H. Bathó Edit – Kertész Róbert – Tolnay Gábor – Vadász István szerk.: Tisicum - A Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok Megyei Múzeumok Évkönyve 11. (1999)

Glass Finds from the 4th-6th Centuries on Settlements in Environs of Kengyel (with A History Of The Research)

JÁNOS CSEH GLASS FINDS FROM THE 4TH-6TH CENTURIES ON SETTLEMENTS IN ENVIRONS OF KENGYEL (WITH A SHORT HISTORY OF RESEARCH) Three years ago, in the spring of 1995, a short writing was published in the newspaper of Mesterszállás entitled Falufigyelő where glass finds were presented. These are pieces of the archaeological matériái of my settlement excavations near Kengyel village, from the sites Kengyelpart I and Baghy-homok. In our present paper we give a proper description of the objects with graphical illustration of the places they turnéd up. Before this part there is a short history of investigation of the glasses dated back to the Early Migration Period considering them Gépid (precisely ones having used by them). In the period between 1889 and 1928 glasses resp. finds, metál fittings indicating them were found on four sites (Apahida I, i.e. first princely grave, then Mezó'kászony resp. Barabás, Mezőbánd and Kiszombor). The objects from Barabás and Kiszombor are the most important, the former from the 5th century is very luxurious, the latter is dated back to the 6th century as it is from Reihengráberkultur. Following the mentioned period, archaeology knows about glass vessels in environs of Nagyvárad (two sites). Regarding the researching term after the World War II, the first finds were unearthed at Malomfalva - the very first large Gépid settlement as well as cemetery -, then alsó from the 6th century the splendid beaker of Jakovo was excavated. As one of the archaeological relics near Malomfalva, the Vinkovci find is of a settlement as well. These are, nevertheless, only smaller fragments. From the years between 1960 and 1977 we can refer to Baráthely, Gencs, Apahida II (second princely grave) and Hódmezővásárhely. Near Baráthely, in the great Gépid village, the glass fragments were uncovered out of pit-houses. Gencs and Apahida (grave-goods) are outstanding among Gépid glasses. The latest import vessels of the 4th-6th centuries are in connection with the settlement excavations (1984-1995) carried out in the Middle Tisza Region (Tiszafüred and Kengyel). From the fields of the latter we have knowledge of seven-eight glass pieces in all, the greater part comes from the Laté Román Age (4th-5th centuries). In those days these drinking vessels of higher value i.e. fancy goods were on tables, and they can hardly be reconstructed in their exact forms. These transparent or semi-transpapent glasses in greenish ground colour arrived to the Eastern Germans along the Middle Tisza from workshops at the Rhine, in Northern Italy and by the Pontus. We can rightly regard them as important, typical evidences of trading connections in the early centuries of the Middle Ages. 30