Marisia - Maros Megyei Múzeum Évkönyve 33/4. (2013)
Articles
Churchyards in the Transylvanian Basin from the IIth to the first half of the 13th centuries 137 is W Alps) (Carpatii Apuseni/Westkarpaten/ Érchegység), and to the S can find the Alps of Banat. This relief is opened to the W at two places: along the Mure§ river at a narrower area, and along the Some§ river at a wider area. Besides, the range of the Carpathians is dissected by saddles and gorges in the NE and in the S as well (e. g.: Rodnapass, Bärgäu-pass, Tulghe§-, Bicaz-, Ghime$-, Uz-, Oituz-, Buzäu-gorge, Tabla Butii/Tatar-pass, the Predeal-gorge, the Bran-Rucär-Dragoslavelepass, Turnu Ro§u-gorge). It should be noted that the width of the E-Carpathians decreases towards S: in the N it is 170 km, at Deda it is 100 km, at Tärgu Secuiesc it is 90 km. The 500-1000 m high areas are dominated by beech-woods, the higher mountains by pin woods, in the lower hills there are mainly oak-woods. Wooded steppe can only be found on a small area on the Cämpia Transilvaniei (to the N, SE and E from Cluj-Napoca) - and this is important when examining the 1 lth-13th centuries. The Basin is rich in rivers, its soil is wealthy in precious metal and salt. 3. General characteristics of burial customs Burial customs are considered the most important elements in the definition of the 10th century cultural ‘horizon’. The burial customs mainly reflect the emotional reactions of the family members, relatives and the community when someone passes away,6 and the most important condition of the quality and the quantity of the grave furnishings was the wealth of the individual, the family or the community, certainly in most cases it was closely related to the social status of the deceased. It is expressed clearly with the quality and quantity of the ritual sacrifices, weapons, clothes and jewellery placed in the grave. We have to bear in mind that the quantity of the objects and sacrifices largely depends upon the political or economic situation in a region, the significance of the roads crossing it, or whether it is in a central or peripheral situation and to all these the occasional foreign presents (!) should be added, which are palpable in some cases and might indicate the political significance of a person or a family. The various aspects of burial customs are in close connection with the way the mourners’ grief is shown as the relationship of the deceased person with the mourners was differentiated during their lifetime and it stayed the same at the moment of death. The materialization of this psychological situation is the burial customs that can be seen in the graves, and the quality and quantity of grave furnishings connected to them. Therefore, one cannot talk about the grief of the mourners as it is different from time to time. So the ‘parcel of furnishings’ is also different in terms of its quality and quantity in each and every case. In our opinion, the feeling of grief is the core of the psychological phenomenon in connection with burials, the picture of the netherworld is a complementary element in the process of mourning and the burial, which can both relieve the grief of the mourners, on the other hand it can influence burial customs and the various objects placed in the grave, the grave furnishing. The process of this phenomenon is illustrated below: Fig. 2. The possible connection between the grief of the mourners and the picture of the netherworld 6 Brather 2008, 255, fig. 5.
