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The Cucuteni-Trypillian culture, also known as Cucuteni culture (Romanian), Trypillian culture (from Ukrainian) or Tripolie culture (from Russian), is a late Neolithic archaeological culture that flourished between ca. 5500 BC and 2750 BC in the Dniester-Dnieper region of modern-day Romania, Moldova, and Ukraine.
[edit] NomenclatureThe culture was initially named after Cucuteni, Iaşi county, Romania, where the first objects associated with this culture were discovered. In 1884, Archaeologist Vicenty Khvoika uncovered the first of close to one hundred Trypillian settlements, and excavations started in 1909.[1] In 1897, similar objects were excavated in Trypillia (Ukrainian: Трипiлля; Russian: Триполье, Tripolye), Kiev Governorate, Ukraine. As a result, the culture has been known in Soviet, Russian, and Ukrainian publications as Tripolie, Tripolian or Trypillian culture. A compromise currently exist in the English name: Cucuteni-Trypillia. [edit] Extent
As of 2003, about 2000 sites of Cucuteni-Trypillian culture have been identified in Romania, Ukraine, and Moldova. J.P. Mallory reports that the
It was centered on the middle to upper Dniester River (in the present-day Republic of Moldova) with an extension in the northeast to as far as the Dnieper. [edit] Largest cities
[edit] PeriodizationThe creators of the culture were tribes who stretched from the Balkans and Danube basin and Carpathians encompasing territories in contemporary Romania, Moldova and Ukraine. Scholars categorize the culture into 3 periods
[edit] Early periodin the second half of the 6th millennium B.C. and in the first half of the 5th millenium the tribes settled in the basin of the Dnieper and Buh rivers. The settlements were located close to rivers, however a number of settlements have been discovered on the plateaus. Dwellings were made in the ground or half dug into the ground. The floors and fireplaces were made of clay, walls made of wood or reeds covered in clay. Roofing was made of straw or reeds. The inhabitants were involved with animal husbandry and agriculture, fishing and gathering. Wheat, Rye and peas were grown. Tools included ploughs made of antlers, stone, bone and sharpened sticks. The harvest was collected with scythes made of flint inlaid blades. The grain was milled by stone wheels. Women were involved in pottery, clothing and played a leading role in community life. Men hunted, looked out for the cattle, made tools from flint, bone and stone. Cattle were important and pigs, sheep and goats took a secondary place. The horse was domesticated. Female statues and amulets were made of clay. Rarely one comes across copper items, primarily bracelets, rings and hooks. One settlement in Korbuni, Moldova had a large number of copper items, primarily jewelry which were dated back to the beginning of the 5th millennium BC. [edit] Middle period
In the middle era the Trypillian culturespead over a wide area from Eastern Transylvania in the West to the Dniper river in he East. The population settled on the banks of the Upper and Middle Right bank of the Dniper river. The population grew consderably and they lived on plateaus near major rivers and prings. Their dwellings were built on poles in the form of circles or ovals. Dwellings were built on logs floors covered in clay. Walls were woven from wood covered in clay and a clay stove was situated in the centre of the dwelling. With the growth in population, the area of agriculture also grew. Animal husbandry was popular, however hunting also continued. Tools made of flint, rock and bones were used for cultivation. Axes made of copper have been discovered mined in Volyn and in the areas around the Dniper river. Pottery making was sophisticated. Characteristics were a mono-chromal spiral ornament, painted with black paint on yellow and red base. Pottery was made by hand. Large pear-shaped pottery for the saving of grain, plates etc. Statues of female figures, figures of animals and models of houses have also been found. it is thought that the tribes were matrilineal. [edit] Late periodThe late period the territory expanded to include Volyn to the river Sluch and Horyn' and both banks of the Dnieper river near Kyiv. In the area near the Black sea the inhabitants communicated with other cultures. Animal husbandry became more important. Horses became more important. The community transformed into a patriarchial structure. Communities were established on the Don and Volga rivers. Habitats were build differently, spiral ornaments disappear from pottery with a new rope-like ornament becoming popular. Different forms of ritual burial were developed in holes with elaborate burial rituals. The fate of these tribes is tied in with the introduction of Bronze Age items. [edit] Features
The largest collection of artifacts from the Cucuteni-Trypillia culture can be found in museums in Russia, Ukraine, and Romania, including the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg and the Museum of History & Archaeology in Piatra Neamţ. 
The Cucuteni-Trypillia culture has been called the first urban culture in Europe. The Cucuteni-Trypillia settlements were usually located on a plateau, fortified with earthworks and ditches. The earliest villages consisted of ten to fifteen households. In their heyday, settlements expanded to include several hundred large adobe huts, sometimes with two stories. These houses were typically warmed by an oven and had round windows. The huts had furnaces used to create pottery, which the Cucuteni-Trypillians are most known for. Agriculture is attested to, as well as livestock-raising, mainly consisting of cattle, but goats/sheep and swine are also evidenced. Wild game is a regular part of the faunal remains. The pottery is connected to the Linear Pottery culture. Copper was extensively imported from the Balkans. Extant figurines excavated at the Cucuteni sites are thought to represent religious artefacts, but their meaning or uses is still unknown. As time progressed the Cucuteni-Trypillians began creating better weapons using stronger metals, and the effort put into pottery became less noticeable. The Cucuteni-Trypillians noticeably began fortifying their cities, where there was once no need for fortification or weapons. The sudden disappearance of many Cucuteni-Trypillian villages lead archaeologists to believe they were conquered and assimilated into another culture. [edit] Notes
[edit] BibliographyGerman
Russian
Romanian
Ukrainian
English
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
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