Glaistic civilization

The Glaistic culture is known for its widespread usage of masks in religious and cultural rituals.

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Istroyan influenced statue with a Glaistic mask.

The Glaistic civilization, alternatively known as the Glaistic culture, is the term used to refer to the cultures present in Vallos prior to the arrival of the Latinic, Polynesian, and Tainean people into the region. The earliest archaeological evidence of the culture is dated to between 2000 to 1500 BC, and the distinct culture lasted until the 8th century BC before eventually merging with the new arrivals to create the ancestors of modern day Vallosi people. Some controversial evidence suggests that the Glaistic civilization managed to survive until the 3rd century BC, mainly in the mountainous interior of Vallos, and following excavations in the interior in 2026, evidence suggests the culture might have lasted even up until the 1st century AD.

The ethnonym Glaistic is the conjugated form of the ancient Istroyan name for the people living there, Glaistos. The origin of the name is unknown, but linguists generally agree it's derived from the Istroyan word glaios (Istroyan:γλάιος), meaning vicious. Due to the limited or nonexistent literacy in the region, with the exception of writing following the arrival of the Polynesiand and Tainean and the final years prior to the Latin integration, most written records of the Glaistos come from the Istroyans, which are considered Istrocentric in nature and raise questions regarding accuracy of the descriptions. Istroyan exploration of the area, which occurred in around 900 BC, nevertheless forms the basis of most modern scholarship on pre-arrival Vallos.

History

Origins of the Glaistos

Archaeological evidence shows several distinct pottery types appearing in waves before the uniform Glaistic pottery appears between 2000 to 1500 BC, which suggests that the ancestors of the Glaistos were not a single people, but multiple waves of migrations into the region from distinct cultural regions, with most notable similarities found in Volonian pottery. The primary wave of migration occurred likely around 12,000 BC. The Glaistic pottery seems to have features of all three migratory waves, which alongside the fact only limited amounts of conflict from this period have been discovered, suggests a relatively peaceful existence and assimilation of the peoples that arrived to the region. It wasn't until the third immigration wave when the Glaistic masks started appearing in the southwestern regions of Vallos around 1800 to 1500 BC, where from it quickly spread across Vallos, reaching the northern tip of what is now Equatorial Ostiecia in just over a century. It was also during this time the first identified temple was constructed in the northeastern region of modern day Vallos, but recent archaeological evidence suggests the temple was simply constructed on top of an earlier religious site, dating up to 3000 BC.

Iron age

It was during the Iron Age when the Glaistic characteristic fort-like settlements began appearing. Glaistic villages can be easily distinguished from any other cultural group that would have been present in these areas through the very typical way they were constructed. In the middle of the settlement was a standing stone that might've been used as a makeshift altar. The villages were usually built in a circular form around the stone, with all doorways pointing towards the east. Some of the settlements grew large enough to have facilities such as saunas or baths.

It was also during this time when Glaistic people had discovered the vast silver and gold hidden in the mountains further inland, and the settled areas near these iron age mines grew very quickly. Mass graves discovered around this time marked by standing stones suggest the fast growing population caused breakouts of disease, which caused the Glaistos to establish multiple smaller settlements around the mines rather than one larger one. The silver dug from these mines was so plentiful it was present everywhere in Glaistic culture, with burial sites of every social class often being buried with either silver jewelry, weapons or other accessories, such as the characteristic Glaistic masks.

What has been identified as the first description of the Glaistic people comes from the 12th century BC, when early Istroyan traders and explorers made contact with the Glaistic people; elements of the Polynesian Vallosi Saga have also been identified as contemporary. Initial contact has been thought to be violent due to the Istroyan name for the people inhabiting these lands, while the peaceful contacts have documented the widespread use of gold and silver in the Glaistic culture. The Istroyans naturally were interested in acquiring the silver and gold of this region, which prompted early trade between the peoples. The trade with Istroyans caused the Glaistos to quickly become master gold- and silversmiths, often trading their goods for various Istroyan goods, most notably weapons and wine. This Glaistic "high craft" period lasted until roughly 1000 BC, when its civilization entered terminal decline due to continued pressure from the arriving Polynesians as well as new arrivals from Crona.

Society

Remains of a typical Glaistic settlement in eastern Vallos. Photo taken from near the central standing stone.

Religion was inseparable from the Glaistic society. ancient Istroyan records describe gods and practices similar to those of the ancient Istroyan religion, suggesting a shared cross-continental religious heritage dating to prehistory. In contrast to the Glaistic ancestors, the Glaistic culture after contact with Istroyans seemed to have an increased importance of warfare, particularly in the face of Polynesian advances. It's unknown what role the chiefs of tribes played in society.

Despite the well-known ruins and proto-urban artifacts of the Glaistic civilization, most scholars and archaeologists suggest the vast majority - as many as 80% or 90% - of Glaistos people lived in nomadic or semi-nomadic tribal lifestyles, tending flocks of domesticated animals.

Tribes

The Glaistos identify themselves as Glaistos, but seem to identify more closely with their tribe than the Glaistic identity.

— Mydoros

It's thought that the distinctive Glaistic tribes had formed either shortly prior or after Polynesian contact due to little evidence suggesting that any peoples inhabiting the area held different beliefs to the others, with architecture and jewelry being fairly uniform for the time.

It was during the 12th century BC when Istroyan historian Mydoros joined a trade vessel headed for the Glaistic lands. Mydoros had managed to group the Glaistos into three distinct groups, based on the observations and descriptions of primarily the traders who had earlier contact with the peoples of the area, and according to Mydoros' claims, a Glaistic boy who spoke Istroyan described them in detail to him.

• The Alitros was the term Mydoros used to identify the coastal tribes, who he claimed were such skilled sailors they matched those in Istroya.
• The Eudetos were described as the most populous and wisest of the Glaistos. They reportedly were skilled traders, managing to take advantage of the naïvete of the Alitros to expand their wealth.
• The Mustrida were the ones Mydoros had no personal contact with. He noted that both the Alitros and Eudetos were hesitant to talk about them, offering him little other than fears of curses. The Mustrida have been identified as the contemporary Polynesian people who by that time had extensively settled on the southern coast of Vallos.

Culture

Language

The limited amount of written records makes it difficult for linguists to study potential relatives of the language, but the Glaistic writings from the century prior to foreign arrival seems to suggest it may be very distantly related to the languages spoken in modern Volonia. The theory has some support in archaeological evidence as well, due to the first Glaistic pottery having pseudo-Volonian characteristics.

A Glaistic bust.

Art

Glaistic masks

Glaistic masks are the piece of Glaistic art that has been the most well preserved. The remarkable amount of Glaistic masks that have been discovered all around the Glaistic inhabited lands suggests that they were likely produced in large quantities. The masks are always characterised by the the sly smile, but other than that, almost every mask has small details portraying things such as animals, the moon, or people. Some have theorised that all Glaistos - or atleast all settled Glaistos - had their own mask, which would explain the remarkable amount of masks, alongside with the non-uniformity of the masks.

Economy

Istroyan style golden statuette portraying a warrior.

Livelihood

All the tribes relied heavily on agriculture or pastoral activities. The livelihoods of tribes varied from tribe to tribe, and it's thought that the Eudetos tribes were the most reliant on agriculture, with their coastal and mountainous counterparts relying more on fishing and animal husbandry respectively. The Eudetos became the primary producers of wine in the region, being the first to to ferment wine.

Trade

Trade between the Glaistic people and their neighbours was limited, with little foreign artifacts being discovered among Glaistic settlements prior to Istroyan contact. The Istroyan contact caused a quick development of a vibrant trade culture sparked by the Istroyan demand for Glaistic silver and gold. The Eudetos developed a sophisticated silversmithing and goldsmithing tradition, allowing them to haggle for more goods from the Istroyans for not only their raw silver and gold, but fine jewelry and accessories. Paved roads were first established between Eudetic mines and towns during this time period, alongside the first Glaistic coins were minted.