Liska András - Szatmári Imre: Sötét idők rejtélyei. 6-11. századi régészeti emlékek a Kárpát-medencében és környékén - Tempora Obscura 3. (Békéscsaba, 2012)
Szűcs melinda: Objects with rune inscription in the Carpathian Basin
SZŰCS MELINDA MELINDA SZŰCS OBJECTS WITH RUNE INSCRIPTION IN THE CARPATHIAN BASIN (Summary) The topic of my present work is the examination of objects supplied with rune inscription found in the Carpathian Basin. My main goal was to collect and systematise the objects found on this territory, and to make the archaeological analysis of the objects, together with the review of the inscriptions. My work is based on the study by Tineke Looijenga, doctor of the Groningen University Text and context of the oldest runic inscriptions published in 2003 in Boston. The author of this study collected and systematised objects decorated with rune inscriptions from whole Europe. Beside it, she summarised the history and results of the research of the rune writing. Beside the finds published by her, I collected the objects that appeared in Hungarian publications and also some possible interpretations of the inscriptions not mentioned by Looijenga. I review a total of ten objects coming from eight sites. Hungarian research put a relatively small emphasis on the examination of rune writing which is understandable, because the Carpathian Basin is situated at the periphery of the territory inhabited by people who used runes. The latter are found in a small number here. At the same time, the topic is worth of examination, because the Carpathian Basin, for a shorter or longer time, was inhabited by several Germanic peoples during the Migration Period. This is proved by the large number of excavated settlements and cemeteries. These peoples brought the knowledge of runes and the custom of inscriptions from their place of origin. The objects can be divided into three groups according to periods and peoples. Finds belonging to Goths include the sites of Letcani, Pietroasa, Aquincum and Szabadbattyán. Finds belonging to Gepids include sites of Hódmezövásárhely-Kishomok and Kengyel; the ones of Lombards were found in Szentendre and Bezenye. Several of the inscriptions were injured and it is difficult to interpret them. However, there are several series of letters containing some runes. Runes had been engraved at the backside of the objects, but it is difficult to say whether they got to the object when it was produced or maybe later. It is a further question who engraved these signs onto the objects. Szűcs Melinda szlucsmeli@gmail.com 336
