Interconnection between house and fenced area: A case study of an LBK settlement in Hostivice-Sadová, Central Bohemia

Abstract

The article aims to examine the relationship between the use of longhouses and adjacent fenced areas at the Linear Pottery culture (LBK) settlement in Hostivice-Sadová. The analysis focuses on house no. 1 and 15 and the rectangular fenced areas defined mainly by single posts that were excavated next to their eastern walls. The study includes representative pottery assemblages from settlement features and construction pits dated to the two subsequent phases in the middle stage of LBK. Formation processes and the proportion of decoration style were analysed in combination with radiocarbon dating. The article also addresses whether fenced areas were later used as refuse disposal spaces. The results show that the fills of the features in the fenced areas were deposited later than the house unit assemblages were formed. In both cases, there is no significant evidence of using fenced areas later for waste disposal. Additionally, the social and economic aspects of these houses are discussed as the construction, length, fenced areas, and concentration of finds indicate their important social and economic role within the settlement.