The Prosperity and Decline of Bronze Age Tell Cultures in the Cserhát Region (NE
Hungary)

Szilvia Guba (Szécsény, Hungary) and Nicklas Larsson (Budapest, Hungary)

The western boundaries of the North Hungarian Mountains, along with the adjacent valleys of the Garam/Hron, Ipoly and Zagyva rivers, represent the north-westernmost distribution area of Early and Middle Bronze Age tell cultures in the Carpathian Basin. Geographically, this region encompasses the Cserhát area, which maintains direct connections to the Great Hungarian Plains to the south.

In this region, two concentrations of settlement networks can be observed: one in the northern forecourt of Cserhát Mountains, in the Ipoly valley, and another in the Zagyva valley, which is geographically more closely linked to the core area of the Hatvan pottery style. In recent years, targeted research focused on the distribution area of the Hatvan culture, partly by re-evaluating fortified and/or high-elevation settlements and conducting micro-regional field surveys. As a result, the number of both settlements and cemeteries has multiplied in this region.

For our understanding of the everyday life, rituals, religious practices and social structure of the tell builders, two large scale pre-construction excavations, at sites located only about 10 km apart, have delivered essential information. At the long-known Salgótarján-Zagyvapálfalva cemetery, 815 cremation graves were discovered in the Late Bronze Age urn grave cemetery in 2007 and 2008. Most of the burials belong to the Piliny (Bz B2 and Bz D), and to the subsequent Kyjatice (Ha A–B) pottery style, nevertheless 13 cremation graves of the Hatvan culture and 41 graves of the subsequent Koszider period (with late Hatvan and Tumulus features) were also detected. These are the first professionally excavated and documented graves of the Hatvan pottery style in the Cserhát region offering an outstanding source of information for in-depth investigations.

The other major findings in the foothills of the Aranyhegy (“Golden Hill”), the pre-construction excavation at Bátonyterenye-Aranyhegyi Homokbánya undertaken in 2022, uncovered a Middle Bronze Age settlement and associated cemetery. The cemetery comprises 21 burials with Hatvan pottery style, predominantly cremation graves (both urn and scattered cremation graves). Special and very rare features are three chambered burials, of which at least two were enclosed by a large stone ring – possibly delimiting a once existing earth mound – with a diameter of six metres. In the direct neighbourhood of the graves, remains of an intensely used section of a partly contemporary settlement with a unique workshop area were also documented. Melting pots, numerous fireplaces, quite a few casting moulds and bronze artefacts, as well as a small gold droplet suggest that it has been used as a metal workshop area.

This project focuses on these two sites by obtaining a significant amount of AMS radiocarbon dates. The graves of the Hatvan pottery style of both sites and the excavated building of the metal workshop area in Bátonyterenye are of particular importance. A comprehensive sampling process will be conducted. The sampling strategy will consider the chronological classification as well as the typological features of the graves, including stone constructions, mounds, the amount and quality of grave goods. Additionally, unburnt animal bones, interpreted as food offerings will be sampled for cross reference.

The examination and comparison of the absolute chronological development of the two sites offers an exceptional opportunity for the clarification of the cultural and chronological landscape of the Middle and Late Bronze Age in Northern Hungary, and – in extension – the transition from prosperity to the decline of tell-living in the region.

Funding period: 2025