Selonian archaeological sites in Lithuania

Vytautas Kazakevičius

Summary

Selonians are one of the least known Baltic tribes which used to reside in the territories of present Lithuania and Latvia. Their first mentioning in written sources goes as far back as the 3d century – namely, in the Roman map of waterways "Tabula interaria Penutingeriana". It was compiled in the 3rd or 4th century and the preserved copy belongs to, probably, the 10th–12th century. This map includes a Selonian river – Fliuvius Sellanus (Fig. 1). Today this river is named Dauguava. The next mentioning of Selonians appeared much later – only at the beginning of the 13th century. They are referred to in Latin or German as "Selones", "Selen" or "Selhen", whereas their land is called – "Zelen“, “Selenland“. An important Selonian centre Sēlpils (castrum Selonum) – on the left bank of Daugava – is mentioned. The same chronicle tells that Selonians lived with Lettigallians in Koknese, i. e., on the right bank of Daugava. The written sources of the end of the 13th century defined the Selonian territory as bordering on Livonian territory in the west, Slavonian (Gudonians) – in the east, Semigallian – in the southeast and Latvian territory in the northwest. Really scanty information about the Selonian land is also contained in other written documents, i. e., in Pope Innocent’s Act IV (1254), confirming the Swordbearers’ right to the Selonian land. Selonians are also mentioned in Mindaugas’ acts of presentations to Swordbearers of 1254, 1255, 1261. Thus, the historical evidences about Selonians are scanty, by far more scanty as the evidences about the neighbouring Baltic tribes.

Before an attempt to describe the Selonian culture and territory it is necessary to define the ethnocultural situation in the 1st millenium AD. The archaeological material alone is insufficient for this purpose. It is necessary to use here the available historical anthropological and linguistic data.

The present study is aimed at generalizing the acumulated knowledge about the material culture of Selonians, their customs and territory, and updating it on the ground of material from newly investigated Selonian barrow cemeteries in Visėtiškės, Miškiniai, Anykščiai district.

In the first ages AD the Baltic territory included a few ethnological provinces, distinguished by archaeologists on the basis of types of burials. The Selonian territory, which emerged later, was in these ages covered by the archaeological Barrow culture with stone circles which included the Northern Lithuania and Samogitia, the Southern, Eastern and Central Latvia (Fig. 2). The barrows of this culture were predominated by collective inhumations. Among the largest investigated archaeological sites of mentioned culture we can mention the Muoriškės barrow cemetery in Biržai district and Pajuostė barrow cemetery in Panevėžys district. In Latvia such archaeological sites were found in Slate pine forest (Slates, Sila) of Jekabpil district and Boki of the same district. These are the classical examples of Selonian culture.

In the middle of the 1st millenium, this culture, occupying the vast areas, split into a few smaller regions with specific archaeological sites and burying rites (Fig. 1). Beginning with the 6th century, flat burial grounds appeared in the Selonian territory.

However, notwithstanding the changes of burial rites, barrow cemeteries continued to dominate in the Selonial territory. Among the most famous archaeological sites of this period in Lithuania we should mention the Norkūnai barrow cemetery with inhumations in the Rokiškis district, in Latvia – the Ratulanu barrow in the Jekabpil district. Similar ethnocultural situation existed also at the beginning of the 2nd millennium. In the already well-developed Selonian territory barrow cemeteries and flat burial grounds with inhumations (Fig. 4) have been found. In the southern part of Selonian territory – in the present Lithuanian territory – the dominating position of barrows with similar collective inhumation (Fig. 5) was preserved. Examples in Lithuania are the Miškiniai and Visėtiškiai barrow cemeteries in the Anykščiai district (see articles included in this book). In Latvia: the Lejasdopele barrow cemetery in the Aizkraukle district.

Even today the Selonian historiography is rather poor. In the Lithuanian archaeological literature the direct mentionings of Selonians are usually followed by remarks that the analysis of their culture and territory lacks data basis, not withstanding that some stodied sites undoubtedly may be ascribed to Selonians. M. Gimbutas writes that in the northeastern Lithuania and southeastern Latvia Selonians lived in the first centuries AD. However, he does not give any details about their territory and culture. A. Tautavičius’ book about the Middle Iron Age in Lithuania contains a brief description of Selonians. However, in the available Lithuanian archaeological literature this description is so far the most exhaustive one. The Selonian territory is defined in most general terms, but the author indirectly hunts that he distinguished the Selonian culture already in the first centuries AD and mentions the barrows of the 1st–4th centuries investigated in the northeastern part of Lithuania. R. Volkaitė-Kulikauskienė locates the area inhabited by Selonians at the beginning of the 2nd millenium beyond the boundaries of present Lithuania – on the left bank of Daugava. V. Žulkus, describing the Baltic world outlook and waste areas between the tribal lands locates Selonians on the left bank of Daugava and in the Nemunėlis basin. In the last work generalizing the Lithuanian ethnogenesis Selonians are mentioned together with Lettigallians and are not separately distinguished. This is a direct influence of Latvian archaeological historiography because the synthetic works of Latvian scientists written even before the war emphasize the commonness of Selonian and Lettigallian cultures where Lettigallians dominate.

The Latvian archaeological literature about Selonians and their culture is richer. However, Latvian researchers face the problem of distinguishing between Selonians and Lettigalians. This problem has been a distinctive feature of their historiography since the pre-war years when the commonness of Selonian and Lettigallian cultures were emphasized. An attempt to distinguish Selonians into a separate ethnic group on the ground of written sources and linguistic data was made already at the end of the 19th century by A. Bielenstein. Selonians were mentioned as a separate ethnic group in a generalizing archaeological study of Latvian researchers which appeared in 1926 pointing out that the Selonian culture was the most closely linked one with the Latvian culture. Whereas the outstanding Latvian researcher F. Balodis does not mention Selonians separately. E. Šturms gives an encyclopedic description of Selonians pointing out that Selonians inhabited not only the left bank of Daugava but also its right bank as well as the middle – and lower-course of Aiviekste. Writing about the Roman Iron Age in Latvia an Estonian archaeologist H. Moora ascribes the left bank of Daugava to Selonian territory. In his later works he does not distinguish Selonians referring to the Lettigallian–Selonian culture as a whole. E. Šnore had the same opinion. In the most extensive Latvian study, generalizing the archaeological material and published in the after-war years, Selonians are located on the left and right banks of Daugava and Aiviekste basin already in the Roman Iron Age. This conclusion is based on linguistic data rather than on archaeological material. Archaeologist A. Stubaws suggested a new point of view on the problem of Selonian culture supposing that the commonness of Lettigallian–Selonian culture was, actually, the Selonian heritage. He did not manage to substantiate this hypothesis. The last work containing a description of Selonian archaeological sites and a study of ethnic Selonian problems was written by E. Šnorė. The book generalizes the archaeological material from 15 Latvian barrow cemeteries and includes a comprehensive analysis of ethnic processes which took place in this territory in the Roman and Middle Iron Ages.

In the book of Russian archaeologist V. Sedov "Ugrofinns and Balts in the Middle Ages" the Selonian territory is not distinguished from the Lettigalian territory but the Selonian culture is described separately and rather comprehensively.

The Lithuanian and Latvian linguists have special merits in the study of Selonians. A great contribution was made by a famous Lithuanian linguist K. Būga, episodical references were made by V. Mažiulis, Z. Zinkevičius and S. Karaliūnas. Among Latvian researchers we can mention J. Endzelīns, M. Rudzīte, V. Rūke, A. Jākobsons, J. Kuškis, K. Ancītis and A. Jansons. The latter have published a special exhaustive study about Selonians.

All linguists recognize the rising accent as a distinguishing feature of Selonians. On this basis they ascribe to Selonian territory not only the left bank of Daugava but also the Aiviekste basin. However, linguists face a serious problem of dating the processes of linguistic transformations. They cannot even say when the old Latvian tribes joined into one Latvian ethnos.

The contribution of anthropologists to the studies of Selonian territory and culture is also a rather substantial one. We can distinguish in particular Latvian researchers R. Denisova and R. Gravere. The first extensively highlights the anthropologic type of people inhabiting the Selonian territory, the second – analyses their odontology. The Lithuanian anthropologists cannot claim any great contribution to Selonian studies for absence of anthropologic material in Lithuania.

Among historical documents Mindaugas’ Donation Act of 1261 is the one in which Selonian lands are described in greatest detail. Their boundary began from Daugava near Naujinis (Daugavpils) castle, further running along Kopkelis till Luodis lake and northwards along the Duseta river till the Sartai lake and round it till the Šventoji source. It stretched further till the Latuva, Vašuoka and Viešinta rivers, along the Lėvuo river northwards till Mūša and downstream of Mūša river till the Babyte river mouth (Fig. 6) (Būga, 1961, p. 273–274). Thus, the historical sources describing the Selonian boundaries in the second half of the 13th century are rather definite. Whereas linguist K. Būga, basing himself on linguistic data alone, specifies the territory occupied by Selonians. According to him the southern boundary of Selonians ran approximately by Salakas, Tauragnai, Utena, Svėdasai, Subačius, Palėvenė, Pasvalys, Saločiai (Būga, 1961, p. 274) (Fig. 6).

The task of defining the Selonian ethnocultural region is the most difficult one for archaeologists. This is because too few sites have been investigated. Besides, visually they do not differ from the archaeological sites of Roman Iron Age Barrow Culture and from archaeological sites of East Lithuanian Barrow Culture.

The most recent attempt to revise the definition of Selonian ethnic lands in the 7th–12th centuries on the ground of archaeological material was undertaken by A. Simniškytė who came to a conclusion that the Selonian territory at the end of the Middle Iron Age – beginning of the Late Iron Age was somewhat smaller than is suggested by historical sources or linguistic data (Fig. 6).

Thus, so for a comprehensive generalization of Selonian ethnogenesis, territory and material culture we still lack archaeological data. The database accumulated by other sciences is also rather poor. Therefore, excavations in new archaeological sites and publication of new obtained data would facilitate new possibilities going deeper into material and spiritual culture of Selonians. However, it must be recognized that the most productive way to an extensive knowledge about the Selonian culture and ethnic history will be paved by an integration of humanitarian sciences – archaeology, history, anthropology, linguistics and ethnology. Only an integrated application of their investigation methods may help to achieve progress in this field of research.

The author expects that the archaeological investigation data of Visėtiškės and Miškiniai barrow cemeteries collected in 1985–1989 and included in this book will push the knowledge of material and spiritual culture of Selonians out of stagnation.

Translated by Ada Jurkonytė