Lietuvos istorijos institutas

This article examines combs dated to the 3rd–12th centuries AD from the present-day territory of Lithuania. Based on typologies developed by foreign researchers, the combs are classified into groups, subgroups, and types. Their distribution, the chronological range of specific types, and the materials used in their manufacture are analyzed. Currently, 35 combs, including fragments and one unfinished blank, are known from Lithuania. All major comb groups characteristic of other regions of Central, Northern, and Eastern Europe are represented—both simple and composite types, including single-sided and double-sided variants. In terms of manufacturing techniques and decorative features, the Lithuanian finds largely correspond to those of neighboring regions. Two local types are distinguished: simple combs with a semicircular back and outward-curving teeth, dated to the 2nd half of the 1st millennium AD and found in parts of the Daugava River basin; and singlesided composite combs with a copper alloy handle and sheath, dated the 6th century AD and localized in the lower Nemunas region. Chronologically, the majority of combs from the Lithuanian territory date to the 9th–12th centuries AD. During this period, short, single-sided composite combs predominated. Laboratory analysis of 15 combs revealed that most were made of antler rather than bone, and two wooden combs were also identified.