Somogyi Múzeumok Közleményei 12. (1996)

Bondár Mária: Késő rézkori sírok Balatonbogláron

16 BONDÁR MÁRIA MÁRIA BONDÁR: LATE COPPER AGE GRAVES AT BALATONBOGLÁR (FINDS IF THE KOSTOLAC CULTURE IN SOMOGY COUNTY, HUNGARY I) Res During 1994 and 1995, the team in charge of rescue excavations preceding the construction of the M7 Motorway recovered new settlement remains and burials at the previously know site of Balatonboglár-Berekrebaulk (Figure 1). The site is located south of the town on the western edge of the small, north to south mountain range stretching along Jamai creek („Frontier ditch"). Burials and settlement remains dated to the Middle and Late Copper Age were found here. The three Late Copper Age graves lay close to the western edge of this area. It was assigned to the Kostolac culture in the basis of characteristic ceramic finds. The author provides details on the research history of the Kostolac culture and presents a collection of data on Kostolac burials as well (Figure 5). In the case of the Balatonboglár graves she noted that the vessels recovered were not manufactured for the purposes of the mortuary ritual, since the same types occur at the settlement as well. They are represented only by sherds in the graves. In terms of rite and grave goods the Kostolac graves from Balatonboglár fit within the pattern of the few known cremation burials of the Kostolac culture, although they display specific features as well. One of these is the deposition of fragmented bowls in the gareves, a custom that probably has a ritual explanation yet unknown to us. The other special feature is the urn recovered from Grave 245. This type occurred for a me short time in a Baden culture context. Its peculiarity is that the potter who made it, apparently was not entirely familiar with the techniques and possible ritual content of Kostolac culture pottery manufacturing. The initially careful, Kostolac type punctured decoration arranged in six symmetric, vertical bands on the vessel's neck was finally replaced by three vertical lines as the craftperson's patience expired. This vessel also represents the symbiosis of Baden and Kostolac stylistic elements which was probably short lived in this region. The graves discovered in Balatonboglár are important, since no Kostolac ware was known in the area previously and only three late Baden culture sites have been recorded in Somogy county. The significance of this site is further enhanced by the fact that, as was demonstrated, Kostolac culture graves are extremely rare in the entire distribution area as well. In the case of the Balatonboglár find the human ashes could be studied as well, a result that has not yet been available from other Kostolac culture cremation burials. In summary, it may be stated that the Kostolac culture was very short lived in the area of present-day Hungary and only a few sites indicate the presence of this period here. The graves found in Balatonboglár offer another piece of evidence concerning the meeting and short coexistence of the local population characterized by the Baden ceramic style and smaller groups using Kostolac ceramics who arrived fro the south. Resume