Balogh Csilla – P. Fischl Klára: Felgyő, Ürmös-tanya. A Móra Ferenc Múzeum Évkönyve: Monumenta Archeologica 1. (Szeged, 2010)

The Avar Cemetery at Felgyő, Ürmős-Tanya

A Felgyő, Ünnös-tanyai avar kori temető 269 1955, 212) and Solt-Szőlőhegy Grave 13, which likewise contained a mandible. A partial pig burial has been reported from Grave 5 of the Kiskundorozsma-Hármashatár cemetery, comprising a pig skull cleaved in half and two trotters, placed near the head in the corner of the grave pit (VÁLYI 2003, 212, Fig. 3. 17). Six graves contained an animal bone or tooth only. Grave 61 yielded a cattle knucklebone, Grave 109 a cattle patella, Grave 158 a cattle astragalus, Graves 207 and 208 a sheep astragalus. Since these could hardly have been food offerings, it seems likely that they were attributes, symbolising the entire animal. A sheep or goat tooth was recovered from Grave 128, which can similarly be interpreted as an attribute. Similar instances of animal teeth deposited in burials of the Danube-Tisza Interfluve are known from Mali Idjos, Grave 79 (GUB1TZA 1909, 77) and Szabadszállás-Drill Ground B, Grave 3 (BALOGH 2004, 76-77; VÖRÖS 2004, 84-85). Each of these was a male burial into which a cattle tooth had been placed. There are no Early Avar antecedents for the practice of depositing sacrificial animals in graves in the Danube-Tisza Interfluve. This practice made its appearance in the early graves of the new cemeteries opened after the mid-7th century. Over one-half of the observations on sacrificial animals were made in three cemeteries: about 10 % of the graves excavated at Felgyő and Szeged-Makkoserdő contained animal sacrifices in one or another form, while almost 40 % of the 68 graves uncovered in the burial ground at SzabadszállásBatthyányi Street. The archaeological evidence indicates that there were two or perhaps three regions in which animal sacrifices were part of the funeral rite; at the same time, major differences can be noted regarding both the species of the sacrificial animal and its deposition in the grave between individual burial grounds, which can perhaps be attributed to differing cultural and ethnic backgrounds. Food offerings Food offerings were found in 96 graves (44,4%): 41 male, 31 female and 13 child burials (11 burials could not be sexed). One food offering was placed in 69 graves, two in 17 graves, three in four graves, four in four graves and five in four graves. The most frequent food offering was cattle, followed by sheep and domestic hen. Pig was the least frequent food offering (Graves 57, 95, 119, 149, 170, 191, 199 and 233), as was domestic goose (Graves 86, 118 and 159). The food offerings were generally placed inside the coffin, next to the deceased. The animal bones were usually found in the region of the legs, most often by the legs and the feet, occasionally between or beside the thighs. Very rarely were meat offerings placed beside the head, and the number of instances when the food offering was deposited beside the trunk is virtually negligible. The most frequent cattle offerings were loin chops and back ribs, indicated by a few cervical and lumbar vertebrae, and the occasional rib; similarly, loin chops and back ribs were the most often deposited sheep offerings. Silverside (indicated by sacrum and sacral vertebrae) was placed in three burials (Graves 21, 82 and 165), two burials (Graves 136 and 160) contained a tibia, while two burials (Graves 169 and 229) each contained a shoulder-blade and a pelvic bone. Most of the pig offerings were loin chops, indicated by ribs and the occasional vertebra. A pig femur was recovered from Grave 57, a rear limb in Grave 149, and a tibia in Grave 191. The wing and drumstick of domestic hen was most often deposited as a food offering, usually the meaty parts. Whole wings were rarely given, and not one single complete foot was found. Minor variations could be noted in the deposition of food offerings in male and female burials: cattle, followed by sheep and domestic hen were the most frequent in the former, while domestic hen, followed by cattle, sheep and pig in the latter. The combination of animal species in the funerary rite, i.e. the combinations of the species deposited in burials (VÖRÖS 1991, 91) indicated that pig and sheep generally occurred together with other species, while food offerings of domestic hen were most frequently placed in female burials and cattle offerings in male burials. Animal food offerings were rare in the Early Avar burials of the Danube-Tisza Interfluve. By the later Avar period, however, the deposition of food offerings in the grave became an important element of the burial rite. Major differences can be noted between individual cemeteries regarding the frequency of food offerings: in some cemeteries, such as the ones along the Danube (e.g. Csepel-Háros, Csepel-Szabadkikötő, Fajsz-Artér), food offerings were extremely rare, while in others (e.g. Szeged-Fehértó A, Szeged-Kundomb, Szabadszállás-Batthyányi Street), 45 to 60 % of the burials contained food offerings. The animal bone samples indicate that poultry — almost exclusively domestic hen - was most often placed in the burials in the upper (Üllő I and II) and lower third (Bácsfeketehegy-Bolmán Street, Horgos-Budzak, Moravica, Topolya-Bánkert) of the Danube-Tisza Interfluve, as well as in its easterly areas (Szeged-Fehértó A and Szeged-Kundomb) during the later Avar period, followed by cattle and sheep, in roughly the same proportion, but much less frequently. The latter were often deposited as food offerings, playing a less significant role as sacrificial animals. Pig and horse rarely appear among the food offerings, and domestic goose, pigeon and fish were deposited but sporadically. Poultry apparently replaced first sheep and, later, cattle toward the close of the Avar period. A few cemeteries differ from this general pattern. Domestic hen did not dominate the food offerings in the Szeged-Fehértó B cemetery: poultry, cattle and pig were deposited in the graves in roughly the same proportion (MADARAS 1995, 154-155), while sheep and cattle were the most frequent offerings at Szeged-Makkoserdő, with domestic hen coming third and pig occurring but sporadically (SALAMON 1995, 148). The same holds true for the cemeteries lying in the 25-35 km wide zone along the Danube (Solt-Szőlőhegy, Kiskőrös-Város alatt, Mélykút-Sáncdülő, Hajós-Cifrahegy), in which the frequency of poultry was lower and food offerings were dominated by cattle or sheep, as at Szabadszállás-Batthyányi Street and Sükösd-Ságod. The majority of burial grounds in which the deposition of meat offerings was not part of the funeral rite also lie in this area. Eggs Eggshells were recovered from 18 graves. Unfortunately, they are no longer available for study with the exception of a single find. Five eggs of domestic hen were placed beside different parts of the body in Grave 234. Eggs were predominantly deposited in female burials, although they are often encountered in child burials too. At Felgyő, the proportion of male burials containing eggs was surprisingly high: eggs were found in seven male burials, six female burials and five child burials. A similarly high proportion was noted at Szeged-Fehértó B. where several graves containing the burials of men laid to rest with their weapons and mount decorated belt also yielded egg remains (MADARAS 1995, 156). Child burials generally contained a single egg, male burials had between one and three eggs, while three to five eggs were placed in female burials. Six of the graves comprising eggs among the grave goods also contained domestic hen sacrifices. Graves 38 and 224, both child burials, and Grave 68, a male burial, contained a single egg and no other food of-