Folia archeologica 52.
Vörös István: Ló az Árpád-kori Magyarországon
208 VÖRÖS Is IVAN HORSES IN MEDIAEVAL HUNGARY (Цтн _1зтн CENTURY) Charters from the Arpád-Dy nasty period are valuable sources of coeval geography, settlements and environment including vegetation and data on the history of agriculture. Among the domestic animals of economic use, the charters speak most of cattle and oxen. The second most frequently mentioned animal is the horse. In the domestic surveys, we also find references on sheep, swine, hen and goose, sometimes goat. Horses from the period of the Árpád-Dynasty can be characterised seemingly well both on the strength of archaeozoological evidence and chartered data. By the help of the osteological finds, the size and habit, on the basis of the chartered evidence, the external features of the horses, the composition and extent of the equine stock can be investigated. THE HORSE OF THE CSENGELE RUMANIAN WARRIOR A three-fold circular ditch system used to surround the church of the ÁrpádDynasty period village Csengele-Bogárhát [M5 motorway, site 14. A-Alsó (Lower) Csengele]. At a certain section of the refilled middle ditch (Nr. 25.), the traces of a large pit deepened into the interior side of the ditch came to light in May 1998 (Nr. 40., cca. 3x4 m.). Under the pit, a double grave of a warrior buried with his horse was found (Nr. 40/56-57.). On the western side of the grave (Nr. 40/57.), the skeleton of an adult man (30—35 years old) was found. The height of the man was reconstructed as 173 cm, assigned anthropologically to the Turanid race ( MARCSIK 2001, 326-). To the right of the skull supplied with a helmet, partly under them, there were remains of food donated to the deceased; the lumbar vertebra of a sheep. In the extended eastern half of the grave, the skeleton of the horse (Nr. 40/56.) was oriented opposite to the direction of the man, towards SSW-NNE, laid on the right side. The grave was dated to the second half of the 13 t h century (A.D. 1246-1259, HORVÁTH 2001, 101, 191.) The skeleton of the horse was lying in the narrow eastern part of the grave (Nr. 40/56.), on its right side. The dorsal (medial) part of the vertebral column leaning against the stone wall, while the tightly bent frontal end of the legs with forward looking hoofs were leaning against the eastern wall of the grave. The horse was put to the grave with head, neck and trunk lying regularly on the right side while the lumbar region (lumbar vertebrae, pelvis) was twisted about 60", in a manner of ventrally lying position. In the mouth of the horse, there was snaffte iron bit with 2 (1 + 1) rings and jointed mouth piece. Had the horse a bridle on its head, that could only be a plain 'halter-bridle'. Both the cheek pieces and snaffte reins were fixed in the rings of the bit. Among the dissimilar pair of stirrups, the right side piece was found over the 18 t h dorsal and the 1st lumbar vertebrae with the foot plate turned upwards, the left side stirrup was shifted to the 5th- 6th cervical vertebrae of the horse, lying on its side. The buckles of the stirrup leather were found between the two stirrups on the spinous processes of the spinal column. The girth strap buckle of the saddle was found close to the left side 10-11 t h rib-heads. On the basis of the position of the stirrups and the girth strap buckle of the saddle it seems likely that the saddle with the stirrups was placed (thrown?) into the grave, on the horse, after it was laid into its place. The skeleton of the horse comprise 210 items: head - 5 pieces: skull (Fig. 2, Fig. 3/1.), mandible and pair of tongue-bones; trunk - 125 pieces: 46 pieces of verte-
