Kaján Imre (szerk.): Zalai Múzeum 23. (Zalaegerszeg, 2017)
Tokai Zita Mária: Nagykanizsa–Palin –Anyagnyerőhely – egy központ a lengyeli kultúra idejéből I.
Nagykanizsa-Palin - Anyagnyerőhely - egy központ a lengyelt kultúra idejéből I. 21 Nagykanizsa-Palin - Anyagnyerőhely - a centre from the age of Lengyel culture I. Typical features of Lengyel culture are the rondel enclosures of which 30 are known in Hungary (7 in County Zala- Fig. 1. 1-3). The only, almost completely excavated place is the site of Nagykanizsa-Palin Anyagnyerőhely. It lay next to the former Kanizsa- stream on a 20 m high hill (Fig. 2. 1-4). The site had been surveyed earlier and finding rescue works were carried out in 1998 in the south-eastern part. In 2006- 2007, we examined the entire hill, altogether 18,700 m2. On the hill, verifying the suppositions, we found a triple circular enclosure system from Lengyel culture with entrances and gates to the cardinal directions. This may have played a central, highlighted role in the social life of one or more communities. There were two known settlements nearby, one in Kármáncs-aljai- dülő (Kármáncs hillside), the other at the place named Új-írtás (Fig 2. 1,5). This site reflects the significant change of view about space and time in the late Neolithic age. We can experience the division of the everyday and sacred world not only in time, but also in space, as the rondel enclosures were built separated from the settlements. Examining the Neolithic earthworks, we should consider several aspects. Not only their size, and their construction quality, but also their uniqueness and internationality are important. In this study, we only deal with the primary data, i.e. “measurable” properties (Chart 1. Fig. 1-6). The flat area on the top of the hill was completely empty, it was surrounded by a concentric ditch system dug in the hillside (Fig. 1. 3; Fig. 2-6). The altitude difference between the central space and the outer ditch was 15 m. The site near Nagykanizsa is similar in form to the same- age mounds from other places. It is a small hill, and similarly to the mounds, we can suppose a third, vertical dimension of it. The size proportion of the ditches is circa 3:2:1. The inner ditch has a diameter of 48-50 m, the middle one 85-94 m, and the outer one 135-150 m. The latter one - with its largest outer width - is only a medium size ditch compared to the others found in Transdanubia. The inner ditch has a U-shaped, the other two have a V-shaped section. We can find the traces of multiple (6-8 times) renovations. These renovations, as we can see it from the layers of the filling, did not affect the entire length of the ditch system. Many times they renovated only certain parts of it (Fig. 3. 2-5; Fig. 4. 1-6, Fig. 6. 2-5). Traces of a palisade, we can only find between the middle and outer ditch on the NE/E part (Fig. 5. 1-2). Traces of fire we found only in the middle ditch (Fig. 4. 1-3, 7-8). We can suppose buildings attached to the entrance, where the found wattle ruins were not on the bottom of the ditch, but a bit higher, in a partly filled up area. Where we found traces of fire on the bottom, we can suppose intentional burning. The reason for this may have been a certain kind of preservation, or some ritual. The width of the entrances here are between 2.1 m and 5.2 m. Most are simple earthwork bridges. During the 1998 excavations, a semi-circular subsidiary ditch was found connected to the main ditch, which was described by the archaeologist as a gate. We found similar phenomena on the N, NE, and SW part of the middle ditch, where semi-circular ditches framed the entrance (Fig. 5. 1 and 3, Chart 2). By the N and SW gates, the subsidiary ditch was connected to the main ditch, by the NE entrance, it was open at one end. These phenomena do not have an agreed name, since the experts are unsure about their function. The function of narrowing the entrance to control the way of the new arrivals is considered by those ditches only which are not ‘closed back’ to the main ditch. Here this is considerable only by the NE entrance. Semi-circular ditches connected to the circular ditch systems were found only in South-Transdanubia. This technique is unknown in other places in Lengyel culture. It seems that the strict rules of the culture determining the principles of the rondel enclosures in the classic and late periods and the standardised appearance started to decay. With the development of the culture, the layout of the circular ditches became more rough and fragmented. We may look at the semicircular subsidiary ditches in front of some entrances of Nagykanizsa site as a stage of this process. 4 bone parts were dated from the site, 3 of them are very close in age, however, the sample from the outer ditch is more than 100 years younger. These dates give us the age of use and filling up of the ditch system thus can be acknowledged only as terminus ante quem. The absolute chronological dating is supported by the findings from Lengyel culture that reflect forms and shapes of the classic/late era of the age. Translated by Veronika Nagy
