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Kinship. (A) Artistic reconstruction of the Koszyce mass burial based partly on phenotypic traits inferred from the ancient genomes (reconstruction by Michał Podsiadło); (B) Schematic representation of the burial and pedigree plots showing kinship relations between the Koszyce individuals inferred from genetic data. (C) kinship network based on kinship coefficients inferred from IBS scores for pairs of Koszyce individuals showing first-and second-degree relationships. Kinship coefficients and R scores are reported in Dataset S7 and plotted in SI Appendix, Fig. S9.
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The third millennium BCE was a period of major cultural and demographic changes in Europe that signaled the beginning of the Bronze Age. People from the Pontic steppe expanded westward, leading to the formation of the Corded Ware complex and transforming the genetic landscape of Europe. At the time, the Globular Amphora culture (3300–2700 BCE) exis...
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... of genome-wide patterns of allelic identityby-state (IBS), we computed kinship coefficients between all pairs of individuals and applied established cutoff values for possible kinship categories (Materials and Methods). We find that the Koszyce burial represents a large extended family connected via several first-and second-degree relationships ( Fig. 3 and SI Appendix, Fig. S9). Overall, we identified four nuclear families in the grave, which are for the most part represented by mothers and their children (Fig. 3). Closely related kin were buried next to each other: a mother was buried cradling her child, and siblings were placed side by side. Evidently, these individuals were buried ...
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... for possible kinship categories (Materials and Methods). We find that the Koszyce burial represents a large extended family connected via several first-and second-degree relationships ( Fig. 3 and SI Appendix, Fig. S9). Overall, we identified four nuclear families in the grave, which are for the most part represented by mothers and their children (Fig. 3). Closely related kin were buried next to each other: a mother was buried cradling her child, and siblings were placed side by side. Evidently, these individuals were buried by people who knew them well and who carefully placed them in the grave according to familial relationships. For example, individual 14, the oldest individual in ...
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... with OxCal v. 4.3 (27) using the calibration curve IntCal13 (28) and are reported as calibrated ages BC (Dataset S1). Stable isotopes δ 13 C and δ 15 N were measured using a continuous-flow IsoPrime IRMS coupled to an Elementar PyroCube elemental analyser. The results indicate that the Koszyce individuals largely relied on a terrestrial diet (Fig. S3). Therefore, no reservoir correction was ...
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The diversity of Central Asians has been shaped by multiple migrations and cultural diffusion. Although ancient DNA studies have revealed the demographic changes of the Central Asian since the Bronze Age, the contribution of the ancient populations to the modern Central Asian remains opaque. Herein, we performed high-coverage sequencing of 131 whol...
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... Two developments seem to me central for this shift. One is the emergence, especially over the last few years, of effective and extensive aDNA analyses (Kristiansen 2022;Whittle et al. 2023, with many key references to the prolific primary literature), operating now not only at a population level but also helping to trace relationships and descent in individual contexts, such as at the Hazleton North long cairn in the first half of the 37th century cal BC , or in the Globular Amphora mass grave at Koszyce in southeast Poland in the 29th or 28th centuries cal BC (Schroeder et al. 2019). Ancient DNA analyses can be complemented now by a host of other scientific analyses. ...
... Additionally, attempts to use 14 C dates to establish their synchronicity are limited by the precision of the technique, including issues with measurement errors, calibration curves, and statistical tools. This challenge also pertains to the 14 C dates of prehistoric mass graves in Spain (Alt et al 2020;Fernández-Crespo et al 2018), Germany (Meyer et al 2015) and Poland (Schroeder et al 2019) as their probability distributions did not reflect simultaneous interments due to the aforementioned issues. Indeed, the distributions of the 17 14 C dates of La Beleña in fact reveal more restricted ranges than those of the mass graves. ...
This study aims to determine the chronological sequence of the collective burials in the hypogea of the prehistoric cemetery of La Beleña (Cabra, Córdoba) through Bayesian analyses of 14 C dates obtained from human remains. The data from this site are not only key to grasping the phenomenon of the introduction and spread of hypogea throughout the western Mediterranean, but to gain insight into multi-stage funerary practices during the Late Neolithic/Chalcolithic. The dataset comprises 14 C dates of 71 of the 79 individuals placed in five of La Beleña's six hypogea. The findings suggest: (i) La Beleña is one of the oldest assemblages of hypogea in Iberia, (ii) that this type of collective burial spread rapidly throughout the western Mediterranean area, (iii) that La Beleña is marked by two main phases of funerary activity interspersed by brief burial surges, (iv) funerary intensity at La Beleña increased between cal BC 3400-2900 (2σ), and (v) the cemetery saw a very brief surge of burials potentially related to a catastrophic event. The results of this analysis thus shed light on the little-known chronological sequence of prehistoric hypogea or rock-cut tombs in Iberia, their spread, and their relation to other Late Neolithic collective burials in western Europe.
... Besides these large scale accounts, there are also studies of individual biographies of violence or the so-called mass finds with traumata (e.g. Sparacello et al. 2023;Schroeder et al. 2019;Furholt et al. 2023). Moreover, in order to get a clearer picture on how and what kind of violence was performed in different periods (feud, war, ritual), non-anthropological parameters such as the frequency of fortifications or weaponry, are increasingly being taken into account (Kneisel et al. 2024). ...
In a study on the occurrence of trauma in prehistoric graves in Central Europe, evidence of violence over a period of more than 6000 years is presented diachronically for the first time. Ups and downs in the trauma sequence are recognisable in over 23,000 graves. Comparing it to our proxies for social organization of prehistoric societies, an inverse relationship appears: the higher the levels of social inequality are the lower are the signals of violence. We interpret this as an expression of a a monopolisation of violence through political power. In addition to fluctuations in the intensity of violence, the long-term trend indicates an overall reduction in violence at least until the early modern period.
... Kinship is the most primitive, universal and primary social group in ancient Chinese and Western societies and it occupies an important position in human social life that has been essential in history, archaeology and anthropology (Case et al., 2017;Grumbkow et al., 2013;Itao & Kaneko, 2020;Jie, 2001;Kuan Chong, 2005;Opie et al., 2014;Schroeder et al., 2019). Kinship research is fundamental because of the profound influence of kinship organizations on social life in Chinese history (Gao, 2004). ...
Kinship plays a role at the grassroots of social organization , especially in the Shang and Zhou dynasties, which is an important research topic in China. However , the relationship between diet and the social status of kinship and kinship members has been little explored in previous studies. In this article, 52 skeletal bone col-lagen samples from humans and buried dogs from three different kinships in the Xisima cemetery in China were analysed by stable C and N isotope analysis to reveal dietary strategies, and thus explore subsistence patterns and social structure. Overall, the mean human δ 13 C was À8.4‰ ± 1.3‰ (n = 44), with a range of À10.0‰ to À7.4‰, and the mean δ 15 N was 9.0‰ ± 0.7‰ (n = 44), with a wide range of 7.9-11.1‰, which shows that C 4 food dominates people's diet, and that their diet was varied. There are differences in diet and rank among different kinships. Similar situations exist among kinship members based on platforms. Along with previous research, this study provides unprecedented dietary details of different social stratification from martyrs, common people and small nobles to high-ranking nobles in order to better understand the hierarchical Shang and Zhou dynasties society based on kinship. K E Y W O R D S bone collagen, diet, social status, stable isotopes
... During admixture events between different communities or different geographic populations, males and females often undergo distinct demographic trajectories, due to several factors including population movement, social kinship, and family structure (Seielstad et al., 1998;Oota et al., 2001;Wilkins and Marlowe, 2006;Heyer et al., 2012;Rasteiro and Chikhi, 2013;Saag et al., 2017;Jeong et al., 2020;Korunes et al., 2022). Genetic and ethnographic studies consistently indicate a higher prevalence of patrilocality in farming communities compared with hunter-gatherer populations (Marlowe, 2004;Schroeder et al., 2019;Cassidy et al., 2020). The field of ancient genomics has experienced a surge in data, particularly from Europe (Marciniak and Perry, 2017;, uncovering recurrent and extensive human migrations and replacements that characterize the history of Europe over the past several millennia (Haak et al., 2015;Mathieson et al., 2015;Cassidy et al., 2016). ...
Agriculture was arguably the most profound innovation in human history, and while it eventually spread throughout the planet its specific origins and dispersals are unique across different regions. It is therefore important to take into account diverse geographic and cultural contexts when trying to understand independent transitions to farming in different regions. In recent years, there has been a significant increase in sequencing ancient human genomes, enabling more regionally specific questions to be asked regarding the genetic impact of the local adoption of agriculture. One particularly informative approach is to explore the imbalance of genetic admixture from male versus female sources, which offers valuable insights into the social structures and cultural interactions of prehistoric populations. Here, we utilize publicly available data of ancient genomes from northern China, an area that is well known for one of the earliest centres for agricultural revolution, to look at potential sex biases in genetic admixture from different time periods based on autosomal and sex-specifically inherited X chromosomal variation. Our analysis identifies a higher influx of males from the Yellow River basin to the West Liao River basin during the Late Neolithic period associated with an increase in the reliance on millet farming in this region. This result underscores a distinction in farming transitions in northern China, particularly when compared to agricultural transitions in Europe, where there is no evidence of sex-biased admixture.
... Initially we tested five different approaches to reconstruct kinship based on ancient DNA data (KING 49 , ngsRelate 50,51 , READ 52 , KIN 53 and the relationship inference algorithm based on pairwise identity-by-state sharing presented in ref. 54). We found that all five approaches produced very similar results, but in some edge cases we observed that ngsRelate outperformed the four other approaches. ...
In the period between 5,300 and 4,900 calibrated years before present (cal. bp), populations across large parts of Europe underwent a period of demographic decline1,2. However, the cause of this so-called Neolithic decline is still debated. Some argue for an agricultural crisis resulting in the decline³, others for the spread of an early form of plague⁴. Here we use population-scale ancient genomics to infer ancestry, social structure and pathogen infection in 108 Scandinavian Neolithic individuals from eight megalithic graves and a stone cist. We find that the Neolithic plague was widespread, detected in at least 17% of the sampled population and across large geographical distances. We demonstrate that the disease spread within the Neolithic community in three distinct infection events within a period of around 120 years. Variant graph-based pan-genomics shows that the Neolithic plague genomes retained ancestral genomic variation present in Yersinia pseudotuberculosis, including virulence factors associated with disease outcomes. In addition, we reconstruct four multigeneration pedigrees, the largest of which consists of 38 individuals spanning six generations, showing a patrilineal social organization. Lastly, we document direct genomic evidence for Neolithic female exogamy in a woman buried in a different megalithic tomb than her brothers. Taken together, our findings provide a detailed reconstruction of plague spread within a large patrilineal kinship group and identify multiple plague infections in a population dated to the beginning of the Neolithic decline.
... At the Koszyce site, 15 men, women, and children from the Globular Amphora culture were killed by head blows. Schroeder et al. (2019) reconstructed the genealogy, revealing that these individuals belonged to a large extended family that was carefully buried after the conflict. Fowler North individuals, providing a high-resolution view of kinship practices among early Neolithic individuals in chambered tombs 5700 years ago. ...
Genetic genealogy provides crucial insights into the complex biological relationships within contemporary and ancient human populations by analyzing shared alleles and chromosomal segments that are identical by descent to understand kinship, migration patterns, and population dynamics. Within forensic science, forensic investigative genetic genealogy (FIGG) has gained prominence by leveraging next-generation sequencing technologies and population-specific genomic resources, opening new investigative avenues. This review synthesizes current knowledge, underscores recent advancements, and discusses the burgeoning role of the FIGG in forensic genomics. FIGG has been pivotal in revitalizing dormant inquiries and offering new genetic leads in numerous cold cases. Its effectiveness relies on the extensive SNP profiles contributed by individuals from diverse populations to specialized genomic databases. Advances in computational genomics and the growth of human genomic databases have spurred a profound shift in the application of genetic genealogy across forensics, anthropology, and ancient DNA studies. As the field progresses, the FIGG is evolving from a nascent practice into a more sophisticated and specialized discipline, shaping the future of forensic investigations.
... They were related to various levels of control and abuse preserved in archaeological records, such as military architecture and graves with human remains bearing signs of hostilities. A prominent example of intergroup violence is the mass grave of people associated with the Globular Amphora culture from ca. 3,000 BCE in Koszyce, Poland (Schroeder et al., 2019). In these cases, members of local communities were killed by better-organized attackers aiming to eliminate the whole society. ...
... Considering paleogenomic approaches, only a handful of studies have included analysis beyond population structure and modeling. Relatedness has been mostly estimated as an approach to remove closely related individuals from downstream analysis (e.g., Capodiferro et al., 2021;Fernandes et al., 2021;Ferraz et al., 2023;Nakatsuka, Luisi, et al., 2020;Salazar et al., 2023;Villa-Islas et al., 2023) and not necessarily as a way to learn about the biological relationships within an archaeological site (e.g., Blöcher et al., 2023;Schroeder et al., 2019). This is partly due to the research questions and sampling strategies, usually aiming to have a wider geographical and temporal representation. ...
Ancient DNA analysis has greatly contributed to understanding the population history of several species. In the last 20 years, the field has undergone an important transformation: particularly in our species, thousands of ancient genomes have been analyzed worldwide, providing evidence of population movements and interactions through time. However, several researchers have raised concerns about the way the field is developing and how collaborations are being established. In this work, we describe and evaluate the situation in Latin America, considering both what we have learned about population history through paleogenetics and how it has developed in the region.
... Consistent with the hypothesis of a rapid spread of patrilocality after the Neolithic transition, ancient DNA studies show that male relatedness is often higher than female relatedness within archaeological sites from the Neolithic and the Bronze Age (mostly from Europe). In particular, males tend to share more often the same haplogroup of the Y chromosome, whereas there is a greater diversity of haplogroups for mtDNA [67][68][69][70][71][72][73][74][75][76][77] . In addition, reconstructed pedigrees show more first and second-degree related males than females 67,69,70,72,[74][75][76][77] . ...
... In particular, males tend to share more often the same haplogroup of the Y chromosome, whereas there is a greater diversity of haplogroups for mtDNA [67][68][69][70][71][72][73][74][75][76][77] . In addition, reconstructed pedigrees show more first and second-degree related males than females 67,69,70,72,[74][75][76][77] . These observations have been interpreted as the result of patrilocal residence (with varying degrees of compliance with the rule), with males more likely to remain in their birthplace and females more likely to migrate between sites. ...
... This result is consistent with previous studies indicating that polygyny alone is expected to have a reduced effect on genetic diversity 22,87 , and would probably not be sufficient on its own to account for the male effective population size bottleneck reported by Karmin et al. 1 . In addition, kinship analyses based on ancient DNA data from the Neolithic and Bronze Age (mostly Europe) showed low frequency of half-brothers and half-sisters [67][68][69][70][71][73][74][75][76][77] , with the exception of Hazleton North long cairn 72 . This latter case has been interpreted as evidence for polygyny or serial monogamy. ...
Studies have found a pronounced decline in male effective population sizes worldwide around 3000–5000 years ago. This bottleneck was not observed for female effective population sizes, which continued to increase over time. Until now, this remarkable genetic pattern was interpreted as the result of an ancient structuring of human populations into patrilineal groups (gathering closely related males) violently competing with each other. In this scenario, violence is responsible for the repeated extinctions of patrilineal groups, leading to a significant reduction in male effective population size. Here, we propose an alternative hypothesis by modelling a segmentary patrilineal system based on anthropological literature. We show that variance in reproductive success between patrilineal groups, combined with lineal fission (i.e., the splitting of a group into two new groups of patrilineally related individuals), can lead to a substantial reduction in the male effective population size without resorting to the violence hypothesis. Thus, a peaceful explanation involving ancient changes in social structures, linked to global changes in subsistence systems, may be sufficient to explain the reported decline in Y-chromosome diversity.