Marta, Liviu: The Late Bronze Age Settlements of Petea-Csengersima (Satu Mare, 2009)

IV. Habitation of the Lăpuş II-Gáva I Archaeological Culture

IV. Habitation of the Lăpuş II-Gáva I Archaeological Culture.

IV.l. The Settlement.

The settlement of the Lăpuş II—Gáva I horizon in the archaeological site at Petea— Csengersima partially superimposed the Suciu de Sus habitation, which was in a late phase of its evolution. Given the fact that they were chronologically close, the relation between the two horizons became very important.

All the Lăpuş II—Gáva I archaeological complexes in the Petea—Csengersima settlement were located in the east of the Erge brook (Fig. 2), except one pit (pit 589, situated in zone V, Fig. 25). The number of the Lăpuş II—Gáva I archaeological complexes grew progressively towards the eastern margin of the site, at the same time with the gradual decrease in number of the Suciu de Sus pits (Fig. 2). The area from Hungary, east of the Erge brook, uncovered only two pits of the Lăpuş II-Gáva I phase, and the zones II and III in Romania registered only isolated pits among the complexes of the Suciu de Sus culture. The number of the Lăpuş II—Gáva I pits grew towards the eastern margin of the site (zones I and IV). A group of six dwellings was also located here and belonged to this cultural horizon. Other three fragments from several platforms of fired clay in the sections S10 and Sll (Fig 3) did not uncover any materials that would assign them to an archaeological culture but, given their location, they seemed to belong to the Lăpuş II—Gáva I cultural horizon. Five of the few pits contained finds of the Suciu de Sus type and were present in the area with Lăpuş II—Gáva I dwellings. They were ritual depositions350, likely to had been located at the margin of the Suciu de Sus settlement.

Lăpuş II—Gáva I complexes were researched throughout a surface of approximately 1,5 hectares (100 x 150 m). Their eastern margin occurred within the archaeological excavation and the northern margin was marked by the course of the Erge brook. Since the archaeological complexes were spread until the east and south margins, the settlement continued in those directions as well. There was no data recorded about the southern settlement, which was a building area. The finds from the eastern side, which were uncovered within some works of improvement of the customs point, suggest an extension of the settlement on a distance of 100—150 m. The lack in archaeological materials in the gardens of the dwellings from the peripheral area of actual Petea village showed that the settlement was maximum 200 — 250 m long in the east-west direction. As a result, the minimum surface of the Lăpuş II—Gáva I habitation was approximately 3—3,75 ha.

The settlements of the cultural group of Lăpuş (phase I and II) were located east and south of the Lăpuş II—Gáva I settlements from the Satu Mare Plain - in the Basins of Lăpuş, Sălaj and along the course of Someş river351 — and their surfaces were not recorded. They only mention that the settlements at Oarţa de Sus - Oul Făgetului (with a larger surface) and Lăpuş - La arini (extended and intensely inhabited) could be centres surrounded by smaller settlements. The hierarchy of the two setdements was proved by some large tumulus necropolis or bronze deposits352 in their vicinity. There was information recorded about two settlements in the area of Carei, dating from the beginning of the Gáva culture (Gáva I phase). Archaeological rescue excavations were carried out in those settlements and they established the outlines of the inhabited surfaces rather easy because they were located on the hills of the marshland. The setdement of Carei - Spitz Farm spread over the area of 2,5 —

350 Marta 2008, p. 111-129.

351 Kacsó 1980; Kacsó 2003; Kacsó 2005; Pop 2008.

352 Kacsó 2003, p. 121; Kacsó 2005, p. 54.