Victor Sava
Copper axe-adzes from Complexul Muzeal Arad collection
Cuvinte cheie: valea inferioară a Mureşului, valea Crişului Alb, Complexul Muzeal Arad, topoare de cupru, topoare Jászladány
Keywords: Lower Mureş Valley, Crişul Alb Valley, Arad Museum Complex, copper axes, Jászladány type axes
Scopul acestui articol este de a introduce în circuitul ştiinţific nouă topoare de cupru de tip Jászladány, care se află în colecţia Complexului Muzeal Arad. Trebuie menţionat încă de la început că dintre aceste nouă topoare doar trei sunt inedite, restul au fost publicate cu alte ocazii.
Imboldul redactării acestui studiu s-a datorat în principal precarităţii informaţiilor oferite de către cei care au discutat problema topoarelor Jászladány păstrate în colecţia Complexului Muzeal Arad. În expunerea de mai jos piesele sunt descrise în ordinea alfabetică a unităţii administrative în care au fost identificate, iar discuţia asupra fiecărei piese conţine trei câmpuri. În primul dintre acestea se precizează locul exact al descoperirii (acolo unde se poate), urmat de istoriografia piesei, acolo unde e cazul, şi comentariile de rigoare asupra informaţiilor existente în literatura de specialitate, iar ultima parte o reprezintă descrierea efectivă a piesei.
The main aim of this study is to introduce nine copper axe-adze,Jászladány type, stored at Complexul Muzeal Arad, in the scientific circuit. It should be noted at the outset that only three of the nine axes are unpublished.
The impetus of writing this study was mainly due to the precarity information provided by those who discussed the issue of Jászladány type axe-adzes stored at Complexul Muzeal Arad. The axes are displayed in alphabetical order of the administrative unit where the axe have been discovered; the discution of each axe contains three main fields. In the first it will be point out the exact location of the discovery (where it is possibe), follow by the historiography of the artifact and the comments upon the informations contained in the archaeological literature; the last field is dedicated to the description of the axe.
The first copper artifacts from the lower Mureş valley can be found at the end of Neolithic. Thus in the Tisa culture tell from Hódmezővásárhely „Gorzsa” (note 69), F. Horváth identified copper beads in several men’s graves. Also in this site has been discovered in a woman’s grave a copper bracelet; in a girl’s grave a necklace and a bracelet. The metallographic analysis that was carried demonstrated that all the copper artifacts discovered in this site were processed by cold hammering.
The emergence of Tiszapolgár culture is equivalent with the widespread of copper artifacts; this phenomenon can be easily visible also on the lower Mureş valley. The Deszk cemetery (note 70), excavated by F. Móra between 1930 and 1931 contains quite a few copper artefacts. There have been identified 31 artifacts, bracelets, rings and beads, distributed in seven graves (three in cemetery A and four in cemetery B). Another cemetery where copper artifacts were discoveres is Hódmezővásárhely „Népkert” (note 71). Following several municipal works have been destroyed 17 graves belonging to the above mentioned cemetery. In 1972 I. Bognár-Kutzián manage to reconstruct six graves. Copper artifacts were identified in three graves; in grave two have been discovered two bracelets; in grave number three a spiraled bracelet and to grave number four can be attributed a bracelet. Also on Hódmezővásárhely, this time in the location called„Szakálhát- Diószegitanya” (note 72), J. Banner unveils agrage that contained two rings disposed on a necklace. Tiszapolgár chronological horizon can be attributed the Pločnik hammer axe discovered at Lipova (note 73) (pl. II/2).
Bodrogkeresztúr chronological horizon stand out from previous metallurgy through the spread of massive copper artifacts such as Mezőkeresztes hammer axe, or Jászladány type axe-adzes. The process of distribution of large copper artifacts can be seen easily for lower Mureş valley and Crişul Alb valley. Of the 42 axes identified in this area, 30 belong to the Bodrogkeresztúr chronological horizon. Of the remaining 12 axes, the Pločnik hammer axe discovered at Lipova belongs to Tiszapolgár chronological horizon; the other 11 remaining axes cannot be assigned to a specific horizon due to incomplete information foud in the archaeological literature. It can be easily seen that the vast majority of the axes belong to the Jászladány type (Pl. IV/2), there have been 21 specimens found, followed by Mezőkeresztes hammer axe (Pl. III/2), with four specimens; Agnita (Pl. III/1) and Şiria hammer axes (Pl. IV/1) are each represented with two specimens; in a single specimen is highlighted Szakálhat flat axe, Sălacea variant (Pl. V/1). Among the Jászladány type axe-adzes discovered in the area mentioned above one can encounter Orşova, Şincai, Petreşti, Brad variants, but also a special variant identified at Sânpetru German „La Islaz” (note 74).
Based on the distribution map of the copper axes discovered at lower Mureş and Crişul Alb river it can be easily seen that the majority of the axes were discovered on the lower Mureş (Pl. II/1). The distribution of the copper axes is somewhat similar to the distribution of Bodrogkeresztúr sites (Pl. I/2). Another observation that is worth noted is that these axes have been identified mostly in the lowlands, except for the axes discovered at Dezna and Tăgădău.
Repertorying these copper axes led to the observation of three major concentrations. The first concentration is representated by the nine axes from Lipova (note 75) and one each from Guttenbrun (note 76) and Zăbrani (note 77). The second concentration can be observed around Pecica and Periam and is representated by the discoveries from Pecica „Şanţul Mare” (note 78), Pecica „Bojhos szöllö”, Periam (note 79), Sânpetru German „La Islaz” (note 80), Sânpetru German „Hotarul Reck” (note 81) and Semlac (note 82). The third concentration is observed aroundBékés and is represented by the axes identified at Békés (note 83), Doboz (note 84), Gerla (note 85), Gyula (note 86) and Sarkad (note 87). Based on the Bodrogkeresztúr/ Huniadyhalom/toarte pastilate sites distribution map, one can observe that only the second concentration of axes, the ones discovered around Pecica and Periam area, is doubled by the sites belonging to this chronological horizon. In this regard in this area have been discovered over the years a number of Bodrogkeresztúr sites, Sânpetru German „Fântâna Vacilor” (note 88), Sânpetru German „Malul Înalt” (note 89) and Pecica „Forgaci” (note 90), but also Huniadyhalom/toarte pastilate sites at Pecica „Şanţul Mare” (note 91) and Pecica „Cărămidăria Ogorul” (note 92).
For the area taken in consideration by this study there are copper finds that belong to Huniadyhalom/toarte pastilate chronological horizon at Pecica „Şanţul Mare”. Following M. Roska excavations from 1910 and 1911 there have been discovered in the lower level of the tell, that belongs to Huniadyhalom/toarte pastilate horizon, a knife blade, a ring, two bracelets, two blades and four piercings (note 93). Besides these artifacts, the archaeological registry of Complexul Muzeal Arad records at Pecica „Şanţul Mare” two Jászladány type axe-adzes (note 94).
The development of Cernavodă III-Boleráz elements also marks the scarcity of copper artifacts; this phenomenon is visible at the lower Mureş and Crişul Alb valley. As for the area considered here, Cernavodă III-Boleráz and Baden/Coţofeni chronological horizons can be characterized by the absence of metal.
As can be seen above the copper artifacts discovered at the lower Mureş and Crişul Alb valley shows a gradual spread. The first horizon that copper artifacts are emerging is the final Neolithic tells; at this chronological horizon copper artifacts are rare. With the advent ofTiszapolgár elements the copper artifacts are starting to spread, but the predominant artifacts are adornments. Bodrogkeresztúr chronological horizon can be characterized by the spread of large copper artifacts such as Jászladány type axe-adzes. Based on the numerous findings can be said that this chronological horizon is the copper metallurgy pinnacle.