Marisia - Maros Megyei Múzeum Évkönyve 33/4. (2013)
Articles
Churchyards in the Transylvanian Basin from the 11"' to the first half of the 13th centuries 157 bones are divided into 24 subgroups ,103 which constitute 7 main groups: Arm position variants I, and IV-VI have been classified into Group I. This position means that the arms were lying alongside the body and for several reasons the bones of the forearms ended up on the brim of the pelvis. It could have been caused by wrapping the body in a shroud or the decomposition of the body. From the 582 registered cases 492 belong to this group; this makes up 84.53% of the documented arm positions. Arm positions II—III, IX, XV, XIX-XX belong to Group II. In this case one arm was lying alongside the body and the other was laid across the stomach or pelvis. This was the situation in 30 cases which constitute 5.15% of the arm positions. In Group III we find one arm or both arms put across the chest. Arm position variants VIIVIII, X-XII, XVI-XVII belong to this group. We only know one case; it constitutes 2.23% of the documented cases (13 graves). Arm position XIV belongs to Group IV when the arms were put over the pubic vertebrae or the sacrum forming a cross or folding them together. 32 cases have been registered making up 5.49%. Arm position XIII constitutes Group V. 5 cases are known making up 0.85% of the documented cases. Arm position XVIII constitutes Group VI. Only two cases is known making up 0.34% of the documented cases. Group VII is constituted by arm positions XXI-XXIV. Their characteristic feature is that one or both forearms were positioned under the pelvis. 8 cases are known making up 1.37% of all the arm positions. Fig. 11. Position of the arm bones in the graves The statistical analyses clearly show that the arm position variants of Group I were documented in the greatest number (84.77%), the other arm positions can only be detected in a far smaller number in the Transylvanian cemeteries. The statistical proportions are in correlation with those in other cemeteries of the Árpádian era, from another parts of Carpathian basin .104 The cases of Groups II—VII can be considered exceptional in the churchyards from Transylvania Basin. 103 Gáli 2011,23: 13. kép. 104 Ritoók 2010, 486.
