Alba Regia. Annales Musei Stephani Regis. – Alba Regia. Az István Király Múzeum Évkönyve. 8.-9. 1967-1968 – Szent István Király Múzeum közleményei: C sorozat (1968)

Tanulmányok – Abhandlungen - Éry Kinga, K.: Reconstruction on the tenth Century Population of Sárbogárd on the Basis of Archaeoloogical and Anthropological Data. – A sárbogárdi X. századi közösség rekonstrukciója régészeti és embertani adatok alapján. VIII–IX, 1967–68. p. 93–147. t. XXVI–XLV.

VI. BRIEF SOCIAL HISTORY On the basis of the results of my examination I shall attempt to depict the summarized social history of the community of Sárbogárd in the following section. After the conquest by the Magyars in 896, when Transdanubia was occupied and the area was divided up among the tribes around 900, a smaller group of the conquerors received permission to settle on the left bank of the Sárvíz on a slightly rising area of the Mezőföld Plain in the camping area of the Megyer tribe. The majority of the entering group was likely composed of males who did not seem to be closely related and did not form an extended family. But their characteristic and rich non-material culture shows that they originated from the same tribe or clan. The first settlers, even if they brought a few women from their previous camping area, selected their new wives from among the dwellers of the area. The small community was likely composed of 25—30 members of 4—5 families. Average life expectancy of this population at birth was 32.1 years, which in reality was likely to have been about 28—30 years. The mortality of males ad females greatly differed. The majority of the males died at a younger age and hardly a few survived until old age. On the other hand a significant percentage of the females reached old age. These differences in mortality was probably caused by the circumstance that the males and their descendants found it difficult to adjust to the environment and therefore did not have a strong resistance to the prevailing illnesses. The several developmental anomalies and more serious pathological changes occurring mainly among males probably can be attributed to the same cause. The great number of arthritic changes seems to indicate the unfavourable social conditions of the entire community. Due to horseback riding their bones were frequently fractured. The economic basis of this group was probably animal breeding for which the rich pastures of the swampy area were very favourable. We have dependable data on horse, cattle, sheep (or goat) and hen breeding. The head of the first generation of settlers was male 33, which was indicated costume and also by the location of his grave in the cemetery. After his death the head of the group became male 5, whose rank was expressed even by the 7 arrows in his possession. The population was likely simply dressed. Their clothing was rarely ornamented by metal objects and they wore jewellry only of a few and very simple types. The most richly buried members of the community were the men. Although objects are found somewhat less frequently in their graves than in the graves of women, these are more varied in type than the ones put into the graves of women and children. Grave furniture was most frequently included with men between 15 and 40, while above 40 years of age the number of goods gradually reduced. Between 40 and 60 years of age more types of objects were included with men —even if more rarely found

—than with younger age groups. Their goods are largely economic implements or weapons, but they also wore jewellry. Their graves rarely include items from burial rites. The women

—probably because of their alien origin

— were supplied with less grave furniture. Adult women between 15 and 21 and 40 and 60 rather frequently received grave goods, but the most varied types of objects were in the graves of women above 60 years of age. Naturally in most instances these comprise jewellry but economic implements and ritual objects were found in equal proportion in their graves. The established rules of female dress seem to follow from the phenomenon that beads were not likely worn by women after reaching sexual maturity. Many types of objects were included in childrens' graves, but primarily ritual objects. Economic implements were not found in their graves. Several observations in addition to those concerning the peculiarities of clothing can be made about the body of beliefs of the community. It had to be of extreme importance for a community newly entering alien territory to gain the good will and support of its gods and ancestory for building the new home and for the growth of the clan and its economic strength. Therefore primarily in honor of the totem animal of the community a calf was sacrificed and buried on the northwestern edge of the cemetery with mutilated forelegs in order to prevent its spirit from wandering away. Since the community, as a herding people, was very familiar with astronomy, it was easy for them to dig the four sides of the grave of the sacrificial animal exactly in the direction of the four main points of the compass. After this cattle offering they erected a giant wooden pole on the eastern edge of the area marked off for burial purposes. On this they likely hung a sign or object whose purpose was to guard the peace of the dead and to keep away evil spirits. So that the evil could more effectively be kept out, special attention was paid when erecting the "totem pole" so that the four walls of the pit faced the four points of the compass. Presumably in later years the community gathered around this "totem pole" on several occasions for holding ceremonies and on two occasions, probably at the death of the two heads of the community, the corpse of a sacrificed animal was carefully buried around the "totem pole". It is likely due to the different origin of the people of Sárbogárd that rather the graves of men were in a westeast direction, while the graves of women were oriented northwest

—southeast. Later we can observe a certain uniformity in orientation developing and the graves begin to be oriented slightly towards the southwest. The community generally buried their dead without coffins, but they were familiar with the custom of wrapping up the dead and the use of the wooden coffin too. The dead were put into the grave in an extended position, but their lower arms were quite frequently bent and placed on the trunk in varied positions. Every so often the remains of the animals consumed at the funeral feast were buried with the dead as food for the journey. The community of Sárbogárd was buried in the studied cemetery for approximately 70—90 years. We can only make guesses as to why the cemetery ceased to function 126