Non-invasive Analyses of Ancient Ceramics Colorants

Present research exploits the benefits of the non-invasive and non-destructive spectroscopic methods in order to characterize the pigments which constitute the colorants found on ancient ceramic pieces. A red colorant, which occurs on the outer surfaces of the ceramic pieces excavated from archaeological finding sites Čepin-Ovčara and Kneževi Vinogradi-Osnovna škola and in earth piece from Aljmaš- Podunavlje locality was analyzed. Using the UV-Vis FORS and Raman spectroscopy, red colorant is found to be red ochre. Raman spectrum of red ceramic colorant agrees with the spectrum of the colorant from the earth piece, leading to the conclusion that the Neolithic culture living in today Slavonija and Baranja region used the same colorants for decorating their ceramics as other nearby Neolithic cultures of Pannonian Basin. Black colorations are found to be made of soot

Starčevo culture luxury : cult objects and personal ornaments made of stone

Starčevo culture, the first Neolithic culture in the central Danubian region in the South-eastern Europe, occupied the wide territory of today’s Eastern Slavonia and whole Serbia. Several centuries of its existence (c. 6200 – 5400 BC) resulted with the creation of economic and technological basis for the development of progressive and highly developed Late Neolithic cultures of southern Pannonia and the central Balkans – the Vinča culture and the Sopot culture. Many aspects of the Starčevo culture have remained poorly studied so far. One of them are decorative and cult objects made of stone. Decorative and cult objects in general are rare in the Starčevo culture, which is certainly associated with a small number of graves discovered so far. Personal ornaments were made mainly from osseous raw materials (bone, antlers, teeth, marine shells) and cult objects mostly from clay. It can be assumed that other less permanent materials (wood, leather, etc.) were also in use. Stone was used in production of small personal ornaments like beads, pendants and rings. Small-sized stone tools like miniature chisels of nephrite and calcite, as well as grooved little pebbles (also considered as fishing weights) most likely were amulets. Amulets in the shape of a bovid head, which are characteristic exclusively for the Starčevo culture, were mainly made of clay and rare stone specimens were usually made of marble and white limestone. According to the selection of raw materials it is possible to assume that the standard in the production of stone cult and decorative objects did not exist in the Starčevo culture craftsmanship. However, the more frequent use of marble and calcite, the basic raw material for making stone decorative and cult objects in Late Neolithic Vinča and Sopot cultures, shows that the advantages of these stone raw materials (light processing, high gloss after polishing) were already recognizedby Starčevo culture craftsmen

The effect of genotype, environment and their interaction on yield and seed quality of rapeseed

U radu je analiziran prinos i kvalitet semena 40 divergentnih genotipova ozime uljane repice tokom četiri vegetacione sezone. Analizirani su prinos semena (PS), ulja (PU) i proteina (PP), masa 1000 semena (MHS), sadržaj ulja (SU) i proteina (SP), sadržaj i sastav masnih kiselina (MK) i tokoferola. Sagledan je uticaj genotipa, spoljne sredine i njihove interakcije na analizirana svojstva. Na variranje srednjih vrednosti prinosa, komponenti prinosa, sadržaja C16:0, C18:0 i C18:3 su najviše uticali faktori spoljne sredine (44‒81% ukupne varijacije). Glavni efekat genotipa je bio preovlađujući (48‒82% ukupne varijacije) za sadržaj C18:1, C18:2 i C22:1, kao i za sadržaj α-tokoferola. Heritabilnost MHS, SU, SP, svih MK izuzev C18:0, kao i α-tokoferola je bila visoka (>74%). Za većinu analiziranih osobina je utvrđena međusobna zavisnost. Veza između PS sa PU i PP je bila jaka pozitivna, dok je veza SU i SP bila jaka negativna. AMMI modelom je ispitana interakcija genotip‒spoljna sredina. Pomoću ovog modela su izdvojeni perspektivni stabilni genotipovi uljane repice, pre svega po PS, PU i SU. Linija NS-L-251 se istakla stabilnošću i visokim SU, dok je sorta Nevena bila najmanje stabilna. Visok stabilan PS su imale NS-L-136 i NS-L-32. Prema parametrima prinosa klaster analizom su izdvojena dva klastera. Na osnovu MK sastava svi genotipovi su grupisani u dva klastera, pri čemu je NS-L-102 zbog značajnih odstupanja, pre svega u sadržaju C18:1 i C22:1, jedini član drugog klastera. Za dalji rad se predlaže pedigre selekcija i primena konvergentnog oplemenjivanja. Preporučuje se poboljšanje sorte Slavica ukrštanjem sa NS-L-251. U cilju stvaranja visokooleinske uljane repice predlaže se ukrštanje NS-L-7 sa sortama Zlatna i Kata.This dissertation provides the analyses of yield and seed quality of 40 divergent winter rapeseed genotypes in four growing seasons. The following features were examined: yield (SY), oil (OY) and protein yield (PY), 1000 seed weight (TSW), oil (OC) and protein content (PC), content and composition of fatty acids (FA) and tocopherols. The effect of genotype, environment and their interaction on the analyzed traits was assessed. The environmental factors had most effect (44‒81% of overall variation) on variation of yield, yield components, and content of C16:0, C18:0 and C18:3. The main effect of the genotype was predominant (48‒82% of overall variation) for C18:1, C18:2 and C22:1, and α-tocopherol content. The heritability of OC and PC, TSW, all FA except C18:0, as well as α-tocopherols was high (>74%). Significant correlations were found for most of the analyzed traits. SY was in strong positive correlation with OY and PY, while OC and PC were in strong negative correlation. AMMI model was applied to examine the G × E interactions. Perspective stable rapeseed genotypes were identified, primarily in terms of SY, OY and OC. The line NS-L-251 stood out for its stability and high OC, while Nevena was the least stable. NS-L-136 and NS-L-32 had a high stable SY. According to the yield parameters, genotypes were separated into two clusters. Based on the FA composition, all genotypes were grouped into two clusters, with NS-L-102 being the only member of the second cluster due to significant deviations, primarily in the content of C18:1 and C22:1. For further work, pedigree selection and convergent breeding are proposed. It is recommended to improve Slavica by crossing it with NS-L-251. In order to create high‒oleic rapeseed, it is proposed to cross NS-L-7 with Zlatna and Kata

The polished stone artefacts in the life of the Starčevo and Sopot culture population of eastern Croatia

Ovim radom obrađene su kamene glačane izrađevine neolitičkih lokaliteta Selci Đakovački-Kaznica-Rutak, Belišće-Staro Valpovo, Kneževi Vinogradi-Osnovna škola, Osijek-Filipovica (Hermanov vinograd) i Stari Perkovci-Debela šuma. Materijal potječe s lokaliteta koji pripadaju starčevačkoj i sopotskoj kulturi, a radi se o nalazištima istraživanim u različitom opsegu i različitim metodološkim pristupima. U analizi kamenih glačanih izrađevina promatran je cjelokupan lanac operacija, odnosno različite faze tehnološkog procesa, od odabira i prikupljanja sirovine, obrade, uporabe, odbacivanja i ponovne uporabe. Kamene glačane izrađevine pojavljuju se na ovome području s nosiocima starčevačke kulture i već od samog početka pokazuju razvijene oblike. Njihov broj nije velik, i teško da se može govoriti o razvijenoj industriji kamenih glačanih izrađevina, većinom se radi o proizvodnji pojedinačnih izrađevina kojima se zadovoljava osnovna potreba unutar naselja. Od samog početka trajanja starčevačke kulture prisutni su tesle, sjekire, batovi i pijuci, a u ukupnom broju nalaza tesle dominiraju. Ukrasni predmeti prisutni su u znatno manjoj mjeri. Sa sopotskom kulturom povećava se ukupan broj kamenih nalaza kao i tipova. Izrađevine se višestruko popravljaju i ponekad je vrlo teško pratiti čitav niz obrada i uporaba pojedinih primjeraka. Ovaj reduktivni proces doveo je i do vrlo malih dimenzija pojedinih primjeraka. Od tipoloških kategorija i na sopotskim dijelovima nalazišta dominiraju tesle, a slijede ih sjekire i dlijeta. Perforirane alatke pokazuju vrlo široku uporabnu vrijednost, a gotovo niti jedna nije sačuvana u cijelosti i većinom su napuknute na mjestu perforacije. Od ukrasnih predmeta zabilježena je tesla manjih dimenzija izrađenoa od nefrita s nalazišta Stari PerkovciDebela šuma. Proučavanjem tragova uporabe pokušalo se dati odgovor na pitanje o aktivnostima koje su se provodile kamenim glačanim izrađevinama, a koje su zasigurno bile važan faktor u svakodnevnom životu zajednice. Osim uobičajenih tragova obrade mekih sirovina, kao što je drvo, prisutni su i tragovi glačanja (npr. crnog pigmenta) te tragovi udaranja, posebice kod batova i alatki koje su u sekundarnoj uporabi korištene kao batovi. Na temelju tragova uporabe, utvrđeno je kako su glačane kamene izrađevine korištene za čitav niz radnji. Korištene su kao sjekire, tesle (bradve), dlijeta, klinovi, motike, čekići, retušeri, glačalice, rastirači, nakovanji. Na temelju tragova na proksimalnom dijelu utvrđeno je kako su bile usađivane u držak. Utvrđeno je i kako oblik izrađevine nije određivao i njihovu funkciju. Ipak, na neolitičkim lokalitetima najveći je broj kamenih glačanih izrađevina sa sječivom rabljen u obradi drveta. Na izrađevinama su obavljene petrografske i mineraloške analize s ciljem da se na makroskopskoj osnovi utvrdi sirovinska pripadnost te ponude mogući izvori i porijeklo primarnih i sekundarnih sirovinskih nalazišta, a time i mogući pravci kretanja među zajednicama. Zbog blizine obrađenih lokaliteta, ali i utvrđenih sirovina, potpuno je opravdano zaključiti kako sirovine za njihovu izradu potječu iz okolnih brdovitih područja, posebice kruga Slavonskih planina, kao i dostupnih riječnih korita. Rad je upotpunjen prilozima koji sadrže table nacrtanog materijala, fotografije materijala, fotografije snimljenih tragova uporabe i karte nalazišta.This dissertation examines polished stone artifacts from the neolithic sites of Selci Đakovački-Kaznica-Rutak, Belišće-Staro Valpovo, Kneževi Vinogradi-Primary School, Osijek-Filipovica (Herman's Vineyard) and Stari Perkovci-Debela šuma. The material originates from the sites belonging to the Starčevo and Sopot culture, while the sites themselves were explored to different extents and with varying methodology, which influenced the final result, as well as the quality of the data. In the analysis of polished stone artifacts, the entire chain of operations, i.e., different phases of the technological process, from the selection and collection of raw materials, processing, use, waste and reuse with various finishing techniques were observed. For the area in question, polished stone artifacts appear in advanced shapes from the very beginning with the bearers of Starčevo culture. Their number is not large and we can hardly talk about a developed manufacture, since they were made individually to meet the basic needs of the settlement (Antonović 2014a). From the very beginning of Starčevo culture there are adzes, axes, batons and pickaxes, and adzes dominate among the total number of finds. Among the ornamental finds, only the fragment of a green hoop from the Kaznica Rutak site is known and a chisel made of green slate from the Kneževi Vinogradi site. With the Sopot culture, the total number of stone finds and types increases. Artifacts were repaired multiple times and sometimes it is very difficult to follow a whole set of processing and use of individual items. This reductive process has led to very small dimensions of individual specimens. By studying traces of use, an attempt was made determine what the objects were used for, certainly an important factor in the community's survival. In addition to the usual traces of soft raw materials such as wood, there are also traces of polishing (e.g. black pigment) and hitting traces, especially with batons and tools used as bats in secondary use. In terms of typology, adzes are prevalent on the Sopot sites as well. One difference is that on the Osijek-Filipovica site, there is a significant share of perforated tools, which are rare among the finds form Debela šuma and Kazina-Rutak sites in all the research campaigns. Perforated tools show a wide variety of use. Virtually none of them have been completely preserved and they are often cracked around the perforation. Among the decorative objects, there is a smaller adze made of nephrite from the Stari Perkovci-Debela šuma site. Based on traces of use, it was found that polished stone artifacts were used for a whole range of actions. They were used as axes, adzes, chisels, wedges, mots, hammers, retouchers, smoothing tools, handstones, anvils. Based on traces on the proximal part, it was found that they were mounted onto a handle. It was also established that the design did not determine their function. Nevertheless, on the neolithic sites, the largest number of polished stone artifacts was used for cutting wood. Petrographic and mineral analyses were carried out in order to determine the raw material on a macroscopic basis and to provide the sources and origin of primary and secondary raw materials which could indicate their movement among the communities. Because of the proximity of the observed sites, but also of the established raw materials, it is entirely justified to believe that raw materials used in the production of polished stone artifacts originated from the surrounding hills, especially the Slavonian Mountains

Polished stone tools of the Čepin-Ovčara/Turkish cemetery sites

In the course of the ten-year research of the Sopot culture settlement on site Čepin- Ovčara/Turkish cemetary, a great amount of stone finds were collected that together with ceramic finds, make the most numerous movable inventory. Most finds from this site are tools made by chipping techniques (cores, flakes, blades, bladelets, endscrapers, drills, arrows). Some fragments of grindstones, stone palettes, whetstones, spreaders etc.) that were found, were made of unpolished rough tools. The tools made by grinding technique were various types of axes, adzes, chisels, hammers, picks, perforated tools, stone rings and polished globule. In this paper stone polished tools collected in all campaigns of systematic research from 1997 until 2006 have been analyzed and together with other Sopot finds make the Neolithic collection of the Prehistory subdepartment of the Museum of Slavonia in Osijek. A total of 99 items of polished stone tools classified into 23 stratigraphic units has been analysed. The typology of D. Antonović has been applied in the tool analysis which refers to polished stone tools of the most important Starčevo sites in Serbia. The bulk of tools comprises fragments whose typological affiliation can only be assumed. It is mostly about cutting edge and top fragments and it is to emphasize that the bulk of tools is second-hand tools which lost their original shape completely. Apart from typological approach, the tools have been examined also from the mineralogical-petrographic aspect in order to achieve a better insight into raw material selection of the Neolithic population. Petrographic analysis confirmed presence of 16 rock sorts, some of which have been represented with only one sample. Sandstone is the most frequently used raw material followed by chevron, granite, basalt. Diversity in using stone raw materials has also been noted at this site but by choice it does not stand out from the neighbouring Sopot sites. Absence of a clear archaeological context is a great disadvantage in examining this material, thus we do not know the exact position within the Sopot settlement or their relation to different settlement’s objects or other artifacts. In spite of that certain data can be read. This primarily refers to frequent secondary usage of the one and the same tool. This fact indicates to the conclusion that stone as raw material was precious for the inhabitants of this site and they would throw it away only after they had used up all its potential. This can be seen in reprocessed wedges. As for the making of tools we can assume that these were made within the settlements. This is supported by the finds of stone palettes and grindstones that were used to make the tools. The question arises if there was a division of labour in production in Neolithic settlements i.e. division according to the profession or if throughout the Neolithic each individual produced and made all that was necessary for individual existence. Supplying stones and knowledge of particular sort of stones, time and skill necessary to process it as well as the making of necessary items leads to an assumption that there was a division of labour at least of primitive kind to certain production groups, separation of individuals who spent most of their time in producing the mentioned items and supplying other goods that they did not manage to produce through surplus. By introduction of new materials the importance of stone material decreases but leaves its trace in formation of metal tools existing today still in a slightly different form

The effect of genotype, environment and their interaction on yield and seed quality of rapeseed

U radu je analiziran prinos i kvalitet semena 40 divergentnih genotipova ozime uljane repice tokom četiri vegetacione sezone. Analizirani su prinos semena (PS), ulja (PU) i proteina (PP), masa 1000 semena (MHS), sadržaj ulja (SU) i proteina (SP), sadržaj i sastav masnih kiselina (MK) i tokoferola. Sagledan je uticaj genotipa, spoljne sredine i njihove interakcije na analizirana svojstva. Na variranje srednjih vrednosti prinosa, komponenti prinosa, sadržaja C16:0, C18:0 i C18:3 su najviše uticali faktori spoljne sredine (44‒81% ukupne varijacije). Glavni efekat genotipa je bio preovlađujući (48‒82% ukupne varijacije) za sadržaj C18:1, C18:2 i C22:1, kao i za sadržaj α-tokoferola. Heritabilnost MHS, SU, SP, svih MK izuzev C18:0, kao i α-tokoferola je bila visoka (>74%). Za većinu analiziranih osobina je utvrđena međusobna zavisnost. Veza između PS sa PU i PP je bila jaka pozitivna, dok je veza SU i SP bila jaka negativna. AMMI modelom je ispitana interakcija genotip‒spoljna sredina. Pomoću ovog modela su izdvojeni perspektivni stabilni genotipovi uljane repice, pre svega po PS, PU i SU. Linija NS-L-251 se istakla stabilnošću i visokim SU, dok je sorta Nevena bila najmanje stabilna. Visok stabilan PS su imale NS-L-136 i NS-L-32. Prema parametrima prinosa klaster analizom su izdvojena dva klastera. Na osnovu MK sastava svi genotipovi su grupisani u dva klastera, pri čemu je NS-L-102 zbog značajnih odstupanja, pre svega u sadržaju C18:1 i C22:1, jedini član drugog klastera. Za dalji rad se predlaže pedigre selekcija i primena konvergentnog oplemenjivanja. Preporučuje se poboljšanje sorte Slavica ukrštanjem sa NS-L-251. U cilju stvaranja visokooleinske uljane repice predlaže se ukrštanje NS-L-7 sa sortama Zlatna i Kata.This dissertation provides the analyses of yield and seed quality of 40 divergent winter rapeseed genotypes in four growing seasons. The following features were examined: yield (SY), oil (OY) and protein yield (PY), 1000 seed weight (TSW), oil (OC) and protein content (PC), content and composition of fatty acids (FA) and tocopherols. The effect of genotype, environment and their interaction on the analyzed traits was assessed. The environmental factors had most effect (44‒81% of overall variation) on variation of yield, yield components, and content of C16:0, C18:0 and C18:3. The main effect of the genotype was predominant (48‒82% of overall variation) for C18:1, C18:2 and C22:1, and α-tocopherol content. The heritability of OC and PC, TSW, all FA except C18:0, as well as α-tocopherols was high (>74%). Significant correlations were found for most of the analyzed traits. SY was in strong positive correlation with OY and PY, while OC and PC were in strong negative correlation. AMMI model was applied to examine the G × E interactions. Perspective stable rapeseed genotypes were identified, primarily in terms of SY, OY and OC. The line NS-L-251 stood out for its stability and high OC, while Nevena was the least stable. NS-L-136 and NS-L-32 had a high stable SY. According to the yield parameters, genotypes were separated into two clusters. Based on the FA composition, all genotypes were grouped into two clusters, with NS-L-102 being the only member of the second cluster due to significant deviations, primarily in the content of C18:1 and C22:1. For further work, pedigree selection and convergent breeding are proposed. It is recommended to improve Slavica by crossing it with NS-L-251. In order to create high‒oleic rapeseed, it is proposed to cross NS-L-7 with Zlatna and Kata

Marine shell hoard from the Late Neolithic site of Čepin-Ovčara (Slavonia, Croatia)

The focus of this paper is the ornament hoard from the Sopot culture site of Čepin-Ovčara in eastern Slavonia (the Republic of Croatia). The hoard contained pendants and beads made of shells of marine clam Spondylus gaederopus and scaphopod Antalis vulgaris. The paper analyses the context and use wear of the objects in the hoard. The results form a basis for: the reconstruction of the role of some of the items and the ways in which they were worn; the premise that the dynamics and mechanisms of acquisition of ornaments made of the two Mediterranean mollusc species could have differed; and the identification of a cross-cultural pattern of deposition of ornament hoards.V članku se osredotočamo na zakladno najdbo z nakitom iz časa sopotske kulture na najdišču Čepin-Ovčara v vzhodni Slavoniji (Republika Hrvaška). Depo vsebuje obeske in jagode, izdelane iz lupin morskih školjk vrste Spondylus gaederopus in polžkov vrste Antalis vulgaris. V članku analiziramo kontekste in sledove uporabe teh izdelkov. Rezultati nam nudijo osnovo za: rekonstrukcijo vloge nekaterih izdelkov in načinov nošenja nakita; premiso o različnih dinamikah in mehanizmih pridobivanja okrasov iz dveh sredozemskih vrst mehkužcev; in za prepoznavanje medkulturnih vzorcev odlaganja zakladnih najdb z nakitom

Imported molluscs in the Central Balkans and Southern Carpathian Basin in the Neolithic revisited

The trade and exchange of marine mollusc shells in the Neolithic and the Eneolithic in Europe is a very interesting topic that attracted attention by many scholars. The phenomenon of Spondylus trade in particular was addressed from different perspectives. However, the entire European region is not researched in an uniform way. In regions such as present-day Bulgaria or Hungary the evidence of marine molluscs is rich and diverse, mainly due to intensive research of cemeteries with rich burial equipment. The archaeological record from the area in between, namely western and central Balkans and the southern Carpathian basin (roughly present-day Serbia and Croatia) is somewhat different; furthermore, it was never systematically studied. The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of current evidence regarding the distribution of the imported marine mollusc shells in this region and also to re-analyse earlier hypotheses in the light of the current evidence. Some 40 years ago, it was suggested, after the information available at the time, that only the sites along the Danube took part in the Spondylus trade during the Late Neolithic. However, mollusc shells were present in the area already in the Early Neolithic Starčevo culture, furthermore, they may be found in the Late Neolithic in the entire Balkan area. The main obstacle for the interpretation is inadequate research, but also specific trait of the Neolithic in the area with very few burials discovered. Findings are limited to predominantly discarded, broken and/or lost ornaments from settlements and the quantity of ornaments seems modest in comparison with other parts of Europe. However, current evidence shows that the ornaments from mollusc were highly valued items, and that the central Balkan area was an important trading route through which these ornaments were further distributed throughout the Neolithic period.[https://www.e-a-a.org/eaa2022/] [javascript://[Uploaded files/EAA 2022/EAA 2022 Abstract Book 27 August.pdf]

Neolithic multiculturalism: zones of contact of various communities

Although the term „archaeological culture“ has been criticised from different viewpoints in past several decades, it is still a useful analytical tool (however, must be used with caution) to discern and label prehistoric communities that share similar or identical material culture. Micro-regions where traces of communities ascribed to different contemporaneous cultures are particularly interesting for studying cultural contacts and cultural changes in the past. One of such regions is south-eastern Baranja region in present-day eastern Croatia, where communities of Vinča, Sopot and Lengyel culture lived in the 5th millennium BC. Although this area was long regarded as being populated by Sopot culture communities, recent archaeological researches showed an important presence of Lengyel culture communities in this area. In this paper will be presented two Late Neolithic sites situated in vicinity of Beli Manastir: Kneževi Vinogradi, with archaeological remains attributed to the Sopot and Vinča cultures, and Kotlina, with archaeological remains attributed to the Lengyel culture. At the site of Kneževi Vinogradi, small-scale rescue excavations revealed several structures from Late Neolithic, and the material culture with traits of both Sopot and Vinča cultures. Recent systematic researches at the site of Kotlina revealed a large Lengyel culture site, with habitation structures, burials, and rich material culture. Particularly interesting is the presence of artefacts from exotic raw materials, such as obsidian and marine mollusc shells, showing that Kotlina was part of large trade and exchange network. The habitation patterns, subsistence and economy, and material culture from these two sites will be analysed, as well as their possible place within a larger network of Late Neolithic communities in the region