The Ottomány culture, also known as Otomani culture in

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

or Otomani-Füzesabony culture in

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Cr ...

, was an early

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

culture (ca. 2100–1600 BC) in

Central Europe Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the a ...

named after the eponymous site near the village of Ottomány ( ro, Otomani), today part of Sălacea, located in modern-day

Bihor County Bihor County () is a county (județ) in western Romania. With a total area of , Bihor is Romania's 6th largest county geographically and the main county in the historical region of Crișana. Its capital city is Oradea. Toponymy The origin of ...

Territorial extent

The Ottomány culture was located in eastern

, eastern

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the ...

Crișana Crișana ( hu, Körösvidék, german: Kreischgebiet) is a geographical and historical region in north-western Romania, named after the Criș (Körös) River and its three tributaries: the Crișul Alb, Crișul Negru, and Crișul Repede. In Rom ...

in western

, western

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inva ...

- Transcarpatia (

Zakarpattia Oblast The Zakarpattia Oblast ( uk, Закарпатська область, Zakarpatska oblast) is an administrative oblast located in western Ukraine, mostly coterminous with the historical region of Carpathian Ruthenia. Its administrative centre is ...

- within a stretch of the

Carpathian mountains The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians () are a range of mountains forming an arc across Central Europe. Roughly long, it is the third-longest European mountain range after the Urals at and the Scandinavian Mountains at . The range stretche ...

) and southeast

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

(stretch of

and nearby areas). Thus, people of the Ottomány culture secured a middle stretch of what will be later known as the

Amber Road The Amber Road was an ancient trade route for the transfer of amber from coastal areas of the North Sea and the Baltic Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. Prehistoric trade routes between Northern and Southern Europe were defined by the amber trade. ...

, and indeed,

amber Amber is fossilized tree resin that has been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since Neolithic times. Much valued from antiquity to the present as a gemstone, amber is made into a variety of decorative objects."Amber" (2004). In M ...

is often found in Ottomány sites.

Habitat, settlements, housing and material culture

People belonging to this vast culture settled along river banks and in valleys but also on strategic places like mountain passes and hills used for mighty fortified settlements. Some places like caves and natural springs were used like for cult activities. This culture was contemporary with

Wietenberg culture The Wietenberg culture was a Middle Bronze Age archeological culture in Central Transylvania that roughly dates to 2200–1600/1500 BCE. Represented a local variant of Usatove culture, was contemporary with the Ottomány culture and Unetice cult ...

, Unetice-Madarovce-Veterov-Boheimkirchen cultural complex in

Moravia Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

and western

, Mierzanowice culture in

and Makó/Nagyrév culture in

. The high cultural level is illustrated most by fortified settlements with highly advanced defensive architecture including ditches, stone walls, ramparts, towers and complicated gates protected by bastions, as well as by urbanistically organized houses (1, 2 or three rooms), tell disposition at lowland sites (consequent use of houses made of clay, creating an artificial hill with many stratigraphic levels), the high level of metal working (bronze, gold, silver), a high level of bone and antler working (including elements of horse harness made of antler), sophisticated pottery, often considered one of the most exquisite ceramic cultures of prehistoric Europe, with beautifully adorned

amphorae An amphora (; grc, ἀμφορεύς, ''amphoreús''; English plural: amphorae or amphoras) is a type of container with a pointed bottom and characteristic shape and size which fit tightly (and therefore safely) against each other in storag ...

, jugs, broad bowls, small cups, pottery of milk processing, and piraunoi - transportable ceramic ovens, richly decorated, often interpreted as being used not only for profane, but also cult activities (burning incense). Some distinctive features of Ottomány ceramics are decoration with spiral or circular motifs, rich plastic ornamentation, use of a wave pattern or pattern of "running spirals", polishing of pottery to reach "metallic effect" and high firing temperatures. Metalworking is illustrated by gold jewelry, mainly earrings, small bronze objects ( pins, personal ornaments, small tools - needles, awls), military items include

battle axe A battle axe (also battle-axe, battle ax, or battle-ax) is an axe specifically designed for combat. Battle axes were specialized versions of utility axes. Many were suitable for use in one hand, while others were larger and were deployed two-ha ...

s, spear-heads,

dagger A dagger is a fighting knife with a very sharp point and usually two sharp edges, typically designed or capable of being used as a thrusting or stabbing weapon.State v. Martin, 633 S.W.2d 80 (Mo. 1982): This is the dictionary or popular-use def ...

knives A knife ( : knives; from Old Norse 'knife, dirk') is a tool or weapon with a cutting edge or blade, usually attached to a handle or hilt. One of the earliest tools used by humanity, knives appeared at least 2.5 million years ago, as evidenced ...

, and

arrowhead An arrowhead or point is the usually sharpened and hardened tip of an arrow, which contributes a majority of the projectile mass and is responsible for impacting and penetrating a target, as well as to fulfill some special purposes such as sign ...

s. Although stone was still widely used for

sickle A sickle, bagging hook, reaping-hook or grasshook is a single-handed agricultural tool designed with variously curved blades and typically used for harvesting, or reaping, grain crops or cutting Succulent plant, succulent forage chiefly for feed ...

s and working axes. Otomani IMG 20150509 122203

Mortuary rite

Burials were typically inhumations with the body in a flexed position in large flat cemeteries in direct vicinity of settlements, with different sides for men and women, at the final stages shifting towards bi-ritual rites, with more cremations, using urns. Graves are equipped with rich grave goods, including personal adornments like beads (in male graves often made of animal teeth and boar tusks) and metal jewelry, tools, arms and ceramics. In a child grave at Nizna Mysla cemetery (

Eastern Slovakia Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai *Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 *Eastern Air Li ...

), a ceramic model of a four-wheel wagon was found and has been interpreted either as child's toy or a cult object.

Collapse and legacy

The end of the Ottomány culture is connected with turbulent events at the end of Old Bronze Age in Central Europe, where there was a collapse of the whole "Old Bronze Age world" with its highly advanced culture of mighty hill-forts, rich burials, and trade over vast distances. The gradual decline in the number of fortified settlements, change of burial rites, and the decision of people to desert fortified settlements could have had several reasons, including the collapse of trade and exchange networks, the attacks of enemies, the internal

collapse of society Societal collapse (also known as civilizational collapse) is the fall of a complex human society characterized by the loss of cultural identity and of socioeconomic complexity, the downfall of government, and the rise of violence. Possible ca ...

or environmental causes. The following Middle Bronze Age/Late Bronze Age cultures are very different in their burial rites (cremation, erecting of barrows) as well as in their handling of bronze - there is an "explosion" in bronze working, and many bronze hoards found across all of Europe illustrate this change in quantity and quality of produced bronze objects. We see not only bronze ornaments and arms (including first examples of

sword A sword is an edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter blade with a pointed ti ...

s), but also bronze tools (

axe An axe ( sometimes ax in American English; see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood, to harvest timber, as a weapon, and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol. The axe has ma ...

adze An adze (; alternative spelling: adz) is an ancient and versatile cutting tool similar to an axe but with the cutting edge perpendicular to the handle rather than parallel. Adzes have been used since the Stone Age. They are used for smoothing ...

s), which changed the everyday life of prehistoric man.

Gallery

File:0026 Otomanische Ampfora zirka 16 Jh. v. Chr..JPG, Pottery File:0021 Otomanische Ampfora.JPG, Pottery File:02016 1459 Otomani-Füzesabony-Keramik, Vasen oder Gefässe von Trzcinica, Beskiden.jpg, Pottery File:02016 1459 Otomani-Füzesabony-Keramik von Trzcinica, Beskiden.jpg, Pottery File:02016 1454 Ottomány-Füzesabony Axe head, 1650-1350 BC, Trzcinica.jpg, Bronze axe File:02016 1453 (2) Ottomány-Füzesabony Axe head, 1650-1350 BC, Trzcinica.jpg, Bronze axe, c. 1650 BC File:0027 Otomanische Ampfora zirka 16 Jh. v. Chr..jpg File:0024 Otomanische Askos.JPG File:0023 Otomanische Ampfora zirka 16 Jh. v. Chr..JPG File:Otomanische Tonbecher zirka 16 Jh. v. Chr..JPG File:0029 Tragbar Lehmofen der Otomani-Kultur im Karpatenbecken, zirka 16 Jh. v. Chr..JPG, Portable clay stove File:0030 Otomanische Ampfora zirka 16 Jh. v. Chr..JPG, Amphora

References

*N. Boroffka, Die Wietenberg-Kultur. Ein Beitrag zur Erforschung der Bronzezeit in Südosteuropa. Universitätsforschungen zur Prähistorischen Archäologie 19. Dr. Rudolf Habelt GmbH (Bonn 1994). *http://arheologie.ulbsibiu.ro/publicatii/bibliotheca/cauce2/8%20w.htm This link is by pure laymen giving no scientific sources at all. Bronze Age culture in Transylvania, Central Romania *Die prähistorische Ansiedlung auf dem "Wietenberg" bei Sighisoara-Schässburg ebundene Ausgabe*European Societies in the Bronze Age. A. F. Harding. Cambridge 2000.

External links

The stone fortifications of the settlement at Spišský Štvrtok. A contribution to the discussion on the long-distance contacts of the Otomani-Füzesabony culture

The Early Bronze Age Stone Fortifications of the Maszkowice Hillfort (Polish Carpathians)
* http://www.eliznik.org.uk/EastEurope/History/balkans-map/middle-bronze.htm#nogo * https://web.archive.org/web/20110813042406/http://care.e-monsite.com/rubrique,car-z-carpato-danubiana,1050465.html * http://www.arkad.ro/index.php?action=fullnews&id=285377&category=194 * http://www.regionkosice.com/en/index.php?id=629&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=83&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=621&no_cache=1 {{DEFAULTSORT:Ottomany culture Archaeological cultures of Central Europe Bronze Age cultures of Europe Archaeological cultures in Hungary Archaeological cultures in Romania Archaeological cultures in Slovakia Archaeological cultures in Ukraine Prehistory of Southeastern Europe Ancient history of Romania History of Transylvania