Szolyák Péter - Csengeri Piroska (szerk.): A Herman Ottó Múzeum Évkönyve 56. (Miskolc, 2017)
Régészet - Tarbay, János Gábor: New Late Bronze Age Metal Finds from Gönc
A Herman Ottó Múzeum Évkönyve LVI (2017), 9—28. NEW LATE BRONZE AGE METAL FINDS FROM GÖNC Tarbay, János Gábor Hungarian National Museum, Archaeological Department Abstract: In 2018, thirty bronze artefacts were presented to the Herman Ottó Museum from a private collection. According to the collector the artefacts were found in Gönc as part of a hoard. The study discusses the dating of the finds and their technological properties. As a results of these analyses it seems that the finds can be dated between the Br D and Ha B1 periods of the Late Bronze Age, of the Late Bronze Age, and one of them is most likely an ethnographic find. Keywords: Late Bronze Age (Ha A-На Bl), uncertain hoard, typo-chronology, use-wear, private collection INTRODUCTION On January 2018, the famous Bronze Age collection of the Herman Ottó Museum, Miskolc has increased with thirty new bronze artefacts (Inv. Nos. 2018.1—31). The finds originate from a private collection and according to their previous owner, the artefacts a multi-period site near Gönc (Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County). This new site is going to be investigated in the future by colleagues from both the museum and the ELTE Institute of Archaeological Sciences.1 The aim of this brief study is to give a summary on the finds and characterize them with the aid of macroscopic observations and also discuss their typo-chronological position. The 30 bronze objects are made up of a sword, three socketed axes, eleven tanged and knobbed sickles, a cast object with disc-shaped head, a button and twelve rings of different types (Plates 1—5). Both macroscopic observations and the typological analysis suggest that not all the finds could have been part of the same assemblage. Although most objects can be dated to the Late Bronze Age (LBA), their exact chronological position varies, some are characteristic to the time interval between the Br D and Ha Al, others can be 1 Gönc lies in the area of Telkibánya where the actions of a group systematically performing illegal metal detector surveys resulted in the looting of the prominent LBA site in Telkibánya- Cserhegy (V. Szabó 2011, 339). For the protection of the site in Gönc area, here I will not discuss the exact topographic position of the finds. For more information see the Notes in the Archaeological Inventory Book of the Herman Otto Museum, Miskolc, Hungary. dated to the Ha Al or to the Ha Bl periods. Most finds are too common to be accurately dated within the Late Bronze Age, and a ring is likely to be identified as an ethnographic find (Cat. No. 30, Inv. No. 2018.1.31).2 CATALOGUE 1. sword (Inv. No. 2018.1.8): Rhomboid-sectioned sword tip with outline grooves. According to the private collector it was found broken into three pieces. Two fragments were lost, and only one remained. The lower part of the tip is missing due to recent breakage, the upper part was altered by plow-damage. Its surface is well-polished, and the cutting edges are sharp with many blade impacts on one side (See Plate 6. 1). It might be a result of intentional prehistoric damage caused by a sharp-edged tool. Length: 67.09 mm; Width: 31.48 mm; Thickness: 6.21 mm; Weight: 34.2 g. (Plate 1.1) 2. socketed axe (Inv. No. 2018.1.17): Intact, ovalsectioned socketed axe with asymmetrical beaked mouth and a loop. Three curved, cast ribs are visible below the bevelled and everted rim. The casting seams were completely removed, only a slight mismatch defect can be seen on one side of the tool. Due to the condition 2 I am not aware of comparable Bronze Age finds. According to Zsuzsa Hajnal (Hungarian National Museum, Archaeological Department), similar ribbed rings with the same rasping marks are common in the Hungarian ethnographic material.
