Dr. T. Tóth szerk.: Studia historico-anthropologica (Anthropologia Hungarica 17. Budapest, 1981)

ANTHROPOLOGIA HUNGARICA XVII. 1980-1981 p. 65-107 Anthropological investigation of the Arpadian Age population of Szabolcs-Petőfi utca By I. PAP (Received June 12, 1981) Abstract: In this paper can be found the elaboration of 377 individuals' osteological material of the 10th-12th century population originating from North-East Hungary. The author provides new data for a better knowledge of the palaeoanthropological problems of this area. With 15 tables, 27 figures. There are only two Arpadian Age cemeteries have been elaborated up till now (Gáva-Vásártér, Tiszalök-Rázompuszta) from this territory of North-East Hungary abounding in archaeological sites of the age of Conquering Hungarians. Therefore it is very important to study the anthropological findings of the Arpadian Age population of this area. THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE EXCAVATION The excavation of the 10th-12th century cemetery of Szabolcs-Petőfi-utca has begun in connection with the search of the administration and power centre at Szabolcs. They dug up 391 mainly South-West— North-East oriented graves during the excavation which were continued yearly between 1969 and 1974 and led by L. KOVÁCS, research worker of the Archaeological Institute of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. A certain part of the cemetery is not excavated. According to KOVÁCS, the cemetery may have had 500-600 burials, taking the graves supposed to be destroyed into consideration. In the archaeologist's opinion a part of servants of the Szabolcs earthwork have been buried in this cemetery (KOVÁCS 1976). The rescued anthropological material has been placed in the Anthropological Department of the Hungarian Natural History Museum under grave numbers 71.16.1. - 71.16.35., 72.1.1. 72.1.145., 72.4.1. - 72.4.60., 79.3.1. - 79.3.144. The elaboration has been made by the graves numbers because of easier to work. MATERIAL AND METHOD An account of possible destroying, the graves containing skeletons of some individuals and the further scattered bones made the cemetery to have 403 individuals. According to the investigations of LENGYEL two probably Arpadian Age graves and the material of other four graves had been taken into the earth before the Arpadian Age, they were not taken into consideration during the elaboraton. We have no anthropological material from other 20 graves. On the basis of these things the osteological material of 377 individuals has been elaborated from the excavated 391 graves.