Marisia - Maros Megyei Múzeum Évkönyve 1. (2019)
Sándor Berecki, Sándor József Sztáncsuj: A Neolithic Settlement from Ernei
A NEOLITHIC SETTLEMENT FROM ERNEI Sándor BERECKE Sándor József SZTÁNCSUJ” The rescue surveys carried out in 2015 at Ernei-Köles-kert resulted in the discovery and unearthing of a large archaeological site, inhabited over several millennia, from the Neolithic to the Migration Period. The traces of the Neolithic settlement, consisting of shallow pits and stone and pottery platforms were found in the southern part of the site, on the first terrace of Mure$ River. The finds comprise mainly pottery fragments and it can be assigned entirely to the Early Neolithic Crfi culture, most probably to its lllrd or IYh phase. Keywords: settlement, Early Neolithic, Cri? Culture, rescue excavations Cuvinte cheie: a?ezare, neoltic timpuriu, cultura Cri?, säpäturi preventive Site 7 from Ernei-Köles-kert was investigated in 2015, on the occasion of the archaeological rescue surveys of the Tärgu Mure? bypass (Corunca-Ernei). The site is located south of Ernei (Hungarian Nagyernye), on the left bank of the Mure? River, at approximately 3 km east from the present watercourse, on the first terrace of the river, respectively on the right bank of the Trebici/Terebics-Creek, a tributary of the Mure? River (Pl. 1/2-3). The 335-337 m high plateau has gentle slopes towards south and good visibility on the Mure? valley. In the vast area of nearly 3 hectares archaeological remains of several ages came to light, from the Neolithic until the Migration Period. A number of 9 graves belonging to the Late Bronze Age Noua culture were discovered, as well as a Middle Bronze Age feature (Wietenberg culture), settlement remains of the Early Iron Age Gáva culture. Further sporadic finds dated from the Roman Age and a cemetery from the Migration Period AD 5-6th century with 72 graves was also unearthed.1 Compared with the discoveries from later periods, the Neolithic finds were much poorer. The traces of the Neolithic settlement consisted especially of pottery and stone platforms and some deepened features (Pl. 1/1). They were found only in the southern part of the site, on the gentle slope of the terrace from the right bank of the creek. The habitation from this part of the plateau was not intense, the archaeological features are few and dispersed (Pl. I). The pits (Cx. 6; CX. 9; Cx. 18) were round or oval, with a diameter of 0.50-0.90 m, and a depth of 0.15-0.60 m from level of the sterile, yellow clay (PL II/1-4). Their fill consisted of dark brown and greyish-black soil with traces of charcoal and small adobe fragments. In one of the oval pits having a diameter of approximately 1 m (Cx. 36 partially damaged by the mechanical scaling) ' Sándor Berecki. Mure? County Museum, Tärgu Mure?, RO, sberecki@yahoo.com "Sándor József Sztáncsuj. Székely National Museum, Sfäntu Gheorghe, RO, sztancsuj@gmail.com 1 For further details see Berecki et al. 2016. MARISIA 1,2019, p. 31-42.
