Le Cimetière néolithique de Mehrgarh (Balouchistan pakistanais) : apport de l'analyse factorielle.

The funerary practices implied by the graves of Mehrgarh Period IB show the presence of a society in Pakistani Baluchistan that was already well-organized by about 6000 ВС. Statistical (factor) analysis of attributes of tomb structure and furnishings, orientation of corpse, mode of inhumation, and division of grave goods leads to the recognition of several kinds of rules working in combination or in juxtaposition to constrain variability in burial practices. A certain flexibility in the application of these rules, or in several cases the absence of obvious general rules, however, allows one to believe in the existence of a society that, while remaining anchored to fundamental traditions, nevertheless was open to individual expression in mortuary behavior.