XXXVIII (2015)
ARHEOLOGIA MOLDOVEI
VICTOR COJOCARU,
Instituția proxeniei în spațiul pontic. Istoricul cercetării
[The “Proxenia” in the Black Sea Area. A Survey on the History of Its Research]
In the context of a monograph on proxenia in the Black Sea area, the author has embarked on investigating into the history of modern research. This article provides him with the opportunity to expand on this topic, starting with a brief reference to two proxeny decrees published by A. Boeckh (1843) in CIG, vol. II, part XI, among113 inscriptions of North Pontic origin. Next, several observations are made regarding the approaches of foundational studies, such as “Les proxénies grecques” (P. Monceaux, 1885), IOSPE I2 (V. V. Latyschev, 1916), “Proxenie und Euergesie” (A. Wilhelm, 1942), “Proxenos” (F. Gschnitzer, 1973), “Die Proxenie” (Chr. Marek, 1984), “D’Olbia à Tanaïs” (Chr. Müller, 2010), “Prosopographia Ponti Euxini externa” (A. Avram, 2013). Also taken into account were the contributions of the Soviet scholars, especially of A. I. Tjumenev, I. P. Nikitina, Ju. G. Vinogradov, V. P. Jajlenko, and S. Ju. Saprykin. Western historiographical discourses on proxeny tend to ignore almost completely the contributions of the Soviet school. Likewise, however, the latter tend to neglect most work done by Western colleagues. Thus, this study offers a first attempt at a systematic discussion on the history of research related to proxeny in the Black Sea area.
Keywords: Black Sea area, “Proxenia”, proxeny decrees, Greek cities, historiographical discourse, history of research.
FLORIN CURTA,
Imaginea vlahilor la cronicarii Cruciadei a IV-a. Până unde răzbate ecoul discuțiilor intelectuale de la Constantinopol?
[The Image of the Vlachs from the Chroniclers of the Fourth Crusade. How Far Does the Echo of Constantinopolitan Intellectual Debates Reach?]
The chroniclers of the Fourth Crusade (Geoffroi de Villehardouin, Henri de Valenciennes, and Robert de Clari) have much to say about the Vlachs. Much of that information results from direct contact with the Vlachs, particularly in the case of Villehardouin and Henri de Valenciennes. However, several issues characterizing the Vlachs, especially in Robert de Clari’s chronicle, are remarkably similar to stories that may be found in Niketas Choniates. The paper analyzes the role attributed to the Vlachs in the French chronicles, and attempts to explain the similarity to the coverage of things Vlach in Niketas Choniates. As such, the paper offers an examination of all Byzantine sources mentioning the Vlachs before Choniates and of non-Byzantine sources such as Benjamin of Tudela, the chronicle attributed to Ansbertus, and the correspondence between Pope Innocent III and Johannitsa Kaloyan. The conclusion is that the image of the Vlachs in the French chronicles derives from stories about them circulating in 12th-century Constantinople.
Keywords: Geoffroi de Villehardouin, Henri de Valenciennes, Robert de Clari, Niketas Choniates, Benjamin of Tudela, Vlachs, Bulgaria, Johannitsa Kaloyannes, Trojan legend.
GEORGE BILAVSCHI,
O analiză a vieții agricole în spațiul Est-Carpatic în timpul migrațiilor târzii (secolele XI‒XIII): Continuitate ori discontinuitate
[A Survey of Agricultural Life in the Eastern Carpathian Area During the Late Migrations (11th – 13th Centuries): Continuity or Discontinuity]
In this paper we propose to further examine the possibilities that the late migrations of the 11th – 13th centuries induced periods of growth and decline of agrarian settlements, but also the intensifications of trade and communications in the Eastern Carpathian area. The rhythm and intensity of the invasions are indicative of the reinforcement of the tribal confederation in southern Moldavia and in Wallachia, as a result of the gradual migration of Turkic peoples from North Pontic area to the west.
It is possible that extra-Carpathian territories played the role of buffer zones between the nomads and the Christian states. The function of buffer zones was to reduce the likelihood of conflict, but these regions also feature an opportunity for peaceful exchange, and so they may develop into centers of trade.
During the 11th – 13th centuries, the local communities of Moldavia had the characteristics of a sedentary and rural society, bonded to its traditional occupations, agriculture and stock breeding, completed by artisan occupations. Given the favorable environment, this economic profile was sufficient for subsistence and could occasionally produce a surplus for exchange.
This reexamination of the nomads’ way of life and of their influence on agrarian communities suggests that there was much more than just interaction between the civilizations of East and West. Extreme climatic and geographical conditions repeatedly made Central Asian peoples develop modes of subsistence and institutional structures that had huge consequences for world history.
New sources continue to appear and so we hope to be able to rule out some explanations and find support for others. In order to test the explanations for the relation between sedentary/farmer and nomad/warrior/ conqueror we need quantitative data with good temporal resolution over the relevant time period and in the relevant regions for settlement, climate change, epidemic diseases, migrations, trade and warfare.
Keywords: medieval agriculture, agricultural tools, nomads, farmers, East-Carpathian territories, 11th – 13th Centuries, Late Migrations.
CĂTĂLIN IULIAN HRIBAN,
Câteva considerații asupra arheologiei străzii în spațiul urban medieval și premodern al Europei Centrale și de Est
[Some Remarks Regarding the Archaeology of Street in the Medieval and Early Modern Urban Environment of Central and Eastern Europe]
The street is one of the defining features of an urban setting, regardless of era and geography. Consequently, the archaeology of street is an important module of any urban archaeology, and the medieval towns of Central and Eastern Europe are no exception. The street of a medieval town is defined both as structure and function and, as such, its archaeology reflects both these definitions. In terms of archaeology of medieval street, one can also add the corpus of artifacts and small finds that are inherent to any historically defined space shared by a human community for a time of significant length. This corpus of small, mobile, finds are “parasitizing” the structural and functional characteristics of the street, forming its own category of characteristics. The archaeology of the historical street, ancient as well as medieval and modern, cannot be studied comprehensively unless one considers all three groups of features together (structural, functional and parasitic). However, all archaeological features of the street vary regionally, as a consequence of geography, cultural setting and politics, but the coherence of interpretation is achieved and maintain throughout by means of separating methodologically the structural, functional and parasitic features and then analyzing them together. Any source, apart from the archaeological finds, is to be considered and utilized, cartography, narratives as well as contemporary imagery.
Keywords: cobbler, dirt lane, drainage, Great Novgorod, medieval urban structures, pavement, raised walkway, street flooring, wooden street.
COSTEL CHIRIAC, LUCIAN MUNTEANU,
Sigilii dobrogene inedite. III
[Inedited Dobruja Seals. III]
We continue the regular publishing of the sealings found in Dobruja, by presenting several civic and provincial sealings. Based on the sealings’ legends, we were able to identify the names of the following cities from Asia Minor: Dios Hieron, Ephesos, Hypaipa, Klazomenai and Tralleis. One sealing bear the name of Pamphylia province. We believe that the commercial sealings discovered in the Lower Danube area attest to the trading of goods imported from Asia Minor, in order to maintain the logistics of the Roman army stationed along the Danube during the Gothic war under the emperor Valens (366-369 CE).
Keywords: sealings, commerce, Dobruja, Asia Minor, Gothic war.
GEORGE DAN HÂNCEANU, LUCIAN MUNTEANU,
Descoperiri monetare din Târgul Romanului (punctul „La Bibliotecă”)
[Monetary Finds from the Medieval Town of Roman – „La Bibliotecă”]
In 2012–2013, during the archaeological research conducted in the city of Roman (Neamț county), the „At the Library” spot, 42 coins were found. Of these, 26 pieces came from the archaeological layer, while the other 16 pieces were discovered in closed complexes (two workshops). In this paper we present the 26 coins found in the archaeological layer. These are represented by issuings of the rulers of Moldova (3 ex), an imitation after a Venetian ducat, probably realized in a Genoese colony on the Black Sea coast (1 ex.), original and copied Ottoman aspers (3 ex.), Polish coins minted for the Crown (1 ex.) and Lithuania (1 ex.), Austrian coin minted for Hungary (1 ex.), Swedish coins (2 ex.), „war money” from the mint of Sadagura (2 ex.), modern Austrian coins (3 ex.), various small denominations from the time of Carol I (8 ex.) and a chip originating in the German space (Cat. no. 26). The monetary finds discovered in the dwelling levels of the city of Roman during the archaeological research held in the years 2012–2013 reflect an intense social and economic life of this borough in the medieval and modern times, coupled with the continuity in the hearth of the same city.
Keywords: coins, archaeological research, Moldavia, Roman, 14th–19th centuries.
LUCIAN MUNTEANU, SEVER-PETRU BOȚAN, AURORA-EMILIA APOSTU,
Descoperiri monetare din Moldova. VII
[Monetary Finds from Moldavia. VII]
We continue the regular publishing of the coins found in Moldova, by presenting several recently found ancient coins from the collection of the Museum in Vrancea (Focșani). The coins were discovered in the following locations: I. Cândești (Dumbrăveni commune, Vrancea county) (2 AR Dyrrhachium, 1st century BC); II. Focșani (Vrancea county) (hoard; recovered 31 AR, dated from Elagabalus to Volusianus); III. Olăreni (Slobozia Bradului commune, Vrancea county) (hoard; recovered 6 AR, dated from Marcus Antonius to Marcus Aurelius and 1 AE – Constantinopolis type); IV. Repedea (Străoane commune, Vrancea county) (hoard; recovered 4 AR, dated from M. Papirius Carbo to Ulpia Severina). In regards to the last two hoards we have serious doubts that the most recent coins (Cat. III/7 and IV/4) actually belong to the initial findings.
Keywords: coin finds, Moldova, Museum of Vrancea, Roman coins.
SEVER-PETRU BOȚAN, LUCIAN MUNTEANU,
Medalii și decorații din colecția Institutului de Arheologie din Iași (I)
[Medals and Decorations in the Collection of Institute of Archaeology in Iaşi (I)]
The authors aim to present a first series of 13 decorations and medals awarded by the Kingdom of Romania between 1878 and 1933. They represent both civilian and military awards and entered in the numismatic collection of the Institute of Archaeology – Iași, through various donations. These medals, although we do not know their actual owners or their deeds, bear witness of our national history in the last 150 years.
Keywords: Phaleristics, medals and awards, Kingdom of Romania, civilian and military decorations, 19th-20th centuries.
VASILE CHIRICA, DIANA-MĂRIUCA VORNICU,
The Palaeolithic Discoveries from Mitoc – Malu Galben (Romania). The Aurignacian I and I Inferior Layers
The paper makes a presentation of the two oldest archaeological layers at the Upper Palaeolithic site of Mitoc – Malu Galben: the Aurignacian I and I inferior assemblages. The study provides a geographic and geologic characterization of the area, by pointing out that the main reason for the prehistoric human communities to install their encampments here was the availability of the rich flint resources. The pedo-sedimentary stratigraphy of the site is also presented along with the distribution of the archaeological layers in the sedimentary units and the established climatic cycles. Among the Aurignacian layers, the Aurignacian I (subunit 10b inferior – 11 superior) provided the richest archaeological material: flint workshops concentrated around hearths, faunal remains and hard animal tissue artefacts (Mladeč spearheads). The lithic typology is specific to the classical old Aurignacian (carenated endscrapers and burins, nosed endscrapers). The absolute chronology data indicate a first occupation of the site around 32.730 ± 220 BP (Aurignacian I inferior – subunit 12 b) and the 30.000 BP for the end of the Aurignacian I occupation. The final part of the text propounds a framing of the Aurignacian discoveries from Malu Galben in the context of the Early Upper Palaeolithic from Europe.
Keywords: Early Upper Palaeolithic, Aurignacian, climatic cycles, technocomplexes, knapping workshops, combustion structures, paleo-environment, hard animal tissue artifacts.
CORNELIA-MAGDA LAZAROVICI,
Așezarea cucuteniană de la Cucuteni – Dealul Mănăstirii / La Dobrin
[The Cucutenian Settlement of Cucuteni – Dealul Mânăstirii / La Dobrin]
Archaeological excavations at Dealul Mănăstirii / La Dobrin (1979-1981) attest to the existence of a secondary settlement (based on quality, shapes and decoration of the pottery) Cucuteni A3, which is at about1.5 km far from the main one on Cetățuia. Were investigated a house (L1), several complex/annexes (Complex 1 may indicate another house) and pits. Complexes discovered on the east side of the plateau (S I, maybe another house) were affected by the collapse of the promontory. The most interesting findings are the 37 zoomorphic idols, related with cults of fertility and flocks, as well as specific religious practices. Various other activities are suggested by other artifacts, such as chipped and polished stone. Materials from other periods were also identified: four inhumation graves without inventory, ascribed to the post-Cucuteni era; sporadic materials belong to Horodiștea-Erbiceni, and more numerous ones are related to the Bronze Age, Hallstatt and La Tène. The use of the plateau by subsequent communities, as well as the works made during WW II affected the remains of Cucuteni habitation.
Due to the placement of La Dobrin we must not exclude the idea that the settlement was part of the defense system of the south-eastern side of the main site, on Cetățuia.
Keywords: Cucuteni A phase, settlement, ceramic fragments, arms and tools, zoomorphic idols, post-Cucuteni discoveries.
ȘTEFAN HONCU COSTEL CHIRIAC,
Ceramică terra sigillata descoperită la Carsium (Hârșova, jud. Constanța)
[Terra Sigillata Pottery Uncovered at Carsium (Hârșova, Constanța County)]
In this article the authors aim to present a few fragments of terra sigillata pottery that were discovered some years ago during the excavations at the Roman camp of Carsium. Thus, the following typological forms were identified: Conspectus 6.2.3, Dragendorff 36, Dragendorff 37 and a few fragments of plain terra sigillata.
Keywords: Carsium, fort, Danubian limes, terra sigillata pottery.
ANITA RAPAN PAPEŠA,
A “Limoges” Mount in Eastern Croatia?
Archaeologists are often surprised by things that come to light out of the earth, showing us that people in the past lived a life that was much more intense than we could ever imagine. Unusual finds that step out of frames limited by our imagination often make us search more and dig deeper. Such a find was recently donated to the Vinkovci Municipal Museum (Eastern Croatia). On an unexplored field in the village of Karadžićevo little less than 200 medieval coins and an anthropomorphic mount were found by a local metal-detector operator. Coins were easily identified as nominals of the Hungarian kingdom, dated to early 15th century. After examining the mount most similar objects to our item are described as products of medieval manufactures in Limoges, France. During High Middle Ages workshops there produced, in the service of the church, numerous religious objects. What such an object, of prestige for this part of Europe, is doing in Croatia and whether it is a Limoges Mount will be discussed in this paper.
Keywords: Limoges mount, coins, hoard, Croatia, High Middle Ages, survey find.
CARSTEN MISCHKA, ALEXANDER RUBEL, MIHAELA IACOB,
Geomagnetische Prospektion in (L)Ibida (Slava Rusă, kreis Tulcea). Vorläufige Ergebnisse der ersten Etappe eines gemeinschaftlichen forschungsprojekts des Archäologischen Instituts Iaşi und der Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen
[Geomagnetical Prospection in (L)Ibida (Slava Rusă Tulcea County). Preliminary Results of the First Stage of a Joint Research Project by the Archaeological Institute Iaşi and the Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen]
The site Slava Rusă, identified with the Roman settlement Ibida, is with more than 24 hectare one of the most important fortified Roman settlements in the Romanian Dobruja (Moesia Inferior), providing especially finds from Late Antiquity. The joint research project envisages an exhaustive geophysical survey of the site and its surroundings. In a first stage the German-Romanian team focussed on certain areas extra muros and on a larger plot inside the fortification. While the results from the surveys north and south-west of the ancient city limits had been rather disappointing, the prospection inside the city walls delivered very interesting results of the architecture during late antiquity. Several larger building complexes (“insulae”) and roads could be identified, a fact that encourages the team to intensify the collaboration in the near future.
Keywords: Libida, Ibida, Slava Rusă, magnetic survey, geophysical survey, settlement archaeology, Roman Empire, Moesia Inferior.
MARIANA PROCIUC, VICU MERLAN,
Studiu arheozoologic al materialului faunistic din două situri cucuteniene: Crețești – La Intersecție și Lohan – Camping (jud. Vaslui)
[Archaeozoological Study of Faunal Remains from two Cucutenian Sites: Crețești-La Intersecție and Lohan-Camping (Vaslui County)]
The bone remains analysed from Crețești – La intersecție were unearthed during the archaeological excavation of 2014. The faunal remains originating from the ancient food garbage were found into two kitchen midden dated from Cucuteni AB. Some animal bones from this site were studied before in another two zooarchaeological reports, with similar results: the fauna is not very diversified, but obviously, the domestic animals are in dominance in the studied sample. Regarding this study, the situation is approximate the same and the identified taxa are: Bos taurus (cattle), Ovis aries (sheep), Capra hircus (goat), Ovis aries/Capra hircus, Sus domesticus (pig), Cervus elaphus (red deer), Capreolus capreolus (roe deer), Bos primigenius (aurochs), Bos taurus/Bos primigenius, Sus domesticus/Sus scrofa. Our results complete previous results about the site economy. Among the fragments there are also three bone tools: a scraper, an indeterminate bone tool and an awl. Another archaeological site analysed is Lohan-Camping (same year of archaeological excavation) dated in the same period, but poorer in diversity: Cervus elaphus, Equus sp., Bos taurus/Bos primigenius, Sus domesticus/Sus scrofa.
Keywords: Cucuteni Culture, Neolithic, faunal remains, paleoeconomy, cut marks.