Somogyi Múzeumok Közleményei 18. (Kaposvár, 2008)

FEKETE CSANÁD: Predictive archaeological modelling in Somogy county

loessy area of Southern Outer-Somogy, while its western part ranges into the silty area of Inner-Somogy.

2 The waterparting of the Kapos and the Balaton is nearly N-S directed here. On the eastern part of the inspected territory the surface consists of strongly segmented meridional ridges that rise towards north. They are segmented by emphasised stream basins, the Deseda and its side-branches. The watershed can be kilometres wide at certain places, while elswhere it only extends to a few hundred metres. It is a lower, less segmented territory with a thick loess cover, which is well outlined by the lack of archaeological sites as well. West of it, the valley of the Pogány-víz can be found, which is another strongly segmented region with densely distributed stream basins.

3 The territory of Outer-Somogy is covered by loessy soils that developed during the last Ice Age, which are only sporadically covered by brown forest soils of a chernozem character. The main soil type of the vast, alluvial cone of Inner-Somogy and the sandy valleys of Outer-Somogy is the brown forest soil mixed with clay, evolved on sand. The area was mostly covered with beech and oak before the significant human activity.

4 Field-survey The National Office of Cultural Herritage and the Somogy County Museum Archaeology Department launched a joint project in the spring of 1999 with the purpose of the complex exploration of the environment of the iron metallurgical sites in Somogy county with fieldwalkings. As the purpose of the field work was to authenticate the sites in the course of systematic fieldwalking and to explore every pontential new sites, the extensive method was chosen. The available areas of the fields of the individual villages were inspected at least once, and fairly often repeated it more times. Regrettably, significant territories remained unattainable during the five-year-research, because they were covered and not ploughed. Initially we chose the systematic method of field-walking, that meant each approachable field was inspected with the participants walking 50 meters from one another. After knowing the geographical characters of the region this method was given up and we only surveyed systematicly the areas, that seemed to be suitable for settlements and took samples from the rest of the territories.

5 2 This territory - is known as Southern-Outer-Somogy depression used to have a dipped basin-like surface that can hardly be recognized because it is covered by thick loessy soil accumulated on the surface, which towers above the floodplain of the river Kapos nowadays. 3 SZILÁRD 1967, 57-58, 93-98, 100-104. 4 PÉCSI 1981, 254. 5 It is an important fact that the extension of the sites, identified by surface finds, do not surely correspond with the extension identified by a possible excavation. The extension on the surface can become distorted because of ploughing and natural erosion. However, this feature is not so significant. According to the experiences of the MO motorway fieldwalking and preliminary excavations, in the case of A short archaeological introduction of the inspected area Drawing the prehistoric cultural picture is the hardest task because the number of the sites that cannot certainly be associated with any of the cultures is extremely high. Hence, it is sure that the density of the prehistoric sites is diverse, which matches the above-mentioned features of the natural environment: the greatest density was found where the largest open territories could be observed (Somogyjád), while the lowest density appeared where extensive forests cover the area even to date (Somogyfajsz, Pusztakovácsi). The conclusions of the settlement history of the Celtic-Roman Age uncover deeper connections. Farmstead-like units of both dwelling and economic functions were the basic constituents of the Celtic settlements. They were either independent units or stood in a cluster forming a rural settlement (vici). In our region, settlements of this character appeared in a string along the stream valleys. The farmsteads stood at a few hundred metres or, maximum, a few kilometres apart from each other. Sherds could be collected in the area of 50-200 m of the one-time manors. The Romans deliberetly chose the best fields and it did not settle on territories on poor, barren sandy soils. The results of the field survey support this observation since only two sites could be registered on the sandy territory west of Bodrog village. The number of the sites dated from the Migration Period is the lowest. The Avar sites were mostly found at the feet of the N-S extended hill ranges, on the banks of watercourses or next to springs. Huge number of Middle Age sites were found on the inspected territory. Relatively few of them contained finds from the early Árpádian Period, in contrast with this many sites were contained finds from the later phases of the Middle Ages. They could be found everywhere where the environment was suitable for settlements, which suggests that there were still many temporary, scattered settlements, which occured not only around villages with churches but everywhere. It is worth to mention the iron metallurgical sites that can be found on the banks of shallow streams or springs, where meadow ore can the easiest be found. Another important condition was the proximity of forests where raw material could be obtained for charcoal. Practically the entire Somogy county met these demands in the Middle Ages.

6 the 80% of the sites their extensions determined first on the surface and than by excavation were corresponded with each other. (By the oral message of Edit Tari) 6 FEKETE-HONTI-HORVÁTH-JANKOVICH-KOROM-KÖLTÖ 2005, 94-105.