Marta, Liviu: The Late Bronze Age Settlements of Petea-Csengersima (Satu Mare, 2009)
III. Habitation of te Suciu de Sus Archaeological Culture
colours because of the presence of the yellow-mustard like coloured clay. This colour was preserved even though this clay contained inclusions of carbonized plant remains and of burnt clay. The pits fill of the Lăpuş II—Gáva I culture was dark, sometimes blackish35. The presence of the pits was observed in several settlements of the Suciu de Sus culture36, but their shape was not described in detail or illustrated, only in few cases37. When referring to their usefulness, they were mentioned as fulfilling the function of storage pits or of refuse pits38. Their function of ritual deposition39 was rarely confirmed or, they were assumed to have complementary ritual roles40. According to the method of their excavation or rather according to their shape, we have the following categories of pits: a) Pits with unclear contour. Although it may seem a paradox, this denomination was used for the pits excavated only in the cultural layer and in the vegetal soil, without going deeper into the clay layer. As a result, the walls and their base could not be clearly delimited. In two cases, their existence was assumed based on the discovery of several vessels, which were complete or could be easily restored (S5 complex 3 - Fig. 4, PI. 4/4 and S9 complex 7 — PI. 11/ 14 16). There was another situation when the existence of the pits without any sign of their contour was attested by special groups of archaeological material in the cultural layer (S9 complex 5 — Fig. 5, PI. 11). They would not be preserved in situ unless they were laid initially in less deep pits which penetrated to the maximum the cultural layer. b) Beehive shaped pits41. They occurred with round or slightly oval outline, and their walls widened as they went deeper. The holes in the walls were usually more concentrated towards the base of the pits. The pits were excavated with care: circular/oval shaped oudine, even holes in the walls, flat base. Although only three pits of this type were identified, they seemed to be the most numerous: it is possible that a significant number of the less deep pits with arched walls and flat base represented the inferior category of pits that formerly had been beehive shaped42. The beehive shaped pits were usually of medium size. They went down 60-90 cm into the sterile soil, and made us assume that they were 1—1,30 m deep from the trampled surface. The base diameter in the case of beehive shaped pits was comprised between 100 cm (S37 complex 28) and 1,90 m (S30 complex 1). The last pit was 15 cm far from dwelling S26 complex 2, bringing into discussion their ability to have a connection. Suciu de Sus pits with beehive shape occurred in the settlement at Lazuri43. The inventory of the beehive shaped pits was unitary: ceramic fragments, animal bones and sometimes ashes. It is almost certain that the inventory was the result of depositing waste after the pits were taken out of use. Beehive shaped pits were common in 35 It is possible that the situation (also occurred in the archaeological site at Lazuri) was created by the fact that the layer of dark soil thickened as a result of intense habitation in the area. The increasing quantity of nitrates could be the result of increasing the number of animals in the settlement. 36 D. Pop (2005, p. 66) listed all the pits excavated in the settlements of the Suciu de Sus culture and of the Lăpuş group in Romania. Other pits were found in several settlements in Hungary (Kalicz 1960, p. 7) and Ukraine (Balahuri 2001, p. 245); Vasiliev et al. 2002, p. 31-32. 37 Culciu Mare revealed the ground-plan of the pits in the first years of excavations, and the summary for a few of them was recorded (Bader 1978, p. 67, pi. XXXVIII); for the pits of the Suciu de Sus settlements in Ukraine: Balahuri 2001, p. 245, ris. 61, 62, 63, 64, 65; Vasiliev et al. 2002, p. 32, pi. VIII, XIX); in Hungary were mentioned pits in the settlement at Rétközberencs (Kalicz 1960, p. 7). 38 Bader 1978, p. 67, Vasiliev et al. 2002, p. 32. 39 The vessel set from Nyirmada was probably found in a pit (Toth - Marta 2005, p. 107-143). Because of their inventory and because of their small size, the pits from Oarţa de Sus — Oul Făgetului, Culciu Mare and Lăpuşel were not used within domestic purposes (Kacsó 2003, p. 121-122). 40 Vasiliev et al. 2002, p. 32. 4' S25 complex 2 (Fig. 7), S30 complex 1 (Fig. 7), S37 complex 28 (Fig. 10), complex 200 (Fig. 21). 42 S33 complex 2 (Fig. 9), complex 181, complex 184 (Fig. 20), complex 193 (Fig. 21), complex 354, complex 373 (Fig. 22), complex 468, complex 479, complex 490, complex 494, complex 500, complex 501, complex 504 (Fig. 23), complex 897 (Fig. 24). 43 Németi 1997, p. 80. 17
