Life Course Practices in Bronze Age Landscapes of East Central Sweden: Beyond Divine Chiefs and Neodiffusionism

Abstract

This paper treats the ritual traditions and practices connected with burials in Bronze Age cairns and stone-settings in the province of Södermanland in east central Sweden. The author discusses how the social and ritual roles of the individuals buried in cairns can be intertwined with the characteristics ofthe landscape contexts where caims have been placed. Particular attention is given to the meaning ofa special combination of artefacts —a razor, a pair of tweezers, a double-stud and a knife blade —found in Bronze Age burial contexts. The author suggests that the razor and the other ritual equipment may have been used in connection with life course rituals.