Demembration in the Burial Rite of the Bronze Age in the Northern Black Sea and Eastern Azov Sea Regions: a Review of Recent Publications

Abstract. The review considers 6 publications of 10 recent years in which the element of the burial rite of Bronze Age cultures of this region – the ritual dismemberment or demembration of dead was analyzed. The articles raised the question of the role of demembration in cultures of the Bronze Age steppe and forest-steppe zones of Eastern Europe, its prevalence, classification of demembrations, their characteristics in different cultures. Six attempts were made at social and religious interpretations of different variants of this ritual in cultures of the Bronze Age. The articles of S.D. Lysenko and R.A. Litvinenko seem the most essential for methods used.

Keywords: demembration, burial rite, Bronze Age, social interpretations, the catacomb culture, pit culture, Komarov culture, Babyno cultural circus.