Istvánovits Eszter (szerk.): A nyíregyházi Jósa András Múzeum Évkönyve 51. (Nyíregyháza, 2009)
Régészet - Jakab Attila: X-XI. századi temető Nyíregyháza-Felsősima határából (M3-as autópálya 161. lelőhely)
X—XI. századi temető Nyíregyháza—Felsősima határából exciting phenomena, though the finds do not differ significantly from the ones of contemporary cemeteries. The majority of the burials did not have grave-goods, and a part of them was disturbed by earlier agricultural activity. The most frequent decoration is ring with S-shaped ending: 27 pieces were found in 16 graves. Most of them were made of silver, some of bronze. The ending of one of the pieces had fluted decoration. Beside three simple, open hair-rings we have to mention a torque and a cast, bronze bracelet with rhomboid cross-section. Coins deserve special attention. A total of 22 coins were found in 19 graves. That means that almost one fifth of the dead was supplied with a coin of some king. The earliest coin was minted by (Saint) Stephen I (1000 or 1001-1038), but this one was placed into the burial together with coins of Peter Orseolo (1038-1041, 1044-1046). The youngest coins come from the age of (Saint) Ladislaus I (1077-1095). Among burials containing coins, grave 262 is outstandingly important. In the course of cleaning the grave, in both orbital cavities a coin was found. One of them belonged to Stephen, the other one to Peter Orseolo. (A further coin of Peter was found under the skull.) According to my knowledge, the custom of placing coins onto both eyes is unique in our region in the 11th century. Coins not only supported the dating, but also answered the question of the “inhabitation” of the cemetery. After mapping the coins we could determine that the cemetery was started from a central nucleus and extended in all directions in concentric circles. At the edges of the cemetery the latest coins were found. However, graves found at the eastern part are different comparing to the rest. This part has another structure. There are no coins, and at the edge of this part a burial of a human was accompanied with a horse skull (grave 382). In my opinion this part is somewhat earlier. Judging from two rings with S-shaped ending it could have been started in the last third of the 10th century. Summarising our knowledge on the structure of the cemetery, we have to count with a late- 10th century cemetery (part) and then with a cemetery of the Árpád Age, started in the early(?) 11th century and extended in concentric way. Finally, one more interesting feature. At the southern edge of the cemetery, far from the rest of the graves, a “classical” burial from the Age of Hungarian Conquest (10th century) was found. It had been plundered. Among its finds an axe with a stay for the shaft, two arrowheads, a horse-bit, a pair of stirrups and a girth-buckle deserve a special attention. In the eastern part of the grave a skull and feet bones of a horse were recorded. Single graves are generally known from this period, and this could be the case of such a burial here too. However, this grave must have been in connection with the cemetery in its vicinity, so I prefer the expression of “pseudo-single grave” for this burial. This term refer to the cases when we have to count with a contemporary cemetery near 10th century graves that seem to be “single”. Finally, we have to underline that the cemetery of Felsősima, the second completely excavated and now published 10-11th centuries’ graveyard in our county, resulted several phenomena unknown at other sites. Unfortunately, a significant part of the cemetery was demolished, so the possible results of the analysis of the whole cemetery are lost forever. Attila Jakab Jósa András Museum Nyíregyháza H^1401 Pf. 57. e-mail: teglaegeto@freemail.hu 125
