opens the question concerning the motives of this selective approach in the modelling of the figurines, i.e. why most of the figurines were simply made, without any means of joining limbs, etc, while only some were aided in their construction by the use of a wooden structure.

In addition to the complex and multi-relational connotations which can be displayed by one kind of figurines, also appear the fragmented remains of these objects, which furthermore include the above-mentioned sexual characteristics. Namely, for a large number of the female figurines from the Balkans there seems to be a deliberate fragmentation of the body parts (Pl. XXXI, Pl. XXXII), mostly the legs and the head (Talalay 1993, 45; Chapman 2000, 49, 104; Gheorghiu 2001, 76, 79, 80; Biehl 1996, 167; Naumov 2007b). This condition is significantly present in terms of the miniatures from the Republic of Macedonia, so that it can be concluded that at the heart of this practice stand precisely conceived principles which are manifested through the final act, i.e. the breaking (Pl. XXIX, Pl. XXX). Namely this practice appears only on the female figurines, while so far none of the figurines with male sexual features confirms the intentional fragmentation. The miniatures are mostly broken at the thighs, or vertically, in the elongation of the whole torso. Many of them have purposely shaped thighs where their back part is deeply grooved, so that they could easily be removed from the figure (Fig. 6.5: 1, 2, 5). On the specimens from Porodin and Amzabegovo there is a usage of armature on which the legs were attached (Fig. 6.5: 3; Pl. XXIX: 7, 8), thus joining the two extremities, or as in the examples from Porodin and

The answer of this question points to the presumption that the figurines with a wooden construction were probably used in ceremonies in which the pulling or placing the extremities should be seen by the practitioners, so that the function and the meaning of certain body parts could be accented. The causes and the conditions in which the figurines were broken offer several possible explanations, mostly related to the burials and the admiration of the relics (regalia), or as objects which served as identifying tokens or mediated the economic, marriage and clan contracts and relations (Gheorghiu 2001, 83; Talalay 1993, 45). In context of the deliberately fragmented figurines from Macedonia, there are few observations made in which the fragmentation is related to the status change of certain individuals in one community (Naumov 2007b; Naumov 2007d). 53

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia purposely over-sized, probably in order to accentuate the already realized childbearing functions. In this case it can be supposed that through the figurines women who realized and probably ended their fertility period were represented, but as well as the finalized cycle/s, they remained to reinforce and signify their regenerative organs. These indications point toward several examples from the relatively modern rituals in the Balkans, in which the ending of fertility changed the rank of one woman and it was symbolically transferred to another, younger individual. Certainly, these ethnographic data could benefit the detecting semiotic background of the function and use of some Neolithic figurines. Namely, in Macedonia and Serbia, and probably in other parts of the Balkans, during the wedding ritual several of the most powerful symbolic/choreographic scenes take place, which signify the most essential functions which the woman possesses within the context of her local environment. The specific position of the woman inside one smaller community mostly reflects in the ritual that which denotes the relationship between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law (Petreska 2001, 171-180; Petreska 2002, 104, 140, 234; Malešević 1995, 181, 182). The daughter-in-law (i.e. the bride) is a young person who enters for the first time in the new community, while the mother-in-law is an elder person who had already demonstrated her responsibility and fertility in the same community, and in this specific rite she is given the role of the one that ritually makes the introduction. The introduction certainly refers to the house in which all fundamental functions of the mother-in-law take place, and she is the one who should include the bride through the introduction with the crucial points which were to become the center of her future activities. Generally in this rite the mother-in-law changes her status in the community (that is actually the moment when she becomes mother-in-law), during which several significant scenes take place through which she, proven in the securing of the descendents and the managing of the house, transfers her fertility to the bride. Thus, after the bringing of the bride to the house and taking her to the hearth (where she communicates with the ancestors of the community), the mother-in-law spreads her legs and allows the young couple to pass bellow her, in order to transfer her capability of childbearing on the new couple (Malešević, 1995, 183; Petreska 2001, 178). In some other places, the mother-in-law, who was previously clothed in a skirt decorated with lozenges, changed skirts with the bride, or sits on a stool and places the bride in her lap, thus again symbolically transferring her fertility to the bride (Petreska 2001, 177, 178; Petreska 2002, 234). Through this rite, one phase of the elder woman ends (prospective mother-in-law), thus finishing the process of childbearing and leaving it to the new member in the family. On the other hand, she, although subordinated to the spouse and the other members of the community, starts for the first time a domination over a certain sphere (the house) and individuals (the bride and the grandchildren), with which her status completely

Fig. 6.6. Principle of modeling on the Middle and Late Neolithic figurines from Aşaği Pinar (after Hansen 2004, fig. 1).

‘Mothers (-in-law)’ in action In an attempt to understand these specific practices in the use of the Neolithic figurines, several ethnographic studies have been made, as well detailed analyses of the miniatures from this group of figurines. As it was previously pointed out, these include female figurines on which the thighs are accentuated, while the breasts are presented with very small dimensions or they are completely lacking. It should be noted that some of them have an engraved pubis, while the position of the arms, in the cases where there is sufficient evidence, is on the abdomen. In this case it should be emphasized that some of these figurines represent female individuals on which there is an intentional accentuation on the regenerative organs. Although such data instantly alludes to females in the state of pregnancy, still we should not forget that their breasts are mostly neglected. Thus, regarding the gravidity which actually by analogy is manifested on the abdomen and the breasts during the pregnancy, then the approach in the interpretation of these figurines should be more cautious. It is quite apparent that the breasts are minimized in order to accentuate their non-functionality in a certain stage of the development or the aging of the female body. On the other hand, the thighs appear 54

Neolithic Anthropomorphism: The corporeality of the Neolithic miniatures changes within the of the community, but also in the wider surrounding (the village/settlement). It is exactly this turning point of the status that could be associated with the fragmented Neolithic figurines. Namely, most of them represent women who have minimized breasts (probably because of their nonfunctionality), while the abdomen and the pubis (i.e. the regenerative organs), are accentuated without depicting any of the figurines in a childbearing position. In this case these figurines were broken at their thighs, possibly signifying an end to a certain stage in the life of one individual, which had accomplished hers basic corporal functions. It is interesting that in the context of the wedding ritual, in some parts of Macedonia, a wishbone or a whole chicken is dismembered as a sign of the establishing of new relations. There are also examples where the stool on which the mother-in-law sits before the ritual introduction, is also broken, thus signifying the passage of social boundaries (Malešević, 1995, 178; Kovačević 1985, 116-124). Yet another detail of this symbolized ritual choreography is especially important, and which could have its analogies in the production, the use and the fragmenting of the Neolithic miniatures. Just after the complex introduction of the bride, the mother-inlaw or the bride was carried to a part of the house where she was ritually ‘decapitated’. On some occasions, as a replacement for this ‘decapitation’, which is also sometimes perceived as ‘hanging’, the scarf is taken from the head of mother-in-law and burned on the fire, or a chicken is displayed whose head is stretched (but not cut) (Petreska 2001, 177; Petreska 2002, 107, 197, 234).2 Some analogies to this symbolic act can be discovered in the figurines whose heads are deliberately modelled (attached to an armature or placed inside a perforation of the torso), so that they can easily be removed from the body (Pl. XXIX: 9; Т. XXXIII). Nevertheless this characteristic of the figurines could be associated with the usual funeral context of isolated burial of sculls or jaws (Baćvarov 2003, 31, 36, 70, 175; Naumov 2007a, 259; Hodder 1990, 52; Perles 2001, 279), but the fragmentation can certainly have reflections in the shifting of the status of some individuals that can equally be realized with the living and the deceased members (ancestors) of one community.

Fig. 6.7. Depiction of the details on the figurines from Karanovo II-II (after Berger 2004, fig. 7).

Models of figurine - houses One of the most exciting and most complex groups of objects are the models of figurine-houses, which entirely fit the concept of anthropomorphisation or feminization of the house, thus fulfilling the repertoire of objects that functioned in this direction (Pl. XXXIV). They actually represent the essence of all so-far researched categories and media in which the female body was used. In this context ceramic objects with hybrid conception are considered, so that in the upper part a human body is modelled, while in the lower part an actual or stylized model of a house is placed. On several occasions these objects have been given a detail typological and semantic elaboration, thus resulting in the development of an elementary range of arguments that confirms their female character (Georgiev and Bilbija 1984, 42; Sanev 1988, 15-8; Sanev 2006, 182-190; Chausidis 2007, 47-59; Naumov 2006a, 66-68; Naumov 2007a, 260). None of the so-far discovered finds of this type (equally including the published examples and those which are yet not presented in the museum’s stores), have elements that could suggest male sexual features (such as penis, moustaches, beard, etc.). By contrast, on one part of the completely preserved and fragmented models depicted are the application of breasts, accentuation of the abdomen in a pregnant state, engraving of the pubis, or a careful elaboration of the hair.

2 After the ‘hanging’ the ritual ‘sister-in-law’ loaf is torn into pieces (Petreska 2002, 107). This is again related to the establishing of new relations and the rites of passage related to the status boundaries. It is especially relevant that this bread is equated to a stage of the family’s hierarchy of the female individuals and their bodies, and also on the level of symbolic functions and decoration, as it has analogies in the Neolithic seals and models of bread (Naumov 2008a). The visual characteristics of these Neolithic models have their identical references in the form and the appearance of the ritual loaves called ‘baba’ (grandmother), which were prepared and ‘killed’, i.e. torn to pieces during the domestic ceremonies in Serbia named as ‘slava’ (Naumov 2008a; Petrović 1996, 19-25).

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Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia settlements, although in this moment such assumptions stay unconfirmed by the archaeological data. These regional characteristics indicate that in the contexts of one unified iconography there existed micro-concepts that only supplemented the high status of the characters represented by these models. The defined principles, i.e. canons, of representation leave the standards of individual portraiture, so that it can be considered that the persons or beings (having in mind the hybrid character of the models) had high status within the social hierarchy or mythical spheres. Yet another specific feature, typical only for certain ceramic objects, benefits these constitutions. Namely, a great quantity of the models of figurine-houses are painted with white color. This feature is also visible with some of the miniature figurines, the ‘altars’, and several painted vessels. It should be emphasized that this ‘whitening’ appears on objects with a high level of visibility, i.e. objects that often or occasionally appeared in the visual communication. They are mostly objects with high aesthetic or technical elaboration, which certainly suggests the representative character of these objects, as well as the high position of the individuals or the ideas represented by them. It is particularly important to accentuate the corporeal, zonal disposition of the models of figurine-houses, i.e. the organization of the two basic parts which certainly benefits their symbolic character. The upper part of these objects is entirely anthropomorphized, while in the place where there should be the representation of the thighs there appears the model of the house, so that it becomes clearly suggested that generally, in the domain of these objects, the house was equalized with the lower part of the female body (Chausidis 2007, 49-51; Naumov 2006a, 66 - 68). This symbolic equating of the house with the lower part of the body is related to the accentuating of this space as a regenerative and crucial center of the female body. Thus, all that appears in the context of this space is protected by the female functions, which is quite logical in the context of the secular, but also to the essential activities of the woman in one dwelling. It is interesting that during the excavations of the dwellings, figurines with dimensions much smaller than those of the miniatures were discovered close to the models of the figurine-houses (Fig. 6.9). Apart from the fact that these tiny miniatures could be carried by the members of the house, still the possibility that they were placed inside the models of the figurine-houses, in order to represent the actual members of the home, the ancestors, or the new members which were to be born, is not excluded. In addition to these observations two arguments are considered. The first is represented by the woman-house from Govrlevo, whose abdomen is represented in a pregnant state (Pl. XXXIV: 3). In this case, if the model indeed replaced the thighs, i.e. the lower extremities of the female body, it can be expected that this figurine should symbolically give birth to the ‘embryo’ inside the house. The second argument also enters this concept, i.e. the domination of child burials inside the Neolithic houses in the Balkans (Naumov 2007a, 266).

Fig. 6.8. Construction method of clay half-seated figurines from Dimitra (after Marangou 1997, Pl. 62). Thus, so far, it can be claimed undoubtedly that the majority of the examples present female individuals, whilst the rest could not be determined because of their state of fragmentation. The discussions whether these models represent actual or mythical characters remain open, although several indications benefit the high rank of the ‘portrayed’ characters of the sculptural form. Almost all of the finds have a unified representation of the face, with connected nose and eyelids, while the eyes are almond-like, shaped or applied, or simply engraved with one deep groove. Unlike the miniature figurines, where the elaboration of the face is not unified or entirely lacks, the models of figurine-houses have general representation of the face which suggests a detailed and preconceived iconography that differentiate these objects from the regular repertoire of anthropomorphic figurines. It should be stressed that there are even regional iconographic affinities, so that in Pelagonia the faces often have accented jaws and circular mouth, while in the region of Skopje the accentuation of the jaws is entirely neglected while the representation of the mouth is rare. These regional features are also noticeable with the hair styles, extremities and form. The elaboration of the hair and the arms is almost always lacking in Pelagonia, while in the region of Skopje they appear elaborated in detail. On the other hand, in the region of Skopje the indications of the architectural features of the lower part of the models are almost nonexistent. Unlike this region, in Pelagonia the houses have a quite real elaboration, so that the existence of three or four architectural types can be noticed, which could have actual equivalents in the 56

Neolithic Anthropomorphism: The corporeality of the Neolithic miniatures and their surroundings. Although the possibility exists that the same ideas could be realized by organic materials, still the characteristics of the clay enabled moderately effortless modelling and transforming of the representation, and also a permanent duration and usage over a much longer period of time. Its elastic character allowed the modelling of new shapes and objects which could hardly be accomplished by some other organic materials. Thus, because of the wide range of the variations in the elaboration and the transforming potency into different aggregate states after drying, this raw material confirmed itself in the spheres where the essential ideas related to the community were manifested. In this context it is essential to stress that clay, i.e. ceramic material, was usually used for the produce of vessels and figurines, and rarely for models of houses and ovens, or ‘altars’. If the vessels had primary utilitarian character, with the exception of decorated ones that could be visualized into several levels and directions (Naumov 2005a, Naumov 2007c), then we can certainly consider that the figural representations exceed the utilitarian parts and entered the domain of the visual reflection referred to the Neolithic surrounding and the synchronic concepts. Man was exclusively designated at the center of this visual reflection. Although the figurines and the models broadly represent animals, constructions and houses, still the quantitative domination is by those elaborated in the form of a human body, including the combined representations of human-vessel, human-house, humanoven, etc. More accurately these hybrid objects assert that even that which was made and used by individuals was again conceived by the elements of the human body.

Fig. 6.9. Miniature from Madjari (after Kolištrkovska- Nasteva 2005, fig. 16). Thus, it can be stated that these objects provide symbolic representations of all the spheres which should maintain the well-being and existence of one community, including birth and death. Therefore we should not exclude the possibility that these objects were used in domestic ceremonies, in which the crucial significance of the dwelling was accentuated, as well as its meaningful role in the maintenance of the entity of one family. Consequently there is a probability that the mythologization of the house in some concrete character, represented through the models of the figurine-houses, took place. Numerous archaic cultures are familiar with the mythical and the ritual anthropomorphization of the houses, which are often equated with real female individuals, mythical characters and deities, named as kukja (house) or Kudawa (Malešević 1995, 178-182; Devyatkina 2004, 67, 70).

Certainly, this anthropocentricity leads to one universal general perception of the world, where it was explained through the spaciousness, dimensions and the symmetry of the human body (Chausidis 1994, 72-109). Regarding the obsession of self existence, men and women simply used their corporeality to explain the relations between the members of one or several communities, or the complex relation between themselves and their surroundings. The human being was the one that mostly observed and best knew his or her own body, so that it was manifested as a basic reference which explained the functioning of all that which was in their vicinity.

It can therefore be claimed that these models represent a matrix of an universal concept, which has its diachronic implications in many cultures in the wider world (Chausidis 2007, 59-89). Whether these models refer to individuals of high status or mythical characters, it should be indicated that this concept, concentrated mostly around the female regeneration and motherhood, was included in the basic idea of these objects, but also in the ideological manifestations employed the part of the ceramic objects, thus involving the rites of passage, as well as birth and burials.

Therefore Neolithic anthropomorphism is a rational reaction of this cognitive position, which humanity represents in its prehistoric phases of existence. The variations in the representation of the human body in this period indicate that there were several approaches through which the basic ontological stances were defined. It is interesting that the most important feature of the human identity, the face, on the miniatures almost always appears carelessly elaborated, or is entirely missing. Sometimes it is represented by a simple engraving of the eyes (lines) and the intensifying of the nose, so that it often leads to incorrect interpretations of the figurines, explaining them to be bird-like or even ‘bird-goddesses’ (Gimbutas 1989, 51-57). Considering the deliberate

Neolithic anthropocentrism The Neolithic is a period in which ceramics were confirmed as a most potent media through which the people directly expressed their perception of themselves 57

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia stylization or the avoidance of the face, the discussion about the motives that stands behind this appearance opens. On one hand it is possible that the media itself, but also the dimensions of the miniatures heads, did not enable detailed elaboration of the facial features. But if the dimensions of the models of figurines-houses are considered, then it becomes apparent that there existed enough space for careful ‘portraiture’, although even on these figurines there is an intentional reduction of the facial contours, and even the omission of some crucial elements such as the mouth or ears. In this case, such stylization and reduction lead to the fact that during the production and usage of the figurines, the actual human features of the identity remained irrelevant, unlike some of the human body parts, which were deliberately over accentuated in order to emphasize their essential significance. In this way we can consider that the generalization of the corporal morphology, unlike that of the individual characteristics, was purposely included. This clearly indicates the potent symbolic role which the figurines bear in the context of the different ceremonies and rituals.

It is especially significant to stress that in this context there exists the absolute domination of the female representations in relation to the male. Thus it can be suggested that the female body, more than the male, appeared symbolically suitable for the generalization of some concrete ideas. Whether this practice is a result of the fact that all these objects were produced and used inside the space with accentuated female activity, is a question which could over overshadow the true meaning of the figurines and the anthropomorphic hybrids. On the other hand, the specific features of these objects designate that the female body was used for the accentuation of several selected segments which related to the most vital female functions. They, on one hand and on a fundamental level, were related to the maintenance of the existence, but in their higher stage, they defined the symbolic and social status of certain individuals or characters from the religious sphere (significant members of the community, ancestors, or mythical figures). It is exactly the treatment of the figurines that indicates the complexness of the anthropomorphized objects. Incorporated into real reproductions of corporeality, or metamorphosed in ‘humanoid’ hybrids, they became potent media through which the most essential cognitive perceptions of the features, social relations, and symbolic functions of the human body were manifested.

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Chapter 7

The Body as Vessel: Some Corporeal Concepts of Anthropomorphic Vessels evidenced on several Early Neolithic sites (Perles 2001, 264; Pyke and Yiouni 1996, 88; Todorova and Vaisov 1993, 99, 104, Fig. 8; Radunčeva et al. 2002, 139, Fig. 41: 2-9), although their presence dominates in the Late Neolithic and Chalcolithic sites in South-Eastern Europe and Western Anatolia (Pl. XXXV; Pl. XXXVIII). Their production continued further through the remaining prehistoric periods (Pl. XXXIX; Pl. XL), and in certain parts of Europe, they are even used in the Classical period as well as among the populations in Africa and South America (Fig. 7.1). The number of these vessels is far less than those of the remaining utilitarian vessels, but it is still sufficient for the necessary concluding concerning their typology and diffusion. In every area of the abovementioned regions, anthropomorphic vessels, characteristic in their local shape and decoration, have been discovered. But, due to their mutual similarities, it becomes possible to create a general typology of this type of objects for the whole region. Certainly in some other contexts detailed analyses of these vessels will be necessary in order to establish their features and varieties.

In many cultures all over the world, the vessel is conceived as objects that cab contain features of the human body. The unification point is the inner space in which the food is prepared and the ingredients needed for its preparation. Since each of these components was equally important, it was expected that the particular space would benefit the maintenance of the community. That is why the vessels in the Neolithic were often treated symbolically and in the domain of the figural visual culture as objects that possess the characteristics of the human body, and very often that of the female. This corporeal and gender character, coexisting in several segments of the Neolithic cognitive traditions, was equally present in the sphere of the domestic rites to ensure continued existence, as well as in those contexts related to the cult of the deceased. The anthropomorphic vessels are for the first time detected in the time of the Neolithic, but in the following periods they enlarged their function and usage, even up to the folklore traditions of the populations from the Balkans. Although they changed the shape, in the 20th century some vessels still maintained the female features in the terms used for them, or in the rituals in which they were involved. It is probably the relatively contemporary etymology of these vessels, as well as their use in numerous rites, that gives brings out the symbolic characteristics of the vessel, which were only indicated by the so-called ‘mute’ archaeological finds. That is why most attention will be given to the period when the essential concepts of the vessel begun to develop, highlighting the vessels discovered in the Republic of Macedonia, and furthermore the later etymological connotations which point toward the female character of the vessels will be supplemented.

So far, deep anthropomorphic vessels with amphora-like shape, or with outlines similar to the figurines of the same period, are most often found. The number of shallow vessels (pots) with anthropomorphic characteristics is minor, and more usual for the remaining parts of the Neolithic Europe than in its South-Eastern region. On most of these vessels, in several techniques (engraving, applying and painting), the details that associate to the human body parts, are emphasized: contours of the face, arms, breasts, genitalia and hips (i.e. legs). From all the so-far discovered examples it can be stated that the majority contains elements typical for the female body, while the rest contains minimal gender features. So far in recent times, exemplars featuring body parts typical for the male individuals (moustaches, beard, penis, hairs, etc.) are not found, with the exception of the fragments from Nea Nikomedea, on which the applied ‘beard’ has not been visually augmented (Pyke and Yiouni 1996, 88).

Since the Neolithic is a time in which written sources do not exist, these relations between the prehistoric and relatively contemporary vessels require further analyses and parallels. In that sense, being geographically consistent, the ethnographic data regarding the Balkan folklore appear to be most suitable, since in it the ritual dynamism which is partly comparable to that from the Neolithic are still freshly maintained. Aiming to observe the anthropomorphic vessels in their corporeal and active context this chapter will involve folklore material in two aspects: – the detection of the ‘living context’ of the Neolithic matrices; and the search for the ‘prehistory’ of certain Balkan folklore traditions.

Perceived as an object in which the raw material necessary for the maintenance of life is kept, but also understood as a media through which the causal/consequence factors of regenerative logic are to be explained, the vessel automatically ‘establishes’ itself as a mediator between the everyday existence and the religious bases of a certain culture. Thus, not incidentally, in numerous cultures from prehistory to contemporary folklore traditions, specific vessels are being produced, which besides their utilitarian character also possess a function that points towards certain cognitive aspects.

Neolithic anthropomorphic vessels The presence of the anthropomorphic vessels is 59

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia

Fig. 7.1. Later anthropomorphic vessels from Europe, Pacific and South America: 1. Protokorynth vase (Cermanović-Kuzmanović 1977, fig. 6); 2. Peru (Neumann 1963, Pl. 40); 3. Peru (Chausidis 2005, Pl. V15: 12); 4. New Guinea (Adаm 1963, Pl. 18). That is why in many prehistoric and antique cultures there are to be found on vessels certain motifs and mythical characters or scenes that were being painted or modulated in order to incarnate religious beliefs and mythical representations, and in the same way to draw them near to the perception of the participants. Tied to the features of a certain religious matrix, some of the vessels implement functions which are typical for the human body. In this way, these vessels have shape which resembles a stylized human figure, or on some of them anatomical characteristics associative of the human body are represented. But it is interesting that on the larger number of these anthropomorphic vessels, specific female attributes exist. Bearing in mind that numerous populations explain the processes in the nature through some functions of the female body then the motives for composing these vessels can be discovered. The very presence of these vessels within cultures which are not chronologically and territorially related indicates that their symbolic foundation is a cause which logically explains the nature of the vessel and especially its compounds.

attained by applications, engraving or painting of the pottery in the region of the neck, making these vessels different from the usual appearance of the amphora-like vessels. The vessels are complemented with upper and lower extremities, stomachs, breasts or the remaining parts of the human body. Consequently they gradually passed into the domain of figurative art, but still maintain the recipient characteristics of utilitarian ceramics. With certain variations, the presence of the anthropomorphic vessels is diachronically registered through all prehistory and the contemporary archaic communities from South America to China, and from Western Africa and the Near East to Northern Europe (Gamacchio P. et al., 2005, 92-95; Hessler P., 2003, 67; Pollard G., 1983, 18, Fig. 6; Boas F. , 1955, 85, 116, 117; Adam L., 1963, T. 18; Müller-Karpe H., 1968, T. 60, T. 63; Gimbutas M., 1989, 57). In the early phases of the Neolithic they appear rarely, but it can be noticed that their concentration is considerably enlarged during the Late Neolithic, especially in the region of South-East and Central Europe, although to a certain extent these vessels are also present in the remaining prehistoric periods. In the same period they are also produced in the domain of the cultural groups in the region of Macedonia. Although they appear in small numbers, nevertheless, concerning the published material, certain features of these specific ceramic objects can be defined.

The earliest detection of the anthropomorphic vessels is in the Neolithic. But as their conceptual context firmed, thus in the periods that followed they spread their function and use, and even in the folklore traditions of the Slavic people, although the form changed, they still maintain the female characteristic in the terms and rites referred to them (Chausidis and Nikolov 2006).

Anthropomorphic vessels from the Neolithic settlements in the Republic of Macedonia

Aside from the usual vessel production, during the Neolithic these vessels contain an appearance which was characteristic for the anthropomorphic figurines. These are the objects which hold the functionality and the shape of the vessel, but also include the visual elements of the clay figurines, because of which they are referred to as anthropomorphic vessels. In most of the examples, these objects mostly resemble the synchronic amphora-like vessels. But the amphorae characteristics this time are

The presence of the anthropomorphic vessels, unfortunately often fragmented, is most noticeable in the Neolithic settlements from the eastern part of the Republic of Macedonia, which does not mean that after the publication of the archaeological material from other excavated sites their presence cannot be expected in the rest of the regions. On the other hand, mostly because of 60

Body as a Vessel: The Corporeal Concepts of the Anthropomorphic Vessels the information and illustrations in the publications, it cannot be certainly determined whether they are really fragments of anthropomorphic vessels, or if they are elements belonging to the models of figurine-houses. This type of figurine, in the period when some of the publications were edited, was still not observed as a different type, so that the mutual similarities caused some confusion. That is why on this occasion the interpretations of authors will be used, thus leaving free space for their further revising and re-interpretation. Up until now these objects have been ascertained in the later Neolithic phases of Amzabegovo, Angelci, Zelenikovo, Damjan, and one variant of this type from Vršnik. Although fragmented, mostly because of their stylistic similarities, they all posses the basic typology of the amphora-like vessels, with the exception of the Vršnik example which is modelled in a different manner.

Fig. 7.2. Fragment of anthropomorphic vessel from Amzabegovo (photo by author). to be a part of a lid. They both have similar dimensions, except the one belonging to the prosopomorphic lid has engraved eyes and slightly accentuated eyebrows, while the one from the vessel has engraved eyes and eyebrows. They both have an accentuated nose (Pl. XXXVI: 4, 6). Apart from these fragments, a part of a vessel with an unusual form has been discovered, on whose stomach a modelled hand with four fingers is represented (Sanev and Stamenova, 1989, 21). This fragment unfortunately is not catalogued in the referred publication.

Amzabegovo On this site, fragments of six anthropomorphic vessels have been discovered. The most preserved one is the socalled ‘pithos’, which according to the researcher is dated in the 4th (Late Neolithic) phase of this settlement (Gimbutas M., 1976, 240,241, Fig. 209). In the upper part, on the neck of the vessel, beneath the applied eyebrows, rhombic eyes have been engraved, while in the lower part, on the stomach, ‘V’ bands have been engraved, filled with red color, which is rare for this type of vessels from the wider Balkan region (Pl. XXXV: 1).

Zelenikovo On this site several fragments of vessels have been discovered with representation of the human face, of which only one has been published (Galović 1964, 1129). That fragment shows modelled eyes, eyebrows and nose, which the author dates ‘in the earlier Neolithic’ (Galović 1967, 144, Т. 5, 5). Although it contains the elements of the anthropomorphic vessels, still the possibility is that it could belong to the models of figurine-houses, because, at the time of publishing, these objects were still not known as a partial type (Pl. XXXVI: 2). During the several excavations on this site, also one smaller fragment of an anthropomorphic vessel was found, but unfortunately it is not yet published in the reports (Pl. XXXVII: 1).

The next fragment is with smaller dimensions, relief made eyebrows and almond-like eyes (Pl. XXXVI: 2). Two fragments are similar to it, also with almond-like eyes, but with thinner eyebrows, also modelled (Pl. XXXVI: 7). Unlike this, the fragment with catalogue number 53, has eyebrows engraved in two columns with white incrustation (Gimbutas M., 1976; 229-231, Fig. 194), as well as circular eyes (Pl. XXXVI: 5). In one pit which has not been certainly dated, but is supposed to belong to the earlier phases of the settlement, a fragment of an anthropomorphic vessel with relief eyebrows and circular eyes has been discovered (Gimbutas M., 1976; 215, 217, Fig. 160). It is interesting that above the eyebrows, several dots with dark-brown color are painted (Pl. XXXVI: 3).

Govrlevo There are few fragments found in Govrlevo. The smallest one is very similar to the one from Zelenikovo, elaborated above, with modelled eye and applied long nose (Pl. XXXVII: 3). It is covered with white paint and also bears modelled eye, but with a line which continues downwards (Pl. XXXVII: 2). Above the eye, an eyebrow in the same technique is featured. Regarding the modelling of the eye and eyebrow, it could be considered as a part of an anthropomorphic lid, usual for later phases in the Neolithic Balkans.

Despite these few fragments with facial features, one other that depicts a palm with four fingers was also found in Amzabegovo (Fig. 7.2). Although it resembles the shards from the models of figurine-houses, because of its well-polished interior it can nevertheless be considered as a possible anthropomorphic vessel.

Angelci Two fragments belong to this site, of which one belongs to an anthropomorphic vessel, while the other is supposed

The third example is a thus far unique in Macedonia and

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Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia which also presents a rarity for anthropomorphic vessels in Macedonia. On the gray, polished surface, 4 bands of horizontal straight and zigzag patterns, surrounding the whole vessel, have been carved (Pl. XXXVIII: 1). During the unearthing of the find (which according to the researchers belongs to the horizon 4a, a row of 157 beads, composed of shells and snails, as well as a small bead with red color, was been found in it (Garašanin and Garašanin 1961, 24, Figs. 33, 34). This certainly points to the fact that the vessel lost its initial storage use and was given a new one, entering the spheres of the aesthetic or the ritual.

Porodin On this specific object on one side there is a representation of a face (according to the analogies with the figurine-houses, most probably human), with applied nose and carved eyes (Pl. XXXVII: 4). Although the recipient of this clay table (‘altar’) stands on three legs (feature so far uncommon for the animal species), still it can be supposed that it represents a specific individual or a certain mythical character, to which offerings have been made. A similar object was also discovered at Govrlevo, but it does not contain any concrete anthropomorphic elements.

Fig. 7.3. Anthropomorphic vessel from Damjan (after Sanev 1996, 325). abroad (Biblija 1986, 36). A human-like face is modelled as part of a handle, with large ears, engraved mouth and nostrils, but also with deep eyes and applied nose (Pl. XXXVII: 5). This specific approach towards the representation of the human face often suggests the zoomorphic concept of this handle, furthermore opening several new directions for discussion. Considering the Neolithic anthropomorphic concept, this handle could be treated as such, although the production of handles with zoomorphic features was distinctive for the Neolithic tradition. So far, the only equivalent to the vessel from Govrlevo is found in the later settlement in Šuplevec, dated in the Eneolithic (Pl. XXXVII: 6).

Damjan Although it was not published in the excavations reports (Sanev, 1996, 325), but elaborated in the later observations (Sanev 2006, 182), and judging from the enclosed photography, it can be noticed that the fragment belongs to an anthropomorphic vessel on which, on the upper part of the head, unusual ears have been applied as well as almond-like eyes and nose (Fig. 7.3). However in the part below the breasts, during the reconstruction, an inappropriate fragment belonging to another vessel has been added, so that we get an impression of a find with atypical construction. It is possible that this regular fragment from Damjan is irregularly joined with the previously elaborated part of a stomach from Angelci, mostly because they at that time were kept in the same museum depot.

Fig. 7.4. Anthropomorphic foot of a vessel from Trn (Simoska and Sanev 1976, fig. 191).

Trn A fragment of a foot of a vessel (probably a cup), with applied eyes and nose, resembling a human face, was found inside the Middle Neolithic settlement in Trn (Fig. 7.4). The nose has traces of crusted color (Simoska and Sanev 1976, 45). There are no similar cups or feet presented in the publications or exhibits, so that it remains a unique find which could open new discussions in the relation to the cognitive background of some vessels.

Vršnik This vessel, preserved as complete, differs from the usual typology of anthropomorphic vessels. It only contains the lower part of the female body, i.e. wide decorated hips,

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Body as a Vessel: The Corporeal Concepts of the Anthropomorphic Vessels

The vertical division of the anthropomorphic vessels This relation between the amphora like vessels and the attributes of the human body disposed on them suggests several discussions which could help towards the understanding of the characteristics and the symbolism of this specific type of objects. Of particular interest is the zonal division of the vessels. In the upper zone, in the part of the neck, there are always represented elements of the human face, thus using an already defined and recognizable iconography which only emphasizes the eyes, eyebrows and nose. At this moment the representations of lips and ears can not be evidenced (except for the handle from Govrlevo), due to the fragmentation of the vessels, but according to the analogies with the similar vessels from the rest of the Neolithic cultures they are rare or entirely absent. Only the example from Amzabegovo (Pl. XXXV: 1) does the lower part of the neck possess a relief-made arched line, which according to the researcher of the site is interpreted as a necklace (Gimbutas 1976, 240, 241). There are not enough indications for the decoration of the lower zone, which entirely covers the stomach of the vessel. Regarding the unique and completely reconstructed anthropomorphic vessel (the above-mentioned example from Amzabegovo), it can be supposed that in the lower part there were also patterns with certain specifics. According to the similar examples from the neighboring regions, this zone usually remains empty or, rarely, it is applied with arms and breasts.

Fig. 7.5. Anthropomorphic vessels from Hungary, Serbia and Bulgaria: 1. Ráckeve (Gimbutas 1989, 39, fig. 66); 2. Medvednjak (Stalio 1977, fig. 165); 3. Tell Azmak (Gimbutas 1982, 99, fig. 63); 4. Galabnik (Chohadzhiev 2007, Pl.6: 1). figurine-houses must be stressed (Pl. XXXIV). Namely, in both cases, there are almost identically arranged characteristics of the face (eyes, eyebrows and nose). It can almost certainly be claimed that they represent a Neolithic, firmly defined schematic concept in the representation of the human face. It was equally used in the domain of the anthropomorphic vessels and the models of the figurine-houses, and partially on the miniature figurines of the Middle and Late Neolithic.1 Thus, it appears that the fragments of the amphora-like vessels in the part of the neck also depict rudimentary features of the human face. Besides these general features there are a few complete vessels found in the Balkans that bear only representations of the human face without addition of the extremities (Fig. 7.5: 3, 4).

Thus it seems that in the Neolithic this type of vessel was conceived as a female body, which apart from the suggestive rounded shape, also possessed several features which are related to the regenerative organs. Although from the elaborated finds it is difficult to conclude that they are vessels representing a female body, still, according to the several preserved objects of this type, as well as to the analogies with the synchronic figurines, certain conclusions confirming these interpretations can be made. It should be emphasized that these are vessels of semantic character, which contain certain stylistic characteristics and symbols which explain their form, belonging to the ‘female’ sphere, as well as the eventual ritual function. In order to understand their significance overall it is necessary to make partial stylistic and symbolic analyses of the zones.

Stomach / hips – lower zone As the shape of the vessel suggests, it is obvious that its lower half represents the lower elements of the human body, i.e. the part of the stomach and extremities. On some of the anthropomorphic vessels from Neolithic and later prehistoric periods in Europe and Anatolia, as well as on the figurines, the arms are often placed or pointed toward the abdomen or pubic area (Pl. XXXV: 6, 9; Pl. XXXVIII: 5, 7-9; Pl. XXXIX: 5). Despite the Neolithic

Head – upper zone Most of the given examples belong to the upper part of the vessels (Pl. XXXVI; Pl. XXXVII: 1 - 3). Among them usually fragments with anthropomorphic contours of the face appear, which according to certain researchers were given an unjustified interpretation of zoomorphic i.e. bird-like, features (Gimbutas 1989, 51-57). In this case the iconographic similarity of the given examples and the imagery representation on the upper part of the

1

Compare the illustrations in this chapter with the examples from: Grbic et al. 1960, T. VIII: 1-3, Garašanin et al., 1971, figs. 71, 75; Korošec and Korošec 1973, Т. XI: 11; Gimbutas 1976, figs. 148, 151, 169; Sanev et al. 1976, figs. 144, 237; Kolištrkovska-Nasteva 2005, figs. 10, 39, 40-44, 47, 49-51, 53, 54.

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Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia tradition, in the following prehistoric periods this gesture is often accompanied with the vessel held in the arms of the represented individual or mythical character (Pl. XXXVIII: 7; Pl. XXXIX: 1-3). Regarding the position of the arms on the prehistoric anthropomorphic vessels, they are also rarely modelled upwards in the position of ‘orans’ (Fig. 7.5: 1, 2; Pl. XXXV: 8; Pl. XXXIX. 9; Pl. XL: 1-3).

traditional Neolithic female attributes. It is interesting that the careful production and the inventory contained in this vessel, indicates that it did not have a storage character for keeping everyday food and liquids. The necklace discovered in it suggests that it was used for keeping objects worn on the body as ornaments or for specific occasions. In Macedonia several similar necklaces have been discovered so far, but neither the context of their discovery, nor their eventual use, have not been fully explained. But, the material of which this necklace is made (shells and snails), apart from being suitable for easy processing, also bears certain symbolic significance. Namely, among the archaic populations, shells, because of their originating environment, are often related to the symbolic potency of water (Chevalier 2003, 679). On the other hand, parts of the engraved patterns on this vessel are executed in the form of a zigzag row (Pl. XXXVIII: 1), which again accentuates the cyclic movements and the water, through which certain symbolic elements can be acknowledged. The same pattern performed in an analogous technique and disposed identically on the hips is also present on the figurine from Mačevo (Pl. XXII: 3). These semantic similarities, as well as the relation between the ritual trading with shells, and the ceremonial fragmentation of the figurines (noticeable in the figurine from Mačevo), suggests that both objects have to do with religious behavior.2 It is interesting that such examples of ‘vessel-sculpture’ (as the one from Vršnik), although not in large numbers, also appear in other Neolithic cultures that assert the importance of the hips as a symbolic element. The fragmentation of the extremities of the miniatures, as well as the conceived abstraction of the upper parts of the body, clearly indicates that they engage the most crucial features of the female body. Consequently these vessels very often contain the outlines of the female body, represented to the navel and breasts, with a remarkable exaggeration of the hips, i.e. the part of the vessel which stores the food or the liquids (Pl. XXXVIII: 1-8).

Fig. 7.6. Anthropomorphic vessel from Vršnik (after Garašanin 1979, Т. XIV: 1). Besides the modeling of arms or nipples on the vessel’s body there is also painted or engraved decoration. The painted patterns of the anthropomorphic vessel from Amzabegovo add to the significance of these parts of the body. On its stomach, multiple ‘V’ patterns are performed, and thus interpreted as arms or symbols, possibly related to the concept of the ‘bird-goddess’ (Gimbutas 1989, 7, 9). However, on the above-mentioned vessel, the painted patterns in the upper part compose a triangle, which at least could be associated with the female pubis, although it is positioned very high. Thus, the eventual symbolic meaning of this pattern appropriates its position on the part of the vessel where the produce was stored (Pl. XXXV: 1).

The relation between vessels and female body

anthropomorphic

Starting with the elements in the upper zone and the mutual similarities, it can be supposed that the Neolithic anthropomorphic vessels and the models of the figurinehouses were analogously perceived as a human body. Here should be emphasized the schematized system through which the functionality of the female attributes was most logically expressed, i.e. in the upper zone, in the neck, and face, where female elements can be represented. These elements completely suit the iconographic similarity of the face and the upper part of the body of the models of the figurine-houses. As for the lower part, in the belly of the vessel, the house-figurine

In this context, the example from Vršnik completely confirms the concept of perceiving the vessel as a female figure. It represents only the lower parts of the body, intentionally excluding the mouth and the neck of the vessel, and thus also excluding the representation of the human face and the upper extremities (Fig. 7.6). Not accidentally, the shape and appearance of the vessel concentrates only on the wide hips, which, apart from the functionality of the vessel’s form, accentuates the

2 Regarding the trading of shells, see the example of Malinovski in Chevalier J. 2003, 679, 4; and for the ritual fragmentation and mediation in chapter 6.

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Body as a Vessel: The Corporeal Concepts of the Anthropomorphic Vessels concept of the vessel.5 As far as the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group is concerned, such fragmentary models are discovered in Zelenikovo (Pl. XLI: 8, 9). On one of them the zigzag patterns are incised in the preserved lower half, while on the other, instead of this decoration, the engraving of patterns in the shape of a palm is noticeable. Although similar vessels appear in Ilipinar and Kurilo (Pl. XLI: 7), still the possibility that the examples from Zelenikovo could have been conceived as transitional forms between these vessels and figurine-houses should not be excluded, or even that they perhaps represented the models of figurine-houses themselves. An example of such models with a completely closed lower part was discovered in Mrševci (Pl. XXXIV: 5).

characteristics apply, i.e. in both cases it is the space where a certain potent dynamism accumulates. From the above-mentioned analogies with the anthropomorphic vessels present in other Neolithic cultures, as well as from the position of the arms on some of them, it can be concluded that both types of objects represent an almost identical gesture of the arms. Placed in the area of the abdomen, i.e. the hips, the arms again point toward the reproductive organs and the place where life is primarily stored and nurtured.3 From here the protective pose of the models of figurine-houses also emerges, in order to accentuate the sphere in which they accomplish their matriarchal character most fully. The relation between these two types of objects is also suggested by the two examples from the Neolithic sites of Čavdar and Kazanlak in Bulgaria. Although these sites are not within the context of the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group, because of the similarities in the material culture, they can still be correlated to the above-mentioned finds. Here anthropomorphic vessels are considered, whose rims are closed, thus leaving only a small hole in the middle (Pl. XLI: 1-4, 6).4 This part of the vessel completely resembles the top of the head on the models of figurine-houses, which clearly indicates that this object could be a transitional form between the anthropomorphic vessels and the models of figurine-houses. Certainly, the vessel maintained its storage use, but, although far from the detailed corporeal representation as on figurinemodels, it still possessed stylistic features which determined the concept of the vessel as a whole body.

All the previously mentioned examples, although insufficient in number, indicate that the cognitive concept for modelling was mutual for the anthropomorphic vessels and the figurine-houses. Regardless of the chronological schedule, one ceramic form could precede the other or they could synchronically exist within the contexts of the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group, so that sooner or later, an amalgam uniting both these shapes was created. Since at this moment the models of figurinehouses are only familiar in the domain of the Amzabegovo-Vršnik and Velušina-Porodin groups, it could be possible that their conjunction with the form of the anthropomorphic vessel developed independently in several regions, mostly because the two types of objects were based on the similar concept. But regardless of the core and the directions of the spreading of this form, what is important is that, with the conjunction of the anthropomorphic vessel and the figurine-houses, the idea which existed in parallel, yet partially in these objects, became equal. Namely the symbolic significance of the vessel as a storage object and the specific role of the dwellings are cognitively related to the regenerative character of these objects, thus suggesting the female body as a suitable metaphor involved in corporeal ceramic production.

Such examples of a transformation of a figurine-house into a vessel also appear in other Neolithic cultures in the Balkans, as well as in the Amzabegovo-Vršnik group itself, i.e. its later phases (Zelenikovo-Angelci II). On the site of Radajce in Serbia, a vessel is discovered which in the same way as those from Kazanlak and Čavdar, is modelled in its upper part in a shape of a human face (Pl. XLI: 3). Its rims are also covered, but a small central opening is preserved, which resembles those of the crowns of the figurine-houses. But in the lower half, with the accentuation of the corners, this vessel looses the circular base, gradually accepting the characteristics of the square model of the house, typical for the abovementioned figurines. The example from Butmir is also similar, where the lower part entirely resembles a completely closed house model, while the upper part is clearly distinguished with the cylindrical neck which totally neglects the contours of the face (Pl. XLI: 4). The patterns engraved on the neck, and especially those placed on the middle of the vessel resemble the applications disposed on some figurine-houses, thus providing more information towards the corporeal

It is interesting that this relation between the vessel, woman and house, also exists on the level of patterns. Numerous patterns present on the vessels, are also painted or engraved on the Neolithic figurines, the wall decoration of the dwellings, as well as on the surface of the miniature models of house. At the site of Gorzsa in Hungary, the wall surfaces were decorated with motifs identical to those of the vessels and the anthropomorphic figurines. On the same site within the settlement a burial of a child in an anthropomorphic vessel has been discovered (Hodder 1990, 52, 62, 63; Baćvarov 2003, 217), which through the funerary practices explains the relations between the symbolic regenerative character of the house and the vessel. The production of anthropomorphic vessels does not end with the Neolithic, but they continued into the successive prehistoric periods. As the vessels discovered in Macedonia, Greece, Turkey, Hungary and Germany testify, these specific objects were

3

For the diachronic continuity of this gesture see Chausidis 1994, 89 For more detailed description of these vessels see Georgiev 1974, 7, fig. 5; Chohadzhiev 2004, 408, fig. 20; Todorova and Vaisov 1993, 214, 215. 4

5

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Compare this vessel with figurines-houses in Pl. XXXIV: 2, 6, 7, 9.

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia used in the Eneolithic, as well as in the funeral practices of the Bronze and Iron Ages (Pl. XL).

225). In western Sudan, a pot used for ceremonial drinking of beer is referred to as eja (mother) and it is sometimes decorated with breasts (nansu) (Haaland 2007, 165). During Balkan wedding ceremonies some vessels are associated with bride and they are perforated at the bottom, in that way designating that the bride was not a virgin; or on the other hand, the vessel was smashed on to floor signalizing that the young couple had had their first coitus (Petreska 2002, 109, 142, 203; Uzeneva 1999, 146).

Mythological and ritual manifestation of the vessels Although metaphorically, the vessel as a regenerative substitute is also noticeable in the written myths of the Classical period and of the later époques. In some of them certain mythical characters or deities are born, or reborn within a vessel. The narration does not describe the form or the function of the vessel, but the act through which the vessel and the creation of the deity are related, clearly indicates its association with the uterus. Thus, in the Mahabharata, the mythical character Drona is created in a way that Bharadvaja, seduced by Gritasi, ejaculates his seed in a vessel, from which Drona was born. A similar situation is also found in the Rig-Veda, where almost identically the god Skanda is created, conceived in a vessel from the gods Mithra and Varuna. One other myth, noted among the populations in South America, speaks of a girl born from a vessel who was later turned into a boy (Marazov 1992, 243). Distinctive of these myths is that the vessel, which indisputably represents the womb, produces, i.e. gives birth to mail characters. Thus, not by chance, in the Elysian mysteries Adonis and Osiris (although they were not primarily born from vessels), realize their rebirth through the vegetation which emerges from the vessel. As far as the cult of Adonis is concerned, in Athens the so-called ‘Adonis gardens’ were produced, i.e. vessels in which fast growing plants were planted and which were afterwards left in springs (Neumann 1963, 162, 163). In a similar manner, the Early Christian mosaics present the body of Christ in the form of a kantaros, out of which plants grow (Dimitrova 2007, 66, 70). Among the ancient Greeks the vessel was closely related to the appearance and the function of the female breasts, and it was even believed that the early patera was shaped according to the breast of Helena (Marazov 1992, 242, 243). Through these myths on one hand the perpetual power of rebirth of the deities is accentuated, while on the other the vessel is emphasized as a specific object which at the same time indicates, creates and maintains life, while also being a place through which certain mythical characters are regenerated.

The equalization between the vessel and woman is also present in some rituals typical for the southwestern part of Macedonia, as well as for some wedding rituals between the southern Slavic populations (Chausidis and Nikolov 2006). In Resen and other regions in Prespa (Macedonia), for the festival of Ivanden (‘the day of the girls’), the ritual ‘Ivanka’ was practised, in which the girls prepared a doll (‘the bride’) made of decorated ceramic vessel. During the preparations something was inserted within the vessel for good health, and than above it, in a reversed direction, another vessel is placed, representing the head of the doll. After the body of the doll is shaped it is decorated and dressed (its hair is made, its eyes, nose, eyebrows, mouth and ears are drawn). Than the procession begins, in which the girl who will be carry the ‘Ivanka’ on the top of her head is elected. In the end the doll is broken, while the water it contained is ritually sprinkled and drunk (Kiselinov 1942, 52-54; Chausidis 1988, 73). The rite’s characteristic is that it confirms the transposition of the vessel into a being who would secure well being for certain members of the community. The storing of health-giving items, the sprinkling with the water, as well as its main function of union between boys and girls, i.e. their later wedding, point to its power to transform its contents and in the same way to benefit the continuity of life.6 It is especially interesting that these visual elements of ‘Ivanka’ vessels can be iconographically evidenced much earlier, on the ceramic vessels of the prehistoric époques. This similarity concerns a large number of anthropomorphic vessels from the Late Neolithic period, on which the body and the head are first partially modelled, and later merged together (Pl. XXXV: 2; Pl. XXXV: 4-8). On the body, i.e. on the vessel itself, the elements of the human body are carved or modelled, while the head is a compound prosophomorphic lid which covers the vessel (Fig. 7.7). Sometimes, as in the example from Hungary, the head of the vessel was manufactured in a form of a pot, while similar representations with pots on the head and on the hands were later discovered in Troy (Pl. XXXV: 6; Pl. XXXIX: 3).

Conceived as an object which simultaneously accumulates certain essential substances and materials, the vessel, among different cultures and in different periods, reached the level of deification. In India it also has an analogous meaning, while in some local languages a specific word, denoting the goddess-vessel existed (in the language Tamulu it was Kumbattal, in Sanskrit it was Kumbahamata, and in Kannara it was Garigadevara). Here also similar annual rituals appear, in which a vessel, representing a goddess, is carried in a procession and then left for three days in the middle of the village, so that afterwards it can be removed from the village and broken (Elijade 1984, 342). Goddesses-vessels are also mentioned in the Hanaan mythology (Gordon 1977, 224,

6 For the association between the vessel and woman, i.e. the bride in other folk rituals, see Chausidis and Niklolov 2006.

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Body as a Vessel: The Corporeal Concepts of the Anthropomorphic Vessels substances that were essential for the maintenance of the community. Even the process of the production had a role in the ritual potency of the vessel. The searching for suitable clay, the period and the way of its digging, as well as the final actions of its modelling and firing, were followed by rituals bearing the function of ‘stimulation’ of the vessel, so that it could accumulate and even ‘give birth’. Thus, this female character of the vessel maintained in several of the terms referring to its function, and at the same time explains the similarities between the vessel and the female genital area.7 Several vessel forms familiar to the folk culture of the Slavs maintain names which point to the etymological relation between the vessel and the anatomy of the female body. Namely there are several examples in the Slavic linguistic area where the direct or indirect identification between the names referring to certain vessels and the regenerative organs of the woman was accomplished. Particular examples are the names of the following vessels: lonec, karlice, deža, noćvi, taz, bočva, koba, which had a prominent role in everyday life. Fig. 7.7. Prosopomorphic lid from Vinča (after Gimbutas M., 1989, fig. 88).

Among many Slavic people the popular vessel term lonec corresponds to the term lono, which denoted the female birth giving organs, and even broader, the anatomical area where they are placed. This same area (the hips, thighs) in some southern Slavic languages is also called karlice (pelvis), which is also identical for the name of the long wooden vessels carved in Croatia, Serbia, Macedonia and Bulgaria, and used in bread making, the preparing of cream, etc. This name and its variants were also used for objects which ‘carried’ something, such as a boat, saddle, cradle, valley, and it was also used as a measure for grains, which on the other hand relates to the analogies between the anthropomorphic storage vessels, pythoi, the storage pits and the funeral rites. Apart from the vessel karlice, yet another vessel, the deža, was also made of wood, and used for keeping milk and oil, but also for the preparation of bread. The nature of the deža (which is made of ‘female wood’), as well as the numerous rituals in which it was included, point to its female characteristics. As an equivalent of the deža and karlice, noćvi, wooden vessels also were used in which the dough was kneaded and left overnight to rise before baking. In a similar context is the term taz, which is given to vessels used for washing, and the lower part of the torso, i.e. the pelvis. There appears an interesting relation between the Macedonian words bočva (winebarrel), bovča (a textile with which the bride ties her clothes), bavča (garden) and bečvi (a robe for the lower part of the body), which have suitable variants in other Slavic languages. Apart from the actual characteristics and meanings, these words also refer to objects and spaces which again directly relate to the regenerative

The hybrid-symbolic relation between the vessel and the body is also noticeable in the later phases of the site at Haçilar where some of the anthropomorphic vessels hold a pot or a plate in their hands (Pl. XXXIX: 1, 2). This potent relation between the body and the vessel was also manifested in one proportionally diverse relation, where on the same site, the contours of female figures were painted on certain shallow pots In addition this link could be understood on yet another example which does not entirely fit within the context of the regenerative role of the vessel, but in the initiation of certain atmospheric phenomena. Namely, among some Balkan populations, the ritual of the ‘bringing down’ or the ‘milking of the moon’ is practised, where a femalesorcerer using a vessel filled with water, manages to reflects the moon down onto the ground. There also other similar rituals which were used to encourage rain (Chausidis 2005, 367, 368).

Etymological parallels related to the female features of the vessel Among several populations from the Balkans, the production of vessels and the rituals related to them were in the domain of the female activities of the community. Thus, even the role of the vessel in the everyday life was conceived through the specific functions of the female body. These characteristics of the vessel, in prehistory, as well as between the contemporary cultures, were intended to imitate the actions that took place inside the female. It was thus believed that the material stored in the vessel (i.e. the food as the essence of the existence) would be sufficiently ‘incubated’ to ensure the continuity of the

7 For a more detailed elaboration of the production, typology, the magic and religious elements of ceramic vessels and their names, see Chausidis and Nikolov 2006, 104-107; Filipović 1951, 125-153; Tomić1976, 45-80; Drobnjaković 1936, 5-53.

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Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia elements of the female body (Chausidis and Nikolov 2006, 104-107).

etc.). Explaining the relation between the community and the deceased, this ritual embodied faith in eternity and the afterlife. That is why men and women, denying the fatality of death, hoped that through careful burial processes they could assist the deceased towards the maintenance of his or her life in some other form. Thus specific objects were produced in which the dead were laid, situated, or burned, in order that an afterlife of some sort or rebirth could occur. In this way the vessels became conceived as a symbolic regenerative medium, in which some of these functions took place.

Furthermore, this relation could also be followed in the terms of the vessel named as ćup (jug), which are equally used in Serbian and the language of the PelagoniaMariovo region (Macedonia). The minority Serbian language forms of this vessel (ćupa, ćupica (Tomić 1976, 75, 76)) are phonetically identical to the popular Macedonian archaic name for a girl – ćupa. A similar example is also the name of the vessel used to hold drinking water (matarka), which signifies ‘mother’ and could have its roots in the Phrygian matar or the Persian madar. In association with this example is the similarity between the contours of the matarka and the form of the stylized prehistoric figurines. Any discussion of the possible parallel between the names of these vessels, the young female individuals and the prehistoric figurines requires further lexical and semantic analyses which would confirm or deny the possibility of these specific relations. The terms of the quoted vessels indicates that within the function and form of these objects, the implied meaning of ‘female activities’ was also imported. Most of them have no direct ritual application (although they are indirectly used in numerous rituals), but it is possible that they preserved the previous semantic characteristics through their names which had deeper and older language roots. Certainly such meanings should be also expected in the names of other vessels, which should be put through suitable etymological and semantic analyses. Bearing in mind that numerous language regions from the Slavic area use different terms for the naming of the same vessels, then it can be expected that the matriarchal significance of the vessel still exists in the more archaic dialectical forms.

Fig. 7.8. A infant burial inside a vessel from Kovačevo (Bačvarov 2004, fig. 1: 2).

Burials inside a vessel Although not very often, in many Neolithic cultures the burial of infants inside vessels still took place. This practice probably originated from the Near East, spreading from the Levant and throughout the Near East Neolithic cultures of Hasuna and Tell Soto (Pl. XLII: 5, 6). At Tell Soto six burials within vessels were discovered, while at Tell Hazna (in the same region) and Kösk Höyük и Pinarbasi-Bor in Central Anatolia, they are fewer in number (Bačvarov 2004, 153). It is interesting that this practice is also present in the Jomon culture in Japan, where, at Cugumo, only children were buried within vessels (Votson 1965, 85, 101, Fig. 16). In the following Neolithic phases this tradition was transmitted from Asia Minor toward the Balkans, where two types of burials inside vessels appear, inhumation and cremation. So far, only at Gorsza, in the Körös culture, is there evidence of a burial inside an anthropomorphic vessel (Hodder 1990, 52).

When discussing the vessel features and their parts, the archaeologists often use terms which relate to the parts of the vessel with the parts of the human body. That is why in the vast archaeological literature, certain elements of the vessels are described by authors as stomach, shoulder, neck, i.e. throat, rim (mouth in Slavic archaeological terminology), foot (if there is a cup involved), etc. Thus, the associations with the human anatomy, i.e. the parts of the body, which determine the vessels’ appearance as a small human form, are clear. From this it appears that the vessels, apart from any ritual context, preserved its anthropomorphic elements from the etiological and visual standpoints.

Funerary rites and their relation to the symbolic features of vessels

In the Balkan Peninsula this manifestation is very rare, and to date only a few burials inside vessels have been discovered, most of them registered in the sites of Kovačevo, Ezero, Rakitovo and Azmak in Bulgaria (Fig. 7.8; Pl. XLII: 3) (Baćvarov 2003, 60, 72, 78; Bacvarov 2006; Radunčeva et al. 2002, 35, 150, 151). So far, in Macedonia, around 20 child burials are known, of which

Because of the overall importance of the act of dying, different cultures approached burial using predetermined funeral forms. Usually several basic types of funeral rite were used, manifested through inhumation or cremation of the deceased in a defined space (funeral pit, room, urn, 68

Body as a Vessel: The Corporeal Concepts of the Anthropomorphic Vessels only one is inside a vessel. This refers to the example from Amzabegovo, where inside a vessel with broken handles and bottom, a newborn (approximately 4-6 weeks) infant was discovered (Gimbutas 1976, 396). It is interesting that the vessel does not belong to the usual typology, and it was deliberately damaged, so that it could receive the newborn (Pl. XLII: 1, 2). But, in the process of selecting the vessel selection and its secondary damaging, its association with the female uterus was intentioned. In this sense, the burial, in which the vessel was put upside down (i.e. with the pierced bottom section placed upward), was not accidental, thus probably representing the birth canal pointing towards the ground. This position of the vessel should symbolically represent the rebirth of the child inside the earth, or within the dwelling and settlement where it belongs. On some sites, burials of the deceased inside pits from which clay was excavated are known (Baćvarov 2003, 142). This ritual could be based on the beliefs that the material of which the ceramic was made (the clay), possessed the same birth-giving characteristics as the soil. In this sense, the ritual from Amzabegovo, explaining the relation between the life-giving aspects of the vessel and the earth, includes the whole regenerative entity of the burial.

Fig. 7.9. Small vessel from Vrbjanska Čuka (after Temelkovski and Mitkoski 2005, T. XI, 43).

Cremated remains inside vessels The ritual act of burial inside vessels, apart from the inhumation, also appears in cases of cremation of the deceased (Pl. XLII: 4). Although there are interpretations that some archaic cultures believed that by cremation the soul will go up into the sky, still the anthropomorphic character of the vessels indicates that the material remains of the deceased body should be preserved inside vessels, which would allow the body a symbolic rebirth. During the Neolithic, the placing of the cremated remains inside vessels was a relatively common funeral rite, evidenced in numerous sites in southeastern Europe: Azmak, Vinča-Belo Brdo, Vršac, Gorsza, Rachmani, seven vessels from Soufli Magoula and even 70 examples from Plateia Magoula Zarkou. But what is interesting is the fact that cremation, as it was in Alishar Hüyük, also appears inside vessels-urns with accentuated conical breasts, with which their female character was clearly indicated (Baćvarov 2003, 141, 142). Besides the usual non-decorated burial vessels which are typical for the cremation of the Bronze Age on the Balkans, these ‘feminized’ urns continued their use even later in the prehistory of Central and Western Europe, as well as in the Bronze Age cultures from Western Anatolia and the Aegean region (Pl. XL). The tradition of burial inside urns, complemented with elements of the female body, also continued in the Etruscan culture, where they were often used as funeral inventory. Urns in the form of a female figure are registered among the contemporary archaic communities in Africa and many other regions of the world.

On the other hand, this womb-like character of the vessel can also be noticed by its shape. This is visible in the pot discovered at Vrbjanska Čuka in the Republic of Macedonia. Its opening, i.e. the rim, is modelled in a form resembling to the female genitalia, which could indicate that its remaining parts were also conceived as the birth-giving organs (Fig. 7.9). Although it was not used in the funeral rites, still, this vessel even in the everyday or ceremonial use of that time could symbolically manifest its potential for incubation. In this way this example, as well as the previous one from Amzabegovo, in the domain of the Neolithic community, could sometimes replace its utilitarian use with the funeral one. This transposition of the utilitarian vessel into a ritual one (used for burial), was also present in the Near East Neolithic cultures. At Tell Soto, in one of the six burials inside vessels, the deceased child is placed on a ceramic casserole dish (Pl. XLII: 6), which recalls the earthenware dishes used for baking bread among the contemporary Balkan populations. Although this ritual can be noticed in the secondary use of this vessel, still it should be noted that in the Balkans, until the middle of the 20th century, the manufacture and use of these vessels contained numerous ritual activities. It still remains to be discussed whether the remaining vessels, in which burials took place, were also used only in utilitarian purposes, before the burial.8

The tradition of burials inside vessels, besides those having anthropomorphic elements, also used other types of ceramic objects. This concerns cremation in urns modelled like houses, familiar from the prehistoric sites in the Near East, Crete, Italy, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, and even among the cultures in Peru (Neumann 1963, 163, 164). It could be perhaps that the form of the urn-houses is not noticeable in the typological-symbolic form of the vessel, but if we consider that the lower zone of the vessel represents the exact point represented by the lower part of the figurine-houses than the model of the urn-house also contained the same aspects based in the urn-vessel, since both were intended to continue the ‘life’ of the deceased. Among the urn-houses from Azor, Israel,

8 For the detailed elaboration on production and significance of the earthenware dishes used for baking bread see Chausidis and Nikolov 2006.

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Fig. 7.10. House-like urns from Azor (after Müller-Karpe 1968, Т. 108: 9, 11, 14). deceased in a foetal position, which was characteristic for the Neolithic. The deceased were then buried in storing places, i.e. pits for the storage of cereal materials (grain, barley, and wheat). Some were buried inside the house itself, which, in addition, explains the semantics of the ritual act (Baćvarov 2003, 142; Hodder 1990, 51; Mellart 1975, 35). This specific ritual of burial inside a pit for grain is also reinforced by a group of objects which were produced for the storage of the cereals. Namely, inside the Neolithic dwelling from Toptepe large anthropomorphic clay silos was discovered complemented with elements of the female body (Özdoğan and Dede 1998, 148, 149) (Fig. 7.11). Its shape is evidently similar to smaller counterparts, i.e. figurinevessels from Hungary and Germany (Fig. 7.12; Pl. XXXVIII: 7, 9). A similar tradition to this clay production was practiced even recently among the Togo people from Africa. They made huge storage vessels modelled as the lower part of the human body, which was then placed next to the dwellings (Frelih 2007). Despite the dimensions, these constructions resemble some of the Neolithic anthropomorphic vessels from the Balkans (Fig. 7.13 compare with Fig. 7.6 or Pl. XXXVIII: 1).

the top of these models have applied or incised ‘facial’ elements (Fig. 7.10). Although at first glance they appear far from the idea of the ‘feminized’ vessel as an urn, these house-models do include the context of the grave reflecting aspects of the female body, from which in continuity, the cremated person will be reborn, or will exist in other spiritual form. Equally, the urn-houses were intended to symbolize the continuity of life. Although territorially and chronologically distant, nevertheless, the urn-house models suggest that the house could have been conceived as a body, and furthermore represent the deceased member of the community or some mythic character with influence in or over the house. The significance of the house and its specific role in funerary rites will be elaborated in the next chapter.

Pithos burials and pits for grain storage Grain had also an important symbolic role in relation to the female body, vessels, and burials in terms of fertility, existence and regeneration. In different cultures, from prehistory until today, wheat, barley and grain in general, are crops which are intensively used and accumulated inside large storage vessels. They were also used in funeral rites, so that the deceased was sprinkled with barley, or koljivo wheat was made in his or her honor and then consumed by the participants of the funeral rite. Therefore it would not seem accidental that the pythoi used as storage vessels for cereals and wine were also dug into the ground as vessels for the burial of the deceased. This is widely present among Bronze Age cultures from Macedonia and other Balkan regions (Mitrevski 1997, 228-290; Mitrevski 2001, 21, 25). Before becoming a part of the everyday utilitarian inventory, the pythos was primarily used for burials (Neumann 1963, 162, 163). This is not surprising since the deceased inside the pythos, in the same way as the grain, should ‘sprout’, i.e. be reborn, from the vessel which resembled a uterus. Even in the Bronze Age, the practice of burial in the ground included placing the

The relationship between the female body and grain storage complements the regenerative character of the pit used for burial, in which the deceased was equally treated as grain, which was symbolically kept inside the female womb. The silo-pit and the silo-vessel were expected to preserve its contents, and thus contribute to the maintenance of the existence and continuity within the community: the cereals would serve for preparation of food, while the deceased would return to the house which they previously left, i.e. in a spiritual sense they would perpetually inhabit the dwelling. From this, although indirectly, the vessel (i.e. it female characteristics) again closely relates to incubation and rebirth. This significance of the large storage vessels, can also be explored among the contemporary folklore traditions, for example the ritual activities in which sinners and the sick 70

Body as a Vessel: The Corporeal Concepts of the Anthropomorphic Vessels

Fig. 7.12. Anthropomorphic vessel from Kökénydomb (Gimbutas 1982, fig. 210). that carries out a similar function. If the family in which the child was born did not possess a beshika, then the baby was placed inside a vessel called karlice, which both ritually and etiologically refer to the area of the female genitalia (Chausidis and Nikolov 2006, 104, 106). In the same region, if the child died, it was carried to the grave in a cradle, which was turned after the burial (Blagovević 1984, 237). Among some populations in Monte Negro and Bosnia, a similar ritual was practised, during which before the burial of the child within a cradle, it was pierced with an opening so that the mother could give birth again (Lozanova 1989, 27).

Fig. 7.11. Anthropomorphic storage construction from Toptepe (after Özdoğan and Dede 1998, Pl. 1). were put inside barrels to be ‘reborn’, or in a real sense to become pure of sin, or be cured (Elijade 2004, 105). In the Slavic traditions a rite even existed in which old men were killed in a barrel (Veleckaya 1984, 224, 225).

In this sense the ancient Egyptian traditions appear interesting, where the tree hyle (used for sarcophaguses) was imagined as a mother-cradle, but at the same time as ‘mother of the death’ (Neumann 1963, 243, 244). This relation between death and birth led to the concept of both the funeral construction and the vessel as a part of the female body which will initiate the rebirth. During the Neolithic and the later phases of Western European prehistory, megalithic crypts in which the entrance was imagined as a vagina are discovered, while the bringing of the deceased inside it became an act of ‘impregnation’ (i.e. entering inside a womb). In Malta, Sicily, Sardinia, north-western Ireland, Germany, Sweden and Serbia, the graves were constructed in a form of a vulva and uterus, or possessed contours similar to those of the female ceramic figurines (Gimbutas 1989, 153, 154; Bačvarov 2004, 152, Harding 2000, 110, Fig. 3.11: 1, 2, 4).

Ethnographic implications The practice of burial inside a vessel, or other objects that symbolize a womb, has several ethnographic parallels. In the surroundings of Užice (Serbia), after a child was born it was left lying on the ground for several hours, placed upon straw or hay. Afterwards it was put in a cradle, which in the dialect of the region is called beshika (Blagovević 1984, 224, 225). The very name of the object in which the newborn dwells (beshika=bladder) equates to the abdominal location for female regenerative organs. Thus, it is not accidental that the cradle (designed to protect a child) bears the name of the anatomical space 71

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia Although at first glimpse they appear far from the archaeological context, it should be mentioned that some burials, as well as in vessels, were also performed inside bags. In both cases numerous vessels and bags containing a newborn were often placed beside the oven or the fireplace in the houses. Examples from Einan, Azmak, Samovodene, Kovačevo, Hagios Petros and Lepenski Vir, confirm that cremations and inhumations within or without a vessel/bag, were related to the form and the symbolic function of the home oven and the fireplace (Baćvarov 2003, 60, 88, 184; Bačvarov 2004, 153; Borič and Stefanovič 2004, 533, 539, 541). In these examples

the oven and the vessel are united by their relation to the female genitalia. While they are different by their basic functions, still they equally possess the idea through which the archaic consciousness perceived the essential principles (inception, growing, ripening), and which equally refer not only to people, but also to bread, clay, copper, etc. It was through the function of the womb and the burial in its substitutes that individuals were able on the one hand to conceive the living ‘nature’ of the substance concerned, and on the other the ‘immortality’ of those placed inside in their ‘womb’.

Fig. 7.13. Anthropomorphic grain storage construction from Togo (Frelih 2007, fig. 93).

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Chapter 8

Housing the Dead: Treatment of the Human Body Within Burials Practised Inside Dwellings and Settlements Even though not part of visual representations, still the funerary rites are closely related to the treatment of the body. To signify the importance of the body after the death of the individual, the closer members of the community established certain practices involving the body in contexts that would further enable the ‘existence’ of the deceased in another spiritual form, but also the maintenance of the memory associated with the life and character of the buried individual. In this way the body of deceased was associated with crucial principles of the community and included in specific forms of symbolic communication. Therefore the position of buried individuals, the context of placement, as well the features of the grave goods, all played a significant role in constructing a potent and visual message. Every detail engaged corporeality as a main factor in transmitting the essential messages, the same as it was with the figurines. Furthermore the space where the individual was buried intensified the idea of the sacred and strengthened the concepts concerning the meaning of funerary rites. In this context the dwelling as a space chosen for this practice reflected both on the symbolic features of the buried body, but also on the material culture associated with it. Thus, the models of figurine-houses were closely related to the notion of the house and its hybrid manifestations, as well as to corporeality as a crucial principle involved in symbolic communication.

number of burials found within the settlements, between or even inside the houses, belongs to infants and children, follow next by women, and then males.

Funerary rites in the Republic of Macedonia and surrounding regions

From the total of 38 burials found in Neolithic sites from the Republic of Macedonia, approximately 20 are neonates, infants, and juveniles, 11 are female, 8 are male and 2 are anthropologically undefined individuals (Garašanin and Garašanin 1961, 15, 16; Garašanin 1969, 18; Gimbutas 1976, 375-410; Veljanovska 2000, 45; Veljanovska 2006, 341). In Bulgaria from approximately100 intramural burials, 46 skeletons belong to neonates, infants, and juveniles, 17 to females, 8 to males and around 20 to anthropologically undefined individuals (Baćvarov 2003, 23-98). In the Starćevo group, which spreads partly over Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia, of 84 anthropologically defined skeletons, those of 39 children dominate, females represent 25 and males 20 skeletons (Stanković 1992, 58-73; Bailey 2000, 123). Of about 190 individuals found at Lepenski Vir, the number of the neonates (without that of infants and juveniles) is more than half the total, compared to that of buried adults (Borić and Stefanović 2004, 532 Fig. 8). In Greece, the number of inhumed individuals within the settlement is smaller. From around 40 burials, 22 belong to children, 3 to women, while 2 skeletons and 11 craniums are of uncertain sex, the rest are anthropologically unidentified bones and skeletons (Perles 2001, 274-280; Baćvarov 2003, 171, 172, 183 189).

The majority of researched Neolithic sites in the Balkans contain burials that provide a general image for both the anthropological character of the Neolithic populations, and also of their relationship with death. The majority of the burials occur within settlements rather than on or outside their periphery. The number of burials in the settlement does not correspond to the likely number of inhabitants within the settlement, and it must be assumed that most of the deceased were buried outside their settlement. It remains uncertain why only a few individuals from each generation and period were buried beneath the settlement, but whilst there are several possible answers to this question, it should be emphasized that this kind of ritual was typical in the Early Neolithic. The answer therefore lies in the socioreligious structure of the newly arrived inhabitants and their relation with the creation of new communities, settlements and dwellings. Interestingly, the largest

Regarding this data we can assume that mortality among the neonates, infants, juveniles and women was much higher than that of males. On the other hand, this statistic indicates the probability of possible age and sex selection made during the burial rite within the settlements. For example, in the Early Neolithic phases of Amzabegovo, 14 of the 23 skeletons belong to neonates, infants and juveniles, 8 are female skeletons and only one is male (Gimbutas 1976, 375 - 398). Considering that in this phase the settlement had about 300 houses possibly with 1000–1500 inhabitants (Gimbutas 1976, 34, 37), the number of burials (in the present sample) is far below the middle level of mortality in the settlement. These points toward selection of ‘privileged’ individuals, especially children and women, for burial within the settlement. Their number dominates even in the most specific form of Neolithic funerary rite, those practiced inside the house (Fig. 8.1).

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Fig. 8.1. Intramural burials from Lepenski Vir (after Budja 2004, fig. 20). as offerings. However, new analysis of the Lepenski Vir burials shows that all neonate burial pits were cut through existing floors (Fig. 8.3), so that, at least on this site, the possibility of infanticide is rejected by the researchers (Borić and Stefanović 2004, 541). Examples from Haçilar, Kazanlk, Tell Azmak (Bulgaria), Prodromos (Greece), Lepenski Vir and Višesava (Serbia) show, crania was sometimes buried within the house (Baćvarov 2003, 70, 175; Bačvarov 2004, 153; Borić 2002, Fig. 7; Borić and Stefanović 2004, 541; Garašanin 1979, 123). A large house at Prodromos, contained 11 skulls (Fig. 8.4), which points to a funerary rite that includes exhumation and reburial (Perles 2001, 279). Similar rites of extraction, washing or removal of the deceased’s bones are still practiced among some populations in the Balkans.

Fig. 8.2. Infant burial next to the south wall of the dwelling in Madjari (photo by D. Karasialidis).

The Neolithic burial rites confirm the practice of the separate burial of the mandible, especially those of young individuals. Examples of this rite were excavated in Govrlevo (Macedonia), where a mandible was found next to a pot. This practice is also confirmed in Slatina, Kremikovci (Bulgaria), Agios Petros (Greece) and Bukovačka Česma (Serbia) (Baćvarov 2003, 84, 85, 184; Stanković 1994, 60). One hypothesis suggests that body parts buried below the dwelling came from high status or esteemed ancestors. In addition, there are a large number of Slavic rites in the Balkans where it was/is believed that the ancestors dwell exactly below the threshold and hearth of the house (Truhelka 1930; Niderle 1956, 86, 88; Blagojević 1984, 237, 238; Čajkanović 1985, 194-202; Mikov and Lozanova 1996, 44). The threshold was seen as a place where, directly or indirectly, communication with the ancestors was made through sacrifice or stepping over the threshold (Chausidis 1996, 43; Bocev 2001, 207-211).

Burials inside the houses In the Neolithic, the house was a space where part of the family was created, raised, but also ended its life. Although it was not practical, some of the deceased were buried beneath the floor, placed in specific peripheral areas, i.e. next to the walls, close to ovens or hearth and rarely in the pits used for grain storage. The most usual funerary form was inhumation, which was practiced inside burial pits, vessels and ovens. Infant and adult burials place next to house walls are found in Madjari (Macedonia), Kazanlk and Rakitovo (Bulgaria), Lepenski Vir, Grivac (Serbia), Vinkovci (Croatia) and Catal Höyük. Preventing possible damage to the corpse, they were placed in the non -frequented area of the house (Fig. 8.2). One example from Çatal Höyük indicates that neonates were buried high within the walls (Baćvarov 2003, 179). One hypothesis suggests that during the building of a new house, infants were intentionally killed 74

Housing the Dead: Treatment of the Human Body Within Burials

Fig. 8.4. Exhumated burials inside the dwelling from Prodromos (after Baćvarov 2003, fig. 6.19). children. As the children are created and formed in the mother’s womb, after their birth, they also grow and mature in the house. The earliest years of their childhood are spent in and around the house under the care of their mothers. It was believed that, if a child dies at an early age, its rebirth will be ensured with its burial inside the womb of his mother—house, but also in the vicinity of his real birth-giving mother. The relationship between children, mother and house are confirmed by the numerous domestic objects in the burial context, and also by the many ethnographic parallels that contribute to an understanding of Neolithic funerary rites (Chausidis 1994, 200-213; Chausidis 1996, 37-52). The relationships between Neolithic artefacts, the burials and their memory in the nineteenth and twentieth century rites, allows a potential interpretation of some of the Neolithic cults.

Fig. 8.3. Neonate burials in the house 24, Lepenski Vir (after Borić and Stefanović 2004, fig. 10).

Matrilineal features of the house As noted above, most skeletons found inside Balkan Neolithic dwellings belong to babies, children and women. Excepting the early phases of Amzabegovo (already mentioned), a similar relation between ages and sexes can be found in Karanovo and Lepenski Vir. Thus, in the second phase of Karanovo, most of the burials are those of infants, whilst at Lepenski Vir in only 19 dwellings, 41 neonates are found (Baćvarov 2003; Borić and Stefanović 2004). According to these data we can infer that the frequency of intramural burials of children and women was symbolically related to the house. Noting the level of mortality between the ages and sexes in the community, it seems there was selection of deceased individuals for house burials. The mortality of males within the settlement cannot have been as small as the statistical data suggests, and it can be supposed that most of them were buried outside the settlement, whilst children and female had ‘priority’ in the intramural burials. The importance of children in the preservation of communal continuity, caused their specific symbolic position and involving them as essential part even in the funerary rituals.

Models of the figurine-house During the excavation of Neolithic settlements in the Republic of Macedonia, a specific kind of ceramic object is found, so far limited to this territory (Sanev 1988, 1518; Chausidis 2007; Kolištrkovska - Nasteva 2005, 54 – 70). As it was elaorated in the Chapter 6 these sculptures unite two kinds of artefacts, figurines and models of houses, they are therefore known as models of figurine– house (Pl. XXXIV). They are divided into two parts: the upper part, where the figurine is represented and the lower part, where instead of thighs and legs, the house is shown. Some models emphasise stylized anthropomorphic features, whilst others have detailed architectonic characteristics.

Some burial features reflected the woman’s part in the reproduction of society, especially as a mother, since she produced those who would ensure the existence of the community. Frequent pregnancy and birth took place in the house, with the mother manifested as a character, symbolically related to its semantic features. The house is the space where the community is created, and is therefore analogous to the female body where similar functions were performed: impregnation, growth and birth. This analogy between the female reproductive organs and the house continues more subtly with the

These semantically conceived models emphasize the feminine character of the house, which is represented as part of the female body i.e. the part where the reproductive process is active. On one of the example, the belly is represented in the state of pregnancy, suggesting the figurine symbolically bears the embryo where the house is placed (Pl. XXXIV: 4). It can be concluded that in the Neolithic, the house was conceived as a space with exclusively feminine features and symbolic functionsconception, incubation, birth and growth. Consequently, 75

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia

Fig. 8.5. Burial in the vessel next to oven, Azmak (after Bačvarov 2004, fig. 2) : 3. Vessel with burial; 4. Oven. we can interpret the burial of the deceased (in foetus position) inside the house as a metaphor for the foetus in the womb.

The presence of children’s burials around this area leads also toward the ethnological parallels which in a way explain the choice of this position. Namely, in Serbia, and probably in other parts of the world, the infants were placed in the cradles named as beshike (bladders), which were placed beside the fireplace or near the baking ovens for ceramic (Blagojević 1984, 225). The children’s burials on the same location should certainly be expounded as a place where the dead babies, even after their death, should be “kept warm”, near the source of heat. But, several archaeological facts, as well as a large number of folk stories, point toward the deeper, semantic significance of the oven, equalized to the vessel and the womb.

Burials inside and around the oven If we accept that a house in the Neolithic was conceived of as a female body, then it is probable that part of the inventory of finds found within its interior were related to funerary rites. In that context, the hearth and oven had symbolic meaning with the same metaphoric function as those organs of a women’s abdomen which stimulate the conception and development of the embryo. Food was prepared near these structures. Created, and afterwards through the cooking, baking or roasting process, was transformed into sustenance in a changed form and character. The shape of the Neolithic ovens, their power to modify and also their radiant heat, can also suggest a semantic relationship to the key features of the women’s abdomen. Some anthropomorphic models of ovens indicate that during the rites, they were perceived as human body or as mythic figures with human features (Pl. XLIII: 2 - 6). Examples from Progar, Vinča, Medvednjak (Serbia) include models with incised hands, stylized breasts and broken heads (Petrović 2001, 12–14). In contrast to them, the gyneko-morphic shape of the Màrtély (Hungary) model shows similarities between oven and female abdomen during pregnancy (Gimbutas 1989, 148, Fig. 228). The frequent burial of infants near to hearths and ovens, or inside ovens, was not coincidental (Fig. 8.5). Examples from Karanovo, Azmak, Kazanlk, Samovodene (Bulgaria), Agios Petros (Greece), Parta (Romania), Curmatura (Hungary Pl. XLIII: 1) and even from Çatal Höyük are in relation with this hypothesis (Bačvarov 2003, 28, 60, 69, 88, 184; Garašanin 1979, 160; Gimbutas 1989, 151; Moses 2006, 182).

The symbolical burning i.e. killing of children in an oven can be traced in the Hellenic mythology, the Christian iconography from the Classical period, the Middle Ages, and even in the numerous Macedonian folk stories. In the catacombs, as well as in the later Christian temples from the period of the XI to the XIV century, the scenes of the “Three Jews in the Oven” were painted on the frescoes. It represents three boys in orans gestures, placed within a burning oven. But as this scene continues, thanks to the Archangel, none of them will die, thus proving their unhesitating belief in the salvation. Burning in the oven, they will transform, and then as immortals will ascent to Heaven (Gabelić 1991, 87). This kind of transformation of the child which was thrown into an oven also appears in some Macedonian folk stories. They describe of children which were allegedly burnt so that the elders could heal, eating from their bodies. Examples exist where the children became “gilded” or wiser in the ovens, which on the other side points toward some alchemic processes. Regarding that in this way the children in the ‘ovens’ became reborn in a 76

Housing the Dead: Treatment of the Human Body Within Burials more refined form, then the ovens acclaim the meaning of a part of the female genitalia. That is why it is not a coincidence that in the alchemic processes, as well as in the European metallurgy’s terminology, the oven is very often called ‘womb’. In certain cultures, this relation between the stove i.e. the oven and the womb was so strong that the blacksmith’s ovens were made with gyneko-morphic contours, thus its contents (especially the melting metal) becoming an embryo (Stojanović 1999, 186, 187). Beneath the floor of one metallurgic workshop in Vučedol, a crypt containing 5 children, of which 4 infants has been discovered (Durman 2004, 27, 28). In Africa, different rituals reflect this identification: i. building of a metallurgic oven in a place where an abortive child has been burned; ii. throwing of one part of the placenta in the ovens, in order to benefit the metallurgic process (Elijade 1983, 71 - 77; Neumann 1963, 46, 285, 286). In this case the Canaanite god Moloch should be mentioned, since to his idol, shaped like a kind of oven, children were sacrificed in Phoenicia, Palestine and Cartage (Janićijević 1986, 87, 312, 313; Chevalier and Gheerbrant 2003, 414, 415). According to Herodotus (3, 37) and Aristophanes (Av. 436), the Ancient Greeks put small dwarf like statues similar to Hephaestus (dwarf=child), near the fire places (Durman 2000, 51). This explains the motifs because of which even in the Slavic folk beliefs, the mythical dwarfs in the houses often live beneath the oven or the fire place, or behind the chimney or beneath the floor (according to the legends seven pairs of such dwarfs can creep inside a oven or deža). The custom that the wedding guests should break the house oven if the bride is not a virgin assert the equalization of the female genitalia and the oven (Niderle 1956, 2, 36, 470 – 473). The symbolic relation cooking /baking=‘perfection’, is reflected in the initial rites spread in numerous archaic cultures in the world, in which the juveniles are put to a symbolic ‘cooking” or ‘baking’ (in a real or symbolical oven or a vessel), in order to become more perfect i.e. to pass in the sphere of adults. The traces of these relations and rites were maintained even in the narrative forms of the myth, where the youth heroes, after the cooking in a kettle, or the baking in the oven, gather unnatural characteristics. Such examples could be noticed in Classical myths about Demophon and Achilles (Prop 1990, 154 - 161.).

Fig. 8.6. Neonate burial iside the bag from Lepenski Vir (Borić and Stefanović 2004, fig. 13).

Burials in the bag Although rare, on a small number of sites some of the deceased were buried in a bag or wrapped with cattail or linen. In Kovaćevo there are two neonates and an infant found buried with cattail (Baćvarov 2003, 33). According to the position of the legs, it is considered that one neonate from Lepenski Vir was buried in a bag (Borić and Stefanović 2004) (Fig. 8.6). This ritual practice, again benefits the burial as a moment of regeneration, but in this case the bag was perceived as an exchange for the placenta i.e. the wrapping in which the child develops while in the mother. In some Balkan regions, after the giving birth, when the placenta is taken out, it was treated as a cult object that had the meaning of a ‘copy/twin’ (or double) of the newborn child. That is why the wrapping or the navel string was kept in an unreachable place in the house, they were tied to a matičnjak,2 one of the main pillars in the house, or they were used as amulets that protect the child (Blagojević 1984, 220). Until the middle of the XX century in the Balkans, the Sarakačani had a practice to bury the dead born infants in a bag. For that purpose, the infant was put in a leather sac filled with salt, and it was tied exactly above the bed of the parents for c.40 days. During that period, the mother did not leave the house at all, and every day she engraved a cross on the ground. After this period the child was being buried in some part of the house, and was sprinkled with barley and water. These beliefs of the Sarakačani and the Vlasi continued to the

This suggests that children were a precondition for the operation of the oven in order to realize its role as modifier. Children were also conceived of as an ‘alchemic’ substance which can regenerate and transform. Thus, even in the Neolithic, infants buried below the oven, were perhaps placed there ‘to stimulate’ the oven, so it would function more effectively. Conversely, it may have been believed that deceased children placed below an object with vital functions for the community, were reborn in the same house.1

2 This word can be literally translated as queen cell (in a honeycomb), breeding farm or spawning place, but metaphorically refers to an spot, area or object essential in preserving of community or building.

1

For a broader symbolical significance of the oven in the Slavic cultures see Chausidis et al. 2008.

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Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia custom in which after the birth giving, the wrapping was not thrown, but it was buried, i.e. put back, into the ground, so that a new life could develop (Antonijević 1982, 61, 134). Similar beliefs existed among the people from Indonesia, where placenta was ‘buried’ in a determined place, on the east side of the house, which was associated to the life and the sunrise (Borič and Stefanovič S., 2004, 542).

Burials inside the vessels Placing dead infants in symbolic ‘wombs’ occurred not only in the case of houses, ovens and bags, but also in vessels. Vessels, like wombs, can store substances. They serve as containers that can incubate or modify at a higher temperature. For that reason, vessels were often utilised in the expression of some semantic aspects of Neolithic beliefs (Naumov 2005a), especially those related to burial (Naumov 2006a, 72-74; Naumov 2008b). Neolithic vessels had smaller dimensions, so only infant burials were placed inside (Pl. XLII). This tradition continues in later periods of prehistory when it is manifest in adult burials inside pithoi (Neuman 1963, 162; Mitrevski 1997, 288-290, 300; Mitrevski 2001, 21, 25) (Fig. 8.7). Infant burials inside vessels have been found at Amzabegovo, Azmak, Rakitovo and Kovaćevo, and burnt skull fragments along with cereals were found inside an anthropomorphic vessel from Gorza, Hungary (Hodder 1990, 52; Grifoni Cremonesi 1994, 185; Gimbutas 1976, 396; Baćvarov 2003, 33, 60; Radunćeva et al. 2002, 35, 150). At Ezero (Bulgaria) and Obre (Bosnia), buried infants were covered by a vessel, in Tečič a painted vessel was found below the face of a skeleton, whilst in Kazanlk, the vessel was placed upside down, next to the skeleton (Baćvarov 2003, 45, 61; Stanković 1992, 68; Garašanin 1979, 122), similar to a burial from Amzabegovo, where one 4-6 month-old infant, was buried inside a vessel with intentionally broken handles and base (Gimbutas 1976, 396) (Pl. XLII: 1, 2). The vessel was inverted, with the broken bottom upward and the rim face down, suggesting in the context of the funerary rite, that the vessel had the function of the womb. We can assume that the infant’s rebirth was expected, after symbolically ‘passing through’ the uteral channel symbolized by the rim.

Fig. 8.7. Burial inside pithos, Vardatski Rid (Papazovska 2006, fig. 3). traits modelled almost identically on the faces on the figurine–house models, elaborated previously. This iconographic similarity indicates that these objects, although different in their use, had the same semantic concept that suggests that, even in funerary contexts, the relation between the vessel, house and woman was equally present.

Rebirth in the burial womb The house as a funeral space unites infant burials in vessels, bags and ovens. The debate over the predominance of child burials in dwellings rejected hypothesis of infanticide (Borić and Stefanović 2004, 541), although contemporary substitutes for this ritual act were present among recent Balkan populations (Čajkanović 1985, 196-202). The large number of these burials could be a result of possible birth-control within a settlement, where infants were intentionally killed so that the community would not damage its socio – economic structure. In that case, one question remains open, why should a child be buried, if it does not have an important role for the family or community? It now seems that this burial practice was the result of biological factors. The ecological conditions combined with low immunity among neonates and infants resulted in their high mortality. In Amzabegovo of 34 skeletons, almost 50 % were infants and around 15 % juveniles (Gimbutas 1976, 410). The community was forced into performing measures in order to maintain its own continuity. Probably as a reaction to this frequent, and tragic situation, the burials within the house were placed inside a space which was conceived of as ‘capable of regeneration’, so that children would be symbolically reborn there. There are several ethnographic examples of Slavic populations that practiced child burial in the house for similar reasons. In the periods of high child mortality, the family buried the last deceased child in the house. It was believed that, if buried in the sacred corner, below the window or below the parent’s bed, the child would be

The relationship between a vessel, a woman and her reproductive organs is represented in anthropomorphic vessels (Pl. XXXV and Pl. XXXVIII). Since the earliest Neolithic phases, there were vessels with elements of the human body, especially those with emphasized feminine traits. Although these vessels were not directly involved in the funerary rituals, except the one from Gorza, still they were active in performing the role of female. In addition to this function, there are also anthropomorphic urns (Pl. XL), vessels which in later periods of prehistory were used for placing the cremated remains of the deceased (Naumov 2008b). Interestingly, the ‘femininity’ of anthropomorphic vessels remained even at the iconographical level (Naumov 2006a, 66-68), with facial 78

Housing the Dead: Treatment of the Human Body Within Burials protected by the house and its relatives (Mikov and Lozanova 1996, 37 – 48).

(Čajkanović 1985, 201; Mikov and Lozanova 1996, 3748).

It is interesting that in the Early Neolithic, on one place in the frames of the house, a mother and child are buried together. This leads to the rite noticed between the Balkan populations, in which if the mother dies during the birth giving, she is buried together with her newborn, although the infant is still alive. Similar funeral rites are evidenced among other Balkan populations, as well as between the Malorusians, Eskimos, the tribes in New Zeland, Indonesia, Africa, the region of Amazon, and even earlier – in the Classical period (among the Greeks and the Romans). In this period the development of the larae, i.e. the cult of the ancestors, begun, for which it was believed that they live underneath the house. This cult of the ancestors, and the beliefs that they were under the threshold, still exists in numerous European regions (related to different ceremonies and festivals). In some regions it was considered that the threshold should not be touched (stepped) so that the ancestors would not be disturbed, or in contrary, it was deliberately kissed and stepped, so that the contact with the ancestors is accomplished, i.e. the contact with the ‘world’ in which they dwell. Among the Mazurs in Poland, if an unbaptized child is buried beneath the door step, then it can be ordered to become a klobuk which will bring treasure to the hosts. Therefore, even the legends concerning the dwarfs near the fire places or beneath the floor, clearly relate to the positive effect of the transformation of the deceased children buried near the door step or the fire place (Čajkanović 1985, 194-202; Niderle 1956, 86, 88; Bocev 2001, 207-211; Truhelka 1930, 4-7; Mikov and Lozanova 1996, 44; Blagojević 1984, 237, 238).

Numerous examples and parallels between the Neolithic and the Slavic i.e. the Balkan burials underneath a house lead to the essential symbolic conception of the house as a funeral space and its possible identification with the uterus. From the above mentioned comparisons it can be concluded that the cognitive base of the anthropomorphic vessels strongly correlates to the symbolical concept of the figurine-houses, to which the connection between the burials in the vessels and in dwellings is based. Regarding the co-relation between the lower zone of the anthropomorphic vessel (its stomach) and the matriarchal symbolism of the house, then it can be noticed that both concepts unite in the model of the figurine-houses.

Conclusion The place chosen for performing this ritual act was significant. First, because of its practical function, the house was a centre where the most essential activities of the community were practiced. Provisions were stored there, food was cooked, children were born and raised, and generally, there the family was created and preserved. All of these domestic activities were a woman’s duty and responsibility, so that she was a character, not by accident equated with the house. Among the people of the Balkan area there was an old saying that: ‘the house does not lie on the ground, but on the woman’ (Malešević 1995, 178–182). In fact numerous complex rites in Macedonia related to wedding, positioned the oldest woman (mother-in-law) as representation of the house, therefore introducing the bride in the household (Petreska 2001, 171-180; Petreska 2002). Even in Mordvinian mythology, the house is governed and identified with Kudawa (kud–house, avawoman, mother), a female deity of the home, the household and the family, which is in close relation with Kastomava and Velyawa, patronesses of the ovens and village (Devyatkina 2004, 67, 70). Although in Balkan patriarchal societies the oldest man is treated as ‘head of the house’, still because of female domination in domestic activities, the house is often related to motherin-law. Therefore, beside the two gendered classification of the domestic space into ‘man’ and ‘woman’ part, yet the most important and crucial points in the house (heart, nokjvi – the place where the bread is prepared) were positioned in the ‘woman’s’ part (Ristevski 2005, 152; Vražinovki 2000, 248).

Since the house in archaic cultures was already defined as a space possessing actual matriarchal significance, it was not incidentally chosen as a place where the children should be buried. But, with this interpretation two more questions remains open: why is the house suitable for the symbolical burial, and why all children were not buried within the frames of the house? Although the answers to these questions can be found in many ethnographic parallels, still as an example we will point to just one concrete practice, present in several Slavic regions. Namely, in a period when the mortality of the children is large, in order to stop this occurrence the family decided that the last deceased child is buried underneath the house. It was believed that in this way, the child protected by the house and the hosts will return again in the house. Probably that is why these burials were often located in the holy corner of the house, under the window, and in some cases even under the spouses’ bed. Almost identical act was practiced through the great mortality of adults. In this case a little branch was thrown over the house. On the place of its landing the deceased was being buried. In other cases, as a replacement for the inhumation in the house, the deceased was being measured with thread, and afterwards the thread or the deceased’s nails were buried underneath the house

In conclusion, models of the figurine-house directly indicate the symbolic conception of the Neolithic house. This is expressed in the intramural burials that were related to the cognitive perception of the architectonic space. The female character of the house corresponds with the patterning of internal burials symbolising the dead body, under the auspices of the ‘house-mother’, which will be reborn and returned to the family with the woman’s next pregnancy. This ritual practice would thus 79

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia provide and maintain the birth-rate during critical periods, so the communities existence would continue, although respect for certain family members and the need to keep their presence in the home caused the burial of adults inside the house. Finally, intramural burials were initiated or caused by cultic behaviour, guided in two ways. The first directed toward the house and its sanctity as woman-birth giver, which was manifested figuratively with the production of models of figurine-houses or models of ovens and houses with feminine features. The second cult was directed towards the deceased, and it can be only assumed that it was part of a rich and complex system of rites for communication with the world of dead. In such ways, by expressing respect of the ancestors

and giving offerings in their name (food and liquids as substitutes for body and blood), it was expected that the ancestors as representatives of the imaginary, and yet for the Neolithic people, still present world of spirits, would engage in the protection and prosperity of the house where they once lived. These two cultic forms operated in the context of preserving the life and wellbeing of the family, and through them, the whole community. The matrilineal character of these forms of cults manifested by the burials within the settlements, inside houses, ovens and vessels, developed a religious structure which related the individual and community with the numinous features of their surrounding.

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Conclusion: Between Geometry and Corporeal Hybridity The Neolithic populations that settled the Republic of Macedonia left a great cultural heritage which reflects the cognitive, aesthetic and technical principles and accomplishments. This multitude of objects enables a multi relational analysis of the life components which incorporated inside the production of the clay vessels and figurines. These objects represent a suitable media through which the most essential ideas, related to the existence and the creative potential of one culture, can be expressed. Unlike the stone knifes and axes, the bone needles and spatulas, the jewelry and the remaining objects which had a concrete usage, and occasionally a function in the symbolical communication, the painted vessels and the different types of the figurines were directly included in the spheres of the complex codification of the ideas which were sent and received within the domain of one smaller group, community or region. Henceforth they manifested themselves as the most potent component of the visual culture which, even in the period when it was activated, as well as in the period when we explore it, strongly affects the senses of the rational receiving of the Neolithic reality and symbolic imagination. Consequently today, just like in the Neolithic, we have the possibility to penetrate inside the more subtle categories of the Neolithic cognition through the numerous images, patterns, details and the corporality.

excavations from the last six decades have shown that Neolithization in this area was the result of a long-range process which gradually penetrated from Anatolia, via Greece, into Macedonia. Associated changes across various categories of material culture include the appearance of decorated ceramic vessels, stamps, ‘altars’, figurines, models etc. Although they were separately observed they represent one coherent image of Neolithic cognition divided within several categories of visual culture.

Neolithic design and patterns of identity This book through several chapters modestly attempted to assess the extent to which elements of visual similarity in ceramic decoration indicate the spread of the Neolithic from Anatolia to Macedonia, and also to examine how local traditions of pottery production which gradually developed their own individual character were created. For this purpose, detailed analysis was carried out on the decorative patterns present on the painted vessels from the Early and Middle Neolithic found on recent excavations from the northern and eastern part of the Republic of Macedonia. A large number of complete vessels and shards were examined, providing information on the decoration and the development of patterns and compositional systems used in the Neolithic as a means of visual identification and communication.

Because of these reasons and not accidentally this book partially elaborated objects which seemingly posses different pictorial and symbolical structures, but which are still quite carefully and intentionally correlated. The similarity between the patterns equally present on the vessels, figurines, stamps, constructions and the ‘altars’ indicate that during the Neolithic there was a synchronic development of a symbolical system which directly communicated with the members of one community or region, but also with the objects which they produced. It is the developed sense for symmetry and geometry of the patterns, as well as the conceived hybridity of the corporal forms which point that these objects possessed concrete messages which were to be transferred to a certain social group. This is probably the reason because of which even in the earliest beginnings of the Neolithic in Macedonia the visual culture very dynamically manifests itself in almost every social category. Although there is still very little known for this region which it’s not constantly explored (excavated, documented, presented), still we can elaborate the primal survey of the abundant engagement of the Neolithic thought just by using the so far elaborated discoveries.

The beginning of the Neolithic in the Republic of Macedonia is currently dated to the middle of the seventh millennium BC, and even in its earliest phases painted vessels were present. In the earliest period, almost throughout the entire region, vessels were painted with white decoration slightly similar to that from Thessaly in Greece. However, vessels which employ patterns known from the Neolithic of Anatolia are also known, demonstrating the remarkable chronological and geographical range over which aspects of material culture could be transmitted. These ceramics do not have a direct analogy with the Early Neolithic painted vessels from Anatolia, but instead bear remarkable similarities with patterns present on wall paintings and reliefs, and also engraved on stamp stamps and figurines in the latter region. Particular similarities can be identified with iconography found inside the buildings at Çatal Höyük, where painting was almost entirely concentrated on the walls of buildings rather than on vessels. This tradition of painterly expression, as it spread through the Balkan Peninsula, dominated in the decorated compositions on pottery vessels, although the remains of wall decoration can be seen inside some of the houses in this region.

The Republic of Macedonia is a region where the process of Neolithization was highly active and from which it was dispersed through the northern part of the Balkans. Тhe

Regarding the painted decoration on the Early Neolithic vessels from Macedonia, a wide range of white patterns 81

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia were employed, creating unique and rarely repeated compositions. These usually consisted of zigzag lines, stair-like ribbons, triangles, dots and so called ‘vegetal’ patterns. Some researchers consider that the choice of patterns relate to the function of the vessels, indicating for example pots in which herbal remedies were prepared or which were used during particular ceremonies in dwellings or settlements. Exceptionally important are the local styles these patterns create which indicate that, across the wider area of Macedonia, several local communities were established, using decoration as an element of mutual visual identification. Although there appear to have been one or more waves of demographic expansion in the earliest phases of the Neolithic, in its later stages it can be seen that distinct regional traditions emerge which are reflected in differences in material culture. Hence, there are remarkable differences between Early Neolithic decoration in the Skopje region (northern Macedonia), the Ovče Pole region (eastern Macedonia) and in Pelagonia (southwest Macedonia).

visual culture of populations in that turning point periods, thereafter establishing the principles of symbolic communication as a tradition to the following generations. Whatever the case, these objects and their decoration undoubtedly indicate that the people of the Early and Middle Neolithic in this region had a high level of technical and artistic accomplishment. Their ability to produce these vessels and to paint them so precisely surely proves that in this period, the level of visual perception, geometrisation and organization of microspace was highly developed. This way of creating and maintaining the imagery tradition therefore developed specific visual communication and symbolic interaction between members of one community, as well as between several communities across the wider region.

Corporeality and anthropomorphic hybrids The changes in these climatically and creatively crucial periods manifested on the level of decorative system were furthermore reflected on the production of figurines and perception of the human body. Gradually figurines depicted more realistic features of the certain bodily parts, despite neglecting the facial characteristics. Thus, miniatures were involved into the asserting of essential points of the human corporeality that way using the gestures as choreography used in symbolic mediation of essential ideas related to the human body and subsistence vital principles. Subsequently miniatures were perceived as dynamic objects which by means of engraved details, gestures and their fragmentation simultaneously would reveal processes of understanding the corporeal potency, furthermore incorporated within domestic or communal ceremonies. For that purpose a vast number of figurines were intentionally modeled so later to be broken or joined. The often selection of certain body parts (buttocks and head) as breaking points on miniatures, indicates that they were exceptionally important in transmitting the messages among the participants in certain ceremony. Hence deliberate fragmentation is associated with the rites of passage when an individual finish one living stage and enters new spheres of existence. Regarding that majority of fragmented figurines were female with small breasts and big buttocks, this ceremonial process was related to women (most likely elder) which finalize certain functional level and change their status in the community, referring both to the living or deceased members of the same society.

The situation in the Middle Neolithic changed significantly. The decoration on the vessels found in settlements across the eastern half of Macedonia is very similar, so that identical ornaments can be found in the Skopje and Ovče Pole regions, and also in other parts of the northern half of the country. This suggests that local Early Neolithic communities were gradually assimilated into one bigger grouping which in the Middle Neolithic developed new elements of visual communication. It is interesting to note that in this period there was a complete transformation in the typology of painted vessels, as well as in the structure of the compositions, which now included new kinds of patterns. The patterns were painted in brown and black; now only a small percentage was white. Painted compositions usually consisted of extended triangles, spirals, vertical and oblique lines and egg shaped patterns which were precisely disposed across the structure of the composition. There are not few other patterns, nor are there variations of previously mentioned ornaments, so it can be assumed that the Middle Neolithic population from this region developed its own firmlydefined iconography that was reflected in various different types of material culture. Recently, there have been several attempts to study the function of the vessels and the significance of their decoration. Because of the time and skill invested in the production of these vessels, it has been suggested that they were exceptionally important for the communities that inhabited these Neolithic settlements. It is therefore assumed that they had a ceremonial or symbolic character, and that they were used during domestic celebrations, holidays, festivities and rites. Furthermore, the wide range of ornaments painted on these vessels were also present on the figurines, stamps, ‘altars’ and on the walls of dwellings dating to the same period, and it is therefore considered that they symbolized ideas of water, rain and regeneration. Due to the climatic changes in the beginning of the Early Neolithic, but as well in Middle Neolithic, these circumstances were reflected within the

The changing of one stage through initiations and evolution of the status are certainly exceptionally relevant categories for one member of the community, but as we have seen from the ethnological examples, it is also relevant even for one smaller group of individuals which have been led in new social relations. In this case the body was used as an essential media which designated these changes. Since the man uses his body intentionally or unintentionally in order to enter the dynamic of one 82

Conclusion: Between Geometry and Corporeal Hybridity ritual or any form of ‘choreographed’ communication, it will certainly use the body (represented through figurines) as a paradigm for the explaining and defining of its personal engagement within the domain of the complex symbolical relations. This usage of the corporality in the visual communication was not only accomplished by the realistic copying of the human body, but also through the, seemingly more abstract forms of symbolic expression. In this context the body is used in the composing the hybrid relations between the man and the ceramic objects which were produced during the Neolithic. Thus, the symbolically potent elements of the body were accented, but also the specific objects used by the man and particularly explained through its own body. Thereby in the larger scale of the ceramic production we detect stamps, vessels, ‘altars’ and models of houses, which possess anthropomorphic elements.

(contemporary wooden stamps for bread), which are still used in the domestic ceremonies on the Balkans. On the other side, a part of the Neolithic stamps are discovered in context to the grain, or to the working space where the flour is prepared. Thus, it can almost certainly be supposed that part of these objects were used for decorating bread. In this context the connection of these objects with the bread again benefits the supposed ‘humanization’ of the stamps. Considering the contemporary symbolical aspects of the bread in the rituals among numerous traditional cultures, it is most often associated to the human body or to the space and the material which was represented, but also possessed by the man. Henceforth it can be asserted that the stamps included in the active connections between more individuals or groups, themselves became a mediator which was metaphorically an elongation of the human hand. Thus, the one that was decorating actually used the stamp to ‘write’ the collective ideas tied to one pattern imprinted on a media, which latter ‘distributed’ the same concepts. In this case it could be supposed that the stamps with an anthropomorphic or eventually ‘zoomorphic’ character, represented i. some concrete individual, ii. an ancestor (including the often usage of the bread in the rites of the deceased), or iii. some mythical character (mostly because of the zoo-anthropomorphic hybrid elements of the stamps).

Prosopomorphic stamps In the group of finds that possess elements of the human body also belong the stamps which are rarely discovered in the Neolithic settlements. Unlike the figurines, this type of objects does not seem conceived to be representative, although their basic function is to decorate i.e. to leave visible traces on the media on which their ornaments are imprinted. That is why the visual concentration is much more pointed towards the patterns which are engraved on their base, than on the form of the objects themselves. Still, some of these patterns are closely associated to certain patterns which symbolically or real denote concrete parts of the human body, or they are also engraved on the figurines. Consequently, probably not accidentally, there appeared an equalization of the body and the form of the stamps, so that a special and rare type was composed, which could enter the category of the anthropomorphic or the zoomorphic stamps.

Models of anthropomorphic ovens So far, few examples of this rare group of objects are discovered, performed in small dimensions, which most often represent parts of the human body (arms, breasts and head), although there are some examples which possess animal attributes (Chohadzhiev 2006, 36). It is interesting that on all anthropomorphic models of ovens, the heads are broken off (deliberately or accidentally), while the breasts are engraved in a specific form, like a crescent. In the area where there was suppose to be a stomach, there appears a large opening i.e. the hollow of the oven. This unusual representing of the stomach enters into deeper symbolical relations between the oven and the female, where the stomach is equalized to the whole regenerative area. This symbolic link diachronically exists among many populations, thus leaving traces in the rites, material culture, the terminology and mythical characters (Chausidis et al. 2008).

This type represents just a small part of the complete repertoire of general group of stamps discovered in Macedonia and generally in Southeastern Europe, so there are not enough data in order to discuss their corporality. But, it should certainly be mentioned that in this case the body appears maximally stylized, sometimes even creating problems in the defining of their anthropomorphic or zoomorphic character. So far, not even on one of them there is a presence of sexual features in order to interpret their socio-gender affinity.

It can also be considered that the Neolithic models were conceived in a similar context associated to the symbolical relations between these objects and the female body. In benefit to these considerations indicated are several burials beside or inside the ovens, discovered in the Neolithic houses from Hungary, Bulgaria, Greece and Romania. These funeral traditions continue in the following prehistoric periods and the Classical period, but they are also narratively elaborated in the Macedonian folk stories, where children are thrown in oven in order to become wiser or gilded (Naumov 2006a, 76-78; Stojanović 1999, 186, 187).

Nevertheless, in benefit to their anthropomorphic character goes the eventual function which these objects possessed. Despite the numerous interpretations of their use, still, because of their obvious ethnographic parallels it is considered that the stamps, on a large scale, were used for decorating bread in different occasions and ceremonies (Antonova 1984, 30; Chausidis 2005, 98, 128; Prijatelj 2007, 241; Naumov 2008а). Namely, large number of the stamps have identical patterns, and sometimes even form as the proskurniks and sharalkas 83

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia Considering all this data, it should not be neglected the symbolical significance of the Neolithic models of ovens. Whether these objects represent concrete characters which were related to the working space for preparation of food, or they were mythical characters which symbolically contributed the providing of food, remains to be determined. Still, that which is in the front and accents the meaning of these objects is their hybrid character i.e. the combination of human and a concrete object – oven, so that their ‘unusual’ visuality emphasizes their corporeality, and in the same manner their role in the perception of the objects in the inner space of one dwelling. That is why it can be expected that in the domain of the Neolithic ideology, associated to one concrete space, these objects possessed a significant role in the explaining of the relations between the human and its surrounding, as well as in the efforts of providing existence on a symbolic level.

The relationship between the form and the female character of the vessels has been confirmed in the numerous Hindu, Egyptian, Greek and South-American myths, as well as in the terminology of the people from India and Africa. The equalization between the vessel and the female is also present in the Balkan rituals, especially the wedding ceremonies, or the ritual called ‘Ivanki’ in which the vessels were decorated as girls and carried through the village. The huge number of terms through which the vessels were named among the Slavic population (lones, karlica, bochva etc.) etymologically points to the female corporal features of the vessels used for everyday purpose and to the numerous ceremonies associated to the birth and the symbolic death (Chausidis and Nikolov 2006, 104-108; Eliјade 2004, 105; Blagojević 1984, 224, 225; Tomić 1976, 45-80; Filipović 1951, 125-153). In context of the female character of the vessels are also the specific burials in the Neolithic, practiced inside vessels. On several sites in Southeastern Europe and the near East there have been discovered infants placed inside a vessel in the frames of the dwellings or close to them (Bačvarov 2004, 153; Naumov 2007b, 262). Undoubtedly the real characteristic of the vessel, to receive and to preserve, was equalized to the regenerative functions of the female body, thus developing a very suitable ideological matrix related to the funeral rites. But this matrix proved its functionality not only in the Neolithic period, but also in the Bronze Age. Even in the Balkan rites associated to the burials from the XIX and XX century, the children were placed inside cradles called bešika (bladder - equated to the abdomen and its regenerative aspect), which were turned upside down or were perforated in the bottom so that the mother could give birth to the baby again. In Macedonia, beside the term cradle, the children cradles are also called kolepki (Nazim 2002, 148), a term which linguistically originates from kolibka/koliba (dwelling), and thus precisely equalizes this object with a small house. Thus this term determines the object as a dwelling place of the child, which as previously accented, among some populations from the Balkans is also related to the female regenerative area. This relation between the female regeneration, the house and especially the burying of children had its manifestation in the Neolithic rites and the visual culture.

Anthropomorphic vessels Although at first glance completely different in their shape and use, these vessels are most similar to the figurines. Apart the usual typological characteristics, they contain engraved, painted or applied elements of the face (eyes, eyebrows, nose and very rarely mouth), extremities, especially arms which are often placed on the stomach or in orant position. So far, on the Neolithic examples of this type of vessels there have been evidenced only female breasts and sexual organs. The facial parts are mostly represented on the mouth of the vessel, while the arms, the breasts or the sexual organs are freely placed in the lower third of the body. According to their spatial (zonal) organization, but also to some other details of the face, at least on those examples discovered in Macedonia, they mostly resemble the models of women-houses. Thus, it can be considered that in a certain region, between several Neolithic communities, the unified iconography has been established, which above all is a reflection of the generalized perception of the human face, but in the same time it is a reflection of the anthropomorphically constructed ideology, manifested in the highest stages of the material culture. It is interesting that equally, on the human-like vessels and on the models of figurine-houses, there are representations only of female body features. Although the eventual possibility that some of them represent male bodies can not be excluded, still in lack of concrete male sexual features the attributes of this gender can not be determined. On the other side, in the Neolithic examples, even the female sexual organs are rarely noticeable, but regarding the three most specific characteristics of the miniature figurines (the wide hips, the accented stomachs and the applied breasts), which absolutely dominate in the female representation, then it can undoubtedly be indicated that on the most of these Neolithic vessels there are representations of female bodies.

Anthropomorphic models of houses During the Middle Neolithic, there were major changes within the populations settling the territory of Republic of Macedonia. The visual approach towards the material culture in that period reflected the cognitive ability of communities to perceive their closer or wider surrounding, to strengthen their mutual relation, but also to define their communal identity. In this period, there was complete transformation in the painting of the vessels, usage of colors, construction of patterns, developing of new corporeality and the reproducing of 84

Conclusion: Between Geometry and Corporeal Hybridity the dwellings and their interior as miniatures. The models of the houses as a crucial part of this group of objects were also included so that they were consisted of both architectural and human parts. Above the top of the house a human body was modeled, so that they functioned as a whole. This visual hybridity was a manifestation of a complex symbolic position of the real house as the center which bonded few essential concepts: birth rate, death and corporeality.

Buried bodies inside dwellings If the anthropomorphism in the previous categories was associated to concrete objects and buildings (stamps, ovens, vessels and figurines), still on the level of the household burials this characteristic exists in, seemingly more abstract form. Within the frames of the Neolithic cultures the practice that the deceased individuals (especially children and females) are buried inside the settlements is very often, and quite interesting, they appear buried inside dwellings. Certainly, regarding the basic observation of these specific rites, there exists nothing which could connect these burials with some kind of an ideological anthropomorphism. But if the context of numerous buried infants is more carefully observed, as well as the way and the position in which the remaining deceased are buried, then we can expect one higher essential dimension, which in the domain of the ritual traditions includes the symbolical anthropocentrism. Generally, this form of burying includes several basic categories in which the deceased are being placed, and of which in this case only those performed inside the dwellings are pointed:

A large number of the models of figurine – houses are discovered throughout the territory of Republic of Macedonia, and according to the past researches they still represent exclusivity only for the Neolithic of this region. Although it is a unified visual concept of a female-house, still there are certain variations and regional affinities within the frames of the existing Neolithic cultures which appear in Macedonia. As far as the Pelagonia region (so called Velušina-Porodin cultural group), the models of figurine-houses in the upper part have only a head with especially accented facial contours, but usually without any applications of extremities or breasts. In the part of the head there is a compounding of the whole upper half of the body, while the lower half is represented by the house. A large part of the models of houses are modeled with arched roofs, despite the Neolithic architectural practice, which according to the recent excavations is confirmed through standard rectangular houses with a sloping roof.

– burials inside grave pits – burials inside bags – burials inside and around ovens – burials inside vessels (inhumation and cremation) The relatively large concentration of this kind of burials, related to the ‘privileged’ form of burials in settlements, points to the crucial features of the Neolithic ideology associated to the life. Namely, in the frames of the settlement only certain individuals were being buried, which probably possessed specific significance for the community. Considering that in several regions, in most case infants, children, juveniles and women, were being buried, then it can be noticed that the populations took certain ritual actions which would allow more specific relations to some of the deceased. In this case the burying inside the dwellings, in all its forms, significantly benefits the strengthening these relations with the ‘privileged’ group of deceased.

In difference to them, the houses of the models/figurines from the North part of Macedonia (the so-called Amzabegovo-Vršnik group) have simple, rudimentary shape without any remarking of the decorative elements. But the whole concentration of the sculptor was pointed toward the body of the represented individual or the mythical character. Often to the cylinder arms were added, breasts, belly button, and on some examples even jewelry, in order to accent the real, but also the symbolic attributes of the portrayed characters. This feature is especially emphasized on the figurine/model from Govrlevo, where through the accented stomach and breasts, the pregnancy of the individual is clearly asserted, simultaneously indicating the state of giving birth and the emanation of part of itself in the ‘home’ (Pl. XXXIV: 3). Undoubtedly this detail representing the female body could also be a result of one real transposing of the corporal features of the represented character, but regarding that in a certain domain the house also represents a space in which the deceased members of the community are being buried (especially the children), then it can be pointed to the possible symbolical functions which these objects possessed in the range of the maintaining the existence and accenting of the ‘regenerative’ character of the house. In any case, the possibility that these models of figurine-houses could represent the deceased members of one smaller social group, is not excluded, which due to their significant role in the community became equalized to the center of one family, i.e. the house.

In this way the dwelling as a space in which the major dynamic and concentration of the man is accomplished, automatically humanizes all that takes place inside its frames, including the burials. But on the other side this ritual form is almost always followed by elements (vessels and ovens for placing of the remaining of the deceased individuals, the fetal position etc.), which explain the anthropocentric character of the definitions for the after life. Thus, a large part of these elements are in function of accenting the regenerative aspects included in the explanation of death. The interpretations of the fetal position, regardless how anachronic they appear compared to the arguments, still in this moment offer most objective explanations of the ideas related to this form of placing the deceased, which exists from the Mousterian, till the end of the Bronze Age. In the domain 85

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia of these interpretations there are two most obvious explanations (although there is possibility for few more): (i) the deceased are lied down on their side in order to point that they are asleep i.e. that they are in a condition of an eternal sleep and (ii) they are placed in a fetal position in order to symbolically get reborn and to continue living in reality or in some other spiritual sphere. Still, more arguments and contexts of burials benefit the second interpretation. Part of the burials are performed inside vessels and ovens, for which previously were pointed their anthropomorphic equivalents. In the Cucuteni group, the anthropomorphic vessels without a representation of a head, as well as the deliberately ‘decapitated’ vessels, are related to the decapitation of the corps of the deceased (Gheorghiu 2001, 80, 81), while on several sites in Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey, the infants and the children are buried inside or around the ovens, which certainly leads to the close relations between the cooking and the birth.

the concrete associations which came from the manner and the details through which one body was presented. Hence they were mostly manifested through understandable components which were incorporated in the carrying of certain messages and sensual suggestions. Actually in this domain the visual culture most consistently realizes its function i.e. through the meanings of several imagery media it transfers that which was to be perceived by the individuals presented in one concrete space. In this process the clay objects established themselves as most suitable, since they could be continuously processed through inserting of details which complemented the visual and symbolical suggestion the objects emanated. In this domain in a very specific manner also enter the painted vessels which carry numerous imagery elements, thus reflecting the ideas and the dynamic processes of the populations in one region. It is the precise disposition of the patterns and the skilful using of the principles of the symmetry which point toward the essential usage of the decoration and the vessels in the mutual contacts between several social groups. Furthermore these visual apparatus were deliberately constructed to accent the elements of the community’s identity, but also the way in which it explained the dynamical processes that took place inside it, or between the community and the surrounding. Thereafter it can be concluded that the compositional structures of the painted vessels represent a mental map of the populations which used the Neolithic visual culture as an expressing means. In this process the principles of the visual communication were in a longer period equally applied through the decorated vessels and the anthropomorphic representations. In this way their varied repetition in the course of several generations leads that this mentally cognitive sensibility completely transposed into the tradition which was developed as the most potent element in the maintenance of the identity, as well as in the accentuation of the ontological principles.

On the other side, on several Neolithic sites there is a domination of infants and children burials. As a result to the enlarged mortality of the young population, the community was forced to over take certain measures in order to protect or re-secure these individuals, from which in the future the existence of the community depends (Naumov 2007а, 266). Therefore the most adequate ritual act was to place the deceased children and newborns in a context with objects which would symbolically allow them to get reborn. Thus, they were placed inside vessels or an oven, which in relation to the remaining objects of these groups, were perceived as a female gravid body. It is interesting that these specific burials were performed within the frames of the houses, so that without a doubt it was also manifested as a center of the female activities. Regarding the activities during the birth giving and the raising of the children, as well as the activities related to the preparation of food and the maintaining of the interior, it can be concluded that the house was consequently manifested as a female space in several aspects. Benefiting are the numerous ethnographic parallels of this symbolical concept (Chausidis 1994, 200-213; Chausidis 2007, 51-53, 59-89; Naumov 2008b), as well as the specific Neolithic ceramic models of women-houses discovered in Republic of Macedonia.

Consequently it can be considered that the populations which settled the territory of Republic of Macedonia in the Early and the Middle Neolithic, equally as the remaining synchronic culture in South-East Europe and Anatolia, used all available means of the visual culture. In this context there were the white and dark painted vessels included, as well as stamps, ‘altars’, models, figurines and anthropomorphic vessels or the hybrid equivalents. This abundance of media was dispersed into several categories which in a specific way explained the links between the people, as well as their position in relation to the imaginary, but essential spheres of existence. Still, although partially conceived and included in the seemingly independent processes, they mutually benefited the coherence of the ideas manifested through them. Thus, this book was a modest attempt which will benefit the defining and the stressing of the imagery media used in the composing the Neolithic visual culture, but also of the direction and the context in which it was included. This is certainly an elementary introduction of its fundamental categories, which definitely demands a

Within the patterns and corporeality The concept of the corporeality and its development into several categories clearly points that the treatment of the body was a seriously conceived act which correlated the ideas represented through it. Regardless whether it was the usage of the real (i.e. the dead body) or of that which was modeled in clay, the body was included into several spheres of interaction which functioned through defined symbolical attributes: accentuation, emphasis, breaking, gesticulation, including in certain context. This metaphorical, but defined usage of the body in the visual and the theatrical (ritual) communication was a result of 86

Conclusion: Between Geometry and Corporeal Hybridity further and much deeper exploration. Therefore, I do believe that the presented findings, as well as those not yet published and those to be discovered in the Neolithic

settlement in the future will benefit the cognition and the understanding of the Neolithic visual culture and the ideas preserved in the patterns and corporeality.

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Svetieva, A. 1997. Obrednite lebovi za Badnik – voved vo sakralnoto. Etnolog 7 – 8: 167 – 174. Skopje. Şengül, A. 2006. Mysterious Women of the Bronze Age (catalogue). Istanbul: Yapi Kredi. Talalay, E. T.1993. Deities, Dolls and Devices, Neolithic Figurines form Franchthi Cave. In T. W. Jacobsen (ed.). Excavation in Franchthi Cave, Greece, Fascicle 9, Indianapolis: Indiana University Press. Tasić, N. 1973. Neolitska plastika. Beograd: Muzej grada Beograda. Tasić, N. 2006. Amzabegovo – Milutin Garaśanin’s Key for the Early Neolithic in Central Balkans. In Tasić, N. & Grozdanov, C. (eds.), Homage to Milutin Garaśanin: 159 – 169. Belgrade: SASA. Temelkoski, D. and Mitkoski, A. 2001. Neolitski antropomorfni statuetki vo predistoriskata zbirka na Zavod i muzej Prilep. Makedonsko nasledstvo 17: 53 – 69. Skopje. Temelkoski, D. and Mitkoski, A. 2005. Sadova keramika od Vrbjanska Čuka, Macedoniae Acta Archaeologica 16: 29 – 53. Skopje. Titov, V. S. and Ergeli I. 1980. Arheologija Vengrii. Moskva. Todorova, H. 2003. Prehistory of Bulgaria. In Gramenos D. V. (ed.) Recent Research in the Prehistory of the Balkans. Thessaloniki: Archaeological Institute of Northern Greece. Todorova, H. and Vaisov, I. 1993. Novo – kamennata epoha v Blgarija. Sofia: Nauka i Izkustvo. Tomić, P. 1976. Tipološko – terminološka klasifikacija zbirke narodnog grćanrstva. Glasnik etnografskog muzeja 39/40: 45 – 83. Beograd. Truhelka, Č. 1930. Larizam i krsna slava. Glasnik skopskog naučnog društva VII – VIII: 1 – 33. Skoplje. Türkcan, A. 2005 (on line). Clay Stamp Seals, Çatal Höyük 2005 Archive Report. http://www.catalhoyuk.com/archive_reports/2005/ar0 5_30.html Türkcan, A. U. 2006. Çatalhöyük Stamp Seals, in (no eds.) Çatalhöyük: From Earth to Eternity: 45 – 49. Istanbul: Yapi ve Kredi Bankasi. Türkcan A. U. 2007. Is it goddess or bear? The role of Çatalhöyük animal seals in Neolithic symbolism. Documenta Praehistorica XXXIV: 257 – 266. Ljubljana Uzeneva, E. S. 1999. “Boćva bez dno…”: K simvolike devstvennosti v bolgarskom svadebnom obrjade. Kodovi slovenskih kultura 4, 145 – 157. Vajsov, I. 1998. The Typology of the Anthropomorphic Figurines from Northeastern Bulgaria. In Stefanovich, M., Todorova, H. and Hauptmann, H. (eds.), James Harvey Gaul: In Memoriam: 107 – 141. Sofia: The James Harvey Gaul Foundation. Vandermeersch, B. 2004. Nastarije sahrane. In Facchini, F., Gimbutas, M., Kozlowski J. K., Vandermeersch, Religioznost u pretpovijesti: . Zagreb: Krščanska sadašnjost. Vasić, M. 1936. Preistoriska Vinča III. Beograd: Državne štamparije Kraljevine Jugoslavije. Vasileva, M. 2005. Kade e našeto minato. Voved kon praistorijata na Pelagonija. Bitola: Visoi. 93

Patterns and Corporeality: Neolithic Visual Culture from Republic of Macedonia Vasilakis, A. 2001. Minoan Crete: From Myth to History. Athens: Adam Editions. Vasl’ev, S. 2000. The Siberian mosaic: Upper Paleolithic adaptations and change before the Last Glacial Maximum. In Roebroeks et al. (eds.), Hunters of the Golden Age: The Mid Upper Paleolithic of Eurasia: 173 – 192). Leiden: Univesrity of Leiden. Veleckaya, N. N. 1996. Mnogobožačka simbolika slovenskih arhajskih rituala. Niš: Prosveta. Veljanovska, F. 2000. Antropološki karakteristiki na naselenieto na Makedonija od neolit do Sreden Vek. Skopje: Republički zavod za zaštita na spomenicite na kulturata. Veljanovska, F. 2006. Neolitski skeletni naodi od Pista – Novo Selo, Macedoniae Acta Archaeologica 17: 341 – 350. Votson, V. 1965. Ko su bili stari Ainui? In Edvard Bekon (ed.): Isčezle civilizacije, Beograd: Prosveta. Vražinovski, T. 2000. Rećnik na narodnata mitologija na makedoncite, Prilep – Skopje: Istitut za staroslovenska kultura & Matica makedonska. Washburn, D. K. 1977. A Summetry Analysis of Upper Gila Area Ceramic Design. Papers of the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology-Volume 68. Cambridge: Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology. Washburn, D. 1995. Living in Balance: The Universe of the Hopi, Zuni, Navajo and Apache. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Museum. Washburn, D. 1999, Perceptual Anthropoogy: The Cultural Salience of Symmetry. American Anthropologist Vol. 101/3: 544-562. Arlington.

Winn, S. M. M. 1981. Pre-writing in Southeastern Europe: The sign system of the Vinča culture ca. 4000 B.C. Calgary, Alberta: Western Publishers. Whittle, A. 1996. Europe in the Neolithic. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Whittle, A., Bartosiewicz, L., Borić, D., Pettit, P. and Richards, M. 2005. New Radiocarbon Dates for the Early Neolithic in Northern Serbia and South-East Hungary: Some Omission and Corrections. Antaeus 28: 347 – 355. Yaneva, S. 1989. Blgarski obredni hlyabove. Sofia: Izdatelstvo na Blgarskata akademiya na naukite. Zdravkovski, D. 1988. Istražuvanje na loklitetot “Na Breg” selo Mlado Nagoričane. Macedoniae Acta Archaeologica 9: 43 - 63. Skopje. Zdravkovski, D. 1993. Neolitska naselba “Čibuk Češma” – s. Nikuštak, Kumanovo. Macedoniae Acta Archaeologica 13: 19 – 30. Skopje. Zdravkovski, D. 2005. Neolitska naselba “Pod selo – Tumba” s. Stenće. Zbornik na Muzejot na Makedonija 2 (arheologija): 25 – 31. Skopje. Zdravkovski, D. 2006a. New Aspects of the Anzabegovo – Vrśnik Cultural Group, in Tasić, N. & Grozdanov, C. (eds.), Homage to Milutin Garaśanin: 99 – 110. Belgrade: SASA. Zdravkovski, D. 2006b. Geneza i razvoj na Anzabegovo – vršničkata kulturna grupa. Unpublished PhD. dissertation. University of Skopje. Skopje.

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Plates

Plate I. Comparisons between Anatolian Lake District and Macedonia.

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Plate II. Pottery fragments from Amzabegovo – Vrśnik group.

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Plate III. Pottery fragments from Veluśina – Porodin group.

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Plate IV. White painted vessels from Pelagonia.

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Plate V. White painted pottery from Govrlevo.

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Plate VI. Rectilinear dark painted pottery from Govrlevo.

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Plate VII. Curved dark painted pottery from Govrlevo. 101

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Plate VIII. Rectilinear and curved dark painted pottery from Madjari.

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Plate IX. White and dark painted pottery from Zelenikovo.

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Plate X. Curved dark painted pottery from Zelenikovo.

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Plate XI. Clay stamps from the Republic of Macedonia.

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Plate XII. Clay stamps from the Republic of Macedonia.

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Plate XIII. Neolithic stamps from Greece.

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Plate XIV. Visual relations between stamp patterns from the Republic of Macedonia and Anatolia.

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Plate XV. Similar patterns represented on different types of material culture.

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Plate XVI. Seals, wall paintings and reliefs from Çatal Höyük.

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Plate XVII. Comparisons between patterns on seals and figurines.

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Plate XVIII. Comparisons between patterns on Neolithic and ‘contemporary’ stamps.

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Plate XIX. Models of bread loaves.

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Plate XX. Neolithic clay loaves from Govrlevo.

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Plate XXI. Palaeolithic figurines. 115

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Plate XXII. Neolithic figurines from the Republic of Macedonia.

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Plate XXIII. Neolithic figurines from the Balkans and Anatolia. 117

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Plate XXIV. Engraved genitalia on figurines from the Republic of Macedonia.

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Plate XXV. Engraved genitalia on figurines from Balkan Peninsula.

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Plate XXVI. Male figurines from the Balkans.

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Plate XXVII. Figurines modelled with hands on the abdomen.

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Plate XXVIII: Figurines modelled with hands on the breasts.

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Plate XXIX. Fragmented figurines from the Republic of Macedonia.

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Plate XXX. Fragmented figurines from the Republic of Macedonia. 124

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Plate XXXI. Fragmented figurines from Greece. 125

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Plate XXXII. Fragmented figurines from Bulgaria.

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Plate XXXIII. Neolithic and Eneolithic figurines without heads.

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Plate XXXIV. Models of figurines – houses.

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Plate XXXV. Anthropomorphic vessels from South – East Europe.

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Plate XXXVI. Fragments of anthropomorphic vessels from the Republic of Macedonia. 130

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Plate XXXVII. Fragments of anthropomorphic vessels from the Republic of Macedonia.

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Plate XXXVIII. Anthropomorphic vessels from South – East Europe. 132

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Plate XXXIX. Anthropomorphic vessels from later prehistoric periods.

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Plate XL. Prehistoric urns from Europe. 134

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Plate XLI. Anthropomorphic vessels related with models of figurine – house.

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Plate XLII. Neolithic vessels with remains of buried individuals. 136

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Plate XLIII. Models of anthropomorphic ovens. 137

Plate Descriptions Plate I. Comparisons between Anatolian Lake District and Macedonia: 1. Porodin – w. 2.2 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Bitola). 2. Madjari – no scale (Photo by M. Tutkovski, courtesy of The Museum of Macedonia). 3. Amzabegovo – w. 5.9 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Štip). 4. Bademağaci – w. 2.0 cm (Özdogan and Basgelen 1999, 152, fig. 39). 5. Haçılar – no scale (Mellart 1970, 469, fig. 187/3). 6. Kuruçay – w. 7.8 cm (Özdogan and Basgelen 1999, 144, fig. 11). 7. Amzabegovo – w. 3.6 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Štip). 8. Govrlevo – w. 6.2 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Štip). 9. Amzabegovo – w. 21.1 cm (Tasić 2006, 166, fig. 11). 10. Haçılar – w. 16.1 cm (Mellart 1970, 287, fig. 16). 11. Haçılar – w. 14.9 cm (Mellart 1970, 287, fig. 14). 12. Haçılar – h. 22.9 cm (Mellart 1970, 525, fig. 1). Plate II. Pottery fragments from Amzabegovo – Vrśnik group: 1. Amzabegovo – w. 16.9 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Štip). 2. Amzabegovo – w. 4.8 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Štip). 3. Amzabegovo – w. 11.6 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Štip). 4. Pista – Novo Selo w. 3.3 cm (Photo by Jovćevska, T., courtesy of The Museum of Veles). 5. Nemanjica - no scale (Sanev 1995, 30). 6. Vrśnik – w. 5.6 cm (Garašanin and Garašanin 1961, fig. 43). 7. Zelenikovo – w. 3.2 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Skopje). 8. Govrlevo – w. 16.9 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Skopje). 9. Govrlevo – w. 7.9 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Skopje). 10. Stenće – w. 8.0 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Macedonia). 11. Stenće – w. 10.8 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Macedonia). 12. Dolno Palćiśte – w. 4.2 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Macedonia). Plate III. Pottery fragments from Veluśina – Porodin group: 1. Veluška Tumba – w. 6.0 cm (Simoska. and Sanev1976, fig. 14). 2. Veluška Tumba – w. 19.2 cm (Simoska. and Sanev1976, fig. 16). 3. Veluška Tumba – w. 5.0 cm (Simoska. and Sanev1976, fig. 17). 4. Vrbjanska Čuka – w. 4.6 cm (Temelkoski and Mitkoski 2005, Pl. XIII, 3). 5. Veluška Tumba – w. 15.5 cm (Simoska and Sanev 1976, fig. 15). 6. Porodin – no scale (Grbić 1960, Pl. XLII, 2). 7. Veluška Tumba - no scale (Simoska. and Sanev 1975, Pl. XIX, 1). 8. Porodin – no scale (Grbić 1960, Pl. XLII, 1). 9. Vrbjanska Čuka – w. 14.2 cm (Temelkoski and Mitkoski 2005, Pl. XIII, 1). 10. Vrbjanska Čuka – w. 20.0 cm (Temelkoski and Mitkoski 2005, Pl. XIII, 4). 11. Optičari – w. 4.7 cm (Simoska and Kuzman 1990, fig. 4a). 12. Optičari – w. 6.4 cm (Simoska and Kuzman 1990, fig. 3). Plate IV. White painted vessels from Pelagonia: 1. Veluška Tumba – w. 14.1 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Bitola). 2. Veluška Tumba– w. 16.1 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Bitola). 3. Veluška Tumba – w. 14 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Bitola). 4. Porodin – no scale (Grbić 1960, Pl. XIII, 1). 5. Veluška Tumba – w. 9.9 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Bitola). 6. Vrbjanska Čuka – h. 8.5 cm (drawing by A. Mitkoski, courtesy of The Museum of Prilep). 7. Veluška Tumba – w. 33.1 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Bitola). 8. Veluška Tumba – w. 47.4 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Bitola). 9. Veluška Tumba – w. 14.4 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of The Museum of Bitola). Plate V. White painted pottery from Govrlevo (Photos by author, courtesy of The Museum of Skopje; scale indicated). Plate VI. Rectilinear dark painted pottery from Govrlevo (Photos by author, courtesy of The Museum of Skopje; scale indicated). 138

Plate VII. Curved dark painted pottery from Govrlevo (Photos by author, courtesy of The Museum of Skopje; scale indicated). Plate VIII. Rectilinear and curved dark painted pottery from Madjari (Photos by author, courtesy of The Museum of Macedonia; scale indicated). Plate IX. White and dark painted pottery from Zelenikovo: 2 - 8 (Photos by author, courtesy of The Museum of Skopje) 1. w. – 4.5 cm (Galović 1964, T. 12: 2). 2. w. – 8.6 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 3. w. – 4.3 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 4. w. – 8.4 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 5. w. – 4.4 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 6. w. – 5.1 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 7. w. – 3.6 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 8. w. – 4.2 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 9. w. – 7.0 cm (Galović 1964, T. 12: 4). Plate X. Curved dark painted pottery from Zelenikovo (Photos by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 1. w. – 5.0 cm 2. w. – 7.6 cm 3. w. – 5.7 cm 4. w. – 4.3 cm 5. w. – 10.3 cm 6. w. – 6.2 cm 7. w. – 4.8 cm 8. w. – 5.3 cm 9. w. – 4.7 cm Plate XI. Clay stamps from the Republic of Macedonia (Photos by author, Courtesy of Museum of Bitola and Museum of Macedonia, scale indicated): 1. Porodin. 2. Mala Tumba – Trn. 3. Mala Tumba – Trn. 4. Porodin. 5. Golema Tumba – Trn. 6. Porodin. 7. Unknown site. 8. Tumba Bara. 9. Ustie na Drim. 10. Veluška Tumba. 11. Veluška Tumba. Plate XII. Clay stamps from the Republic of Macedonia (scale indicated): 1. Zelenikovo (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 2. Zelenikovo (Photo by Tutkovski M., courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 3. Madjari (Photo by Tutkovski M. courtesy of Museum of Macedonia ). 4. Gorobinci (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Štip). 5. Govrlevo (Photo by Tutkovski M., courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 6. Govrlevo (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 7. Stenče (Photo by Tutkovski M., courtesy of Museum of Macedonia). 8. Gjumušica (Photo by Mitkoski A., courtesy of Museum of Prilep). 9. Unknown site (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Macedonia ). Plate XIII. Neolithic stamps from Greece: 1. Nea Nikomedeia – w. 2.7 cm (Budja 2003, fig. 6). 2. Sesklo – w. 2.1 cm (Makkay 1984, fig. XII. 12). 3. Nea Nikomedeia – w. 3 cm. (Makkay 1984, fig. X. 1). 4. Sesklo – w. 3.2 cm (Makkay 1984, fig. XIII. 8). 5. Nea Nikomedeia – w. 5.4 cm (Budja 2003, fig. 6). 139

6. Achilleion – w. 4.7 cm (Makkay 1984, Fig. XIII. 4). 7. Nea Nikomedeia – w. 5.8 (Makkay 1984, fig. X, 1). 8. Philia – w. 4.8 cm (Makkay 1984, Fig. III. 4). 9. Nea Nikomedeia – w. 4.0 cm (Budja 2003, fig. 6). 10. Pyrasos – w. 3.3 cm (Makkay 1984, Fig. III. 1). Plate XIV. Comparisons between stamp patterns from the Republic of Macedonia and Anatolia: 1. Porodin – w. 2.2 cm (Drawing by author). 2. Çatal Höyük – no scale (Budja 2003, fig.2). 3. Mala Tumba – Trn – w. 4.3 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Bitola). 4. Çatal Höyük – w. 1.8 cm (Türkcan on line). 5. Golema Tumba – Trn – w. 3.6 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Bitola). 6. Çatal Höyük – w. 5.6 cm (Mellart 1967, fig. 121). 7. Porodin – w. 2.2 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Bitola). 8. Bademağaci – w. 2.0 cm (after Özdoğan, M. and Başgelen, N. 1999, 152, fig. 39). 9. Madjari – no scale (Photo by Tutkovski M., courtesy of Museum of Macedonia). 10. Haçilar – no scale (Budja 2003, fig. 5). Plate XV. Similar patterns represented on different types of material culture: 1. Gorobinci – w. 3.7 cm (Photo by author, Courtesy of Museum of Štip). 2. Amzabegovo – w. 21.1 cm (Photo by author, Courtesy of Museum of Štip). 3. Veluška Tumba – w. 7.9 cm (Photo by author, Courtesy of Museum of Bitola). 4. Veluška Tumba – w. 14 cm (Photo by author, Courtesy of Museum of Bitola). 5. Mala Tumba – Trn – w. 4.3 cm (Photo by author, Courtesy of Museum of Bitola). 6 - 8. Madjari (Photos by author, Courtesy of Museum of Macedonia). 6. – no scale; 7. – h. 14.1 cm; 8. – 18.9 cm. 9. Govrlevo – w. 5.1 cm (Drawing by author). 10. Zelenikovo – no scale (Garašanin and Bilbija 1988, Pl. II). 11. Yannitsa – no scale (Merlini 2005, fig. 10). 12. Karanovo – no scale (Todorova and Vajsov 1993, fig. 208. 9). Plate XVI. Seals, wall paintings and reliefs from Çatal Höyük: 1. – w. 6.2 cm (Türkcan 2006, 48). 2. – 5. (Mellart 1967, Pls. 18, 33, 35, 121). 4. – w. 5.3 cm; others no scale 6. – no scale (Çatalhöyük 2006, 196) . 7. – h. 6.6 cm (Türkcan 2006, 47). 8. – w. 5.8 cm (Mellart 1967, 121). 9. – no scale (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 390.2). 10. – no scale (Budja 2003, fig. 2). Plate XVII. Comparisons between patterns on seals and figurines: 1. Stenče – w. 5.7 cm (Drawing by author). 2. Gorobinci – no scale (Drawing by author). 3. Balčik – no scale (Chausidis 2005, Pl. B11. 18). 4. Potporanj – no scale (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 18). 5. Ustie na Drim – h. 3.4 cm (Drawing by author). 6. Porodin – w. 2.2cm (Drawing by author). 7. Çatal Höyük – no scale (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 390.2). 8. Mala Tumba – Trn – w. 4.3 cm (Drawing by author). 9. Pazardjik – no scale (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 220). 10. Golema Tumba – Trn – w. 3.6 cm (Drawing by author). 11. Čaška – no scale (Jovčevska 1993, T. II:7). 12. Golema Tumba – Trn – h. 6.0 cm (Simoska and Sanev 1976, fig. 165). 13. Veluška Tumba – w. 3.9 cm (Drawing by author). 14. Yablona – no scale (Sorokin and Borziyak 1998, fig. 5.5). 15. Nudra – h. 8.7cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 148.1). Plate XVIII. Comparisons between patterns on Neolithic and ‘contemporary’ stamps: 1. Markovac (Kostič 1967, Pl. II. 1). 2. Prague – w. 4.5 cm (Makkay 1984, fig. XXIII. 2). 3. Ruse – w. 4.5 cm (Makkay 1984, fig. XXIII. 4). 140

4. Struga (Krstevska 2005, fig. 20). 5. Unknown site (Drawing by author). 6. Vevčani (Krstevska 2005, fig. 3). 7. Galičnik (Krstevska 2005, fig. 21). 8. Çatal Höyük – w. 4.1 cm (Budja 2003, fig. 2). 9. Volino (Krstevska 2005, fig. 16). 10. Szakály – w. 4.0 cm (Makkay 1984, fig. XV. 2). 11. Eutresis – w. 5.2 cm (Makkay 1984, fig. XIII. 3). 12. Markovac (Kostič 1967, Pl. II. 4). 13. Slatina - Sofia – w. 6.0 cm (Makkay 1984, fig. VIII. 8). 14. Slatina - Sofia – no scale (Baćvarov 2003, fig. 2. 26). 15. Lika (Kostič 1967, Pl. V. 4). 16. Ljubižda (Kostič 1967, Pl. V. 2). 17. Strmosten (Kostič 1967, Pl. V. 3). Plate XIX. Models of bread loaves: 1. Çatal Höyük – w. 8.0 cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 222. 3). 2. Potporanj – w. 8.8 cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 227). 3. Vinča – w. 14.2 cm (Vasič 1936, fig. 72a). 4. Nova Zagora – no scale (Kančeva 1992, Pl. VII. 5). 5. Nova Zagora – no scale (Kančeva 1992, Pl. VII. 2). 6. Kozar Belene – no scale (Chausidis 2005, Pl. B32. 6). 7. Bread from an unknown site in Macedonia (photo by D. Karasarlidis). Plate XX. Neolithic clay loaves from Govrlevo (Photos by author, scales indicated). Plate XXI. Paleolithic figurines: 1. Kostienki – h. 11.4 cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 216.2) . 2. Savignano– h. 22.9 cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 356.1). 3. Monpazier – h. 4.0 cm (Gimbutas 1989, 1 fig. 169.1). 4. Buret – no scale (Vasl’ev 2000, fig. 4.2). 5. Mal’ta – no scale (Vasl’ev 2000, fig. 4.7). 6. Mal’ta – no scale (Vasl’ev 2000, fig. 4.11). 7. Kostenki – no scale (Elinek 1985, fig. 591). 8. Mal’ta – no scale (Vasl’ev 2000, fig. 4.8). 9. Kostenki – no scale (Elinek 1985, fig. 591). Plate XXII. Neolithic figurines from the Republic of Macedonia: 1. Madjari – h. 6.8 cm (Sanev 2006, fig. 11) 2. Veluška Tumba – h. 7.0 cm (Kolištrkovska - Nasteva 2005, fig. 7). 3. Mačevo – h. 10.1 cm (Kolištrkovska - Nasteva 2005, fig. 17). 4. Gurgur Tumba – h. 5.5 cm (Kolištrkovska - Nasteva 2005, fig. 3). 5. Porodin – h. 12.4 cm (Kolištrkovska - Nasteva 2005, fig. 26). 6. Porodin – h. 7.0 cm (Kolištrkovska - Nasteva 2005, fig. 58). 7. Veluška Tumba – h. 6.0 cm (Kolištrkovska - Nasteva 2005, fig. 5). 8. Veluška Tumba – h. 6.0 cm (Sanev et al. 1976, fig. 202). 9. Vrbjanska Čuka – h. 4.2 cm (Kolištrkovska - Nasteva 2005, fig. 20). Plate XXIII. Neolithic figurines from the Balkans and Anatolia: 1. Çatal Höyük – no scale (Todorova and Vaisov 1993, Fig. 29: 6). 2. Çatal Höyük – no scale (Hurdman et al. 2003). 3. Çatal Höyük – no scale (Mellart 1967, Fig. 50). 4. Haçilar – h. 24 cm (Mellart 1970, fig. 202, h. 24 cm). 5. Haçilar – l. 11 cm (Mellart 1970, fig. 226, l. 11 cm). 6. Haçilar – h. 9.8 cm (Mellart 1970, fig. 211, h. 9.8 cm). 7. Achilleion – no scale (Gimbutas et al. 1989, Fig. 7.38). 8. Ierapetra – no scale (Vasilakis 2001, 77). 9. Achilleion – no scale (Gimbutas et al. 1989, Tab. 7.2: 1c). Plate XXIV. Engraved genitalia on figurines from the Republic of Macedonia: 1. Čaška – no scale (Jovčevska, 1993, Т. II: 7). 141

2. Madjari – no scale (Sanev 2006, fig. 8). 3. Golema Tumba - Trn – h. 6.0 cm (Simoska and Sanev 1976, fig. 165). 4. Senokos – h. 5.4 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 23) . 5. Angelci – h. 3.3 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 21). 6. Angelci – h. 7.8 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 70). 7. Mogila – h. 3.5 cm (Simoska and Sanev 1976, fig. 100). 8. Damjan – no scale (Sanev 1989b, fig. 3) . 9. Ali Čair – h. 5.5 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 24). Plate XXV. Engraved genitalia on figurines from Balkan Peninsula: 1. Stragari – h. 8.2 cm (Stanković 1996, T. 2: 2). 2. Karanovo – no scale (Todorova and Vaisov 1993, Pl. 63a). 3. Dunavec – h. 7.4 cm (Korkuti 1990, T. 48: 14). 4. Sitagroi – h. 4.7 cm (Gimbutas 1986, fig. 9.39). 5. Achilleion – no scale (Gimbutas et al. 1989, Tab. 7.2: 8). 6. Sitagroi – h. 2.9 cm (Gimbutas 1986, fig. 9.53). 7. Sitagroi – scale 1:2 in publication (Gimbutas 1986, fig. 9.7). 8. Kyriaki – h. 8.4 cm (Bailey 2005, fig. 7.9). 9. Samovodene – h. 7.0 cm (Vajsov 1998, fig. 1: 2a/b). Plate XXVI. Male figurines from the Balkans: 1. Nikuštak – h. 6.3 cm (Zdravkovski 1993, Т. IV, 2). 2. Lopate – no scale (Sanev 2006, , fig. 18). 3. Zelenikovo – h. 4.6 cm (Galović 1964, Т. 16: 3). 4. Pavlovac – h. 5.3 cm (Gimbutas1982, fig. 168). 5. Porodin – no scale (Grbić et al.1960, XXX, 5). 6. Vinča – scale 1:3 in publication (Müller – Karpe 1968, T. 144, 24). 7. Vulkaneşti – h. 15.0 cm (Gimbutas 1986, fig. 9.64). 8. Larisa – no scale (Bailey 2005, fig. 7.10). 9. Govrlevo – no scale (Sanev 2006, fig. 17). Plate XXVII. Figurines modelled with hands on the abdomen: 1. Baia Golovita – h. 13.4 cm (Bailey 2005, fig. 3.9a). 2. Baia Golovita – h. 15.8 cm (Bailey 2005, fig. 3.9b). 3. Aegina – h. 13.0 cm (Gimbutas 1982, fig. 142). 4. Trn – h. 4.7 cm (Simoska and Sanev 1976, fig. 169). 5. Achilleion – h. 3.8 cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 218). 6. Topolnica – no scale (Todorova and Vaisov 1993, Pl. 96b). 7. Dunavec – h. 10.1 cm (Korkuti 1990, T. 48: 1). 8. Achilleion – h. 3.8 cm (Gimbutas et al. 1989, fig. 7.34). 9. Žarkovo – h. 10.0 cm (Tasić 1973 , T. XLVII: 179). Plate XXVIII: Figurines modelled with hands on the breasts: 1. Haçilar – h. 11.7 cm (Mellart 1970, fig. 204). 2. Haçilar – h. 10.2 cm (Mellart 1970, fig. 207). 3. Haçilar – h. 14.0 cm (Mellart 1970, fig. 206). 4. Çatal Höyük – scale 1:3 in publication (Müller – Karpe 1968, T. 117, 4). 5. Achilleion – no scale (Gimbutas et al. 1989, fig. 7.2: 1a). 6. Nea Nikomedeia – no scale (Papaefthymiou – Papanthimou and Pilali – Papasteriu 1997, fig. 12). 7. Cernavoda – h. 16.1 cm (Bailey 2005, fig. 3.2). 8. Chaironea – scale 1:3 in publication (Müller – Karpe 1968, T. 131, 1). 9. Koufovouno – no scale (Talalay 1993, (Appendix E) NM 3928). Plate XXIX. Fragmented figurines from the Republic of Macedonia: 1. Čaška – h. 4.1 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 83). 2. Angelci – h. 9.5 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 76). 3. Manastir – h. 6.1 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 80). 4. Izvor– h. 7.4 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 18). 5. Čaška – h. 5.3 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 34). 142

6. Izvor – h. 3.2 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 22). 7. Amzabegovo – no scale (Sanev 2006, 176, fig. 6). 8. Porodin – no scale (Grbić et al. 1960, Pl. XXXI: 9). 9. Topolčani – h. 3.1 cm (Temelkoski and Mitkoski 2001, Т. III, 5). Plate XXX. Fragmented figurines from the Republic of Macedonia: 1. Amzabegovo – h. 5.2 cm (Gimbutas 1976, fig. 172). 2. Amzabegovo – h. 5.7 cm (Gimbutas 1976, fig. 178). 3. Amzabegovo – h. 7.8 cm (Gimbutas 1976, fig. 173). 4. Angelci – h. 4.4 cm (Sanev and Stamenova 1989, T. VII: 2). 5. Angelci – h. 3.3 cm (Sanev and Stamenova 1989, T. XI: 11). 6. Angelci – h. 3.8 cm (Sanev and Stamenova 1989, T. VII: 3). 7. Porodin – no scale (Grbić et al. 1960, Pl. XXXI: 7). 8. Čaška – no scale (Jovčevska, 1993, Т. II: 8). 9. Gorobinci – h. 5.2 cm (Sanev 1975, T. X: 3). Plate XXXI. Fragmented figurines from Greece: 1. Dimitra – h. 9.8 cm (Marangou 1997, Pl. 64: e). 2. Sitagroi – h. 8.3 cm (Gimbutas 1986, Fig. 9.21). 3. Dimitra – h. 6.9 cm (Marangou 1997, Pl. 67: c). 4. Achilleion – h. 6.0 cm (Gimbutas et al. 1989, Fig. 7.40: 1). 5. Achilleion – h. 4.6 cm (Gimbutas et al. 1989, Fig. 7.40: 2). 6. Sitagroi – h. 5.2 cm (Gimbutas 1986, Fig. 9.18). 7. Sitagroi – h. 4.3 cm (Gimbutas 1986, Fig. 9.15). Plate XXXII. Fragmented figurines from Bulgaria: 1. Slatina – no scale (Stančeva and Gavrilova 1961, fig. 2). 2. Slatina – h. 7.2 cm (Nikolov et al. 1991, fig. 4a). 3. Samovodene – h. 5.7 cm (Vajsov 1998, fig 1: 5b). 4. Ovčarovo – no scale (Todorova and Vaisov 1993, fig. 116). 5. Samovodene – h. 6.9 cm (Vajsov 1998, fig 1: 3a). 6. Samovodene – h. 12.3 cm (Vajsov 1998, fig 2: 7a). 7. Podgorica – h. 11.6 cm (Vajsov 1998, fig 9: 7a). 8. Slatina – h. 13.6 cm (Nikolov et al. 1991, fig. 3). Plate XXXIII. Neolithic and Eneolithic figurines without heads: 1. Rachmani – no scale (Bailey 2005, fig. 7.4). 2. Höyücek – h. 2.8/2.1 cm (Özdoğan and Başgelen 1999, fig. 24, 148). 3. Vinča – scale 1:3 in publication (Müller – Karpe 1968, T. 153: E). 4. Çatal Höyük – h. 6.5 cm (Meskell and Nakamura 2006, fig. 1). 5. Crnobuki – h. 15.0 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 78). 6. Liubcova – h. 13.3 cm (Schier 2006, fig. 8). 7. Vrbjani – h. 14.0 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 94). 8. Šuplevec – h. 9.5 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 37). 9. Šuplevec – h. 10.0 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 74). Plate XXXIV. Models of figurines - houses: 1. Madjari – h. 39.0 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 42). 2. Porodin – h. 25.5 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 43). 3. Govrlevo – h. 35.0 cm (Chausidis 1995, fig. 6). 4. Madjari – h. 31.5 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 44). 5. Mrševci – h. 15.7 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 48). 6. Suvodol – h. 16.0 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005,fig. 45). 7. Veluška Tumba – no scale (Vasileva 2005, 26). 8. Stenče – no scale (Zdravkovski 2005 fig. 10). 9. Dobromiri – no scale (Vasileva 2005, 27). Plate XXXV. Anthropomorphic vessels from South–East Europe: 1. Amzabegovo – h. 92.0 cm (Gimbutas 1976, fig. 209). 2. Vinća – h. 58.3 cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 88). 143

3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

Bekasmegyer – h. 37.4 cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 35). Gradešnica – no scale (Todorova and Vaisov 1993, pl. 446). Vinća – no scale (Garašanin 1982, fig 21). Szombately – h. 25.0 cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig.61). Vinća – no scale (Stalio 1977, fig. 69). Svodina – h. 25.6 cm (Pavuk 1981, fig. 24). Orlavat – h. 18.6 cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 83).

Plate XXXVI. Fragments of anthropomorphic vessels from the Republic of Macedonia: 1. Amzabegovo – w. 9.1 cm (Gimbutas 1976, fig. 191). 2. Zelenikovo – h. 5.0 cm (Galović 1964, pl. 17: 3). 3. Amzabegovo – w. 3.9 cm (Gimbutas 1976, fig. 160). 4. Angelci – no scale (Sanev and Stamenova 1989, pl. VI: 7). 5. Amzabegovo – w. 4.8 cm (Gimbutas 1976, fig. 194). 6. Angelci – no scale (Sanev and Stamenova 1989, pl. VI: 5). 7. Amzabegovo – w. 5.9 cm (Gimbutas 1976, figs. 189, 190). Plate XXXVII. Fragments of anthropomorphic vessels from the Republic of Macedonia: 1. Zelenikovo – w. 5.7 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 2. Govrlevo – w. 7.7 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 3. Govrlevo – w. 5.3 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 4. Porodin – h. 6.7 cm (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 5. Govrlevo – no scale (Photo by author, courtesy of Museum of Skopje). 6. Šuplevec – h. 12.0 cm (Garašanin et al. 1971, 173a). Plate XXXVIII. Anthropomorphic vessels from South–East Europe: 1. Vršnik – h. 7.5 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 27). 2. Drenovac – no scale (Stalio 1977, fig. 203). 3. Donja Branjevina – no scale (Karmanski 2005, Pl. II: 1). 4. Gorzsa – scale 1:3 in publication (Müller – Karpe 1968, Pl. 186: 1). 5. Rakitovo – no scale (Radunćeva et al. 2002, Pl. 41: 3). 6. Svodina – h. 10.2 cm (Pavuk 1981, fig. 24). 7. Erfurt – scale 1:3 in publication (Müller – Karpe 1968, pl. 223: 13). 8. Kökénydomb – h. 21.0 cm (Müller – Karpe 1968, Pl. 186: 13). 9. Kökénydomb – h. 21.4 cm (Whittle 1996, fig. 4. 16). Plate XXXIX. Anthropomorphic vessels from later prehistoric periods: 1. Haçilar – h. 22.9 cm (Mellart 1970, fig. 249.1). 2. Haçilar – h. 31.8 cm (Mellart 1970, fig. 249.2). 3. Troy – no scale (Hoernes 1925, fig. 7, , 361). 4. Sultana – h. 32.3 cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 327). 5. Vidra – scale 1:3 in publication (Müller – Karpe 1968, Pl. 177: 11). 6. Manastir – h. 20.7 cm (Kolištrkovska – Nasteva 2005, fig. 81). 7. Karataş – Semayük – no scale (Şengül 2006, fig. 61). 8. Afyon – Bavurdu – no scale (Şengül 2006, fig. 44). 9. Marz – no scale (Hoernes 1925, fig. 1, 483). Plate XL. Prehistoric urns from Europe: 1. Center – h. 48.4 cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 291). 2. Lemnos – h. 24.3 cm (Gimbutas1989, fig. 292: 1). 3. Troy – h. 23.1 cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 292: 2). 4. Friedensau – no scale (Hoernes 1925, fig. 8). 5. Pomerania – h. 28.0 cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 383: 2). 6. Sampohl – no scale (Hoernes 1925, fig. 7). 7. Hoch – Redlau – no scale (Hoernes 1925, fig. 3). 8. Hoch – Redlau – no scale (Hoernes 1925, fig. 6). 9. Chiuisi – no scale (Janson 1975, fig. 189). Plate XLI. Anthropomorphic vessels related to models of figurine – house: 1. Čavdar – no scale (Todorova and Vaisov1993, Pl. 29). 144

2. Kazanlak – no scale (Todorova and Vaisov 1993, fig. 204). 3. Radajce – h. 23.2 cm (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 62). 4. Butmir – no scale (Hoernes 1925, 281). 5. Rakitovo – no scale (Radunćeva et al., 2002, fig. 8). 6. Rakitovo – no scale (Radunćeva et al., 2002, fig. 28: 7). 7. Kurilo – no scale (Todorova 2003, fig. 10a). 8. Zelenikovo – scale 1:2 in publication (Garašanin 1979, Pl. XXXVII: 7). 9. Zelenikovo – scale 1:4 in publication (Garašanin 1979, Pl. XXXVII: 8). Plate XLII. Neolithic vessels with remains of buried individuals: 1. Amzabegovo – h. 26.5 cm (Sanev et al. 1976, fig. 42). 2. Amzabegovo (same one in different position), (Gimbutas 1976, fig. 242). 3. Rakitovo – h. 34.2 cm (Bačvarov 2004, fig. 1.1). 4. Plateia Magoula Zarkou – no scale (Bačvarov 2004, fig. 4: 1). 5. Tell Hazna – w. 39.0 cm(Baćvarov 2003, fig. 4.7). 6. Tell soto/Tell Hazna? – scale on the original illustration (Bačvarov 2004, fig. 3). Plate XLIII. Models of anthropomorphic ovens: 1. Curmatura – no scale (Gimbutas 1989, fig. 233). 2. Medvednjak – w. 10.0 cm (Petrović 2001, fig. 3). 3. Progar (Petrović 2001, fig. 1a). 3a. Progar (Petrović 2001, fig. 1b). 4. Vinča – no scale (Vasić 1936, T. I: 1c). 4a. Vinča – no scale (Vasić 1936, T. I: 1a).

145