A Nyíregyházi Jósa András Múzeum évkönyve 41. - 1999 (Nyíregyháza, 1999)

Régészet - Mikhailo Potushniak: A multilevel settlement on Mala Hora at Mukachevo/Munkács–Kishegy

Mikhailo Potushniak Test excavations also have been conducted by V. Titov in 1970. We have only a short information on the results of this investigation. According to V. Titov two levels were observed in trench of 40 m

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. The upper level belonged to a cremated burial in an urn(?), the lower one included a 6 m long, 3 m wide pit filled with cultural deposit. The cultural attribution of these levels has not been defined by the excavator. Ceramic material was dated to the end of the Copper or the beginning of the Bronze Age (TITOV 1971.238-239., TITOV 1980.300.). According to the short description of the pottery, the find assemblage of the lower level, from the pit can be probably dated to the Baden Culture. The author did not say anything on the cultural attribution of the cremation grave. Anyway, we have some information according to which the urn was decorated with a corded pattern. Finally, test excavations at the settlement have been conducted at the beginning of the 1990s by O. Dzembas (archaeological expedition of the Uzhhorod State University). We had an opportunity to study this material. This is a ceramic material belonging to different ages, but not going further than the NeolithicAeneolithic periods and is analogous to the ones found in the previous excavations. To-date in the collection of the Transcarpathian Museum of Local History a small assemblage of archaeological material is stored from the excavations by J. Böhm, J. Jankovich, the Zatlukal brothers and K. Berniakovich. We have data according to which a part of the material was sent by T. Lehoczky to the National Museum in Budapest for an exhibition. A part of the material coming from the investigation by Zatlukal brothers have not been deposited in the museum. V. Titov's finds have been taken to Moscow. In the previous publications the site was not defined properly from chronological and cultural point of view and was dated to different periods: Late Neolithic or Copper Age. To-date in the archaeological literature the settlement of Mala Hora is considered to be the site of the Tisza Culture. We have analyzed the whole archaeological collection from the Mala Hora kept in the Transcarpathian Museum of Local History. Judging from the literature and field reports a relatively interesting archaeological material had been collected at the site including pottery, clay objects and a rich collection of stone industry (obsidian, flint, andesite). However, the material has not been stratified and preserved only fragmentary. On the basis of the technological and typological features this pottery belongs to different ages. From the previous publications we know that several dwelling and farm features have been investigated at the settlement. Unfortunately, we miss the drawings from the field reports, and the descriptions are not proper to define the form, function and chronology of the features. The analysis of the pottery material shows that the settlement is a multilevel site with at least 6-7 culturalchronological levels. In the frames of the Neolithic Copper Age 3 cultural-chronological levels can be more or less clearly defined (POTUSHNIAK 1990.4243.). These levels are the following: Mala Hora I. The early period of the site belongs to the Middle Neolithic and can be connected to the Painted Pottery Culture (PPC). Collection of pottery belonging to this period includes about 50 fragments. It differs significantly from the rest of finds from technological and typological point of view. We can separate two technological groups: coarse ware with thick walls and fine pottery with thin walls. The clay of the pots with thick walls contains organic ingredients, chamot and sand. Outer surfaces are smoothed, but uneven, their color is different: from dark brown to red-gray, polychrome because of the frequent being on a fire. The interior walls of the most fragments have got traces of black smoothing. The core of the fragments is black or ashy, sometimes porous because of the organic ingredients burnt out. The thickness of the walls is uneven, 1-2 cm in average, the thickness of the bottoms reaches 2.5 cm. They are well fired. Among the forms we can separate fragments of barrel shaped pots with a narrow neck (PI. 1.4) and pots with a widening upper part (PI. 1.3), deep conical bowls (PI. 1.5) and large, thick walled amphora like pots with high, cylindrical neck. One fragment belonged to a basin shaped pan. The latter could be restored: the diameter at the rim was about 44 cm, the diameter of the bottom: 33 cm, height: 8.5 cm. The thickness of the walls increases from the rim to the bottom from 1 to 2 cm (PI. 1.1). In the ornamentation of the coarse ware we meet mainly notches and finger imprints at the rim. Sometimes there are finger impressions on the relief ribbon under the rim (PI. 1.3). On a pot fragment there is a pattern of deeply incised zigzag lines (PI. 1.4). On the fragments of pots and bowls we find handles of practical and ornamental function. They are massive, conical or square shaped, placed symmetrically, 2 or 4 in the middle part of the body or nearer to the rim. Thin walled pottery was made of well cleaned clay tempered mainly with small ground chamot, that appears on the exterior and interior reddish surfaces. 10