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| Geographical range | France |
|---|---|
| Period | Neolithic |
| Dates | 3100–2000 BC |
| Preceded by | Chasséen culture |
| Followed by | Bell Beaker culture |
| Defined by | Pere Bosch-Gimpera |
TheSeine–Oise–Marne orSOM culture is the name given byarchaeologists to the finalculture of theNeolithic and first culture of theChalcolithic in northernFrance and southernBelgium.
It lasted from around 3100 to 2000 BCE and is most famous for itsgallery gravemegalithic tombs, which incorporate aport-hole slab separating the entrance from the main burial chamber. In thechalk valley of the RiverMarne, rock-cut tombs (hypogea) were dug to a similar design. Some have examples ofmegalithic art with images of axes, breasts, and necklaces carved on their walls.[1]
Diagnosticartefacts includetransverse arrowheads,antler sleeves and crude, flat-based cylindrical and bucket-shaped pottery decorated with appliqué cordons. The SOM culture had trade links with neighbouring cultures enabling the use ofCallaïs andGrand Pressingy flint imported fromBrittany and theLoire and later, the use ofcopper.
The culture seems to have had strong links with other areas and may have arisen from a composite of influences as indicated by the gallery grave design common across Europe and the pottery types which have comparators in Western France from 2600BC and also in Brittany,Switzerland and Denmark.
Ten individuals dated between 3400 and 2900 BC were tested from two collective burial hipogea of the Mont-Aimé site (Val-des-Marais, Marne department); six out of seven males were assigned to the Y-chromosome haplogroup I2a1b1b1 (Y13335), and there was an individual belonging to haplogroup H2a1a. The autosomal components were a mix of European farmer and Western hunter-gatherer (this one ranging from a minimum of 20% to a maximum of 55%).[2] Two males buried in the Pierre Fritte dolmen (Yermenonville, Eure et Loire department) had the same mitochondrial haplogropup K and Y-DNA haplogroup I2a1.[3]
