This is the Cucuteni-Tripolye culture that likely influenced the Yamnaya (Proto-Indo-European) culture before eventually being overtaken by it. The equality of housing does suggest some egalitarianism, but it could also suggest that these were temporary, seasonal dwellings. We don't know.
It's interesting the degree of speculation the archeologists engage in, and also how many seem intent on showing ancient societies that were communal in nature. I'm highly skeptical of those hypotheses. In Kenya, the chief of a village doesn't have a dramatically bigger better building to live in, he has more cattle and/or wives. That doesn't show up archeologically. They did mention that these people had large stocks of sheep and cattle. Why is no one supposing that the large central area was a stockyard of sorts? Or perhaps a livestock market? Would be a good reason for annual gatherings. Those would be their most valuable possessions, and they'd want to safeguard them.
I also think it's overkill to call even a very large village of a few thousand "urban"
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This is the Cucuteni-Tripolye culture that likely influenced the Yamnaya (Proto-Indo-European) culture before eventually being overtaken by it. The equality of housing does suggest some egalitarianism, but it could also suggest that these were temporary, seasonal dwellings. We don't know.
It's interesting the degree of speculation the archeologists engage in, and also how many seem intent on showing ancient societies that were communal in nature. I'm highly skeptical of those hypotheses. In Kenya, the chief of a village doesn't have a dramatically bigger better building to live in, he has more cattle and/or wives. That doesn't show up archeologically. They did mention that these people had large stocks of sheep and cattle. Why is no one supposing that the large central area was a stockyard of sorts? Or perhaps a livestock market? Would be a good reason for annual gatherings. Those would be their most valuable possessions, and they'd want to safeguard them.
I also think it's overkill to call even a very large village of a few thousand "urban"
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