Balogh Csilla – P. Fischl Klára: Felgyő, Ürmös-tanya. A Móra Ferenc Múzeum Évkönyve: Monumenta Archeologica 1. (Szeged, 2010)

The Avar Cemetery at Felgyő, Ürmős-Tanya

A Felgyő, Ünnös-tanyai avar kori temető 271 Felgyö, each of which came to light in a female burial. A pair of earrings with a twisted hoop came to light in Grave 59: the cylindrical capping was strung onto the hoop and decorated with wires soldered onto it. A longish white bead pendant was suspended through the cylindrical capping on the earring from Grave 85, while the earring from Grave 165 had a short cylindrical capping and small rings of bronze wire were threaded on the hoop on either side of the pendant. Earrings with a head pendant (Fig. 5. 6a-f)- Earrings with a bead pendant, generally found in pairs, were recovered from 12 burials. Seven burials (Graves 22, 56, 64, 95, 123, 167 and 202) yielded variants with a round hoop, a small flattened spherical black bead pendant and a ring between the pendant and the hoop. Three earrings had rings clamped on the hoop. Grave 171 yielded a similar earring whose hoop was made from rhomboidal sectioned wire. The pieces from three burials (Graves 54, 99 and 177) represent the late variant of earrings with bead pendant with their oval hoop and prismatic or elongated drop shaped bead pendant. Beads Beads were found in two "roles" in the burials. In 57 burials, the beads had clearly been strung into a necklace, while in two male burials (Graves 221 and 225), they were accessories of the pouch. Two beads were also found in Grave 83, the burial of a man laid to rest with his belt and sword dating from the Early Avar period; however, the position of the beads in the grave is not known. They are also discussed here, among the costume accessories, even though it is possible that some superstitious belief was attached to these beads. One to three beads have been found in the period's lavishly furnished warrior graves, a phenomenon first noted by Kovrig (KOVRIG 1957, 122 123), and touched briefly also by Bona in his study on the grave from Szegvár-Sápoldal (BÓNA 1957, 27-28). Seeing that their exact position in the grave was not recorded and it is therefore uncertain how they were worn. Bona suggested that these beads were not strung into a strand worn around the neck, but had been placed on the deceased during the funeral (BONA 1979, 27). The beads from Grave 83 can perhaps be interpreted in this context. Bead necklaces were found in 42 female burials and 13 child burials. The single male burial with beads worn around the neck was Grave 157. Eye beads were recovered from ten burials, seven of which contained the early variant of this bead type. Aside from Grave 83, a male burial, and Grave 126, a child burial, these beads were recovered from female burials (Graves 92, 97, 120, 126. 129 and 141). These necklaces were strung of no more than three to twelve beads. The necklaces from Graves 40, 93 and 119 had other beads in addition to the eye beads (millet seed and early melon seed beads, and beads decorated with linear, wavy and loop trailing). Necklaces strung from different bead types were exclusively recovered from female burials. The bead necklaces from the Felgyö cemetery illustrate the process starting in the mid-7th century, accelerating during the century's last third, in the course of which the number of eye beads strung into necklaces decreased parallel to the appearance of new types, which gradually became dominant (PÁSZTOR 1995. 74). Graves 118. 143 and 159 contained strands of segmented, flattened globular beads, which first appeared in the second quarter of the 7th century, attaining greater popularity by the century's middle third (PÁSZTOR 2008, 316-317). The beads from Felgyö cannot be dated prior to the mid-7th century in the light of the earring with large spherical pendant decorated with granulation. Millet seed beads were found in 27 graves, most of which came to light in female burials (16 graves), although some were found in child burials (8 graves) and in male burials (three graves). Millet seed beads were strung among various other beads, such as a eye beads and segmented beads, in the necklaces worn by women, although most often among melon seed beads and late bead types. The latest strands are dominated by melon seed beads. With the exception of two child burials (Graves 112 and 224), necklaces of this type were exclusively recovered from female burials. In some cases, a pendant was strung among the beads (Graves 15, 59, 96 and 177). Bracelets Bracelets were recovered from 16 burials, of which eleven were female burials (Graves 15, 40, 42, 54, 59, 61, 92, 96, 118, 120 and 228), one contained the burial of a young adult (Grave 159) and four were child burials (Graves 36, 93, 111 and 79). Adults apparently wore bracelets in pairs, while children wore them singly. Iron bracelets came to light in nine graves, usually by the left wrist. The graves yielding iron bracelets were dug after the mid-7th century, except for Graves 92 and 120 which can be dated to the cemetery's earlier phase. Bronze bracelets were found in seven burials (Graves 15, 36, 40, 42, 54, 59 and 61). Of these, Grave 36 was a child burial, the rest being adult women's burials. Most of these graves represent the cemetery's latest female burials, judging from the hoop earrings with rhomboidal section, the earrings with oval hoop and bead pendant, the necklaces strung of late bead types and the lobed clasps. Other jewellery articles Few other jewellery articles were recovered from the burials of the Felgyö cemetery in addition to the earrings and bracelets, and the few that were found were each represented by a few pieces only. Pendants. Graves 15, 95 and 179 each yielded pendants. An oval buckle ring, cast belt mounts and two pendants were strung among the beads of the necklace from Grave 15: a round pendant with a suspension loop cut out from sheet metal and a unique bird shaped pendant. A pentagonal pendant of sheet bronze was found in Grave 95, while the crescentic pendant from Grave 179, a child burial, was also cut out from sheet bronze. Sheet metal pendants of this type are not typical Avar artefacts, occurring more frequently on sites with a visible Germanic tradition. Clasps. Clasps were very fashionable throughout the 8th century, probably because lobed clasps were cheap, massproduced items for fastening the upper garment. The single clasp came to light in Grave 54, in its customary position by the left shoulder. Belts and belt sets Belt accessories were recovered from 93 graves (43%). Most of these were buckles, with only 12 graves yielding belt mounts. It seems likely that the iron rings found in the region of the waist in some burials were also part of the belt. Buckles. A total of 66 buckles were recovered: 31 male, 27 female burials, one juvenile and four child burials yielded a single buckle, while two belts were probably deposited in 28 graves, most of which were male burials (19 male burials and 4 female burials). It seems likely that the graves of three young adults and one child too contained two belts. Mount