Wolf Mária: A borsodi földvár. Egy államalapítás kori megyeszékhelyünk kutatása - Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén megye régészeti emlékei 10. (Budapest - Miskolc - Szeged, 2019)
Irodalom- és rövidítésjegyzék
388 The fruit seeds discovered in the settlement were a result primarily of gathering and fit with information we have about other contemporary European regions. During this period, fruit cultivation did not play a leading role anywhere. The animal bone finds also indicate a settled lifestyle. The discovery of ploughshares immediately presupposes cattle breeding in Borsod, as oxen were the draft animals used in agriculture at that time. And indeed, an examination of the animal bones found in the settlement clearly shows the number of cattle bones far exceeded the quantities of the other bone finds. It could also be unequivocally shown that horses, of which far fewer were kept, were used as riding rather than harness animals. In Borsod, the animals kept in the second greatest quantity, after cattle, were pigs, which also points to a settled lifestyle. In Borsod, the agricultural tools brought to light during official excavations clearly demonstrate that the conquering Hungarians were familiar with and used ploughshares, sickles, short scythes, sheep shears, etc. The objects we discovered most likely do not represent the entire stock of tools in the village. That different houses yielded different tools alone is sufficient for us to reach this conclusion. We can easily imagine that during the fire, a portion of the iron objects were rescued or, afterwards, the intact objects were collected. The only house to possibly produce a complete set of tools (two ploughshares, a short scythe blade and a bell) is house no. 7. This assemblage corresponds to the tool sets of the Saltovo-Mayak culture or western Slav regions. The Borsod ploughshares and their analogies belong to the medium and light types of Saltovo ploughs, as categorized by Antal Barta. They were basically scratch ploughs (ards), and alongside them we did not find coulters. Scratch ploughs without coulters were typical tools used in slash and bum cultivation. This fits with the conclusions drawn from the examinations of grains and weeds, which clearly indicates the use of cleared land for agricultural purposes. The sickles unearthed in Borsod are toothless. This, together with the types of weeds found, indicates that when harvested, the cereal was cut very close to the ground. The weeds prove beyond a doubt that planting was done in autumn, while the spade shoe as well as the pea, lentil, onion and parsley seeds verify the existence of a garden culture. The short scythes clearly point to feed production, and the bell and sheep shears to developed animal husbandry. In addition to agriculture, the inhabitants of the village engaged in intensive hunting, as evidenced by the bones of game animals - wild boar, red deer and roe deer. Remains were also found of buffalo and brown bear, which must have been special prey. The remains show that fishing played no role in village life, although the Bódva River was scarcely an arm’s length away. Iron salamanders found in house no. 5 and other iron objects suggest that a forge was located near the settlement. No artefacts were found in the village itself, however, to indicate that smithery or other crafts were practiced in the village. As an examination of the vessels revealed, pottery was likely a home industry, as commercial ceramics were not found. Nevertheless, the settlement’s economy certainly included some trade. One portion of the millstones come from the Tokaj Mountains and the other from the Carpathians, which were also the source of the basic material used for whetstones. Although examinations failed to establish the basic components of the chainmail shirt found in house no. 3, we can presume it arrived in Borsod through commercial means. In addition to grains and agricultural tools, very rare, valuable artefacts associated with a 1 (T'-ccntury lifestyle and diet were unearthed in several houses. We discovered charred food remains in houses nos. 5 and 8. The remains of two kinds of one-course dishes were found in house no. 5. One consisted of husked millet, foxtail millet and peas baked in a paste of finely ground meal. There was no sign that meat was added to this dish; thus we can conclude this was a ‘vegetarian’ meal. The other remains have a sheen from the release of fatty acids in response to previous heat. The exterior follows the shape of the pan while the inner has a lumpy surface full of bubbles and holes. We observed husked millet seeds lodged in a finely ground meal with some peas. Scientific analysis verified that this porridge included meat, which the composition of fatty acids suggests was mutton. In house no. 8, next to the oven, we found a ceramic pot that had fallen on its side and had been filled to the brim with cooked, charred food. A mush of common wheat and rye formed the base, which was first browned in fat, presumably mutton suet. Onion and root vegetables, parsnips or rutabaga, were added and covered with water. The meat - mutton, based on the composition of the fatty acids - was cooked in the mush. The ingredients found in the remains - meat, onion, vegetables and flour - allow us to conclude this was an ‘ancient form of goulash’, and we are justified in considering this a milestone in gastronomic history. Another find from this house is equally interesting: a kind of jam made of woodland fruit, primarily sloe, wild apple, wild pear, wild rose and Cornelian cherry. We also discovered pollen among the fruit remains, which may have come from honey. As the fruits were for the most part sour, sweetener would have been necessary to balance the tartness. This mixture could not have been left on the heat without stirring. As the seeds and pits had not yet cooked off the fruit, the cooking process must have been suddenly interrupted. Presumably the fire
