If the Vinča script once really existed who could have written or read it?

Authors

  • Andrej Starović National Museum in Belgrade

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4312/dp.32.19

Keywords:

Late Neolithic, Early Chalcolithic, Vinča culture, signs, symbols, writing, contextual analysis

Abstract

The paper considers about the possible meaning and social function of signs and symbols from Vinča, and used in Danube Neolithic society. Many scholars have tried to answer two main questions about the nature of the signs: first, does they form a system, and (if so), could such a system be interpreted as an original prehistoric script? A new approach to the problem, focused on an archaeological reconstruction of the basic function of ceramic objects bearing the signs, offers strong evidence that the signs were used in the context of ordinary domestic life, much more than in ritual and/or ceremonial contexts. An important set of data suggests that practically every single Vinča household had inscribed objects and that many of the signs and sign groups are uniform, just as in organized writing. Consequently, such a complex notation system could have been a form of written communication throughout Vinča society.

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Published

31. 12. 2005

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Starović, A. (2005). If the Vinča script once really existed who could have written or read it?. Documenta Praehistorica, 32, 253-260. https://doi.org/10.4312/dp.32.19