Identification of bird representations in prehistory

Abstract

Figures of birds and bird heads are frequently represented in the Bronze and Iron Age in Europe. Birds are usually represented as amulets, vases and parts of vases, parts of complex objects or compositions and are among the most wide spread symbols that are connected with cult, magic and mythology of that time. There has been much discussion on this topic up to now. There are many assumptions concerning the role of different bird representations in the spiritual life of man of that period, which are still not firmly based. Our goal, in the study of this topic, is not to talk about these assumptions, more or less acceptable, but to pay more attention to the creation of bird figures and heads and to conclude to what extent it is possible to identify ornithological, among these numerous representations, individual birds, characteristics of their morphology and way of life. Namely, if the premise is correct, that the users of these ornithomorphic objects as well as their craftsmen, were able to differentiate bird types, morphologically and bionomically, or more correctly taxonomic groups of bird types (families, subfamilies, tribes genuses), to the extent to which these differences are expressed lexicological (nomenclatorilly), in the majority of classical languages then the attempt to make a further step towards the ornithological identification of motifs of these objects can be considered possible. In cases when it seems that the details on an object and their combination can be used for a more convincing identification, we take the freedom to speculate about the cultural-economic value of the recognized birds. Here we deal with three examples of bird representations from the Bronze and Iron Age of the Central Balkans. These are: the Dupljaja Cart, the Posamenterie Fibula from Dobrinci and the Bronze Cart from Glasinac, with the help of which we will try to demonstrate this new type of collaboration between archaeology and ornithology. We hope that this new approach will show all its usefulness in the future. Sometimes, a view "from another angle", on some archaeological problems may provide valuable results, not only in identification of bird representations, but also as a means of understanding the wider cultural or social-economic significance of the prehistoric period in question.