Inequality in relational wealth within the upper societal segment
Evidence from prehistoric Central Europe
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22230613 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Johannes Marzian (Kiel Institute for the World Economy, corresponding author), Julian Laabs (0000-0003-1378-3908, Leipzig University of Applied Sciences), Johannes Müller (0000-0002-3538-197X, Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften Kiel), Tilman Requate (Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften Kiel) |
| Year | 2024 |
| Volume | 11 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Publication date | 2024-05-02 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Humanities and Social Sciences Communications (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2662-9992 • E-ISSN: 2662-9992 |
| Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1057/s41599-024-03053-x |
| OpenAlex | W4396573540 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 80 |
While our understanding of long-term trends in material wealth inequality in prehistoric societies has expanded in recent decades, we know little about long-term trends in other dimensions of wealth and about social developments within particular societal segments. This paper provides the first evidence of inequality in relational wealth within the upper societal segment of a supra-regional network of communities in prehistoric Central Europe over the first four millennia BCE. To this end, we compiled a novel dataset of 5000 single-funeral burial mounds and employed burial mound volume as a proxy for the buried individual’s relational wealth. Our analysis reveals a consistently high level of inequality among the buried individuals, showing a wave-like pattern with an increasing trend over time. Additionally, our findings show temporal shifts in the size of the upper societal segment. Based on a review of archeological and paleo-environmental evidence, the temporal change in inequality may be explained by technological progress, climate and population dynamics, trade and social networks, and/or sociopolitical transformations
Archaeology · Economic geography · Geography · Inequality · Prehistory · Social inequality · Historical Economic and Social Studies · Mathematics
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| Unique citing works | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 2 |
| Citation span | 2025 - 2025 (1) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 2 |