New notation for historical periods of western and central Europe

In response to a request from our colleagues at the European DDC Users Group (EDUG), we’ve established new notation for some early historical periods of western and central Europe. The changes provide more detail for individual regions, such as their progression from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age, and the spread of the Hallstatt and La Tène cultures.

While some works may discuss the Bronze Age and Iron Age broadly, ironworking came to different parts of the world at different times. Previously, 930.15 Copper Age and Bronze Age and 930.16 Iron Age had class-here notes with specific date ranges, converted from relocation notes from Edition 22. Since those ranges won’t necessarily match definitions of the Bronze Age and Iron Age in works, we’ve removed the notes. New developments for the early history of certain areas in Europe can build from 930.15 and 930.16, as in the following example, for Belgium:

The request from EDUG also asked for provision for the Hallstatt and La Tène cultures. These were the dominant cultures of central and western Europe in the late Bronze Age and the Iron Age. With some regional variations, the Hallstatt culture lasted from roughly 1200 to 450 B.C., and the La Tène culture lasted roughly from 450 B.C. until conquest by the Romans in the 1^st century B.C. Hallstatt and La Tène are named for the archaeological sites that have provided some of the best evidence for the cultures, located in Austria and Switzerland, respectively.

Similar to the DDC’s treatment of the Bronze Age and Iron Age, there is provision for works on the Hallstatt and La Tène cultures generally, at 936.02 [Europe north and west of Italian Peninsula] Ca. 1000-ca. 200:

And in the history schedules for given parts of western and central Europe, there is provision for the Hallstatt and La Tène periods. These sections also reference the specific sub-periods of the Hallstatt culture: in order, Hallstatt A, Hallstatt B, Hallstatt C, and Hallstatt D. See references draw off works on Hallstatt A and Hallstatt B from the comprehensive number for the period to the number for the Bronze Age in each region. Here’s an example, in the schedules under 936.4 Celtic regions to 486:

Overall, you’ll see these changes in the hierarchies for 939.3 Germanic regions to 481 and Pannonia, 939.4 Celtic regions to 486, and 936.9 Netherlands to 486, Belgium to 486, Luxembourg to 486, Switzerland to 486. As with the different dates in those captions, the specific developments for each region reflect the different dates of the Bronze Age, Iron Age, Hallstatt culture, and La Tène culture in those places.