Cseri Miklós, Tárnoki Judit szerk.: Népi építészet a Kárpát-medencében a honfoglalástól a 18. századig - A 2001. október 9-10-én Szolnokon megrendezett konferencia anyaga (Szentendre; Szolnok: Szabadtéri Néprajzi Múzeum; Szolnoki Damjanich János, 2001)

PÖLÖS Andrea: Építőáldozatok

Building sacrifice ANDREA PÖLÖS Building sacrifices replaced human sacrifice. Different substitutes are suitable: parts of the human body, such as hair or nails, animals or parts of the animal body, such as eggs. Preferred sacrificial animals were dogs and cats but as poultry only hens were offered as sacrifice. Instead of man, his shadow measured with a rod, could be immured. The motive of the ballad 'Kőmives Kelemenné', well known in the Hungarian literature, treats the subject of the necessity to immure humans to make a big building, a fort strong and steady. The ballad is known everywhere on the Balkan, in Romania, Greece and Bulgaria equally. We find its versions among the Votyaks and in the Caucasus too. Archaeological data prove the existence of sacrifice. Archaeology found sacrificial remains in several settlements from the Arpadian age in Hungary from the 11

th century, in spite of Christianity. István MÉRI found the first one. I also identified in several uncovered houses such relics in the former village of Szentjakabfalva under today's Budaújlak. We discovered them in every case in the southwestern corner. Ethnographic data also refer to the orientation of sacrifices. White pots with spiral decoration were used. In a house we unearthed a pot from Austrian origin from the 12

th century with imprinted pattern, containing an egg. In another house, a young hen laid in the white pot. Again a white pot was buried in the third house from the 13

th century. In this house, the dug part of the house was lined with boards. The space between the lining and the wall was filled up with yellow clay. Building sacrifices remained up to now, however in a modified form.