Vinča culture
Map showing the extent of the Vinča culture | |
| Alternative names | Turdaş culture Tordos culture |
|---|---|
| Horizon | First Temperate Neolithic, Old Europe |
| Period | Neolithic–Chalcolithic |
| Dates | c. 5400–4500 BC |
| Type site | Vinča-Belo Brdo |
| Major sites | Belogradchik Drenovac Fafos Gomolava Gornja Tuzla Pločnik Rudna Glava Selevac Tărtăria Turdaş Vratsa Vršac |
| Characteristics | Large tell settlements Anthropomorphic figurines Vinča symbols |
| Preceded by | Starčevo culture |
| Followed by | Sălcuţa culture, Krivodol culture, Bubanj culture, Tiszapolgár culture |
| The Neolithic |
|---|
| ↑ Mesolithic |
| ↓ Chalcolithic |
The Vinča culture [ʋîːnt͜ʃa], also known as Turdaș culture, Turdaș–Vinča culture or Vinča-Turdaș culture, is a Neolithic archaeological culture of Southeast Europe, dated to the period 5400–4500 BC. It is named for its type site, Vinča-Belo Brdo, a large tell settlement discovered by Serbian archaeologist Miloje Vasić in 1908. As with other cultures, it is mainly distinguished by its settlement pattern and ritual behaviour. It was particularly noted for its distinctive dark-burnished pottery.
Farming technology first introduced to the region during the First Temperate Neolithic was developed further by the Vinča culture. This fuelled a population boom that produced some of the largest settlements in prehistoric Europe. These settlements maintained a high degree of cultural uniformity through the long-distance exchange of ritual items, but were probably not politically unified.
Various styles of zoomorphic and anthropomorphic figurines were hallmarks of the culture, as are the Vinča symbols, which some conjecture to be the earliest form of proto-writing. Although the Vinča culture has not been conventionally considered to be part of the Chalcolithic or "Copper Age", it featured the earliest known example of copper smelting.