Folia Historico-Naturalia Musei Matraensis - A Mátra Múzeum Természetrajzi Közleményei 16. (1991)
Kertész, R.: Preliminary report on the research of Early Holocene period in the NW part of Great Hungarian Plain
CHRONOLOGICAL EVALUATION Mesolithic archeological material in Hungary as it was mentioned above is mostly atypical and uncertain. Besides the Jászberény material Mesolithic implements have been described so far from the Great Hungarian Plain from TószegÁldozóhalom (HILLEBRAND 1925), Hugya i-Érpatak (HILLEBRAND 1925. 1937. 25)/Szelevény (KALTCZ 1955. 35, 1957. 16, 83, GÄBORI 1956, 180), Tarpa-Márki tanya fOOBOSI 1969. 1975. 71, 1983, SZATHMÁRY 1977), Békésszentandrás-Harcsáspuszta (DOBOSI 1975. 71, BÍRÓ 1984. 28), Nagyléta (SZATHMÁRY 1978), Hajdúbagos-Legelö (SZATHMÁRY 1978) and Tarpa-Kishegy-Szipa part (SZAÍHMÁRY 1988). Apart from their lack of stratigraphica 1 evidence only a small part of these materials is suitable for comparative studies. Unfortunately most of the sites in the Great Hungarian Plain yielded only a few quantity of finds quite unsuitable for a morphological evaluation. Most probably it is the tool assemblage of Tarpa-Márki tanya which could be placed into the same horizon where also the finds of Jászberény I belong to. From Tarpa-Márki tanya the excavator reports, among others, trapezes (SZATHMÁRY 1977). The excavations made in the rock shelter Rejtek N*I in the Bükk Mts. yielded only modest archeo]ogical material (JÁN0SSY 1961, VÉRTES 1965. 216) therefore it would be unreasonable to compare it with the Jászberény industry. The Mesolithic settlement excavated in the sand dunes at Szódliget near the Danube (GÁBORI 1956, 1968) which belongs to the few authentic Mesolithic sites in Hungary is older than the Jászberény I settlement. In the SzóÜliget material a survival of Late Gravettian traditions can be observed and geometric microliths are missing (GÁBORI 1956, 1968. 33, 36) while at our new site already some characteristic features Late Mesolithic industry assert themselves. Among Transdanubian sites the closed find assemblage found at Szekszárd-Palánk in the indundation area of the Sió (VÉRTES 1962, 196 3, 1965. 191-194) is - like Szódliget - older than the Jászberény site. At the same time the lithic industries around Gyór in the NW part of Transdanubia (GALLUS-MITHAY 1942, 14-31) could be correlated with the tool assemblage at Jászberény. In the variegated blade' industry found at the sites near Győr geometric microliths are represented by both triangles and trapezes . However, because of the uncertain circumstances of their discovery the authenticity of the finds from Gyór environment is questionable (VÉRTES 1965. 215, BÁRTA 1972. 63. 1973. 6П). It is advisable to be skeptical also as regards most part of other "Mesolithic" sites in the Transdanubia, it is enough to mention here Vöröstó and Mencshely (LACZKÚ 1929, MÉSZÁROS 1948). The tools published from Kaposhomok, e.g. the scrapers, the blade point with arched truncature, notched blades and trapezes (PUSZTAI 1957. 99-103) are present also in our material at Jászberény yet in Kaposhomok there are no triangles and crescents which are present in the Jászberény assemblage. At the same time at Jászberény, among others, backed blades are absent. Like in case of Tarpa-Márkitanya it is the presence of trapezes at both Kaposhomok and Jászberény which allow us to put the two sites into the same chronological horizon. The Jászberény I settlement has no really confirmed analogies among the Late Mesolithic sites in Hungary. Apart from typological analysis there are no stratigraphical-chronological evidences available for us to determine the more exact age of the usually poor industries. The question would be answered after the excavation of the above-mentioned sites. Nearest confirmed analogy of the tool assemblage of Jászberény finds is known from Roumania where the dune settlement called Ciumesti II in the NW part of Transyvania yielded a variegated lithic assemblage found between two sterile layers (PÄUNESCU 1964, 321-336, 1970. 31-33, 268-269). The following elements of the Ciumesti II industry are considered to be analogies of certain,tools at Jászberény: the scrapers , the-,point , the obliquely truncated blade , the blade retouched in its medial part , the notched and angularly notched blade , though at Ciumesti II both sides of the blade were worked. Like at Jászberény among the geometric microliths found at Ciumesti II triangles and symmetrical and asymmetrical trapezes are present as well as those with concavely retouched sides. Crescent-shaped bladelets also appear. At the Roumanian site the smooth-edged blades are predominant, there are only a few retouched blades. This poroportion holds ture also of our site. At the same time there is a difference as regards the raw material of the implements, namely at Ciumesti II the ratio of the obsidian is 40 percent (PÄUNESCU 1964. 325) while at Jászberény I the majority of 41