Bulgarian e-Journal of Archaeology Supplements | Българско е-Списание за Археология Supplementa

За ямите и техния контекст (ямни съоръжения от І хил. пр. Хр. на територията на днешна Северна Гърция между долните течения на Вардар и Марица)

2023-12-14T17:01:42+02:00

The article addresses the functional interpretation of pits excavated in 1^st mill. BC sites, located between the lower courses of the rivers Axios and Hebros, and the island of Samothrace. The examples discussed indicate a wide range of use in accordance to their context. The connotations of the term context may vary from the type of the site where pits were registered, such as settlement, cult and burial, to a broader interpretation, considering the establishment of Greek poleis along the South Thracian coast, which creates a multiethnic and multicultural middle ground, where contemporary developments may differ culturally.
The examples discussed indicate that pits were used as bothroi in sanctuaries, as depositories in sanctuaries and cemeteries, as a storage and garbage (in secondary use) space, as well as elements of manufacturing areas in settlements.
This variety of functions indicates the necessity of interpreting them according to their context. Chronological, typological, cultural and historical differences, which characterise the sites with pits, imply that a single approach is hardly applicable. It depends not only on the chronology and the type of site to which they belong, but on their precise topographical and contextual features within the site itself. An example of formally similar, but functionally completely different structures is the hearth – pit combination. In the Sanctuary of the Great Gods, it served the needs of the cult and is respectively known as eschara and bothros, while a contemporaneous example from Klazomenai belongs to the remains of a smithy. Consequently, the functional definition of each pit, especially when multiple examples come from the same site, should be individual and contextualised.

Ритуалите, извършвани в ями, според хититски текстове от Мала Азия

2023-12-14T17:06:50+02:00

This article considers the possibility of applying the written data in a series of Hittite texts for the reconstruction of rituals, recorded in pit complexes on Bulgarian territory. The intensive rescue excavations in Bulgaria over the past decades have revealed a significant number of archaeological sites from different periods, where the main structures are pits. The quantity and quality of the accumulated information allowed researchers to trace some common features, especially of those pits dating to the 1^st millennium BC. The proposed analysis of written data that provide several analogies with the archaeologically attested situations covers a group of Hittite texts, created between the 14^th–12^th c. BC, with accurate descriptions of pit rituals.

Comparisons were made on the basis of the following criteria: the location of the pits, their shape and construction, the content that testifies to blood and bloodless sacrifices, the hoarding of various objects: metal adornments, weapons, nails, pieces of house mortar, portable hearths, whorls, etc.), and clay “cult” objects. By pointing out the similarities and the differences between the archaeological phenomena and the realia in the Hittite texts, it is possible to suggest the general meaning and purpose of the ritual acts performed, viz. the purification and cyclic sanctification of the territories by their inhabitants.

Негативни структури с депозити – опит за систематизацията им като обредна практика

2023-12-14T17:11:01+02:00

The present article discusses some of the most typical sites, where negative structures with deposits from the Prehistory (Neolithic, Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age) have been attested. A considerable part of them was interpreted as sacred grounds, on which ritual offerings have been performed. The big number of such sites might naturally cause some embarrassment and might put forward the question of whether it is reasonable to connect all of them with faith and with ritual practices. The solution of the problem with the interpretation of such a vast number of sites, both in their areal, and in their chronological span, requires that they should by systematized in several aspects: chronological and areal distribution, topographic disposition within a certain areal, typology of finds, parallels with neighboring regions and synchronous archaeological sites etc. Based on these criteria, it was concluded that the rites documented in the negative structures of this period have several parallels in the Bulgarian traditional faith and rites in terms of the objects used, the types of rituals performed, etc.

Ями от ранната желязна епоха от обект Черна гора 1, Чирпанско

2023-12-14T17:15:03+02:00

The paper presents archaeological research of the Early Iron Аge structures from Cherna Gora 1 site, Chirpan area, Thracian valley, Bulgaria. 28 pits are situated in the southern (one pit) and northern part of the site (seven groups of several intercutting pits). The paper discusses the spatial disposition of the features within the site, in relation to each other and in relation to the Bronze Age ditch. The form and the contents of the pits are examined to find possible intentional deposition of the artefacts. The pottery is also analyzed in terms of potential chronological or cultural differences. Finally, the paper discusses the possibilities for a functional interpretation of the pits.

Към въпроса за вкопаните структури в Пистирос

2023-12-14T17:28:17+02:00

Since its discovery, Pistiros has been a subject of active research, followed by detailed publications, in which a number of negative contexts have been presented. The British team, excavating the pit complex in the northwest part of the site, made a key contribution in this respect. The paper offers an attempt to summarize the information about the investigated dug-out structures.

Отново за ямите от елинистическата епоха от Кабиле

2023-12-14T18:11:58+02:00

The subject of this article is the pits from the Hellenistic period, found within the fortified area of the ancient city of Cabyle. These are registered close to tenements and service buildings and were discovered during the excavations in Sector 9 in the 80-ies of the 20th century, as well at the central portion of the city (Sector 5), where the Hellenistic agora was supposed to be.
The pits in their upper parts cut through a cultural layer, while their lower sections enter a sterile layer. Their plan is circular, although they vary between 1.20, and 1.80 m in diameter. Most of them are 1.30–1.80 deep. Their profile is a truncated cone, or a turned-over truncated cone, or cylindrical in few cases. The fill-in consists of brown or grey-brownish earth, mixed with decayed or hardened adobe, ashes, coals, fragments of pottery and animal bones. According to the stratigraphic observations, the terminus post quem for their digging would be the end of the second quarter of the 3^rd c. BC, while the upper limit for their filling is defined by the materials found there – the 1^st quarter of the 2^nd c. BC.

Part of the pits were directly connected with the ceramics production, others may have served as a source for material for the production of adobe, while another group might have served as an access to stones from earlier constructions. The similarities in size and shape (hive-like) of most of the pits, which are the optimal characteristics of depository pits imply the possibility that they might have been used as supply storages.

Their later filling with waste objects and destructions might have had some symbolical meaning, where the remains of previous habitation are deposited underground (buried), before the start of new building process during the 1st quarter of the 2^nd c. BC.

Данни за селище от късната желязна епоха край с. Бенковски

2023-12-14T18:15:40+02:00

The following article discusses two dug-in structures – building and possible ditch, dated to the Late Iron Age, which were excavated along the route of the “Trakia” motorway.

Ями от късната желязна епоха в границите на антична и средновековна крепост Маркели край гр. Карнобат

2023-12-14T18:22:02+02:00

This article presents the results of the investigation of a group of pits located within the boundaries of the Medieval fortress Markeli, located 7.5 km west of the town of Karnobat. The typological characteristics of the structures found correspond to the characteristics of numerous other structures, associated with pit complexes, which have been previously published in Bulgarian editions. Their contents include coal, ash, stones of various sizes, and animal bones. The most common material is ceramics, which was used for dating, due to the lack of other dating finds. Based on the specifics of the examined fragments, the pottery can be generally dated to the 6^th–5^th c. BC. The presence of these pits is an indicator of the existence of a settlement, the remains of which are either completely destroyed and scattered, or have not yet been discovered. Due to the small amount studied, for the moment it remains difficult to correctly interpret it.

Могилата като сакрално място за траките (въз основа на проучванията в Югоизточна България)

2023-12-14T18:26:39+02:00

The article examines various aspects related to the unconventional use of mounds in Thrace during the Late Iron Age. The first case examines a ritual that involves reusing mounds built in the Bronze Age to bury Thracian rulers or aristocrats during the Late Iron Age. The author interprets this ritual as a means of ensuring necessary continuity between generations, connecting the current ruler with the previous rulers of the land (possibly with the first ancestor king). By considering three other examples, the author focuses on potential reasons for constructing mounds without human burials, where specific “non-funeral” and “non-commemorative” rites are observed.
The proposed interpretation is that in such cases, the mound serves as a home for the hero, and the rituals conducted nearby aim to invoke the hero’s protection for his heirs and assist their offerings to the gods. The gods’ gifts are placed in pits with the purpose of beseeching for various goods, help, protection, etc., and to ensure their safe and speedy delivery to the gods.

Тракийски ритуални ями от Правешко

2023-12-14T18:43:35+02:00

In this article, we present a summary of the 29 ritual pits in the Thracian mounds in the Pravets region. These are facilities related to funeral rituals that serve to connect with the world beyond, places where through fire and sacrifice, living communicate with the dead. They have an important place in the everyday life, thinking and beliefs of the Thracians.

The open pits in and under the mound embankments set up the Thracian sacred places, characterized by ritual pits.

Ями в Станимирова могила в землището на с. Крушаре, Сливенско

2023-12-14T18:48:16+02:00

The article publishes for the first time the results of the excavations of Stanimirova mound near the village of Krushare, southeastern Bulgaria. The facilities in the mound are a partially destroyed furnace, 13 pits located at different levels in the mound and two fireplaces. After no dating materials were found, one possible interpretation of the structures found is that the entire mound was ritual. Another possible explanation for the structures in the Stanimirova Mound is their purely utilitarian function (as domestic or industrial furnaces).

Гробове от ямни комплекси от ранната желязна епоха в Тракия

2023-12-14T18:53:05+02:00

The graves and pit complexes from the early Iron Age, discovered in the last decade during rescue archaeological excavations, are the subject of the present article. At the present stage, the sites registered with such graves are 3: Koprivlen, Malko Tarnovo, and Nessebar. From the analysis made, it becomes clear that the burial works do not show any differences from the rest of the necropoli from that period. The elements of the burial rite are also identical: cremation, interring in the grave, the position of the dead in the grave, the burial inventory. In cremation, urns are used for the ashes and bones, while the skeletons from the funerals, done through interring, are in anatomical order, without any traces of secondary manipulations, such as re-burial, dismembering, or burial of a part of the body. Also, there are no marks, typical for ritual activities, connected with human sacrifices that are found in other pit complexes in Thrace. For the time being, the data available do not allow for these graves to be considered a result of other ritual activities made in the pit sanctuaries.

Необичайни гробове край с. Полски Градец (Югоизточна България)

2023-12-14T19:01:18+02:00

The article discusses unusual graves discovered in the immediate vicinity of a 1^st millennium BC complex of pits near the village of Polski Gradets, municipality of Radnevo. The human remains found there were obviously disturbed: the skulls were detached, the spinal columns, the ribs and the pelvic bones were missing, the rest of the bones, however, imitated anatomic arrangement. In one of the pits of the above-mentioned complex the remains of at least six individuals of different age were discovered. The bones were disturbed, limbs and skulls prevailing. A great number of them bore secondary cut marks.

Антропологични особености на човешките костни останки от два диахронни комплекса от ями от желязната епоха (при Свиленград и при с. Малко Тръново, Чирпанско)

2023-12-14T19:04:27+02:00

Current study analizes the anthropological material from two pit sanctuaries, excavated in the Thrace region, one, near the town Svilengrad and second, by the village Malko Tranovo. Complexes, which contain human remains are dated in the 8^th – 6^th c. BC in the site of Svilengrad and 5^th c. BC in that from Malko Tranovo. Classical methods of identification of age, sex and anthropological features are used. By comparison with published finds of paleopathological changes and their interpretation, a recognition is achieved of such conditions on studied material.

Achieved anthropological features are correlated to the field situation of studied skeletal remains, and two groups are identified, based on the entirety of the human skeleton.