Fehér György szerk.: A Magyar Mezőgazdasági Múzeum Közleményei 1992-1994 (Budapest, 1994)
TAKÁCS ISTVÁN: Cumanian animal keeping at Szentkirály, a 15th-16th century site in Central Hungary
The great poroportion of horse bones is remarkable in both the House complex 44/a as well as the rest of the village's kitchen refuse. This high contribution is shown equally well by the number of fragments and the estimated numbers of individuals 8 . Many of these horses were juveniles or subadults, which shows that not only old horses which could not have been used any other way, were slaughtered. Horse meat must have played a special role in the diet of this community of pastoral nomadic ancestry. Cattle and pig were usually slaughtered as adults, although bones of piglets and calves were found as well. Domestic animal remains in the kitchen garbage clearly display marks of butchering and sometimes other forms of exploitation. Both skulls and the vertebral column were split lengthwise, although transversal cuts occur as well. Long bones were hacked in the middle of the diaphysis for purposes of marrow extraction. Such butchering marks widely occur on horse bones as well. Articulated skeletal parts, such as the thoracic vertebrae of a piglet with the ribs attached and the hind leg of a calf, probably belonged to cuts preserved e. g. by smoking. As a result, the ligaments kept the bones together even after defleshing. Burnt pig incisors and canine teeth indicative of singeing were brought to light as well . Several small, heavily bleached bone splinters suggest that they were used in processing glue. 4. Horse cult, horse related beliefs The special role of horse at Szentkirály was manifested in numerous phenomena related to both everyday life and ritual practices. Horse bones were used in making artifacts, most commonly skates 10 . Occasionally the proximal (first) phalanx was used as a toy or a cultic object 1 . Deposits of several such phalanges came to light in various parts of the excavated area. Many of them were marked by incisions and various patterns. Foal skulls found in the pit belonged to a magic rite known even today. These crania were hung on stakes around the village to keep evil forces at bay as is shown, for example, by typical fractures in the nasal area of horse skulls from Szentkirály 12 . This custom is known from other Medieval sites as well 13 . Skulls of horses killed by blows inflicted on the forehead were often placed in stables to keep horse diseases away 14 or in order to keep the animals in better general condition . Horse skulls were also on display in vineyards and apiaries against the evil eye 1 . This custom is not a Hungarian speciality. Its ethnographic parallels are known from the eastern regions of the Caspian sea 1 . Such horse skulls also served as a protection against evil spells 18 . 5. Other zoological finds Faunal remains brought to light from one of the village's completely recovered wells may be considered a zoological curiosity. This well had been buried by the inhabitants of the village. Its organic content was well preserved since the ground water
