Fegyveres szarmata temetkezések Bükkábrány-Határszegen

The settlement of Bükkábrány is located in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County, along Road Ё, near Vatta, Csincse, and Mezőkeresztes settlements (Fig. Ͽ). The natural environment is very interesting, located in a mosaic area that greatly influences the archaeological sites, called Borsodi Mezőség. Significant lignite deposits with huge extraction potential have been known in this area since geological exploration in the 1960s. The Bükkábrány mine has been operating since 1985, the rescue excavations associated with this mining area started in 2007 by Herman Ottó Museum (Miskolc). In 2011, a well-defined zone was mapped, when the mining and the excavations reached the area of Csincse Stream and its elevated bank. In 2013–2014, graves of a large Sarmatian cemetery were found on the west bank of this stream as part of sites Bükkábrány, Bánya (Mine) XI/B and XII/B. Widespread looting was observed in this cemetery, however, a wide variety of artifacts remained in the graves. The male graves after the robbery characterized by weapons, are presented in this paper (Str. 1673, Str. 47, Str. 76, Str. 170, Str. 173). Unfortunately, only 107 graves of this cemetery could be excavated, the area between the two cemetery parts was destroyed by mining activities. Until the artifacts are fully processed, we can only assume that the two parts belonged to the same cemetery, although the rows of graves that once stood together can be well seen on the map. One of the interesting features about the graves and the cemetery is that they are located directly outside of the Csörsz Ditch (Fig. 2). The male graves with weapons are difficult to take to a well-defined chronological unit because there are only a few finds that made dating possible. These burials were looted almost completely, in some cases no bones survived and finds were also damaged. Grave 1673 is separated from other burials with weapons (Fig. 8). The triangularshaped spearhead found in this burial is a common type, that appeared from the 2nd–3rd century, but it was also used in the 5th century. Besides, the burial contained a 2nd-century silver coin, an iron knife, and a semicircular iron buckle (Fig. 3). Based on these finds, dating is difficult. In grave 47, an iron spearhead and an axe were found (Fig. 4: 1, 4). The spear was fragmentary and the shape of the axe does not allow the dating. However, iron axes appear from phase C2-D at the territory of the Przeworsk Culture, but we did not find a similar form in this area. The type of silver brooch with returned foot (Almgren 166) found in grave 76 appeared from the early 3rd century to the 4th century (phase C1b-C3). A bronze bell, a long double-edged sword, and some arrowheads were found in this grave, but these finds do not make a more exact dating possible (Fig. 5). The sword found in grave 170 is similar to the weapon of grave 76 (Fig. 6: 1) and both swords had wooden scabbards. The type of domed shield boss (Type Zieling P) found in grave 173 appeared in Przeworsk contexts in phase C2-C3 and became more widespread from the early 4th century. In this grave, a trapezoid shield grip is dated to phase C1a-C1b, but usually, the type of this shield boss and grip appear together in the burials of the Przeworsk Culture (Fig. 6: 3, 7). Finally, two of these graves with weapons can be dated more exactly. The type of brooch and bell found in grave 76 suggest a dating to the second half of the 3rd century. The domed shield boss and the trapezoid shield grip found in grave 173 are dated to the early 4th century. Iron axes appear in this time at the area of the Przeworsk Culture, so grave 47 is associated with the second half of the 3rd century and the early 4th century. Sarmatian cemetery found at site Bükkábrány, Bánya XI/B and XII/B provided new and important data to the Roman Period of this area. Based on the weapon finds of the graves, we can assume more active connections between the northern part of the Great Hungarian Plain and the German territories

Integrating buccal and occlusal dental microwear with isotope analyses for a complete paleodietary reconstruction of Holocene populations from Hungary

Dietary reconstruction is used to make inferences about the subsistence strategies of ancient human populations, but it may also serve as a proxy to characterise their diverse cultural and technological manifestations. Dental microwear and stable isotope analyses have been shown to be successful techniques for paleodietary reconstruction of ancient populations but, despite yielding complementary dietary information, these techniques have rarely been combined within the same study. Here we present for the first time a comprehensive approach to interpreting ancient lifeways through the results of buccal and occlusal microwear, and δ13C and δ15N isotope analyses applied to the same individuals of prehistoric populations of Hungary from the Middle Neolithic to the Late Bronze Age periods. This study aimed to (a) assess if the combination of techniques yields a more precise assessment of past dietary and subsistence practices, and (b) contribute to our understanding of the dietary patterns of the prehistoric Hungarian populations. Overall, no correlations between microwear and δ13C and δ15N isotope variables were observed, except for a relationship between nitrogen and the vertical and horizontal index. However, we found that diachronic differences are influenced by the variation within the period. Particularly, we found differences in microwear and isotope variables between Middle Neolithic sites, indicating that there were different dietary practices among those populations. Additionally, microwear results suggest no changes in the abrasiveness of the diet, neither food processing methods, despite higher C4 plant resource consumption shown by carbon isotopic signal. Thus, we demonstrate that the integration of dental microwear and carbon and nitrogen stable isotope methodologies can provide complementary information for making inferences about paleodietary habits

Ancient genomes reveal origin and rapid trans-Eurasian migration of 7th century Avar elites

© 2022 The AuthorsThe Avars settled the Carpathian Basin in 567/68 CE, establishing an empire lasting over 200 years. Who they were and where they came from is highly debated. Contemporaries have disagreed about whether they were, as they claimed, the direct successors of the Mongolian Steppe Rouran empire that was destroyed by the Turks in ∼550 CE. Here, we analyze new genome-wide data from 66 pre-Avar and Avar-period Carpathian Basin individuals, including the 8 richest Avar-period burials and further elite sites from Avar's empire core region. Our results provide support for a rapid long-distance trans-Eurasian migration of Avar-period elites. These individuals carried Northeast Asian ancestry matching the profile of preceding Mongolian Steppe populations, particularly a genome available from the Rouran period. Some of the later elite individuals carried an additional non-local ancestry component broadly matching the steppe, which could point to a later migration or reflect greater genetic diversity within the initial migrant population.N