# Face urns of the Pomeranian culture (-650)

URL: https://poland-history.com/timeline/-650-face-urns-of-the-pomeranian-culture
Location: Pomerania

The Pomeranian culture of northern Poland buried ashes in distinctive urns decorated with human faces and sometimes placed in stone cist graves. Within the broader Bronze & Iron Age period: In the late Bronze and early Iron Ages the Lusatian and Pomeranian cultures built fortified settlements such as Biskupin, while Celtic and early Germanic groups introduced new technologies and long-distance trade. At this point in the timeline (c. 650 BCE), the governing authority was Bronze and Iron Age cultures (No single ruler). Lusatian, Pomeranian, Celtic and early Germanic communities organised themselves in fortified settlements and chiefdoms without any overarching political authority. Face urns of the Pomeranian culture mattered because it offers material evidence of how people lived on Polish soil long before written records, and helps date the region's earliest cultures. The event is placed here so readers can follow it alongside changes in government, warfare, society, religion and culture across Polish history.

## Why it matters
Face urns of the Pomeranian culture mattered because it offers material evidence of how people lived on Polish soil long before written records, and helps date the region's earliest cultures.

Ruler at the time: [Bronze and Iron Age cultures](https://poland-history.com/rulers/bronze-and-iron-age-cultures)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia — Pomeranian culture](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pomeranian_culture)
- [Encyclopaedia Britannica topic lookup — Face urns of the Pomeranian culture](https://www.britannica.com/search?query=Face+urns+of+the+Pomeranian+culture)
- [Wikipedia — Lusatian culture (period overview)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lusatian_culture)