A cemetery of transition
In the Pitten Valley of Lower Austria lies a large Bronze Age burial ground that shows life and death between roughly 1600 and 1250 BCE. The Pitten cemetery is one of Central Europe's largest, containing the remains of more than 700 individuals. Its long period of use shows a major shift in European customs: the transition from inhumation (burying the body intact) to cremation.
Pitten is unusual because, during a period when cremation became dominant—starting the "Urnfield culture"—its community continued to practice a mix of both burial rites. This makes the site a source of well-preserved skeletal remains, which are less common from the Urnfield period. These skeletons provide direct biological evidence about the population. The community used various grave constructions, including flat graves, shaft graves, and burial mounds made of soil or stone.
Demographics of the Bronze Age
Paleodemographic analysis of the Pitten skeletons changes common ideas about prehistoric life spans. The data shows a population with a high rate of death among the young; 47% of the individuals were infants or juveniles (under 20 years old). However, for those who survived the hazards of childhood, a long life was possible. The analysis identified 33% of the population as "adult" (21-40 years) and a significant 20% as "mature and older" (over 40). Some individuals lived into their 60s.
This demographic profile suggests that the average life expectancy statistic for the Bronze Age is heavily skewed by high infant mortality. An individual who reached adulthood had a reasonable chance of living for several more decades. The skeletal evidence does not suggest that life was universally "short." Instead, the greatest filter was surviving to maturity.
The bones also record the physical tolls of life. Pathological analysis reveals evidence of ailments like joint disease and dental problems, including cavities and abscesses. Healed fractures show that individuals could survive serious injuries. This direct evidence from the skeletons themselves provides more information of health and disease than burial goods alone. While infectious diseases like the plague (caused by Yersinia pestis) were present in Bronze Age Europe, the day-to-day realities for many involved managing chronic conditions and recovering from physical trauma.