Gaál Attila (szerk.): A Wosinszky Mór Múzeum Évkönyve 23. (Szekszárd, 2001)
Fórizs István–Pásztor Adrienn–Nagy Géza–Tóth Mária: Avar és szarmata gyöngyök Csongrád megyéből
István Fórizs - Adrien Pásztor - Géza Nagy - Mária Tóth AVAR AND SARMATIAN GLASS BEADS FROM THE CSONGRÁD COUNTY, HUNGARY ONLY THE STYLE IS DIFFERENT OR THE MATERIAL AS WELL? The Szegvár-Oromdülő archaeological site [Sarmatian (3 rd-4 th c. AD), Avar (6 th-7 th c. AD) and Hungarian Conquest ( 10 th-11 th c. AD) Period cemeteries] is rich in glass bead findings. Especially the Avar Period graves are rich, where in many instances Avar and Sarmatian style beads (Fig. 1) can be found in the same grave. Questions arise: how did the Sarmatian style beads get into the Avar Period graves? Did the Avar Period glassmakers copied the Sarmatian style or the beads made in the Sarmatian Period got back to usage through grave-robbing 20 ? To answer the above questions the authors studied the chemical composition and microtexture of the Avar and Sarmatian style beads from Avar and Sarmatian Period graves in Szegvár-Oromdűlő archaeological site, and as a control material, glass beads from the Madaras-halmok Sarmatian cemetery (Bács-Kiskun County, Hungary) by means of electron microprobe. In general the glass consists of base-glass and additives (colorants, decolorants, etc). The chemical compositions of the base-glass of the studied beads reflects two types of glasses, i.e. made of 1) sandlimestone-natural soda [known as Roman type], and 2) sand-limestone-(halophytic) plant ash [Mesopotamian type]. The chemical compositional ranges of the Avar and Sarmatian style beads from the Szegvár-Oromdűlő site, and of the beads from the Sarmatian Madaras-halmok site, those belonging to the second group [Mesopotamian type] are rather wide and overlap on the diagrams of MgO-K 2 0 (Fig. 2), MgOP 2 0 5 (Fig. 3) and K 2 0-P 2 0 5 (Fig. 4). No correlation between the origin (Avar or Sarmatian) and the chemical composition, but a certain kind of regionality (slight difference between the glasses of same type from different regions) is reflected on these diagrams, especially when we compare beads with Mesopotamian type base-glass from the Carpathian Basin with those from 9 th century Germany 21 (see Figures 2-4). Regarding the way of coloration and kind of materials used for coloration, characteristic differences have been found between the Avar and Sarmatian style opaque red and white glasses. The Avar style opaque red glass beads were coloured by the combined application of copper and iron (this is characteristic for the Avar Period 22 opaque red glasses), see Table 1&2 and Figure 5&6, while the Sarmatian style beads from SzegvárOromdülő and those from the Madaras-halmok site (Sarmatian Period) were only coloured by copper. Important to note, that both the Sarmatian .style opaque red beads found in Avar Period graves and those found in Sarmatian Period graves were coloured by the same technology. Sarmatian people did not live in the Avar Period, therefore if the Sarmatian style opaque red beads were made in the Avar Period, then these beads ought to have been made by artisans of other nations, for instance by Avar glassmakers. However this supposition is controversial, because it is unlikely that the same glassmaker applied different technology for colouring the opaque red glass bead of Avar style and of Sarmatian style. The authors' opinion is that the Sarmatian style opaque red beads found in Avar Period graves were made in the Sarmatian Period and got back to usage by grave-robbing. The opaque white glass beads of Sarmatian style from Szegvár-Oromdülő and from the Madaras-halmok site (Sarmatian Period) were coloured (opacified) by antimony oxide, while those of Avar style from Szegvár-Oromdülő were coloured by tin oxide (Table 3, Fig. 7). The situation is the same as in the case of the opaque red beads: the Sarmatian style beads found in Avar Period graves were coloured by the same way as those found in the Sarmatian Period graves. Regarding the origin of the Sarmatian style opaque white beads found in Avar Period graves the authors' conclusion is that these also were made in the Sarmatian Period. 20 For grave-robbing in the AVar Period see e.g. PÁSZTOR - VIDA 1995. 21 WEDEPOHL et al. 1997. 22 See FÓRIZS et al. 1999 ( www.chemonet.hu/hun/teazo/geo/avar ), 2000a, 2000b, 2001. 81
