A first toast in Kuyavia: New evidence for drinking rituals in Neolithic Europe from Sławęcinek, Poland

Excavations at Sławęcinek in central Poland, have yielded evidence for the Neolithic Funnel Beaker Culture, concurrent with a sweeping set of changes that occurred across much of Europe in the mid-fourth millennium BC. A set of vessels containing collared flasks, ceramic glasses and a beaker were found, demonstrating that libations of lactose-reduced dairy beverages were performed between 3500–3350 BC. One of the vessels, a funnel beaker, features iconography that may represent one of the earliest known examples of wheeled transport in the world. The evidence also raises the possibility of the emergence of women’s secret societies in Neolithic Europe.