Kelemen Imola (szerk.): A Csíki Székely Múzeum Évkönyve 7. (Csíkszereda, 2011)

Régészet - Tibor-Tamás Daróczi–Imola Kelemen: A bronze age bridler decoration from Mihăileni (Csíkszentmihály), Depr. of Ciuc

DARÓCZITIBOR-TAMÁS, KELEMEN IMOLA

Although some antler or bone plaques with several perforations are known from as early as the Hatvan culture in the Carpathian Basin,4 their shape, function and lack of decoration makes them highly unlikely candidates for forerunners for this disc. However, they serve as evidence for the use of horses, maybe even for riding, and as such for the use of bridles. A low number of objects, similar in shape, have been recorded in the western part of the Carpathian Basin and to the east of the Carpathian Mountains,5 6 though there is only one recorded instance from the eastern part of the basin.*5 The two directions that the analysis will follow are those of the analogies of the shape and of the decoration. Bone discs of similar

shape are known from Vatin, Andrieşeni, Gârbovăţ, Lupşanu and Cavadineşti7 8 but the best analogy for this shape comes from Vatin (pi. 2/b) and Pererâta.^ The two discs are dated to the Vatina culture of the Middle Bronze Age and the Noua culture (I?) of the early Late Bronze Age, respectively.9 The decoration is typical of bone objects associated with the bridles and harnesses (bit-pieces, distributors1 °) of the Bronze Age, mostly consisting of fluid, undulating looped lines and the spaces in between these loops filled with circles and drilled point-like motifs.11 From the presented analogies for the individual motifs it is clear that the carved circles and drilled point-like motifs are common to bridle decoration, the latter usually occurring in the centre of the carved ones. The composition of these individual elements in the case of the antler disc from Mihailem is unique. No other bone or antler disc, or indeed any other bridle piece from the Bronze Age of South-Eastern Europe, has a similar combination. The radiant motif resembling petals does occur on some of the presented discs but it is always continuous and undulating while forming loops. These analogies are all dated to the Middle Bronze Age.12 13 The best analogies in terms of individual decorative elements and compositions are found at Vatin (pi. 2/b) and surprisingly, at Bogazköy in central Anatolia (pi. 2/a).15 Similar individual decorative elements and composition occur on pommels of bronze swords of the Bronze Age.14 In this case, the comparable decorations are not satisfying either and provide only rough analogies for the composition of the decoration of the disc. It should be mentioned that in one case,15 the arms of the rays were made of half circles, just as in the case of the decoration of our bone disc, but without any other binding motifs. The dating

0 5 cm

Plate 2. a. The disc from Bogazköy, central Anatolia (after BOEHMER 1972, pi. 72/2019);

b. The disc from Vatin (after TASIÉ 1974, 521 no. 159)

4 KALICZ 1968, 162, pl. LXXI/1, CXXX/35/2.

5 BÓNA 1975, Map 5, e.g. pi. 195/2 and 196/3, 197/6; BOROFFKA 1998, e.g. pi. 8/7; HÜTTEL 1981, e.g. pi. 3/25b, 26; SAVA 2002, e.g. pi. 160/14.

6 DARÓCZI 2011, cat. no. 4, pi. 3/1.

7 FLORESCU 1991, pi. 153/1-4,6,8; HÜTTEL 1981,64-65, pl. 3/25B.

8 TASIC 1974, p. 217, 521 no. 159; SAVA 2002, 42, no. III.3,e, fig. 14/1.

9 HÜTTEL 1981, 65; SAVA 2002,61-62.

10 For the used terminology see CROUWEL 1981, esp. fig. 6.

11 BOROFFKA 1998, pi. 1/1-3,4/6-8,6/4,12; DAVID 1997,259-260; HÜTTEL 1981, pl. 5/39,7/58,59,8/72A, 9/89A,93, 10/102,103, 11/108; MOZSOLICS I960, fig. 1, pi. LXXIV/3a.

12 HÜTTEL 1981, 70, 86-87, 94, 101.

13 BOEHMER 1972,195 no. 2019, pi. 72/2019; DAVID 1997,259-260,280-281 [K 46 and 53], 297 pi. 5/3,7; TASIC 1974, p. 217, 521 no. 159.

14 BADER 1991, pi. 35/330, 39/340,41/342, 42/344-345,43/347,348, 44/349-351,46/354,355.

15 BADER 1991, pi. 41/342.

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