Davinca Diana - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Davinca Diana
Mousaios XXIII, Proceedings of the 18th Internaltional Colloquium of Funerary Archaeology, Buzău (Romania), 17th-20th of October 2019, 2020
Over the past few years, owing to treasure finders using a metal detector, the number of graves f... more Over the past few years, owing to treasure finders using a metal detector, the number of graves
found has significantly increased. Therefore, a new analysis of the funerary vestiges in south-eastern
Transylvania will outline new archaeological realities.
The densest micro-area of new findings is placed between Rotbav and Crizbav where, from 2014
to 2016, one identified at least eight/nine funerary complexes and numerous isolated items, all placed on the
two banks of Valea Seacă. The nearest Dacian sites in the area are the davae from Crizbav and FeldioaraDealul Cetății and the settlement from Rotbav- Căldărușe, with findings dated to the 2nd BC - 1st AD c.
Therefore, if one considers the entirety of findings from a wider area, it becomes obvious that they were
placed along an important route which connected the Codlea area with the Olt River valley.
Although all the findings are the result of metal detectors, many have also been surveyed in the
field and archaeologists have already completed the research of some of them, which is why some useful
data resulted.
The typological variety of the artifacts is remarkable: a) weaponry (swords, spears, sica daggers,
knives); b) riding gear and harness elements (spurs and bits); c) jewelry and clothing accessories (fibulae,
clasps, buckles, pendants, and links); d) pottery. The structure of the inventory found proves that they
belonged to warriors, some of it to knights. It also bears emphasizing that pottery is extremely scarce.
In regard to rites, it is notable that almost all the pieces have been burnt. The remains of cremated
bones on some of them prove that they were placed on the pyre with the dead; the weapons were also bent
(ritually ‘killed’). All the pieces are dated to the 2nd-1st c. BC.
Given the fact that these findings are located in an area with Dacian davae and settlements, and
that the inventory and rites are, to a great extent, local, they attest that the dead were Dacian warriors. The
findings in the most recent years indicate that the findings of the Padea - Panaghiurski Kolonii - Mala
Kopanja type tend to cover all areas inhabited by Dacians, a phenomenon which is now also attested in
south-eastern Transylvania.
In the case of the northern Thracians we will consider the area comprised between Balkans, Tisza ... more In the case of the northern Thracians we will consider the area
comprised between Balkans, Tisza and Dniestr and the chronological framework
of the 12th c. BC till the 1st c. AD.
The burial of children in settlements happened concurrently with their
deposition in regular cemeteries, surprising remaining for some periods only the
larger number of children found in non-funerary contexts and, in cases, some
differences in rituals and funerary inventory between the two categories of sites.
No written source makes any mention regarding the manner in which the
northern Thracians treated their deceased children, the diseases they suffered
from, the criteria that mattered when deciding that some children were buried in
the settlements and others in the cemeteries, the rituals practiced at their burials.
Only in few cases there were noticed traces of violence on the children bones,
and even then it was not clear if they could be considered cause of death or were
subsequently applied. In the same time, it is known that there are killing methods
that do not leave marks visible on the bones (suffocation, poisoning, drowning).
The large number of children deposited inside settlements can be
explained, first of all, by the increased child mortality rate of the past and by the
mentality of many archaic populations to bury their children close to the house.
In many situations the lack of skeletons parts can be explained by the postmortem
manipulation of the deceased, on the basis of specific beliefs, now
difficult to define.
When we say “sacred area of the field-of-pits type”, we are referring to the clusters of pits (wi... more When we say “sacred area of the field-of-pits type”, we are referring to the clusters of pits (with
diverse inventories, sometimes with human or animal skeletons), which occasionally include fireplaces,
altars, platforms, agglomerations and deposits of items, located outside of other types of sites (settlements,
fortresses, necropolises).
The geographic area in question includes the territories north of the Balkans, namely where the
written sources placed the Getae and the Dacians. We know of 19 "fields of pits" here, spread throughout
the territory we are referring to.
The period under analysis is between the 4th c. BC – 3rd c. AD. The finds between the Balkans and
the Danube are from the 4th – 1st c. BC, and those north of the Danube from the period between the second
half of the 3rd c. BC and the end of the 1st c. – beginning of the 2nd c. AD, that is, until the Roman conquest.
The exceptions are Bagachina, south of the Danube, with vestiges from as early as the Bronze Age, and
Mologa II, on the Dniestr bank, with finds from the 1st – 3rd. c. AD.
They are placed on diverse types of lands: plateaus, terraces or ridges: their surfaces vary between
one and seven hectares.
Varying numbers of pits were found in these monuments, up to hundreds of them sometimes. The
shape of the pits is diverse: cylindrical, oval, truncated, shaped like a “barrel” or, conical, pear-shaped or
irregular.
The inventory contains a wide range of items, with vessels and pottery fragments being the most
numerous, followed by tools and utensils, by the rarer weapons, adornments and clothing accessories,
toiletries and anthropomorphic or zoomorphic figurines. Several sites contained “deposits” of whole
vessels, together with other items.
Animal bones were present in all of the finds, but not in all the pits; their presence could mean
many things. It is only in cases of whole animals being inhumed, and inhumed with some care, that we
could be dealing with deposits that clearly have a ritual significance.
Of the 19 sites analyzed, 14 contained skeletons or parts of human skeletons, and the number of
individuals in the pit ranges from one to eight. We are dealing with whole skeletons, some in nonanatomical
positions, with parts of skeletons or isolated human bones, sometimes with traces of violence on
them.
All these features show that they were not used for profane purposes, namely digging out clay,
depositing food reserves or discarding household garbage. Furthermore, they are not necropolises and
neither are they associated with temples (except for Brad and Ocniţa).
Based on all these features, we can conclude that they are cult sites for the northern-Thracian
population, namely the Geto-Dacians in the area under research.
When we say “sacred area of the field-of-pits type”, we are referring to the clusters of pits (wi... more When we say “sacred area of the field-of-pits type”, we are referring to the clusters of pits (with
diverse inventories, sometimes with human or animal skeletons), which occasionally include fireplaces,
altars, platforms, agglomerations and deposits of items, located outside of other types of sites (settlements,
fortresses, necropolises).
The geographic area in question includes the territories north of the Balkans, namely where the
written sources placed the Getae and the Dacians. We know of 19 "fields of pits" here, spread throughout
the territory we are referring to.
The period under analysis is between the 4th c. BC – 3rd c. AD. The finds between the Balkans and
the Danube are from the 4th – 1st c. BC, and those north of the Danube from the period between the second
half of the 3rd c. BC and the end of the 1st c. – beginning of the 2nd c. AD, that is, until the Roman conquest.
The exceptions are Bagachina, south of the Danube, with vestiges from as early as the Bronze Age, and
Mologa II, on the Dniestr bank, with finds from the 1st – 3rd. c. AD.
They are placed on diverse types of lands: plateaus, terraces or ridges: their surfaces vary between
one and seven hectares.
Varying numbers of pits were found in these monuments, up to hundreds of them sometimes. The
shape of the pits is diverse: cylindrical, oval, truncated, shaped like a “barrel” or, conical, pear-shaped or
irregular.
The inventory contains a wide range of items, with vessels and pottery fragments being the most
numerous, followed by tools and utensils, by the rarer weapons, adornments and clothing accessories,
toiletries and anthropomorphic or zoomorphic figurines. Several sites contained “deposits” of whole
vessels, together with other items.
Animal bones were present in all of the finds, but not in all the pits; their presence could mean
many things. It is only in cases of whole animals being inhumed, and inhumed with some care, that we
could be dealing with deposits that clearly have a ritual significance.
Of the 19 sites analyzed, 14 contained skeletons or parts of human skeletons, and the number of
individuals in the pit ranges from one to eight. We are dealing with whole skeletons, some in nonanatomical
positions, with parts of skeletons or isolated human bones, sometimes with traces of violence on
them.
All these features show that they were not used for profane purposes, namely digging out clay,
depositing food reserves or discarding household garbage. Furthermore, they are not necropolises and
neither are they associated with temples (except for Brad and Ocniţa).
Based on all these features, we can conclude that they are cult sites for the northern-Thracian
population, namely the Geto-Dacians in the area under research.
… Religion: The Journal of Objects, Art …, Jan 1, 2005
Mousaios XXIII, Proceedings of the 18th Internaltional Colloquium of Funerary Archaeology, Buzău (Romania), 17th-20th of October 2019, 2020
Over the past few years, owing to treasure finders using a metal detector, the number of graves f... more Over the past few years, owing to treasure finders using a metal detector, the number of graves
found has significantly increased. Therefore, a new analysis of the funerary vestiges in south-eastern
Transylvania will outline new archaeological realities.
The densest micro-area of new findings is placed between Rotbav and Crizbav where, from 2014
to 2016, one identified at least eight/nine funerary complexes and numerous isolated items, all placed on the
two banks of Valea Seacă. The nearest Dacian sites in the area are the davae from Crizbav and FeldioaraDealul Cetății and the settlement from Rotbav- Căldărușe, with findings dated to the 2nd BC - 1st AD c.
Therefore, if one considers the entirety of findings from a wider area, it becomes obvious that they were
placed along an important route which connected the Codlea area with the Olt River valley.
Although all the findings are the result of metal detectors, many have also been surveyed in the
field and archaeologists have already completed the research of some of them, which is why some useful
data resulted.
The typological variety of the artifacts is remarkable: a) weaponry (swords, spears, sica daggers,
knives); b) riding gear and harness elements (spurs and bits); c) jewelry and clothing accessories (fibulae,
clasps, buckles, pendants, and links); d) pottery. The structure of the inventory found proves that they
belonged to warriors, some of it to knights. It also bears emphasizing that pottery is extremely scarce.
In regard to rites, it is notable that almost all the pieces have been burnt. The remains of cremated
bones on some of them prove that they were placed on the pyre with the dead; the weapons were also bent
(ritually ‘killed’). All the pieces are dated to the 2nd-1st c. BC.
Given the fact that these findings are located in an area with Dacian davae and settlements, and
that the inventory and rites are, to a great extent, local, they attest that the dead were Dacian warriors. The
findings in the most recent years indicate that the findings of the Padea - Panaghiurski Kolonii - Mala
Kopanja type tend to cover all areas inhabited by Dacians, a phenomenon which is now also attested in
south-eastern Transylvania.
In the case of the northern Thracians we will consider the area comprised between Balkans, Tisza ... more In the case of the northern Thracians we will consider the area
comprised between Balkans, Tisza and Dniestr and the chronological framework
of the 12th c. BC till the 1st c. AD.
The burial of children in settlements happened concurrently with their
deposition in regular cemeteries, surprising remaining for some periods only the
larger number of children found in non-funerary contexts and, in cases, some
differences in rituals and funerary inventory between the two categories of sites.
No written source makes any mention regarding the manner in which the
northern Thracians treated their deceased children, the diseases they suffered
from, the criteria that mattered when deciding that some children were buried in
the settlements and others in the cemeteries, the rituals practiced at their burials.
Only in few cases there were noticed traces of violence on the children bones,
and even then it was not clear if they could be considered cause of death or were
subsequently applied. In the same time, it is known that there are killing methods
that do not leave marks visible on the bones (suffocation, poisoning, drowning).
The large number of children deposited inside settlements can be
explained, first of all, by the increased child mortality rate of the past and by the
mentality of many archaic populations to bury their children close to the house.
In many situations the lack of skeletons parts can be explained by the postmortem
manipulation of the deceased, on the basis of specific beliefs, now
difficult to define.
When we say “sacred area of the field-of-pits type”, we are referring to the clusters of pits (wi... more When we say “sacred area of the field-of-pits type”, we are referring to the clusters of pits (with
diverse inventories, sometimes with human or animal skeletons), which occasionally include fireplaces,
altars, platforms, agglomerations and deposits of items, located outside of other types of sites (settlements,
fortresses, necropolises).
The geographic area in question includes the territories north of the Balkans, namely where the
written sources placed the Getae and the Dacians. We know of 19 "fields of pits" here, spread throughout
the territory we are referring to.
The period under analysis is between the 4th c. BC – 3rd c. AD. The finds between the Balkans and
the Danube are from the 4th – 1st c. BC, and those north of the Danube from the period between the second
half of the 3rd c. BC and the end of the 1st c. – beginning of the 2nd c. AD, that is, until the Roman conquest.
The exceptions are Bagachina, south of the Danube, with vestiges from as early as the Bronze Age, and
Mologa II, on the Dniestr bank, with finds from the 1st – 3rd. c. AD.
They are placed on diverse types of lands: plateaus, terraces or ridges: their surfaces vary between
one and seven hectares.
Varying numbers of pits were found in these monuments, up to hundreds of them sometimes. The
shape of the pits is diverse: cylindrical, oval, truncated, shaped like a “barrel” or, conical, pear-shaped or
irregular.
The inventory contains a wide range of items, with vessels and pottery fragments being the most
numerous, followed by tools and utensils, by the rarer weapons, adornments and clothing accessories,
toiletries and anthropomorphic or zoomorphic figurines. Several sites contained “deposits” of whole
vessels, together with other items.
Animal bones were present in all of the finds, but not in all the pits; their presence could mean
many things. It is only in cases of whole animals being inhumed, and inhumed with some care, that we
could be dealing with deposits that clearly have a ritual significance.
Of the 19 sites analyzed, 14 contained skeletons or parts of human skeletons, and the number of
individuals in the pit ranges from one to eight. We are dealing with whole skeletons, some in nonanatomical
positions, with parts of skeletons or isolated human bones, sometimes with traces of violence on
them.
All these features show that they were not used for profane purposes, namely digging out clay,
depositing food reserves or discarding household garbage. Furthermore, they are not necropolises and
neither are they associated with temples (except for Brad and Ocniţa).
Based on all these features, we can conclude that they are cult sites for the northern-Thracian
population, namely the Geto-Dacians in the area under research.
When we say “sacred area of the field-of-pits type”, we are referring to the clusters of pits (wi... more When we say “sacred area of the field-of-pits type”, we are referring to the clusters of pits (with
diverse inventories, sometimes with human or animal skeletons), which occasionally include fireplaces,
altars, platforms, agglomerations and deposits of items, located outside of other types of sites (settlements,
fortresses, necropolises).
The geographic area in question includes the territories north of the Balkans, namely where the
written sources placed the Getae and the Dacians. We know of 19 "fields of pits" here, spread throughout
the territory we are referring to.
The period under analysis is between the 4th c. BC – 3rd c. AD. The finds between the Balkans and
the Danube are from the 4th – 1st c. BC, and those north of the Danube from the period between the second
half of the 3rd c. BC and the end of the 1st c. – beginning of the 2nd c. AD, that is, until the Roman conquest.
The exceptions are Bagachina, south of the Danube, with vestiges from as early as the Bronze Age, and
Mologa II, on the Dniestr bank, with finds from the 1st – 3rd. c. AD.
They are placed on diverse types of lands: plateaus, terraces or ridges: their surfaces vary between
one and seven hectares.
Varying numbers of pits were found in these monuments, up to hundreds of them sometimes. The
shape of the pits is diverse: cylindrical, oval, truncated, shaped like a “barrel” or, conical, pear-shaped or
irregular.
The inventory contains a wide range of items, with vessels and pottery fragments being the most
numerous, followed by tools and utensils, by the rarer weapons, adornments and clothing accessories,
toiletries and anthropomorphic or zoomorphic figurines. Several sites contained “deposits” of whole
vessels, together with other items.
Animal bones were present in all of the finds, but not in all the pits; their presence could mean
many things. It is only in cases of whole animals being inhumed, and inhumed with some care, that we
could be dealing with deposits that clearly have a ritual significance.
Of the 19 sites analyzed, 14 contained skeletons or parts of human skeletons, and the number of
individuals in the pit ranges from one to eight. We are dealing with whole skeletons, some in nonanatomical
positions, with parts of skeletons or isolated human bones, sometimes with traces of violence on
them.
All these features show that they were not used for profane purposes, namely digging out clay,
depositing food reserves or discarding household garbage. Furthermore, they are not necropolises and
neither are they associated with temples (except for Brad and Ocniţa).
Based on all these features, we can conclude that they are cult sites for the northern-Thracian
population, namely the Geto-Dacians in the area under research.
… Religion: The Journal of Objects, Art …, Jan 1, 2005