This review examines the Italian edition of "Il mistero della sciamana" by Harald Meller and Kai Michel ["Das Rätsel der Scamanin. Eine archäologische Reise zu unseren Anfängen", Rowohlt Verlag GmbH, Hamburg 2022], focusing on the Mesolithic burial of a woman discovered at the thermo-mineral site of Bad Dürrenberg. Combining archaeological, osteological and environmental data, the authors reinterpret a find long distorted by ideological readings, identifying the woman as a healer or shaman-like figure within a hunter-gatherer community. The rich grave goods, ritual practices and proximity to saline springs point to an early form of medical knowledge based on natural resources. While acknowledging the book’s methodological strength, the review calls for a broader integration of Bad Dürrenberg into the long-term history of prehistoric thermo-mineral practices.
Alle origini del termalismo. Una sepoltura femminile dal sito termominerale di Bad Dürrenberg. Recensione a: Harald Meller, Kai Michel, "Il mistero della sciamana. Un viaggio archeologico alla scoperta delle nostre origini", Feltrinelli Editore, Milano 2024
Maddalena Bassani
2026-01-01
Abstract
This review examines the Italian edition of "Il mistero della sciamana" by Harald Meller and Kai Michel ["Das Rätsel der Scamanin. Eine archäologische Reise zu unseren Anfängen", Rowohlt Verlag GmbH, Hamburg 2022], focusing on the Mesolithic burial of a woman discovered at the thermo-mineral site of Bad Dürrenberg. Combining archaeological, osteological and environmental data, the authors reinterpret a find long distorted by ideological readings, identifying the woman as a healer or shaman-like figure within a hunter-gatherer community. The rich grave goods, ritual practices and proximity to saline springs point to an early form of medical knowledge based on natural resources. While acknowledging the book’s methodological strength, the review calls for a broader integration of Bad Dürrenberg into the long-term history of prehistoric thermo-mineral practices.
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