Seeking the meaning of a unique mountain site through a multidisciplinary approach. The Late La Tene site at Sklarske Valley, Sumava Mountains, Czech Republic

This paper deals with an attempt to understand the meaning of a unique, small and isolated La Tène mountain site, discovered by chance in the forested part of the Šumava National Park, Šumava Mts., Czech Republic, using available archaeological and environmental methods. The activities of a person/small group of people took place repeatedly in an area ca. 20 × 20 m on a small platform above a distinct river meander between ca. 300 and 90 BC. Radiocarbon dating of lipids from the pottery fragment supports its typological dating, and it is in accordance with 14C data from plant macro-remains. Some 500 pottery fragments, charcoal, plant macro-remains, soil chemistry and vegetation changes observable in an adjacent pollen profile provide evidence of unspecifiable human activity which caused a small-scale clearance of the closed canopy forest. The ‘pottery’ phase of the site was preceded by around 100 years of activity which left only traces of fire and the preparation of cereals and pulses for cooking. Lipid residue analysis of pottery vessels revealed the processing of animal carcass products, mostly ruminants. The detection of heating biomarkers confirmed that some of the original pots were heated at temperatures above 300 °C. Considering the nature of the site, the cooked or roasted meat probably reached the site already potted. The idea of food being brought in was supported by the finding of a vessel containing plant lipids derived from either olive or hazelnut oil. The analysis of all known data shows that this secluded site was not an ordinary settlement, or a hunting or prospector's camp, but must have had some other meaning, such as a road-worker camp on a long distance trade route, a guardhouse, or perhaps a hermitage.