Glaistic civilization
The Glaistic civilization, alternatively known as the Glaistic culture, is the term used to refer to the cultures present in Aciria prior to the arrival of the Latinic 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 2nd century BC before eventually merging with the Latinic people to create the ancestors of modern day Acirians. Some controversial evidence suggests that the Glaistic civilization managed to survive until the 1st century AD, mainly in the mountainous Montanaro country, and following excavations in Montanaro country in 2026, evidence suggests the culture might have lasted even up until the 4th century AD.
The ethnonym Glaistic is the conjugated form of the 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 Aciriano-Istroyan Kingdom 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.
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 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 Aciria around 1800 to 1500 BC, where from it quickly spread across Aciria, reaching the area now bordering Caphiria in just over a century. It was also during this time the first identified temple was constructed in the northeastern region of modern day Aciria, 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 towns began appearing. Glaistic towns can be easily distinguished from any other cultural group that might've been present in these areas through the very typical way they were constructed. In the middle of the town was a standing stone that might've been used as a makeshift altar. The town was built in a circular form around the stone, with all doorways pointing towards the east. Some of the towns 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 towns near these iron age mines grew very quickly. Mass graves discovered around this time marked by standing stones suggest the fast growing urban population caused breakouts of disease, which caused the Glaistos to establish multiple smaller towns 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 8th century BC, when Istroyan traders and explorers made contact with the Glaistic people. 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.
Aciriano-Istroyan Kingdom
Society
Religion was inseparable from the Glaistic society. Istroyan records describe gods and practices of those in Ancient Acirian religion, which suggests the origins and traditions of the religion were older than previously thought. In contrast to the Glaistic ancestors, the Glaistic culture after contact with Istroyans seemed to have an increased importance of warfare. Some scholars have suggested the Istroyan weapons traded into the region sparked a Glaistic weapons race, which eventually lead to the warlike culture the Istroyans described. It's unknown what role the chiefs of tribes played in society, but some evidence points to them being of the visas class due to the religious items often buried with the chief class.
Tribes
The Glaistos identify themselves as Glaistos, but seem to identify more closely with their tribe than the Glaistic identity.
— Mydoros
It's likely that the historic Acirian tribes have their roots in the Glaistic tribes. It's thought that the distinctive Glaistic tribes had formed either shortly prior or after Istroyan 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 8th century 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 ancestors of the Montanaro people, based on the historical fear the Acirian tribes had over Montanaro magic.
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 Latinic arrival seems to suggest it may have been related to the languages spoken in Volonia. The theory has some support in archaeological evidence as well, due to the first Glaistic pottery having Volonian characteristics.
Religion
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 had their own mask, which would explain the remarkable amount of masks, alongside with the non-uniformity of the masks.
Glaisto-Istroyan art
The establishment of Aciriano-Istroyan Kingdoms meant a renaissance in Glaistic art in the form of Glaisto-Istroyan art. The remains of Glaistic statues prior to the Glaisto-Istroyan era were characterised by their simplicity, often simply being basic facial or bodily features carved into a larger piece of stone. The Istroyan influence meant a far more accurate depiction of bodies, but the faces often were covered by Glaistic masks for reasons unknown. Theories exist that the statues with covered faces portrayed the Glaistic gods.
Economy
Livelihood
All the tribes relied heavily on agriculture. The livelihoods of tribes varied from tribe to tribe, and it's thought that the Eudetos 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 use Amaro pots 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.