Tod im Kindbett

Archäologische und anthropologische Beispiele von bei oder kurz nach der Geburt verstorbenen Frauen und Kindern

Abstract

Archaeological and anthropological examples provide a wide range of insights about death during childbirth and the subsequent puerperium. Women and children who died during this liminal phase were given special treatment in burial customs, due to reasons rang­ing from special care to protective measures to influence their postmortem fate. This study covers examples from the High Middle Ages to the nineteenth century, from Germany, Switzerland, and Austria.

The most significant findings are double burials of a woman and a foetus, often interpreted as mother–infant pairs. Based on the position of the child, it is possible to de­termine whether the child went through birth or remained in the womb at the time of burial. Other archaeological sources include special grave goods (e.g. scissors) and burial containers. The deposition of so-called placenta pots in domestic cellars testifies to magical ideas surrounding the birth topic.