Folia archeologica 49-50.

Kovács Tibor: A múltat idézve, előre tekintve emlékezzünk! 200 éves a Magyar Nemzeti Múzeum

20 VIOLA T. DOBOSI Archaeological material associated: there were five cultural layers found on the site containing 8900 artefacts of a pebble-industry (3000 non-standardisable, geometrically split pebbles, pebble derivatives and 5900 standard, typeable tools)

. Leading types were choppers, chopping-tools. Its characteristic feauture is the very small dimensions with average length around 30mm. The raw material spectrum is composed about half of the total assemblage made on quartzite, the other half on silex. The archaeological material of the five cultural layers belong to the same industry. Though the quantity of tools is different by orders of degree in the different cultural layers, the changes of the parameters reflects certain interior development. From the lower parts of the sequence towards the top, the ratio of better quality silex raw material is increasing compared to quartzite, the contribution of tools with Middle Palaeolithic character is higher, the dimension of tools is bigger. There were some 100 more bone tools selected from the kitchen debris that were worked in a similar manner as the stone tools, apart from bone-specific twisted splitting or, which have cutmarks on their surface. TATA-PORHANYÓ Chronology: End of the Riss/Würm interglacial period, Middle Palaeolithic settlement. There are various "absolute chronological" data on the site; the relative chronological position supports best dating between 90-100 ka.

9 Settlement: Karstic phenomena are known from various places along the margin of the North-East Transdanubian Mesozoic mountain range in different periods of the Earth's history. As a result of the last karstic phase, freshwater limestone is produced from the beginning of the Pleistocene till modern times

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0 Vértesszőlős and Tata are both parts of this karstic water system. In the function of the changes of climatical and orographic factors, this process can be considered periodical and of changing intensity. The archaeologically dated lime tuff at Tata was formed on the second flood-free terrace. The sedimentation of calcareous tuff started in the Riss/Würm interglacial period and continued at the beginning of the Würm, interrupted by a short, cold interval, during which some 100-120 cm thick layers of loess and sandy loess were deposited. During this phase, recognising the favourable microclimatical conditions of the environment, Middle Palaeolithic hunters settled here into the irregular, about 12 x 6 m large calcareous tuff basins. Description, anatomical position and technology of production medial, polished plate of a lower mola

r of mammoth: sin.M| ,

2- (Fig.2.) Inv. nr.: Pb 59/1, Size: 85x42 mm The tooth plate was polished on its complete surface. There are traces of ochre at the bottom of the uneven ridges of the polished surface. Its margin is profiled around the pieces, polished in longitudinal section at 30-40 degrees, in crosssection 40—50 degrees towards the dorsal side. Function: This object is not suitable for real functions: no point, no edge, the profiled margin around is composed of soft dentine. According to L. Vértes who published the object first it could symbolise the spiritual connection between the human community and their principal game, mammoth.

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1 9 Schwarcz—Skoflek 1982 1

0 Korpás 2000 1

1 Vértes 1965, 139