5,500 years ago, a teenage girl was buried with her father’s bones on her chest, a DNA study reveals

A teenage girl was laid to rest with her father’s bones carefully placed over and beside her (Image: Göran Burenhult (CC BY))

DNA analysis of 5,500-year-old graves at the Ajvide cemetery on Sweden’s Gotland island shows that many hunter-gatherers were buried with second- and third-degree relatives rather than parents or siblings. Published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, the study led by Uppsala University researchers challenges assumptions about close family burials and suggests extended kinship ties played a significant role in Neolithic Scandinavian social and burial practices.

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A rare Stone Age cemetery on Sweden’s island of Gotland is reshaping understanding of Europe’s last hunter-gatherers after new DNA analysis revealed unexpected family burial patterns, researchers reported Wednesday in Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

Ajvide Cemetery and Pitted Ware Culture

The site of Ajvide lies on western Gotland. It was first excavated during 1983 digs. Archaeologists uncovered eighty five graves there. The burials belonged to the Pitted Ware culture. This hunter-gatherer society lived there 5,500 years ago.

Farming had already spread across much of Europe. Yet some Scandinavian groups kept older traditions. They mainly hunted seals and fished coastal waters. Ajvide remained occupied for at least four centuries. Excavations uncovered pottery, animal bones and graves. Eight graves contained more than one individual. Researchers once assumed close family connections existed.

DNA Analysis Reveals Unexpected Kinship Patterns

New advances in ancient DNA enabled deeper study. Tiina Mattila of Uppsala University led analysis. The findings were published Wednesday in Proceedings of the Royal Society B. Mattila examined four multi-person burials closely. In one grave lay an adult woman. Two young children were buried beside her. DNA showed the children were full siblings.

The woman was not their biological mother. She may have been their aunt. Another grave held a boy and girl. Tests showed they were third degree relatives. Such relatives share one eighth DNA. They were likely cousins within the group.

A third burial contained two female relatives. They were also third degree relatives. They may have been cousins or kin. The fourth grave held a teenage girl. Her body lay outstretched on her back. Bones were placed above and beside her.

DNA proved those bones were her father’s. His remains were likely moved later. Helena Malmström of Uppsala University co-authored the study. She said many shared graves involved distant kin. First degree relatives were less common than expected.

Hunter-Gatherer Social Structure and Future Research

Researchers believe lineage knowledge was important. Extended family ties may have shaped burial rites. The findings challenge assumptions about close kin burials. This marks the first kinship study of Scandinavian Neolithic hunter-gatherers. The team plans wider genetic testing soon. All cemetery skeletons will undergo analysis. Scholars hope to clarify social structures further. They also seek insight into life history. Burial customs may reveal cultural values. Ajvide continues offering rare preserved evidence. Hunter-gatherer kinship studies remain limited in scale.