Leiden University Student Repository

Heusden, Bram van 2022

Mapping the Merovingian mortuary landscape: A GIS-based analysis of the locations of Merovingian cemeteries in the landscape of Northern Gaul

Bachelor thesis | Archeologie (BA)

open access

In this research the location of Merovingian cemeteries in the landscape of Northern Gaul is studied using GIS. While Merovingian cemeteries have been studied for over a century, most studies have...Show moreIn this research the location of Merovingian cemeteries in the landscape of Northern Gaul is studied using GIS. While Merovingian cemeteries have been studied for over a century, most studies have focused on the grave goods found in the graves, while little research has been done on the location of the cemeteries. The locations of cemeteries are often explained by very rational or economic reasonings, which state that cemeteries were located on land that was unsuitable for agriculture. However, the locations of cemeteries were likely the result of deliberate choices. The grave goods in graves and other parts of the burial ritual indicate the importance of the ritual, and the burial location will have been just as important as the other parts of the ritual, if not even more important. In this thesis, the locations of 190 Merovingian cemeteries are analysed in Geographical Information Systems (GIS), using three different variables: slope, aspect and (relative) elevation. The comparison of these variables for each cemetery gives a general idea of the location characteristics of Merovingian cemeteries. By using accurately dated cemeteries for the analyses, it is also possible to see changes in the location characteristics through time and between different parts of the Merovingian period. The results of the analyses are in line with earlier research on the locations of Merovingian cemeteries. They show that Merovingian cemeteries are generally located on gentle slopes, with no clear preference for a certain direction. However, the cemeteries that are located on steeper slopes, are more often found on south-facing slopes. Furthermore, most cemeteries are found at medium elevations, neither at the highest, nor at the lowest elevations in their surroundings. Through time, lower elevations seem to have become more suitable for cemeteries, as a larger proportion of the cemeteries is located at low elevations during the later periods. The research presented in this thesis shows the potential of using GIS-based methods to analyse the location of Merovingian cemeteries. The results are coherent with the findings from earlier studies, while also showing indications for the changes that took place during the Merovingian Period. All in all, this study can form a starting point for further GIS-based analyses of Merovingian cemetery locations, which could be improved by including more cemetery sites, and incorporating many more additional variables into the analyses.Show less