Figurines as domestic ritual items and strengtheners of community

Thousands of small sculptures, i.e. figurines, have been discovered from the region of Old Europe. Most of them represent women, only a few depict men. Some figurines represent a man and a woman together. Figurines have been found within houses, e.g. in inner yards next to outdoor baking ovens. Primarily they have been found in sanctuaries and other places where rituals were performed.

Perhaps the most famous group of figurines are those of a woman and a man from the Hamangia culture. Hamangia is south of the Danube Delta. Archaeologists named these figurines "The Sitting Woman" and "The Thinker". These small statues are from around 4800 BCE. Their artistic style and aesthetic are strongly reminiscent of a contemporary art style. This is no wonder as Constanin Brancusi, "the father of modern art", took inspiration from Old European figurines about 120 years ago.

The role of figurines in ritual was twofold. Firstly, the figurines symbolized the intimacy of people within the inner circle of the home. When it comes to interior spaces, it has been observed that "... many everyday household practices, such as sleeping, food storage, grinding, and cooking, were embedded in domestic ritual, as indicated by the figurines deposited nearby each practice." (John Chapman 2009: 82; in David Anthony (ed.) The Lost World of Old Europe 5000–3500 BC. New York.)

The figurines discovered in interior spaces have been found intact. The surfaces of these particular figurines are often worn, which may indicate a certain practice: it is believed that people held the figurines in their hands during rituals, and they were sometimes anointed. They were always kept close to where indoor activities took place. Archeologists estimate that many figurines were passed down from one generation to the next – from grandmothers to mothers, mothers to daughters, and from daughters to grand-daughters. Such valuable ritual items may thus have been very old.

Figurine from Old European region. (Cucuteni, circa 4000 BCE.)

Secondly, figurines functioned as symbols for enhancing community and solidarity. They had a special role in gift-giving rituals. These figurines have been found in fragments. As part of the gift-giving ritual, it was customary to break figurines which had been used in rituals in sanctuaries, and which were believed to be spiritually charged through ritual. The figurine pieces were gifted to friends and trading partners. With the help of spectral analysis, we can study which fragments belonged to the same figurine. Researchers have marveled at how some figurine pieces have even traveled distances of hundreds of kilometers.

Harald Haarmann, Virpi Lehtinen and Auli Kurvinen

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