Kisné Cseh Julianna – Somorjai József szerk.: Komárom – Esztergom Megyei Múzeumok Közleményei 5. (Tata, 1997)

Bíró Mária: Contribution to the bone-industry of Brigetio

Contribution to the bone-industry of Brigetio Mária Bíró The study deals with many sides of the bone-industry in the Roman times based on the carvings of Brigetio workshop, exhibited in Dunamenti Múzeum in Slovakia. Most of the ivory carvings are weapon accessories made for the army: sword-handle knobs, scabbard clamps, sword-belt loops, reflex bow stays. Their design and implementation is of high level, of great variety of forms and a lot of them are made of ivory. The late Roman belt end illustrating a pair of galloping deers is not only aoutstanding, but unique as well. Besides the military find, ivory was also used for making jewels, combs, hair- and clothes hooks. From this field a crepundia reconstruction, made for children, deserves attention. This reconstruction should draw the attention of research to the lifelike and warying animal depiction of the ivory workshop in Brigetio. It is the first time that an attempt has been made to define a table fork from the Roman Age cutlery among the utensils of everyday life. It was also succesful to identify a Roman bone bow-tube which corresponds a Bronze Age tondüse. Most of the wood carvings weren't made at the local workshop, but were imported special quality goods carried from the central workshop. This fact also illustrates that contrary the most settlements on the limes in Brigetio the military Romanization had the leading role not the civil one. 186