Kovács Tibor - Stanczik Ilona (szerk.): Bronze Age tell settlements of the Great Hungarian Plain I. (Inventaria Praehistorica Hungariae 1; Budapest, 1988)

Márta SZ. MÁTHÉ: Bronze Age tells in the Berettyó valley

vár jugs (Pl. 45:2). There are bowls with small ribbonhandles from their rim (PL 45:3-6, 10), and similar biconical bowls (PL 45:11). The bowl with rounded shoulder and short S-shaped rim is not too typical (PI. 45 :8). An abundance of scored ware was recovered, mostly jars with coarse scoring below the shoulder (PI. 44:3, 5, 7). The coarse and burnished vessel parts are often separated by ribs (PL 44:2, 6). The ovoid jar with out-turned rim is also to be found. Its body is vertically scored, the neck is smooth (PI. 45:12). A later variant either with scored surface extending to the rim or without any decoration became the most frequent vessel type of the Otomani B period. Some base fragments resemble the "pancake" shaped separately attached bases of Nagyrév jars (PI. 44 :8, 9). Further Nagyrév traits can be seen on the fragment of a small jug with a narrow neck decorated by two vertical ribs (PI. 44:4). This scanty material does not suggest the presence of the Nagyrév culture in the Berettyó valley, but rather its contemporaneity with a phase of the Nyírség culture. Kalicz suggested that the Nyírség culture survived until the formative phase of the Nagyrév culture in the Tisza area,

78 but there was no evidence for this from the Berettyó region. Kalicz has recently synchronized the Nyírség culture and the earliest Nagyrév period.

79 Even though vertical ribs and "pancake-shaped" vessel-bases are attested in the entire Nagyrév sequence, it would appear that our Nyírség finds can be synchronized with the late Nagyrév period.

80 This possibility is supported by a chronologically diagnostic find recovered from level 4 at Csapszékpart, namely a small clay object resembling a miniature gable roof (PI. 45 :1). It may have served as a house model, a roof model or simply as a lid to a hanging vessel. Similar finds have been known since long. One of them is illustrated on the "type photograph" of Nagyrév finds from Marion's excavations at Tószeg.

81 The find type has been reported from several sites since then. The best analogy of our find is the Tószeg specimen, the only one found in a Nagyrév context. The other specimens have been recovered partly from Nyírség and partly from Otomani sites. Kalicz published one from Dombrád

82 which is ornamented with the excised triangles of the Nyírség culture. A similar specimen has come to light at Tuzsér, also in a Nyírség context

83 and one fragment has been reported from Bere (Berea) near Szatmár (Satu Mare),

84 An undecorated specimen with flat base, assigned to the Nyírség culture, was found at Csomaköz (CiumesTi-Bostänarie).

85 The unstratified specimen from Békés-Városerdő where the Nyírség culture is not attested, may have originated from the lower layers.

86 A similar find from an Early Bronze Age pit at Bodrogszerdahely (Streda nad Bodrogom) is unpublished, and housed in the museum of Kassa (Kosice).

87 A second specimen was also found in level 4 at Gáborján. The fragment is decorated with Nyírség motifs (PI. 44:1). Assuming that these peculiar roof-shaped objects belong to the same period, the following conclusions can be drawn: They are undoubtedly of Nyírség origin and are, furthermore, suitable for finer chronological dating. The sherds found alongside the "roof" at Bodrogszerdahely can be assigned to the phase represented by the Rétközberencs site and the lower layers of Szalacs (Salacea). This period is characterized by the occurrence of Nyírség motifs, primarily by the excised triangle pattern surviving also into later periods, into the Otomani B layers. The Tuzsér material was dominated by scored Nyírség ware, but included also an altar fragment.

88 Apart from this fragment altars seem to be virtually confined to the Otomani A, Hatvan and Otomani B periods. The stray altar from Békés may also have belonged to this period. Even though Bader assigned a similar specimen-that he interpreted as a house model —and a jug fragment decorated with excised ornament from Csomaköz to the Nyírség period, it must be recalled that this decoration was current in the Otomani period as well. It occurs on the vessels from the cremation burials of the Otomani culture found at Csomaköz itself.

89 It would appear that the model was found in a pit and not in a grave, even though there is no definite information in this respect.

90 Level 3 (PI. 43) contained mostly Nyírség type sherds, but new types and motifs also appeared. Scoring became finer (PL 43:11-14), small cups with S-shaped profiles (PI. 43:1) and bowls with inturned rim (PI. 43:6) were found alongside sherds decorated with rows of lightly excised triangles characteristic of the Otomani culture (PI. 43 :3). Since the archaeologists working in Western Romania are in a key position for clarifying the origins of the Nyírség and Otomani cultures, the chronological framework proposed by Kacsó cannot be left out of consideration. Kacsó distinguishes two phases within the Otomani 1 period (i.e. my period A of the Otomani culture), namely Otomani la and Otomani lb.He correlates Otomani la with the Nyírség culture, whilst Otomani lb corresponds to the Nagyrév-Perjámos I—IV. Pécska and Early Hatvan cultures.

91 Judging from the Gáborján stratigraphy, the Otomani culture is obviously later than the Nyírség—Nagyrév phase. The subdivision of the Otomani I culture into phase a and b would only be justified if phase a implies the early Otomani culture, whilst phase b is reserved for the flourishing Otomani culture. Bader described the material corresponding to level 3 at Gáborján as the last phase of the Nyírség culture. This is his Szaniszló phase which he synchronised with the Otomani la, Hatvan I and Kostány I—II cultures.

92 The same period has been labelled as preOtomani by Roman and Németi. They think this term is supported by the evidence from the Piskolt (Piscolt) settlement.

93 The Piskolt finds are definitely more related to the material from Otomani sites (Rétközberencs, Csomaköz, Bodrogszerdahely, early Szalacs layer) than to the finds of the Nyírség culture. The jugs, deep bowls, jars, conical lids with handles inside and covers are definitely new types belonging to the Early Otomani culture (phase A). Level 2 at Gáborján belongs to the Otomani B