Decea Mureşului culture
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The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology,
comparative linguistics Comparative linguistics, or comparative-historical linguistics (formerly comparative philology) is a branch of historical linguistics that is concerned with comparing languages to establish their historical relatedness. Genetic relatedness ...
and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northwest central Romania. It is bounded and defined by 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 stretches ...
to the east and south, and the Apuseni Mountains to the west. As a diverse and relatively protected region, the area has always been rich in wildlife, and remains one of the more ecologically diverse areas in Europe. The mountains contain a large number of caves, which attracted both human and animal residents. The
Peștera Urșilor Bears' Cave ( ro, Peștera Urșilor) is located in the western Apuseni Mountains, on the outskirts of Chișcău village, Bihor County, northwestern Romania. It was discovered in 1975 by Speodava, an amateur spelaeologist group. Bears' Cave r ...
, the "Bears Cave", was home to a large number of cave bears (''Ursus spelæus'') whose remains were discovered when the cave was discovered in 1975. Other caves in the area sheltered early humans. Prehistory is the longest period in the history of mankind, throughout of which writing was still unknown. In Transylvania specifically this applies to the
Paleolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός ''palaios'', "old" and λίθος ''lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone too ...
, Neolithic, Bronze Age, and Iron Age.


Paleolithic

;(2,600,000 – 13,000 BP) The
Paleolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός ''palaios'', "old" and λίθος ''lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone too ...
epoch, the oldest and longest period in the history of mankind, is divided by specialists into three stages of development:
Lower Paleolithic The Lower Paleolithic (or Lower Palaeolithic) is the earliest subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. It spans the time from around 3 million years ago when the first evidence for stone tool production and use by hominins appears in ...
,
Middle Paleolithic The Middle Paleolithic (or Middle Palaeolithic) is the second subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age as it is understood in Europe, Africa and Asia. The term Middle Stone Age is used as an equivalent or a synonym for the Middle Paleoli ...
, and Upper Paleolithic. The chronological frame of the Paleolithic coincides with that of the Pleistocene (the first period of the
Quaternary The Quaternary ( ) is the current and most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). It follows the Neogene Period and spans from 2.58 million years ...
), and is marked by four great glaciations, as established in the Alps (
Günz The Günz is a river in Bavaria, Germany. It is formed near Lauben by the confluence of its two source rivers: the Östliche Günz (eastern Günz) and the Westliche Günz (western Günz). It is approx. long (including its western source river) ...
,
Mindel The Mindel () is a river in Bavaria, southern Germany. The Mindel originates west of Kaufbeuren, in the Allgäu region, and flows generally north. It flows into the Danube (right tributary) in Gundremmingen, east of Günzburg. The towns Mindelhei ...
,
Riss The Riss (german: Riß) is a small river in Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, right tributary of the Danube. Its source is in Upper Swabia, between Bad Waldsee and Bad Schussenried. It flows north, through the town of Biberach an der Ris ...
, and Würm). While an ever-increasing amount of data has become available on the evolution of the climate, fauna and vegetation of present-day Romania, there is very little in the fossil record to give researchers an idea of what Paleolithic man in Romania looked like. To date, no human skeletal remains dating from the Low Paleolithic have been found, while the only Middle Paleolithic remains that have been discovered were a number of
phalanges The phalanges (singular: ''phalanx'' ) are digital bones in the hands and feet of most vertebrates. In primates, the thumbs and big toes have two phalanges while the other digits have three phalanges. The phalanges are classed as long bones. ...
unearthed by in the
Bordu Mare Cave Pui ( hu, Puj, german: Hühnendorf) is a commune in Hunedoara County, Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To th ...
at Ohaba Ponor ( Hunedoara County). A skull capsule discovered by Roska in the Cioclovina Cave displays features attributed to Homo sapiens sapiens, and dates back to the Upper Paleolithic as indicated by three flint objects peculiar to the Aurignacian discovered next to them. Likewise, in the Ciurul Mare Cave in the Pǎdurea Craiului Mountains ( Transylvania) speleologists have discovered some distinctively male, female and child footprints. An anthropological analysis has identified
Cro-Magnon Early European modern humans (EEMH), or Cro-Magnons, were the first early modern humans (''Homo sapiens'') to settle in Europe, migrating from Western Asia, continuously occupying the continent possibly from as early as 56,800 years ago. They ...
and even Neanderthal characteristics in these footprints. The economy of the Paleolithic communities consisted mainly of exploiting natural resources: gathering, fishing and especially hunting were the main pursuits of the diverse human groups. As early as the Lower Paleolithic, human groups either hunted or trapped game. We can assume that in Transylvania, alongside mammoths or deer, horses were a fairly important food source, if our dating of the painting on the ceiling of the cave at
Cuciulat Letca ( hu, Létka) is a commune located in Sălaj County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of nine villages: Ciula (''Gyulaszeg''), Cuciulat (''Kocsoládfalva''), Cozla (''Kecskés''), Letca, Lemniu (''Lemény''), Purcăreț (''Pórkerec'') ...
( Sǎlaj County) is correct. The Lower Paleolithic in Transylvania, because data are scarce, is largely a mystery. If the discovery of an Acheulean lithic item at Căpușu Mic ( Cluj County) and of several
Pre-Mousterian The Mousterian (or Mode III) is an archaeological industry of stone tools, associated primarily with the Neanderthals in Europe, and to the earliest anatomically modern humans in North Africa and West Asia. The Mousterian largely defines the la ...
lithic items at
Tălmaciu Tălmaciu (german: Talmesch; hu, Nagytalmács) is a town in Sibiu County, in central Romania, south of the county seat, Sibiu. It lies on the eastern end of the Mărginimea Sibiului area. At the 2011 census, 95.3% of inhabitants were Romanians, ...
( Sibiu County) are a certain fact, their precise stratigraphic position remains to be established. The same cannot be said about the discoveries in the at
Sândominic Sândominic ( hu, Csíkszentdomokos, Hungarian pronunciation: ) is a commune in Harghita County, Romania. It lies in the Székely Land, an ethno-cultural region in eastern Transylvania. It is composed of a single village, Sândominic. Demographic ...
( Harghita County) where several tools, and a rich fauna, have been encountered in certified stratigraphic positions, belonging to the geo-chronological interval covering the late
Mindel The Mindel () is a river in Bavaria, southern Germany. The Mindel originates west of Kaufbeuren, in the Allgäu region, and flows generally north. It flows into the Danube (right tributary) in Gundremmingen, east of Günzburg. The towns Mindelhei ...
to the early
Riss The Riss (german: Riß) is a small river in Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, right tributary of the Danube. Its source is in Upper Swabia, between Bad Waldsee and Bad Schussenried. It flows north, through the town of Biberach an der Ris ...
. The Middle Paleolithic – Mousterian – covers a time period much shorter than that of the prior epoch (c. 100,000 – 33,000/30,000 BP). It is a period set largely in Early Upper Pleistocene, and corresponds within the alpine glacial chronology to the interval covering the late Riss-Würm interglacial, or rather the Lower Würm, through middle Würm, as indicated by the dating of the late Mousterian dwellings in the Gura Cheii CaveRâșnov ( Brașov County), and the Spurcată CaveNandru ( Hunedoara County). The Mousterian period is closest to the alpine Paleolithic. Both periods were characterized by the presence of numerous quartzite slivers and chips, with the bones of hunted game outnumbering the tools. Consequently, specialists consider this Mousterian to be an " Eastern Charentian". Likewise, North-Western and Northern Transylvania with the settlements at
Boinești Bixad ( hu, Bikszád, pronounced: ) is a commune of 6,340 inhabitants situated in Satu Mare County, Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeas ...
( Satu Mare County) and Remetea ( Maramureș County) have revealed several typically Mousterian tools ( flake scrapers, blade scrapers, target points etc.), some of which have been associated with a later stage of the Mousterian, or even with a transition stage to the Upper Paleolithic, at the onset of the
Aurignacian culture The Aurignacian () is an archaeological industry of the Upper Paleolithic associated with European early modern humans (EEMH) lasting from 43,000 to 26,000 years ago. The Upper Paleolithic developed in Europe some time after the Levant, where t ...
of the Upper Paleolithic. The process of regional diversification among cultures was accelerated in the Upper Paleolithic through the middle to upper Würm. The beginnings of the Upper Paleolithic on the territory of Romania is dated somewhere between 32,000/30,000 – 13,000 BP, corresponding
paleoclimatically Paleoclimatology (British spelling, palaeoclimatology) is the study of climates for which direct measurements were not taken. As instrumental records only span a tiny part of Earth's history, the reconstruction of ancient climate is important to ...
to the onset of the
Arcy oscillation Ryan Christenson (known by the pseudonym ARCY) is an American graffiti artist and muralist from Connecticut. He has created numerous murals and live paintings throughout the United States, England, Portugal, Greece, Ireland, Australia, and o ...
, and is marked by the development of the two great civilizations: the Aurignacian and the Gravettian both featuring several stages of development as established by
stratigraphy Stratigraphy is a branch of geology concerned with the study of rock (geology), rock layers (Stratum, strata) and layering (stratification). It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary rock, sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks. Stratigrap ...
. The onset of the Aurignacian culture seems to have paralleled the late Mousterian
facies In geology, a facies ( , ; same pronunciation and spelling in the plural) is a body of rock with specified characteristics, which can be any observable attribute of rocks (such as their overall appearance, composition, or condition of formatio ...
in the Carpathian caves, if we accept as valid the
C14 dating Radiocarbon dating (also referred to as carbon dating or carbon-14 dating) is a method for determining the age of an object containing organic material by using the properties of radiocarbon, a radioactive isotope of carbon. The method was dev ...
of level IIb in the cave of
Gura Cheii Gura may refer to: Places Eritrea *Gura, Eritrea, a formerly-important town of the Ottoman, Egyptian, Ethiopian, and Italian Empires India * Gura Sonigara, small village in Rajasthan, India * Gura, Nakodar, small village in Punjab, India * Gura ...
Râșnov. Northwestern Transylvania is the site where layers of the
Middle Aurignacian The Aurignacian () is an archaeological industry of the Upper Paleolithic associated with European early modern humans (EEMH) lasting from 43,000 to 26,000 years ago. The Upper Paleolithic developed in Europe some time after the Levant, where t ...
culture have been identified, as signaled by the presence of blade scrapers, refitted core, burins. In Banat, the settlements of Tincova,
Coșava Curtea ( hu, Kurtya) is a commune in Timiș County, Romania. It is composed of three villages: Coșava ( hu, Kossó), Curtea and Homojdia ( hu, Homapatak). Geography Curtea is located in the northeast of Timiș County, close to the border of Hun ...
, and Românești- Dumbrăvița, have produced flint tools demonstrating that the
Aurignacian The Aurignacian () is an archaeological industry of the Upper Paleolithic associated with European early modern humans (EEMH) lasting from 43,000 to 26,000 years ago. The Upper Paleolithic developed in Europe some time after the Levant, where t ...
in this area evolved closely with that in Central Europe (the Krems-Dufour group). Aurignician items were also found in the caves in the Western Carpathians, the most famous of which is the Cioclovina cave ( Hunedoara County) – the site, around the start of the 20th century, of the first
Paleolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός ''palaios'', "old" and λίθος ''lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone too ...
discoveries in Transylvania. The Eastern Gravettian had a long evolution, featuring several stages of development as documented especially by the settlements in Moldova. The Gravettian has left traces in the Ţara Oaşului and Ţara Maramureşului, the sites of
microlite Microlite was once known as a pale-yellow, reddish-brown, or black isometric mineral composed of sodium calcium tantalum oxide with a small amount of fluorine. Its chemical formula is. Today it is a name of a group of oxide minerals of a similar ...
fashioned mainly out of
obsidian Obsidian () is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed when lava extrusive rock, extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth. It is an igneous rock. Obsidian is produced from felsic lava, rich in the lighter elements s ...
indicating the connection with the Gravettian in the neighboring regions ( Moldavia, South-Carpathian Ukraine, Eastern Slovakia, and Northeastern Hungary). The Late Gravettian covers Banat too, particularly the area of the
Porţile de Fier The Iron Gates ( ro, Porțile de Fier; sr, / or / ; Hungarian: ''Vaskapu-szoros'') is a gorge on the river Danube. It forms part of the boundary between Serbia (to the south) and Romania (north). In the broad sense it encompasses a rout ...
of the Danube, where heads identical to the
Laugerie-Basse Laugerie-Basse is an important Upper Paleolithic archaeological site within the territory of the French commune Les Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil in Dordogne. It is known for several works of art from the Magdalenian. In 1979, Laugerie-Basse, along ...
type heads were discovered in grottoes and open air dwellings. Still in Banat, a culture with several stages of development was identified and subsequently named the Quartzite Upper Paleolithic by its discoverer, considered to be synchronous with the local Aurignacian, later the Gravettian, and regarded as a prolongation of the late stages of the Mousterian with quartz and quartzite tools (Eastern Charentian).


Epipaleolithic and Mesolithic

;(13,000 – 9,500 BP) The populations evolving at the onset of the Bölling oscillation (approximately 12,000 BP) and which have continued to the end of the
Preboreal The Preboreal is an informal stage of the Holocene epoch. It is preceded by the Tarantian and succeeded by the Boreal. It lasted from 10,300 to 9,000 BP in radiocarbon years or 8350BC to 7050BC in Gregorian calendar years (8th millennium BC). I ...
have been generally attributed to the
Epipaleolithic In archaeology, the Epipalaeolithic or Epipaleolithic (sometimes Epi-paleolithic etc.) is a period occurring between the Upper Paleolithic and Neolithic during the Stone Age. Mesolithic also falls between these two periods, and the two are someti ...
. Consequently, this historical period could be associated with the interval between 13,000 and about 9,500-9,000 BP. These communities continued the lifestyles of the Upper Paleolithic. Due to numerous factors, including changes in the climate, the small groups of hunters-fishermen-gatherers innovated tool and weapon types – producing, for instance, microlites (trapeze) — while also keeping the traditional tool types. The Iron Gates mesolithic culture of the central trans-Danube region, named by archaeologists after the gorge of
Porţile de Fier The Iron Gates ( ro, Porțile de Fier; sr, / or / ; Hungarian: ''Vaskapu-szoros'') is a gorge on the river Danube. It forms part of the boundary between Serbia (to the south) and Romania (north). In the broad sense it encompasses a rout ...
("Iron Gates"), was settled by a population attributed to the Late Epigravettian or
Mediterranean Tardigravettian The Gravettian was an archaeological industry of the European Upper Paleolithic that succeeded the Aurignacian circa 33,000 years BP. It is archaeologically the last European culture many consider unified, and had mostly disappeared by   ...
. The first stage of this period was discovered by archaeologists in the Climente II cave (
Mehedinți County Mehedinți County () is a county ( ro, județ) of Romania on the border with Serbia and Bulgaria. It is mostly located in the historical province of Oltenia, with one municipality (Orșova) and three communes ( Dubova, Eșelnița, and Svinița) ...
), and the second stage, by discoveries in the shelter under the rocks at
Cuina Turcului The Serra dos Ancares (Spanish: ''Sierra de los Ancares'', also known as ''Sierra de Ancares'') is a mountain range of the Galician Massif in north-west Spain, extending in a south-westerly direction from the western end of the Cantabrian Mountains ...
, Dubova, both of which are located in the same limestone massif — Ciucaru Mare. The two dwelling levels at
Cuina Turcului The Serra dos Ancares (Spanish: ''Sierra de los Ancares'', also known as ''Sierra de Ancares'') is a mountain range of the Galician Massif in north-west Spain, extending in a south-westerly direction from the western end of the Cantabrian Mountains ...
have produced a large quantity of tools and weapons made of flint in particular, and less so of obsidian, bone and horn, as well as body ornaments (shells and drilled teeth, bone pendants, etc.) The
ornament An ornament is something used for decoration. Ornament may also refer to: Decoration * Ornament (art), any purely decorative element in architecture and the decorative arts * Biological ornament, a characteristic of animals that appear to serve ...
s are often decorated with incised geometrical patterns. The most remarkable is a drilled horse phalange, wholly ornamented and probably representing a female figure. Besides the mammal (
beaver Beavers are large, semiaquatic rodents in the genus ''Castor'' native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. There are two extant species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers ar ...
, boar, mountain goat, etc.), bird and fish remnants, fragments of human skeletons were also found. The Climente II cave has produced a human skeleton, set in a crouching position, and covered by a thick layer of red
ochre Ochre ( ; , ), or ocher in American English, is a natural clay earth pigment, a mixture of ferric oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand. It ranges in colour from yellow to deep orange or brown. It is also the name of the colours produced ...
, which is attributed to the
Tardigravettian The Epigravettian (Greek: ''epi'' "above, on top of", and Gravettian) was one of the last archaeological industries and cultures of the European Upper Paleolithic. It emerged after the Last Glacial Maximum around ~21,000 cal. BP or 19,050 BC, ...
dwelling and which predates Level I at
Cuina Turcului The Serra dos Ancares (Spanish: ''Sierra de los Ancares'', also known as ''Sierra de Ancares'') is a mountain range of the Galician Massif in north-west Spain, extending in a south-westerly direction from the western end of the Cantabrian Mountains ...
. The discoveries in the Clisura area display striking similarities to the industries of the Italian Peninsula — the expression of the migrant human bearers of the Late Epigravettian in the mentioned area.


Mesolithic

;(9,500 – 7,500 BP) Specialist opinions fix the beginning of the Mesolithic era at the end of the
Preboreal The Preboreal is an informal stage of the Holocene epoch. It is preceded by the Tarantian and succeeded by the Boreal. It lasted from 10,300 to 9,000 BP in radiocarbon years or 8350BC to 7050BC in Gregorian calendar years (8th millennium BC). I ...
, its development throughout the
Boreal Boreal may refer to: Climatology and geography *Boreal (age), the first climatic phase of the Blytt-Sernander sequence of northern Europe, during the Holocene epoch *Boreal climate, a climate characterized by long winters and short, cool to mild ...
, and its end as late as the beginnings of the Atlantic. Chronologically then, it can be set between 9,500-9,000 and 7,500 BP. Two cultures are documented on the territory of Romania in this time period: the
Tardenoisian The Tardenoisian (or Beuronian) is an archaeological culture of the Mesolithic/Epipaleolithic period from northern France and Belgium. Similar cultures are known further east in central Europe, parts of Britain. and west across Spain. It is name ...
and the
Schela Cladova Drobeta-Turnu Severin (), colloquially Severin, is a city in Mehedinți County, Oltenia, Romania, on the northern bank of the Danube, close to the Iron Gates. "Drobeta" is the name of the ancient Dacian and Roman towns at the site, and the modern t ...
types. The
Tardenoisian The Tardenoisian (or Beuronian) is an archaeological culture of the Mesolithic/Epipaleolithic period from northern France and Belgium. Similar cultures are known further east in central Europe, parts of Britain. and west across Spain. It is name ...
spread in several of the country's regions ( Moldavia,
Muntenia Muntenia (, also known in English as Greater Wallachia) is a historical region of Romania, part of Wallachia (also, sometimes considered Wallachia proper, as ''Muntenia'', ''Țara Românească'', and the seldom used ''Valahia'' are synonyms in R ...
, Dobruja), including the mountainous area of Transylvania in the southeast ( Cremenea-
Sita Buzăului Sita Buzăului ( hu, Szitabodza) is a commune in Covasna County, in the geographical region of Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of four villages: Crasna (''Bodzakraszna''), Merișor (''Almás''), Sita Buzăului and Zăbrătău (''Zabrató''). ...
, Costanta- Lădăuţi) and northwest ( Ciumeşti- Păşune). In the settlement of Ciumeşti ( Satu Mare County), besides the typically
Central and East European Central and Eastern Europe is a term encompassing the countries in the Baltics, Central Europe, Eastern Europe and Southeast Europe (mostly the Balkans), usually meaning former communist states from the Eastern Bloc and Warsaw Pact in Europe. ...
Tardenoisian
microlitice Microlite was once known as a pale-yellow, reddish-brown, or black isometric mineral composed of sodium calcium tantalum oxide with a small amount of fluorine. Its chemical formula is. Today it is a name of a group of oxide minerals of a simil ...
tools made of flint and
obsidian Obsidian () is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed when lava extrusive rock, extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth. It is an igneous rock. Obsidian is produced from felsic lava, rich in the lighter elements s ...
, some artefacts were found in the form of circular segments and two triangular ones, in addition to trapezes. The fauna remnants indicate the presence of wild boar and deer. Some specialists do not exclude the possibility of identifying the
Late Tardenoisian The Tardenoisian (or Beuronian) is an archaeological culture of the Mesolithic/Epipaleolithic period from northern France and Belgium. Similar cultures are known further east in central Europe, parts of Britain. and west across Spain. It is name ...
communities of the north-western
Pontic Pontic, from the Greek ''pontos'' (, ), or "sea", may refer to: The Black Sea Places * The Pontic colonies, on its northern shores * Pontus (region), a region on its southern shores * The Pontic–Caspian steppe, steppelands stretching from n ...
or central European types (of which the settlement at Ciumeşti is one) as being in the process of
neolithization The Neolithic Revolution, or the (First) Agricultural Revolution, was the wide-scale transition of many human cultures during the Neolithic period from a lifestyle of hunting and gathering to one of agriculture and settlement, making an incre ...
, albeit incomplete, that is, displaying an incipient productive economy, whose foundations were laid by animal domestication and plant cultures. The
Schela Cladovei culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northw ...
is known through the nine open air settlements in the proximity of the Danube. The
lithic Lithic may refer to: *Relating to stone tools **Lithic analysis, the analysis of stone tools and other chipped stone artifacts **Lithic core, the part of a stone which has had flakes removed from it **Lithic flake, the portion of a rock removed to ...
utensils come in numerous atypical forms and are fashioned of quartzite and siliceous sandstone while an additional small number are made of flint. The horn tools (agriculture artefacts with one or two handle attachment holes) apparently indicate the debut of
plant cultivation Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclude ...
. Some of the larger river rocks flattened by water or some of the thicker slabs might have served for grinding. The examination of the fauna indicates an economy based mainly on hunting. The targeted game were deer,
roebucks The roe deer (''Capreolus capreolus''), also known as the roe, western roe deer, or European roe, is a species of deer. The male of the species is sometimes referred to as a roebuck. The roe is a small deer, reddish and grey-brown, and well-adapt ...
,
European bisons The European bison (''Bison bonasus'') or the European wood bison, also known as the wisent ( or ), the zubr (), or sometimes colloquially as the European buffalo, is a European species of bison. It is one of two extant species of bison, alon ...
, wild boars, hares,
wild donkeys The domestic donkey is a hoofed mammal in the family Equidae, the same family as the horse. It derives from the African wild ass, ''Equus africanus'', and may be classified either as a subspecies thereof, ''Equus africanus asinus'', or as a ...
, foxes, etc. Furthermore, it would seem that the representatives of this culture domesticated the dog. Anthropological data are quite consistent. The physical type was evaluated as
Oriental Cro-Magnon Paleolithic Europe, or Old Stone Age Europe, encompasses the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age in Europe from the arrival of the first archaic humans, about 1.4 million years ago until the beginning of the Mesolithic (also Epipaleolithic) around 10 ...
. The skeletons of the deceased were laid in rectangular holes, some dug in the floor of the dwelling itself. Part of them was laid in a crouching position, part was laid on their back, together with some of their personal belongings. Child mortality was high, while the average life expectancy for adults was 36.2 years. The discovery of some skeletons with arrowhead marks speaks of violent death. Research so far has proved that this culture does not have its roots in the Mediterranean type
Tardigravettian The Epigravettian (Greek: ''epi'' "above, on top of", and Gravettian) was one of the last archaeological industries and cultures of the European Upper Paleolithic. It emerged after the Last Glacial Maximum around ~21,000 cal. BP or 19,050 BC, ...
, but rather originated by some new migration into the
Porţile de Fier region The Iron Gates ( ro, Porțile de Fier; sr, / or / ; Hungarian: ''Vaskapu-szoros'') is a gorge on the river Danube. It forms part of the boundary between Serbia (to the south) and Romania (north). In the broad sense it encompasses a rou ...
. In addition, it would seem that on the arrival of the first bearers of the Neolithic civilisation (
Precriş culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northwe ...
), the
Schela Cladovei culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northw ...
had already come to an end.


Neolithic

;(6600–3500 BC) The Neolithic began with the slow migration of communities from the south of the
Balkan Peninsula The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
(the
Protosesklo culture Sesklo ( el, Σέσκλο; rup, Seshklu) is a village in Greece that is located near Volos, a city located within the municipality of Aisonia. The municipality is located within the regional unit of Magnesia that is located within the admini ...
from the
Thesalo-Macedonean area Thessaly or Thessalia ( Attic Greek: , ''Thessalía'' or , ''Thettalía'') was one of the traditional regions of Ancient Greece. During the Mycenaean period, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, a name that continued to be used for one of the major tribes ...
), who brought with them momentous economic progress. Consequently, the process of
neolithisation The Neolithic Revolution, or the (First) Agricultural Revolution, was the wide-scale transition of many human cultures during the Neolithic period from a lifestyle of hunting and gathering to one of agriculture and settlement, making an incre ...
, which is essentially a shift to plant growing and animal breeding, was not an innovation of the local Mesolithic population but rather the result of the penetration of this territory by communities carrying the Neolithic civilization. The normal divisions of the Neolithic are: Early Neolithic, Developed Neolithic and Chalcolithic (Copper Age). The Neolithic epoch on the territory of Romania, as certified by calibrated 14C dates, began around 6600 BC, and ended around 3800–3700 BC, and no later than 3500 BC. The Early Neolithic (c. 6600–5500 BC) consists of two cultural layers: genetically linked and with similar physiognomies. The first (layer
Gura Baciului Baciu ( hu, Kisbács or ''Bács''; german: Botschendorf) is a commune in Cluj County, located in the region of Transylvania, in the northwestern part of Romania. Baciu lies a short distance from the county seat of Cluj-Napoca. It is composed of s ...
Cârcea Cârcea is a commune in Dolj County, Oltenia, Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the w ...
/Precriș) is the exclusive result of the migration of a Neolithic population from the
South Balkan area The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
, while the second (the Starčevo-Criș culture) reflects the process of adjusting to local conditions by a South Balkan community, possibly a synthesis with the local
Tardenoisian The Tardenoisian (or Beuronian) is an archaeological culture of the Mesolithic/Epipaleolithic period from northern France and Belgium. Similar cultures are known further east in central Europe, parts of Britain. and west across Spain. It is name ...
groups. The layer Gura Baciului – Cârcea, also called the Precriș culture, is a spin-off of a
Protosesklo culture Sesklo ( el, Σέσκλο; rup, Seshklu) is a village in Greece that is located near Volos, a city located within the municipality of Aisonia. The municipality is located within the regional unit of Magnesia that is located within the admini ...
group that advanced north and reached the
North Danubian region Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
where it founded the first culture of painted pottery in Romania. The small number of sites attributable to this early cultural time has not allowed the route followed by the group, to penetrate the Inter-Carpathian area, to be firmly established, yet in all likelihood, it was the Olt Valley. Based on the stratigraphy in the site of
Gura Baciului Baciu ( hu, Kisbács or ''Bács''; german: Botschendorf) is a commune in Cluj County, located in the region of Transylvania, in the northwestern part of Romania. Baciu lies a short distance from the county seat of Cluj-Napoca. It is composed of s ...
( Cluj County) and Ocna Sibiului ( Sibiu County), the development of the culture is divided into three major stages. The settlements are situated on high terraces strung along secondary valleys. The dwellings are most often underground, but there are also ground level houses, usually standing on river stone platforms. Pottery (bowls, cups) is refined, with white painted dots or geometrical patterns on red or brown-red background. Concomitant with pottery, plant cultures and animal breeding, the new culture introduces implements of polished stone and the first clay statuettes. The dead are buried on the grounds of the settlements sometimes directly under the dwellings. Gura Baciului is the first site on the territory of Romania attesting incineration as a funerary practice.
Anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...
and zoomorphic plastic art reveals a bipolar system of beliefs: the Great Mother, representing the female principle, and the Bull, representing the male principle. The presence among the findings at Gura Baciului of some anthropomorphic stone heads, similar to the famous stone heads of Lepenski Vir, signify possible contact between the locals, the
Mesolithic cultures The Mesolithic (Greek: μέσος, ''mesos'' 'middle' + λίθος, ''lithos'' 'stone') or Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic is often used synonymous ...
, and the newcomers. Furthermore, the adoption of these alien deities, even if exclusively a plastic substantiation, speaks of a remarkable process of assimilation, characteristic of the layer above mentioned. At Ocna Sibiului, at Precriș, level II, a small conical stone statuette was found, with a shape representing a couple embracing, and a plinth of the same material associated with the figure. On the statue and the plinth several symbols can be distinguished interpreted by the discoverer as ideograms.


Starčevo-Criș culture

The Starčevo-Criș culture, representing the generalisation of the early Neolithic in the
Intra-Carpathian The Transylvanian Plateau ( ro, Podișul Transilvaniei; hu, Erdélyi-medence) is a plateau in central Romania. The plateau lies within and takes its name from the historical region of Transylvania, and is almost entirely surrounded by the Easte ...
territory, has been regarded by some as the prolongation of the Gura Baciului-Cârcea/Precriș culture, disregarding that it is probably the result of a new south Balkan migration (the
Presesklo culture Sesklo ( el, Σέσκλο; rup, Seshklu) is a village in Greece that is located near Volos, a city located within the municipality of Aisonia. The municipality is located within the regional unit of Magnesia that is located within the admini ...
) arriving in Transylvania via Banat. The Starčevo – Criș culture has a long evolution in four stages. Dwellings were set up on meadows, terraces, hills and even in caves, wherever the environment was friendly. The
dwellings In law, a dwelling (also known as a residence or an abode) is a self-contained unit of accommodation used by one or more households as a home - such as a house, apartment, mobile home, houseboat, vehicle, or other "substantial" structure. The ...
were embedded in the early phases and were huts at ground level, in the later phases. Asymmetrical receptacles, bowls, spherical cups, all of which were made of clay, furnish the interiors of this culture. The lithic utensil inventory includes flint and obsidian
microlites Microlites are minute crystals in an amorphous matrix. In igneous petrology, the term microlitic is used to describe vitric (glassy, non-crystalline, amorphous) matrix containing microscopic crystals.''Dictionary of Geological Terms'', 1962, Ameri ...
, as well as large polished stone axes of the Walzenbiele type. It is now, too, that the first small copper items occur sporadically. The pintaderas decorated with geometrical patterns as well as the
Spondylus ''Spondylus'' is a genus of bivalve molluscs, the only genus in the family (biology), family Spondylidae.MolluscaBase (2019). MolluscaBase. Spondylus Linnaeus, 1758. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: http://www.marinespecies ...
and Tridacna shells testify to possible connections with
Eastern Mediterranean Eastern Mediterranean is a loose definition of the eastern approximate half, or third, of the Mediterranean Sea, often defined as the countries around the Levantine Sea. It typically embraces all of that sea's coastal zones, referring to communi ...
regions. Burials were performed both inside and among the dwellings. Anthropological analyses have revealed a major Mediterranean component suggesting a southern origin of this population. The Developed Neolithic (c. 5500–4000 BC) covers the interval between the last phase of the Starčevo–Criș culture and the beginnings of the Petrești culture, the period including what has long been known as middle and late Neolithic. The Developed Neolithic is marked by the migration of some new groups of populations, whose point of departure was the south of the
Balkan Peninsula The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
, as part of the group of cultures with polished black pottery. These same groups created the Vinča culture (more commonly divided into four main phases: A, B, C and D), whose beginning is synchronous with the final phase of the Sesklo culture (Greece) occupying Banat and most of Transylvania. In about the same period, the north-east of Transylvania was penetrated by several groups, bearing the
linear and musical note pottery culture The Linear Pottery culture (LBK) is a major archaeological horizon of the European Neolithic period, flourishing . Derived from the German ''Linearbandkeramik'', it is also known as the Linear Band Ware, Linear Ware, Linear Ceramics or Inci ...
. The Vinča culture in Romania comes in many forms depending on the local background against which it developed (the Starčevo-Criș culture and the linear pottery) and the degree of southern influence. The synthesis of the above-mentioned elements gave birth to numerous related regional elements, so that when referring to the Transylvania territory, specialists do not speak of a Vinča culture per se, but rather that of the
Banat culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northw ...
, the
Bucovăț Bucovăț (; Moldovan Cyrillic: Буковэц) is a town in Strășeni district, Moldova Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bo ...
group, the
Pișcolt Pișcolt ( hu, Piskolt, Hungarian pronunciation: ) is a Communes of Romania, commune of 3,285 inhabitants situated in Satu Mare County, Crișana, Romania. It is composed of three villages: Pișcolt, Resighea (''Reszege'') and Scărișoara Nouă ('' ...
group, the Turdaș culture, the Cluj-Cheile–Turzii–Lumea Nouă–Iclod complex, and the
Iclod Iclod ( hu, Nagyiklód; german: Grossikladen) is a commune in Cluj County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of five villages: Fundătura (''Szamosjenő''), Iclod, Iclozel (''Kisiklód''), Livada (''Dengeleg'') and Orman (''Ormány''). Demog ...
group. A general characteristic of these groups is the black polished pottery (cups, bowls, lids, etc.). The decorations are variously incised and impressed (bands filled in with stripes, in particular) in addition to displaying fine grooves. The statuettes feature oblong heads (possibly indicating a mask), cross-like bodies, and are often decorated with spiral winding patterns. In Banat, with the end of the Vinča A2 stage there emerges the
Banat culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northw ...
with several distinctive regional peculiarities (groups Bucovăț and
Parța Parța ( hu, Parác; german: Paratz; sr, Парац, Parac) is a commune in Timiș County, Romania. It is composed of a single village, Parța, and was part of Șag commune until 2004. History Parța was first documented in 1334 as ''Parkas'', ...
). The Parța settlement, thoroughly researched, demonstrates that the culture reached a high level of civilization, attested to by the one storey buildings and by a complex spiritual life, partly decoded by the components of the great sanctuary studied here. The cult edifice (with maximum dimensions of 12x6x7m), with two stages of construction, had two chambers, the one to the east, the other to the west, separated by an
altar table An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paganism, ...
and then a wall. The west chamber served as a depository for daily offerings. In the foundation of the south entrance to this chamber was laid a zoomorphic idol and a tiny vessel. The east chamber served for the initiation ceremonies. Religious centers of this type through their prestige and grandeur most certainly congregated the population of an extended area. The charred seeds found in the
Liubcova Berzasca ( hu, Berszászka, german: Bersaska, sr, Берзаска ''Berzaska'') is a commune in Caraș-Severin County, in the Banat region of western Romania with a population of 3,123 people. It is composed of five villages: Berzasca, Bigăr, ...
settlement indicate that several cereals were grown. Wheat prevailed, particularly the
Triticum dicoccum Emmer wheat or hulled wheat is a type of Awn (botany), awned wheat. Emmer is a tetraploid (4''n'' = 4''x'' = 28 chromosomes). The domesticated types are ''Triticum turgidum'' subsp. ''dicoccum'' and ''Triticum turgidum ''conv.'' durum''. The w ...
species, as well as the
Triticum monococcum Einkorn wheat (from German ''Einkorn'', literally "single grain") can refer either to a wild species of wheat (''Triticum'') or to its domesticated form. The wild form is '' T. boeoticum'' (syn. ''T. m.'' ssp. ''boeoticum''), the domesticated ...
and
Triticum aestivus Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeological ...
species in proportion of approx. 10%. The first occurrence on the territory of Romania of the
Hordeum vulgare Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley pr ...
barley is seen. Also present are such leguminous plants as lentil and vetch. Of paramount interest is that wheat was harvested, as discovered in a settlement south of the Carpathians ( Teiu, the Gumelnița culture), and was possibly used in other areas, too. The wheat was harvested by pulling out, then was sheaved and tied with a switch, vine shoots or ivy. Once carried to the settlement, the grain was threshed.


Turdaș culture

The Vinča communities that advanced on the middle course of the Mureș River, under the influence of the Starčevo-Criș traditions and the elements of the linear pottery, created a new cultural synthesis called the Turdaş culture. The occurrence of signs incised on the bottom of several vessels, particularly on those at
Turdaș Turdaș ( hu, Tordos, german: Tordesch) is a commune in Hunedoara County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of four villages: Pricaz (''Perkász''), Râpaș (''Répás''), Spini (''Pád'') and Turdaș. Turdaș has been attested to in various ...
( Hunedoara County), have often been regarded as the potter's mark. More recently they have been considered by some researchers as early attempts at recording dates graphically. That things might stand this way is demonstrated, apparently, by the baked clay tablets covered with incised pictographic patterns at Tărtăria ( Alba County), discovered, according to
Nicolae Vlassa Nicolae may refer to: * Nicolae (name), a Romanian name * ''Nicolae'' (novel), a 1997 novel See also *Nicolai (disambiguation) *Nicolao Nicolao is an Italian given name and a surname. It may refer to the following: Given name *Nicolao Civitali ...
, in a ritual hole in the ground, next to clay and alabaster idols and a fragment of an anchor, all of which have triggered hot debate over the
stratigraphy Stratigraphy is a branch of geology concerned with the study of rock (geology), rock layers (Stratum, strata) and layering (stratification). It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary rock, sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks. Stratigrap ...
and chronology of the settlement. The preservation by some Starčevo-Criș communities of painted pottery, in addition to the Vinča elements, engendered in the area of the eastern arch of the Western Carpathians the Cluj–Cheile Turzii–Lumea Nouă–Iclod cultural complex. This complex represents the substratum for the emergence of the
Petrești culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northw ...
. Long-term research at
Iclod Iclod ( hu, Nagyiklód; german: Grossikladen) is a commune in Cluj County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of five villages: Fundătura (''Szamosjenő''), Iclod, Iclozel (''Kisiklód''), Livada (''Dengeleg'') and Orman (''Ormány''). Demog ...
has demonstrated that this station possessed a complex fortification system built during the Iclod, Phase I, still in use for some time in the Iclod II phase, eventually abandoned when the settlement expanded. It is in the same spot that research has been carried in two inhumation necropoles, where the dead were laid on their backs hands across their chests or abdomens or along their bodies; the bodies were oriented east–west, their heads facing east. The inventory consists of vessels (cylindrical, painted bowls, and S profile pots),
ochre Ochre ( ; , ), or ocher in American English, is a natural clay earth pigment, a mixture of ferric oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand. It ranges in colour from yellow to deep orange or brown. It is also the name of the colours produced ...
, stone utensils, ornaments and animal offerings.


Chalcolithic

The Chalcolithic, Eneolithic or Copper Age (c. 4600/4500 – 3800/3700 BC) is characterized by an ever-increasing number of copper items, as well as the presence of stone, bone, horn and baked clay utensils. It marks the first production of heavy copper tools and moulds, (axes – chisels and axes), in close conjunction with the exploitation of copper deposits in Transylvania. Gold is used for ornaments and the fashioning of such idols as those at Moigrad in the Bodrogkeresztúr-Gornești culture. The craft of pottery reaches a peak, exemplified by the great number of exquisitely decorated pots. Cultures typical for this period are the Cucuteni-Ariușd, Petrești, Tiszapolgár-Românești and Bodrogkeresztúr-Gornești. The first two cultures are among the numerous Eneolithic cultures with pottery painted in bi- and tri-chromatic patterns. At Ariușd ( Covasna County) in the east of Transylvania, the first systematic excavations were undertaken in what is considered the neo-Eneolithic epoch in Romania. The material discovered has been integrated into the greater painted pottery complex of Cucuteni-Ariușd-Tripolie.


Petrești culture

The Petrești culture diffused across almost all of Transylvania, is regarded as local in origin by some specialists, and as a migration originating from the southern areas of the Balkans, by others. It is primarily known for its painted decoration – patterns painted in red, brown-red, later brown, on a brick-red background, which testifies to the high standard of civilization of the bearers of this culture. The ornamental motifs consist in bands, rhombuses, squares, spirals, and windings. The typical forms are bowls, tureens, high stands. Plastic art is fairly scarce and so are brass items.


Decea Mureșului culture

The end of this culture has been associated with the entry into central Transylvania by the bearers of the
Decea Mureşului culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northwe ...
/horizon and the
Gorneşti culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northw ...
. The graves at Decea Mureşului, according to some, are a continuation of the rituals of
Iclod Iclod ( hu, Nagyiklód; german: Grossikladen) is a commune in Cluj County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of five villages: Fundătura (''Szamosjenő''), Iclod, Iclozel (''Kisiklód''), Livada (''Dengeleg'') and Orman (''Ormány''). Demog ...
, whereas according to others, they are hard proof of the penetration of central Transylvania by a north-Pontic population. The presence of red ochre scattered over the skeletons, or laid at their feet in the form of little balls, as well as other ritual elements find better analogies, however, in the necropolis at
Mariopol Mariopol (German ''Friedrichstal'') is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Dąbrowice, within Kutno County, Łódź Voivodeship, in central Poland. It lies approximately north-west of Dąbrowice, north-west of Kutno, and north- ...
in south Ukraine.


Gornești culture

The Gornești culture, characterized by the occurrence of the so-called high-necked milk pots with two small protuberances pulled at the margin and drilled vertically, is a continuation of the omâneşti(featuring receptacles with bird bill protuberances and decorated with step or nettle incisions), in turn descended from the Tisa culture in the developed Neolithic period. The settlements of the neo-Eneolithic cultures were located on the low or high river terraces, on hilltops or hillspurs and consisted in several dwellings whose positions sometimes observed particular rules. Recent research has tended to focus on the defense systems (ditches and scarps) of these sites. The culture strata are thick and superposed forming at times regular tells. The dwellings of this period were of several types. The earth houses displayed an oval shaped hole, with a maximum of 5–6m and a minimum of 3m in diameter. On one of the edges a simple fireplace was built out of a smoothed layer of clay. The thatched roof was conical or elongated and was supported by a
trestle ATLAS-I (Air Force Weapons Lab Transmission-Line Aircraft Simulator), better known as Trestle, was a unique electromagnetic pulse (EMP) generation and testing apparatus built between 1972 and 1980 during the Cold War at Sandia National Laborato ...
. The one room rectangular surface dwellings are also documented as dating back to the beginning of the Neolithic. They had wattle walls pasted with clay mixed with straw. The roof was double sloping, and the floor was made of trodden clay. The
Cucuteni Cucuteni () is a commune in Iași County, Western Moldavia, Romania, with a population of 1,446 as of 2002. The commune is composed of four villages: Băiceni, Bărbătești, Cucuteni, and Săcărești. It is located from the city of Iași an ...
dwellings in south-east Transylvania are spacious (40–100 m2 and more), often have a platform and are divided into two or more rooms. Neo-Eneolithic sculpture is represented by cultic figures, idols, and talismans fashioned out of bone, stone or clay. These are human or animal representations conveyed by stylized or exaggerated body parts. Among the thousand anthropomorphous statues discovered, the female ones, symbols of fertility and fecundity, prevail by far. Copper was first used for fashioning small implements or ornaments (needles,
awls Awl may refer to: Tools * Bradawl, a woodworking hand tool for making small holes * Scratch awl, a woodworking layout and point-making tool used to scribe a line * Stitching awl, a tool for piercing holes in a variety of materials such as leathe ...
, fishing hooks, pendants, etc.), while gold was used solely for aesthetic and decorative purposes. For a long time the items were produced by the technique of hammering, for the technique of the casting mould as well as that of "cire perdue" ( lost wax) emerged much later. Although there is no proof of the provenance of the first metal items, they are seemingly local rather than imported products. That does not necessarily suggest that metallurgy was the invention of the local population, for it might have been introduced as a result of contact with regions where metal processing had started earlier (in the East or the Caucasus). The Eneolithic marked a notable advancement in the development of metallurgy. Throughout this period copper artifacts are present in the settlements, in grave inventories or even in deposits (assemblies of whole or fragmentary objects concentrated in one, usually isolated, place). This period also marks a high incidence of flat axes, pins, simple or multi-spiral bracelets or necklaces. The most complex of all Eneolithic achievements is the axe. These weapon-implements are bound to the late phases of the Cucuteni, Decea Mureşului and Bodrogkeresztúr-Gorneşti cultures. The gold Eneolithic items, outnumbered by the copper, actually constitute the beginning of goldsmithing in the Transylvanian lands. An outstanding artifact was the great gold pendant in the thesaurus of Moigrad ( Sălaj County), which is 30 cm in height and weighs 750g. We know little about the racial types of the Transylvanian Neolithic population. The area of some of the cultures, for instance Cucuteni, lack funeral finds, for they are the expression of ritual practices that elude archeological methods. The little anthropological data available (
Gura Baciului Baciu ( hu, Kisbács or ''Bács''; german: Botschendorf) is a commune in Cluj County, located in the region of Transylvania, in the northwestern part of Romania. Baciu lies a short distance from the county seat of Cluj-Napoca. It is composed of s ...
, Iclod) suggests Mediterranean-type physical features. The role of the invasion of the
pastoral A pastoral lifestyle is that of shepherds herding livestock around open areas of land according to seasons and the changing availability of water and pasture. It lends its name to a genre of literature, art, and music (pastorale) that depicts ...
tribes coming from the north-Pontic (supposedly Indo-European kinship) in bringing to an end the Eneolithic culture of sedentary farmers, represents one of the hotly debated issues among specialists in the prehistory of south-eastern Europe. What once might have seemed exclusively a migration of nomadic tribes, now may be understood as a socio-economic transformation of the local population—its adaptation to the new environment, to the evolution of society (the increasing role of the animal breeders and shepherds, the development of metallurgy, extended mobility, the increasingly military role of the elites, changes in the belief systems, etc.). In conclusion, the Eneolithic was a period of stability, in which the sedentary populations created a spectacular civilization.


Bronze Age

;(3200) 2700–1100 BC) For a long time the Romanian Bronze Age had been divided into four periods, but the archeological facts have imposed in the last decades the use of a three-part system: Early, Middle and Late Bronze. As communities acquired the secrets of
alloying An alloy is a mixture of chemical elements of which at least one is a metal. Unlike chemical compounds with metallic bases, an alloy will retain all the properties of a metal in the resulting material, such as electrical conductivity, ductility ...
brass and arsenic, tin, zinc, or lead, achieving the first items in bronze, the long period during which stone constituted the main raw material for fashioning implements and weapons was coming to an end. The emergence and development of bronze metallurgy is accompanied by numerous substantial changes in economic and social life, in the spiritual life, and in the arts. The ensemble of these modifications – archeologically identifiable especially midway in the Bronze Age, yet already prefigured early on in the transition period from the Eneolithic to the Bronze Age – indicates a civilization far more sophisticated than we had imagined.


Baden culture, Coţofeni culture

The first stage of the Early Bronze Age is a genuine cultural mosaic, juxtaposing transitory civilizations with those typical of the Bronze Age. For the first, the most typical is the Baden – Coţofeni cultural bloc, which perpetuated in many aspects a transitory lifestyle, but evolved in parallel to the pre-Schneckenberg and Schneckenberg civilisations, which were more active in taking over the products of the Aegean- Anatolian Early Bronze. One can no longer speak of Eneolithic or neo-Eneolithic cultures, as defined by this historical period, for the changes occurring in the social structure are radical. The rise in status of the chieftains, indicated by the erection of tumulus funeral monuments, the different type of
metallurgy Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the sc ...
, the different type of economy based on greater mobility as evinced by the impressive number of
settlement Settlement may refer to: *Human settlement, a community where people live *Settlement (structural), the distortion or disruption of parts of a building *Closing (real estate), the final step in executing a real estate transaction *Settlement (fina ...
s belonging to the Coţofeni culture. During the second stage, in the center of Transylvania there develops a cultural group bearing the name of the locality of Copăceni ( Cluj County), which favored the locations afforded by the elevated sites in the eastern, and probably western, arch of the Western Carpathians and the upper basin of the Someş rivers. Their main pursuits were agriculture, animal breeding and ore extraction. They had surface dwellings, medium-sized (3x4m) with a rectangular layout, and pottery displays mainly high-necked pots with a short bottom portion often decorated with barbotine. Frequently the pots' rims are thickened and decorated with rope impressions. The dead are buried in tumuli such as those at
Cheile Aiudului Livezile (until 1960 ''Cacova''; german: Laßlenkirch, hu, Úrháza) is a commune located in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of four villages: Izvoarele (''Bedellő''), Livezile, Poiana Aiudului (''Nyírmező''), and Vălișoa ...
,
Cheile Turzii Turda Gorge ( ro, Cheile Turzii, hu, Tordai-hasadék) is a natural reserve (on Hășdate River) situated 6 km west of Turda and about 15 km south-east of Cluj-Napoca, in Transylvania, Romania. Geography The canyon, formed throu ...
or
Cheile Turului Tureni ( hu, Tordatúr) is a commune in Cluj County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of five villages: Ceanu Mic (''Pusztacsán''), Comșești (''Komjátszeg''), Mărtinești (''Pusztaszentmárton''), Micești (''Mikes'') and Tureni. Dem ...
. The Copăceni group evolved in parallel to the Şoimuş and
Jigodin Miercurea Ciuc (; hu, Csíkszereda, ; german: Szeklerburg) is the county seat of Harghita County, Romania. It lies in the Székely Land, a mainly Hungarian-speaking ethno-cultural region in eastern Transylvania, and is situated in the Olt Rive ...
groups, the former in the south-west, and the latter in south-east Transylvania. Finally, the third stage is the least known, and is characterized by the use of ceramics with brush decorations and textile impressions. Non-ferrous metallurgy in Early Bronze Age, given the substantial fall in production as compared to the Eneolithic, should be regarded as undergoing some sort of realignment, or repositioning, rather than indicating an acute decline. The causes of this phenomenon are many and diverse (exhaustion of the usual mineral sources, major technological changes, disturbing ethnic reshuffling, etc.). Significantly, the first bronze items ( brass alloyed with arsenic, and later tin) now emerged. The archeological sites of this period have uncovered more varied jewelry (hair rings, bracelets, necklaces, pendants made in copper, bronze or gold),
poniards A poniard or ''poignard'' ( Fr.) is a long, lightweight thrusting knife with a continuously tapering, acutely pointed blade, and a cross-guard, historically worn by the upper class, noblemen, or members of the knighthood. Similar in design to a ...
, flat axes as well as 'raised margin' axes. Yet the most important achievement of the age is the single-edged axe. Apparently the majority of these products were manufactured in local workshops. The proof is the numerous moulds for casting axes discovered at
Leliceni Leliceni ( hu, Csíkszentlélek or colloquially ''Szentlélek'', meaning "Holy Spirit", Hungarian pronunciation:) is a commune in Harghita County, Romania. It lies in the Székely Land, an ethno-cultural region in eastern Transylvania. Component ...
( Harghita County) part of the
Jigodin Miercurea Ciuc (; hu, Csíkszereda, ; german: Szeklerburg) is the county seat of Harghita County, Romania. It lies in the Székely Land, a mainly Hungarian-speaking ethno-cultural region in eastern Transylvania, and is situated in the Olt Rive ...
group. Hard to ignore is the often evoked ritual hole at Fântânele, part of the Copăceni group, where were found fragments of moulds for casting metal items (little
chisels A chisel is a tool with a characteristically shaped cutting edge (such that wood chisels have lent part of their name to a particular grind) of blade on its end, for carving or cutting a hard material such as wood, stone, or metal by hand, stru ...
, poniards, massive axes), testifying that the level of the Baniabic/ Vâlcele ( Cluj County) type of axe had certainly been attained.


Periam-Pecica/Mureș culture

This culture occupied the Middle and Late Bronze Ages. In the diffusion of the archeological cultures on the lower course of the Mureș River, the Periam-Pecica/Mureș culture emerges, bordered in the south by the
Vatina culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northw ...
and in the north (territories in Hungary and Slovakia included), by the Otomani culture; the Transylvanian Plateau was occupied by the
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 ...
, which gradually ceded part of its northern area to the
Suciu de Sus culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northw ...
. All of these cultures evolved together, the earliest being evidently the
Mureș culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northwe ...
, the
Suciu de Sus culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northw ...
appearing later. Among the five regional cultural groups, the Wietenberg and Otomani cultures occupy a special position. The division into periods, according to the stratigraphy of the sites at Derşida ( Sălaj County) and Otomani ( Bihor County), represents in addition to that of Sărata Monteoru in
Muntenia Muntenia (, also known in English as Greater Wallachia) is a historical region of Romania, part of Wallachia (also, sometimes considered Wallachia proper, as ''Muntenia'', ''Țara Românească'', and the seldom used ''Valahia'' are synonyms in R ...
, the major demarcations of the Romanian Bronze chronology.


Otomani culture

The late period of the Bronze Age brings to Transylvania a marked process of cultural uniformity, whose direct manifestation is the local variety of the Noua culture. It is now, too, that the Lăpuş groups spins off the
Suciu de Sus culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northw ...
while the western areas are covered by the
Cehăluţ Cehal ( hu, Oláhcsaholy, Hungarian pronunciation: ) is a commune of 1,573 inhabitants situated in Satu Mare County, Crișana, Romania. It is composed of three villages: Cehal, Cehăluț (the commune center; ''Magyarcsaholy'') and Orbău (''Tasnád ...
and Igriţa groups. Ceramics are the prehistoric artifacts that have been available in the greatest quantity and variety, thus providing the foundation of all of the above-mentioned cultural classifications. The pattern repertoire of these cultures is abstract and geometric. The Wietenberg, Otomani and
Suciu de Sus culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northw ...
s, regularly and predominantly, displayed dynamically designed solar symbols (continuous spirals, crosses with spirals etc.) in the early stages of their cultural development. The same symbols appeared, in static form, (crosses, spiked wheels, rays, etc.) for the other cultures (
Vatina The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northw ...
, Mureş). Natural elements occurred rarely, and mainly as figurative art. Most remarkable in this context were the super-elevated handles, shaped into ram heads, of a large size receptacle found south of the Carpathians, at Sărata Monteoru ( Buzău County). The motif is repeated in markedly stylized forms on numerous pot handles of the
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 ...
. They were abstract to the extent that an animal was represented by a single defining element, for example a ram's horns. The same culture exhibits two rare achievements: a fragment of a cult wagon, exquisitely decorated, with both extremities ending in protomes, shaped as sheep-goat heads, discovered at Lechinţa de Mureş ( Mureș County), and a gold axe displaying a fine engraving of a human silhouette next to a bovine silhouette, whose provenance is the thesaurus of Ţufalău ( Covasna County). Close scrutiny of the production technique of the more complex vessels—the perfect duct of some complex decoration patterns—strengthens the probability that the ceramics were produced by specialists. This does not exclude the possibility that other social groups, mainly children and adolescents, performed a secondary role. The transport of receptacles over long distances, in the absence of good roads, must have been an equally difficult operation, requiring itinerant craftsmen or special workshops near the more important centers. The partial representations, the schematic physiognomies, as well as the faithful thematic rendering, though rare, all speak of a new symbolic expression that dominated the art of statuettes too. The moulding of the zoomorphic and
anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...
statuettes no longer attain the rich realism of the prior epoch, which is explained by the changes occurring in the religious and cult structure of the society. The incised and engraved decorations focus particularly on the details of the costume and the jewelry worn (hair rings, diadems, pendants, necklaces, etc.) The importance of the settlements, as a constructed and limited human space for the prehistoric population, is graphically suggested by Mircea Eliade, when he interprets them as symbolic of the "centre of the world". The analyzed archeological sites evolved from simple groupings of lodges to complex urban facilities, directed towards maintaining collective lifestyle quality, ensuring the protection of life and goods, and meeting specific social, economic, defense and cultic needs. Thus, there are central sites, with long-term developments, epicenters of a larger territory ( Derşida, Otomani, etc.), and secondary sites evolving at the level of hamlets or seasonal dwellings (
Suatu Suatu ( hu, Magyarszovát) is a commune in Cluj County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of three villages: Aruncuta (''Aranykút''), Dâmburile (''Dombokfalva'') and Suatu. The commune is located in the eastern part of the county, at a dis ...
,
Cluj-Napoca ; hu, kincses város) , official_name=Cluj-Napoca , native_name= , image_skyline= , subdivision_type1 = Counties of Romania, County , subdivision_name1 = Cluj County , subdivision_type2 = Subdivisions of Romania, Status , subdivision_name2 ...
, etc.). The Otomani civilization in particular features a marked settlement hierarchy manifested in the ordered positioning of the dwellings, suggesting a pre-urban tendency. For instance, at Otomani – Cetăţuie a circular settlement has been investigated, located on a hilltop and enclosed by a ditch and rampart. The dwellings were distributed in two concentric circles around an empty space at the center. The same organizing system is evident at Sălacea, where a megaron-type sanctuary has been explored. Prior to this century, the
Intra-Carpathian The Transylvanian Plateau ( ro, Podișul Transilvaniei; hu, Erdélyi-medence) is a plateau in central Romania. The plateau lies within and takes its name from the historical region of Transylvania, and is almost entirely surrounded by the Easte ...
space has been predominantly a land of farmers, as well as of craftsmen and animal breeders. In settlements belonging to the classical period of the Bronze Age were found charred seeds, numerous farming implements, grinding mills of diverse types, all attesting the intensive cultivation of grains. The widespread use of a primitive type of plough drawn by oxen is indicated by a great number of plough shares made of deer horn. Wheat,
millet Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder and human food. Most species generally referred to as millets belong to the tribe Paniceae, but some millets al ...
, barley, and rye were found in several Bronze Age sites. A Wietenberg ritual complex researched recently at
Cluj-Napoca ; hu, kincses város) , official_name=Cluj-Napoca , native_name= , image_skyline= , subdivision_type1 = Counties of Romania, County , subdivision_name1 = Cluj County , subdivision_type2 = Subdivisions of Romania, Status , subdivision_name2 ...
uncovered charred buckwheat, chick-peas and sesame seeds, and the ritual complexes at Oarţa de Sus ( Maramureș County) revealed the use of notch weed and sorrel. The animal economy of the Bronze Age, with the familiar local variations, was based on pig, sheep and goat breeding, with a decline in large horned cattle. Thus, the inhabitants of the Vatina and Otomani cultures seem to have focused on breeding swine, sheep, goats, and on intensive hunting; while among the Wietenberg and Noua communities cattle were most common, used both for food and for traction, followed by sheep, goats, swine and horses. Horses were constantly present and revolutionized transportation and communication. The wagon with big wheels, later with spikes, emerged and spread, either as a warring and hunting vehicle, or to symbolize
social status Social status is the level of social value a person is considered to possess. More specifically, it refers to the relative level of respect, honour, assumed competence, and deference accorded to people, groups, and organizations in a society. Stat ...
.


Monteoru culture

The food provided by agriculture and animal breeding was supplemented by hunting and fishing. Their proportion within the economy varied among the communities of the Bronze Age. For instance, at Sărata Monteoru (the
Monteoru culture The Monteoru culture was a Bronze Age archaeological culture located in Romania and Moldova, dating from c. 2000 BC to the 14th century BC. It was derived from the preceding Glina-Schneckenberg culture and succeeded by the Noua-Sabatinovka cul ...
) they represented 8.11% and at Pecica, of the
Mureș culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northwe ...
, 17.95%, in contrast to the area of the Noua culture where the percentage of hunting was, as a rule, much below 3%. Deer remained the most prized game in the Bronze Age, followed by wild boar and roebuck. A larger and more constant flow of the rivers, determined by an increasingly wet climate, is evident from the large fish bones found in many
Bronze Age settlement Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...
s. There is no clear indication whether agriculture or animal breeding predominated within Bronze Age communities, with research revealing that both were being practiced together within the same area. But as populations stabilized, they tended towards a
pastoral A pastoral lifestyle is that of shepherds herding livestock around open areas of land according to seasons and the changing availability of water and pasture. It lends its name to a genre of literature, art, and music (pastorale) that depicts ...
East and a farm-dominated West. Men became more economically productive, due to improved metallurgy and better animal husbandry, and the use of draught animals in agriculture. Men acquired a dominant position within the family and in society. For the Bronze Age people, the mountains provided hunting, timber and fruit, and held the copper and precious metal ores. Copper, silver and gold have always constituted major assets of the
Intra-Carpathian The Transylvanian Plateau ( ro, Podișul Transilvaniei; hu, Erdélyi-medence) is a plateau in central Romania. The plateau lies within and takes its name from the historical region of Transylvania, and is almost entirely surrounded by the Easte ...
region. The Apuseni Mountains are especially rich, as are the ores in the
Maramureș Mountains or Marmaroshchyna ( ro, Maramureș ; uk, Мармарощина, Marmaroshchyna; hu, Máramaros) is a geographical, historical and cultural region in northern Romania and western Ukraine. It is situated in the northeastern Carpathians, alon ...
, or the copper in the Giurgeului Mountains and Baia de Aramă. Metal outcrops are claimed to have been searched for by specialists, who perhaps then kept them secret. By washing gravel, or by digging pits for nuggets, the ore seekers satisfied the demand of local, prehistoric Europe, and even for the Mycenaean elites. The unique direct proof of prehistoric exploitation of non-ferrous metals in Transylvania is the stone axe found in a gallery in Căraci ( Hunedoara County). An impressive anthropomorphous statue was discovered at
Baia de Criș Baia de Criș (german: Altenburg; hu, Körösbánya) is a commune in Hunedoara County, Transylvania, Romania, close to the small town of Brad. It is composed of nine villages: Baia de Criș, Baldovin (''Báldovin''), Căraci (''Karács''), Cărăs ...
(
Hunedoara Hunedoara (; german: Eisenmarkt; hu, Vajdahunyad ) is a municipiu, city in Hunedoara County, Transylvania, Romania. It is located in southwestern Transylvania near the Poiana Ruscă Mountains, and administers five villages: Boș (''Bós''), Groș ...
) or
Ciceu-Mihăiești Ciceu-Mihăiești (german: Michelsdorf; hu, Csicsómihályfalva) is a commune in Bistrița-Năsăud County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of three villages: Ciceu-Corabia (''Neudorf'', ''Csicsóújfalu''), Ciceu-Mihăiești, and Lelești ( ...
( Bistrița-Năsăud County). It portrayed implements ( pickaxe and basket), whose absolutely sensational analogs were found in the photos of miners, taken by
B. Roman Brian P. Roman is an American astronomer. He has co-discovered the periodic comets 111P/Helin–Roman–Crockett, 117P/Helin–Roman–Alu and 132P/Helin–Roman–Alu. Brian Roman is also credited by the Minor Planet Center with the discover ...
at the middle of the last century, strongly suggesting that the mining of
non-ferrous metal In metallurgy, non-ferrous metals are metals or alloys that do not contain iron (allotropes of iron, ferrite, and so on) in appreciable amounts. Generally more costly than ferrous metals, non-ferrous metals are used because of desirable proper ...
s was also performed underground. Furthermore, the
Natural History Museum in Vienna The Natural History Museum Vienna (german: Naturhistorisches Museum Wien) is a large natural history museum located in Vienna, Austria. It is one of the most important natural history museums worldwide. The NHM Vienna is one of the largest museum ...
preserves two hair rings with the caption 'Dealul Vulcoi ( Roșia Montană), district Câmpeni, region Cluj'. The museum in Lupșa exhibits a miner's axe and a club, both having come from the Lupșa valley. These exhibits demonstrate the presence of prehistoric miners in the ore-rich Apuseni Mountains. Increasingly, traces of people involved in bronze-related activities are found. There are finished or semi-finished items, moulds, deposits or isolated items. The tracks of quarries and work-sheds are rather frail, firstly, because of subsequent exploitation, secondly, because of far too few exhaustive archeological investigations. The little workshop for moulding bronze pieces in the Wietenberg settlement at Derșida is well known. The most complete and spectacular data related to metal processing workshops gathered so far, although partial, come from Palatca ( Cluj County), from the Late Bronze Age, where the workshop was in close proximity to the dwelling area. The research has brought to light numerous moulds for casting metal items, unfortunately extremely fragmented, the fragment of a bronze cake, rectangular in shape, with curved sides, a bronze anvil, slag, several fragments of hand-mills, burnt out fireplaces and diverse rocks. Space in the workshop was organized in a complex way, depending on the current activities (selecting and grinding rocks, cutting and melting cakes, casting and retouching items). The presence at Palatca of the
plano-convex Plano-convex may refer to: * Plano-convex lens, in optics * Plano-convex, a type of mudbrick A mudbrick or mud-brick is an air-dried brick, made of a mixture of loam, mud, sand and water mixed with a binding material such as rice husks or ...
type bronze cakes and, for the first time ever on Romanian territory, of the
Aegean type Aegean civilization is a general term for the Bronze Age civilizations of Greece around the Aegean Sea. There are three distinct but communicating and interacting geographic regions covered by this term: Crete, the Cyclades and the Greek mainland ...
, as well as the probable absence of metal reduction kilns demonstrate that this operation was performed in the mining areas. The conversion of minerals to metal by means of fire was a process accompanied by rituals, magic formulas, and chanting to bring about the "birth of the metal". At the foundation of a kiln at Palatca formed by a burnt out clay fireplace and several slabs of whetstone laid one on top of the other, probably round in shape, a clay vessel had been deposited. Close to the workshop, a large ritual area has been explored. Receptacles with offerings were placed in multiple
hypostases Hypostasis, hypostatic, or hypostatization (hypostatisation; from the Ancient Greek , "under state") may refer to: * Hypostasis (philosophy and religion), the essence or underlying reality ** Hypostasis (linguistics), personification of entities ...
next to ore-refining items (hand-mills, bronze items, ash, coal, etc.), underneath or on top of the whetstone slabs, head down or head up. The mass of the ethnographic data which associates the ground with the belly, the mine with the womb, and the ore with the
embryo An embryo is an initial stage of development of a multicellular organism. In organisms that reproduce sexually, embryonic development is the part of the life cycle that begins just after fertilization of the female egg cell by the male spe ...
, speaks of the sexuality of the mineral realm, and of the blacksmith's belongings and implements. The production of items is the equivalent of a birth and takes on an obstetrical dimension. The blacksmith's implements have a sexual connotation. The anvils, for instance, are identified with the female principle. In this context, the closeness between the shape of the orifice for setting in place the anvil at Palatca, and the female generating organ was not coincidental. Another unique discovery was the meteorite. Meteorites coming from the skies fell on Earth with a celestial sacred charge and were often associated with the blacksmiths' activity. The scarcity of settlements with metallurgic activity also hints at the possible existence of itinerant
artisans An artisan (from french: artisan, it, artigiano) is a skilled craft worker who makes or creates material objects partly or entirely by hand. These objects may be functional or strictly decorative, for example furniture, decorative art, s ...
and/or the centralization of the activity. This new development in bronze processing denotes a specialization in production with the appearance of prospectors, blacksmiths and merchants, who exported the surplus produce. Through exchange, the Transylvanian and east-Hungarian type axes with spiked discs spread as far east as Bug, and to the north, to the
Oder The Oder ( , ; Czech, Lower Sorbian and ; ) is a river in Central Europe. It is Poland's second-longest river in total length and third-longest within its borders after the Vistula and Warta. The Oder rises in the Czech Republic and flows thr ...
and Elbe region, Pomerania included, a phenomenon connected with The Great Amber Road and the exploitation of brass and tin in the Elbe region. The metal artisans are not in power, but rather work under the control of an elite, which had seen the contingencies between metal and wealth, technology, war and even the social and cultic structure. The first level with gift depositaries consisted in two main themes: the sword and the axe, outlining the role of the two weapons in the
Intra-Carpathian The Transylvanian Plateau ( ro, Podișul Transilvaniei; hu, Erdélyi-medence) is a plateau in central Romania. The plateau lies within and takes its name from the historical region of Transylvania, and is almost entirely surrounded by the Easte ...
warrior. The lance must have been yet another important weapon, but is a lesser find. The characteristics of the period are the bronze deposits at Apa, Satu Mare County (two swords, three war axes and a defense bracer),
Ighiu Ighiu ( hu, Magyarigen; german: Grabendorf) is a commune located in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania. The commune is composed of five villages: Bucerdea Vinoasă (''Borosbocsárd''), Ighiel (''Igenpataka''), Ighiu, Șard (''Sárd'') and Țelna ...
, Alba County (two axes with spiked discs and four defense bracers) and at
Săpânța Săpânța (; hu, Szaplonca or ''Szaploncza''; Slovak language, Slovak: ''Sapunka''; Yiddish language, Yiddish: ספינקא or ''Spinka'' or ''Shpinka'') is a commune in Maramureș County, Maramureș, Romania, northwest of Sighetu Marmației a ...
, Maramureș County (a spiked disc axe of type A2, exquisitely decorated, older than all the other pieces, spiral bracers, arm bands, and cordiform pendants). In the following stage, undecorated bronze items (single-edged axe and spiked disc axe), were produced and stored in ever increasing quantities. Many continued in the earlier style, but were also new types. Among the best creations of Bronze Age metallurgy were the Mycenaean type swords, whose dating is still debated.


Wietenberg culture

The thesaurus found in 1840 at Țufalău, Covasna County, in the area of the Wietenberg culture, speaks clearly of the wealth and refined tastes of a social
elite In political and sociological theory, the elite (french: élite, from la, eligere, to select or to sort out) are a small group of powerful people who hold a disproportionate amount of wealth, privilege, political power, or skill in a group. D ...
. Kept in a clay pot, the thesaurus contained several solid gold axes, ornamental
phalerae {{RomanMilitary A phalera was a sculpted disk, usually made of gold, silver, bronze or glass, and worn on the breastplate during parades by Roman soldiers who had been awarded it as a kind of medal.gold and silver items ( bracelets, loop
ring Ring may refer to: * Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry * To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell :(hence) to initiate a telephone connection Arts, entertainment and media Film and ...
s, etc.) were found at Oarța de Sus, with accurate stratigraphy, in a ritual space belonging to the ''Wietenberg culture''. Such thesauruses containing hundreds of pieces weighing several kilograms, such as those at
Sarasău Sarasău ( hu, Szarvaszó) is a commune in Maramureș County, Maramureș, Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Eu ...
( Maramureș County) or
Hinova Hinova is a Commune in Romania, commune located in Mehedinți County, Oltenia, Romania. It is composed of four villages: Bistrița, Cârjei, Hinova and Ostrovu Corbului. References

{{Mehedinți County Communes in Mehedinți County Localiti ...
(
Mehedinți County Mehedinți County () is a county ( ro, județ) of Romania on the border with Serbia and Bulgaria. It is mostly located in the historical province of Oltenia, with one municipality (Orșova) and three communes ( Dubova, Eșelnița, and Svinița) ...
), are few and likely to represent the community treasure. They are outnumbered by those displaying fewer items which seem to have been the private property of some leaders. Metal, bone, stone or clay processing were most certainly operations performed by specialists, who worked in small workshops, or sometimes larger ones such as those at Derșida or Palatca. There certainly existed many wooden tools or receptacles, but they have not been preserved. Animal skin processing for fashioning clothing items,
shield A shield is a piece of personal armour held in the hand, which may or may not be strapped to the wrist or forearm. Shields are used to intercept specific attacks, whether from close-ranged weaponry or projectiles such as arrows, by means of a ...
s, harnesses, etc. must have been widespread. The Bronze Age necropoles reveal funeral practices peculiar to each community. The graves, with variations specific to the different cultural entities, by their design and their contents attest to an advanced spiritual culture. Incineration (Wietenberg culture) or inhumation ( Noua culture), the placing of offering-items alongside the deceased, all imply abstract thinking and belief in the
afterlife The afterlife (also referred to as life after death) is a purported existence in which the essential part of an individual's identity or their stream of consciousness continues to live after the death of their physical body. The surviving ess ...
. Archeological investigations alone are too few and disparate for a detailed reconstruction of the religions of the Bronze Age people. The solar symbols, dynamic or static in form, (continuing spirals, simple crosses or crosses with spirals, spiked wheels, rays, etc.) are so numerous that they could be illustrated in a separate volume, and speak clearly about the prevailing role of this cult. Cultic practices were performed by the people of the Bronze Age in diverse locations: in mountains, trees, springs, rivers, clearings or even, as noted, in specially assigned places inside the settlements. At Sălacea, Bihor County, in the southern area of the settlement of the ''Otomani culture'' there was a cultic edifice, a megaron type sanctuary measuring 5.20x8.80m, with a porch with two in antis pillars, a pronaos with an elevated altar and a naos with two fixed altars. The solid crust on the altar surface testifies to the rituals involving fire, while the walls nearby were provided with circular orifices (a ventilating system and alternative lighting of the altars depending on sunrise and sunset). On one of them were found nine clay weights, three curved stone knives, and one
cylindrical A cylinder (from ) has traditionally been a three-dimensional solid, one of the most basic of curvilinear geometric shapes. In elementary geometry, it is considered a prism with a circle as its base. A cylinder may also be defined as an infini ...
clay stand. The other had nine clay weights in miniature, three curved stone knives and one cylindrical stand. The symbolic value of the items and their number speak for themselves. The walls were decorated with plaster work with geometrical motifs (spirals, continuing spirals) randomly painted in white. Close by the entrance an infant grave has been researched, possibly partially deposited as an
offering Offering may refer to: In religion * A religious offering or sacrifice * Alms, voluntary gifts to others, especially poor people, as an act of virtue * Tithe, the tenth part of something, such as income, paid to a religious organization or gover ...
. Another founding ritual is encountered in Early Bronze Age at Copăceni, where under the lodge's floorboard were found five human skeletons (one female adult and four fetuses). Judging by their position – the female in an
obstetric Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a surgic ...
position with the fetuses around her basin and one between her inferior members – it could well be a mother and her infants. All of these practices, judging by the archeological data mentioned above, as well as being based on other analogies, were accompanied by offerings, libations, chanting and cultic dancing. Apart from some daily festivals (sewing, harvesting, reaping, sheep loss or recovery, etc.), there must have been annual or multi-annual festivals of the whole community, or of part of it. This has been made clear from the above-mentioned research at Oarța de SusGhiile Botii. The divinities guarding this space were in harmony with the weapons, ornaments or gifts personal or social in nature (grains, plants, food), with the animal, even human, sacrifices, with ceramics and bone, as well as with gold, silver or bronze. This wide variety of offerings, deposited in the course of grand religious ceremonies, indicate either an all-encompassing
deity A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greate ...
, or else several deities all worshiped within the same space. In the ''Wietenberg culture'' area at
Cluj-Napoca ; hu, kincses város) , official_name=Cluj-Napoca , native_name= , image_skyline= , subdivision_type1 = Counties of Romania, County , subdivision_name1 = Cluj County , subdivision_type2 = Subdivisions of Romania, Status , subdivision_name2 ...
the underground deposition of offerings in a ritual hole and their contents (numerous
receptacle Receptacle may refer to: Biology * Receptacle (botany), a plant anatomical part * Seminal receptacle, a sperm storage site in some insects Electrical engineering * Automobile auxiliary power outlet, formerly known as ''cigarette lighter recep ...
s filled with
charred Charring is a chemical process of incomplete combustion of certain solids when subjected to high heat. Heat distillation removes water vapour and volatile organic compounds ( syngas) from the matrix. The residual black carbon material is char, as d ...
seeds) speaks of an agricultural ritual, one which was
chthonic The word chthonic (), or chthonian, is derived from the Ancient Greek word ''χθών, "khthon"'', meaning earth or soil. It translates more directly from χθόνιος or "in, under, or beneath the earth" which can be differentiated from Γῆ ...
, dedicated to a harvest-giving deity ruling fertility. In this case sacred agrarian rituals, whose tradition is evident in the historical epochs too, was intended to inaugurate and imprint a rhythm to the agrarian calendar, and to achieve union between sun and soil through the agrarian ceremonial. The repeated occurrence of the solar motifs covering the walls of the receptacles deposited, typically masculine, might be speaking of the joining of the two spheres: earth-sun, female-male, immobile-mobile, thus demonstrating the
dualism Dualism most commonly refers to: * Mind–body dualism, a philosophical view which holds that mental phenomena are, at least in certain respects, not physical phenomena, or that the mind and the body are distinct and separable from one another ** ...
of creeds in the Bronze Age. The link between the
Carpathian region 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 Ural Mountains, Urals at and the Scandinavian Mountains at . The ...
and the
Mediterranean civilization The Mediterranean race (also Mediterranid race) was a historical race concept that was a sub-race of the Caucasian race as categorised by anthropologists in the late 19th to mid-20th centuries. According to various definitions, it was said to be ...
s has often been the subject of debates, offering quite divergent opinions concerning their dating, direction, and significance. One of the main arguments concerns the bronze swords discovered on the territory of Romania. These long thrusting swords (symbols of dignity and power as well as formidable weapons) are obviously local products. The decorating motifs based on spirals and fine windings on bronze or gold weapons, on bone or horn items, are near to perfection, especially in the areas of the ''Wietenberg'' and ''Otomani cultures''. If created independently of the Aegean models, they cannot be too far apart in time. The glass in the Noua graves at
Cluj-Napoca ; hu, kincses város) , official_name=Cluj-Napoca , native_name= , image_skyline= , subdivision_type1 = Counties of Romania, County , subdivision_name1 = Cluj County , subdivision_type2 = Subdivisions of Romania, Status , subdivision_name2 ...
, and the
Dentalium Dentalium may refer to: * ''Dentalium'' (genus), a genus of tooth shells * Dentalium (anthropology) The word dentalium, as commonly used by Native American artists and anthropologists, refers to tooth shells or tusk shells used in indigenous jew ...
beads discovered at Derșida in a Wietenberg milieu, are also of Mediterranean origins. At Oarța de Sus on the shoulder of one of the cult receptacles are symbols in a line that are most certainly
epigraphic Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...
. Similar images, also indicating a connection with southern civilizations, are found in the ''Otomani culture'' at Barca ( Slovakia). Similarly, one of the bronze ingots at Palatca copies the well-known Aegean model. The striking similarities between the Wietenberg ceramics and the Apennine culture in northern Italy are difficult to explain. The assumption made long ago of a common generating center still stands, until final clarification. In the same era, the metals produced on the slopes of the eastern arch of the Western Carpathians arrived in different ways in distant places all over Europe; so did the salt Transylvania is so rich in. Just as the obsidian, most probably exploited in the
Bükk Mountains The Bükk Mountains () are a section of the North Hungarian Mountains of the Inner Western Carpathians. Much of the area is included in the Bükk National Park. Geography Although Kékes, the highest point in Hungary, is not here but in the n ...
(Hungary), is encountered in the Wietenberg cultic complex discovered at Cluj-Napoca. The amber items in the deposit discovered at the Cioclovina cave came from the Baltic Sea, while the
Caucasian Caucasian may refer to: Anthropology *Anything from the Caucasus region ** ** ** ''Caucasian Exarchate'' (1917–1920), an ecclesiastical exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Caucasus region * * * Languages * Northwest Caucasian l ...
influences are indicated by the axe discovered at Larga ( Maramureș County). The marked expansion of pan European trade in middle and late Bronze Age created growing dependence between the different cultural groups, and an acceleration of uniformity in cultural values and produce. All of which sped up the general development of society and the passage to a new phase in historical evolution.


Noua culture

The Late Bronze Age shows a marked increase in metallurgic production based on the discovery of new non-ferrous mineral sources and the adoption of upgraded technology. The eastern experience brought by the bearers of the Noua culture and the southern experience (through Central European connections) brought by some late derivatives of the Otomani culture, both grafted onto the undoubted local experience, made Transylvania the most prolific metallurgic center in prehistoric Europe. The differences identified between the deposits of the period speak not of unitary series, but of types of deposits with a more limited geographic spread. One deposit, characterized by the almost exclusive presence of several types of axes, socked axes, bracelets and foot rings, delineates the area of diffusion of the
Suciu de Sus culture The Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences. Transylvania proper is a plateau or tableland in northw ...
. The deposits in the area of the post-Otomani groups ( Igriţa and
Cehăluţ Cehal ( hu, Oláhcsaholy, Hungarian pronunciation: ) is a commune of 1,573 inhabitants situated in Satu Mare County, Crișana, Romania. It is composed of three villages: Cehal, Cehăluț (the commune center; ''Magyarcsaholy'') and Orbău (''Tasnád ...
) contain almost exclusively ornament items, mainly pendants and pins. Finally, in central and eastern Transylvania, in the area of the Noua culture, we encounter the third type of deposit with the prevailing Transylvanian type of socked axes and the sickle. Only a small number of
bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...
items were found in settlements and
cemeteries A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...
. Most of them have a fortuitous appearance in what we call deposits.
Romanian archaeology Romanian archaeology begins in the 19th century. Archaeologists * Alexandru Odobescu (1834—1895) * Grigore Tocilescu (1850–1909) * Vasile Pârvan (1882–1927) * Constantin Daicoviciu (1898–1973) ;living * Gheorghe I. Cantacuzino (b. 193 ...
has interpreted their storage as a proof of troubled times, yet today a new interpretation is gaining ground: they are cultic deposits functioning as offerings, or at times, as the result of prestigious inter-community auctions of the "potlatch" type. The arguments in favour are strong: long periods of peaceful development, the location of the deposits (confluence of rivers, lakes, springs, clearings, mild slopes looking east, etc.), the number of items, the arrangements, their manipulations (fired, bent, fragmentation through bending, etc.), etc. Moreover, there is no logic in the locals burying their arms in the face of a military threat. The multiplication of the offensive, in contrast to the defensive, fighting equipment (swords type Boiu – Sauerbrunn, battle axes with spiked disc, daggers, spearheads,
arm bracers A bracer (or arm-guard) is a strap or sheath, commonly made of leather, stone or plastic, that covers the ventral (inside) surface of an archer's bow-holding arm. It protects the archer's forearm against injury by accidental whipping from the b ...
, all made of
bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...
), the development of settlements with man-made defenses, the existence of distinct warrior
graves A grave is a location where a dead body (typically that of a human, although sometimes that of an animal) is buried or interred after a funeral. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of burial, such as gravey ...
, gives the impression that the Bronze Age was a warring world. But there are numerous arguments that it was really a matter of parading rather than using force. The extraordinary
non-ferrous mineral In metallurgy, non-ferrous metals are metals or alloys that do not contain iron ( allotropes of iron, ferrite, and so on) in appreciable amounts. Generally more costly than ferrous metals, non-ferrous metals are used because of desirable prop ...
wealth of the
Intra-Carpathian region The Transylvanian Plateau ( ro, Podișul Transilvaniei; hu, Erdélyi-medence) is a plateau in central Romania. The plateau lies within and takes its name from the historical region of Transylvania, and is almost entirely surrounded by the E ...
has often been remarked upon in the literature. The overwhelming number of finds of copper, bronze, silver and gold products is hard to equal in prehistoric Europe. For instance, no other limited prehistoric space is known to have contained two large deposits dating from the same short range of time ( Halstatt A1). Uioara de Sus, accidentally found in 1909, contained 5827 items weighing approximately 1,100 kg, while Şpalnaca II 1,000 paces away, in the year 1887, totaling a weight of 1,000 – 1,200 kg, was composed similarly of thousands of items. In addition to Şpalnaca I, Şpalnaca II, a deposit dated Hallstatt B1, was discovered a short distance away in the year 1881 and consisted of 120 bronze items. The local copper ores often occur together with gold and silver. The gold must have been obtained, both by the washing gravel method in the valleys rich with such ores, as well as through mining the gold ore on the surface, or in shallow veins in ravines or landslides. There is no doubt that the tools and procedures of washing gold-bearing
gravel Gravel is a loose aggregation of rock fragments. Gravel occurs naturally throughout the world as a result of sedimentary and erosive geologic processes; it is also produced in large quantities commercially as crushed stone. Gravel is classifi ...
did not differ greatly from those used throughout the ages up to the beginning of the 20th century. A wooden shovel, a
vat A value-added tax (VAT), known in some countries as a goods and services tax (GST), is a type of tax that is assessed incrementally. It is levied on the price of a product or service at each stage of production, distribution, or sale to the en ...
(a similar clay item was found in one of the tumuli at Lăpuş), a screen, a piece of woolen linen or even a sheep's fleece sufficed. The output was a few grams per day per worker.


Iron Age

;(1100 BC – 150 AD) The First Iron Age period, also called the Hallstatt (after the finds in the locality of
Hallstatt, Austria Hallstatt ( , , ) is a small town in the district of Gmunden, in the Austrian state of Upper Austria. Situated between the southwestern shore of Hallstätter See and the steep slopes of the Dachstein massif, the town lies in the Salzkammergut ...
) covers the 10th to 5th centuries BC (1000-400 BC) and is divided into three periods: early (1000-700 BC), middle (700-600 BC) and late (600-400 BC). The Second Iron Age, also called La Tène, generally covers the period between 450 BC and the peak of Roman Empire. The defining phenomenon of the epoch is the use of iron with a paramount impact on humanity's subsequent evolution.


Geto-Dacians

In contrast to the heterogeneity of the preceding ages, the first Iron Age is remarkable for its homogeneity, which is the result of the emergence and generalization of a new culture displaying black ceramics ornamented with grooves. This cultural homogenization in the
First Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly a ...
represents essentially the material proof of the constitution within the
Carpathian Danubian space Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
of the early
Geto-Dacians The Dacians (; la, Daci ; grc-gre, Δάκοι, Δάοι, Δάκαι) were the ancient Indo-European inhabitants of the cultural region of Dacia, located in the area near the Carpathian Mountains and west of the Black Sea. They are often consid ...
, who are culturally distinguishable from the southern Thracians and the other neighboring peoples. We are told this by the father of history himself— Herodotus. Recounting the Persian king
Darius Darius may refer to: Persian royalty ;Kings of the Achaemenid Empire * Darius I (the Great, 550 to 487 BC) * Darius II (423 to 404 BC) * Darius III (Codomannus, 380 to 330 BC) ;Crown princes * Darius (son of Xerxes I), crown prince of Persia, ma ...
' expedition to the mouth of the Danube in 514 BC he mentions the
Getae The Getae ( ) or Gets ( ; grc, Γέται, singular ) were a Thracian-related tribe that once inhabited the regions to either side of the Lower Danube, in what is today northern Bulgaria and southern Romania. Both the singular form ''Get'' an ...
, praising them for their valour. Over 600 sites are known so far across the territory of Transylvania from the First Iron Age. Most sites were occupied during all stages of this epoch. Twenty-six fortifications, some inhabited permanently, others used for refuge and defense in times of peril, are among the more remarkable. The fortified settlements and the refuge fortifications were usually located on inaccessible elevations and close to water courses and fertile areas. Their sizes vary with the location and its possibilities. For instance, the fortified settlement at
Sântana Sântana (; german: Neusanktanna; hu, Újszentanna) is a town in north-western Romania, in the county of Arad. Declared a town in 2003, it administers one village, Caporal Alexa (''Erdőskerek''). Geography The town is situated in the norther ...
(
Arad County Arad County () is an administrative division ( judeţ) of Romania roughly translated into county in the western part of the country on the border with Hungary, mostly in the region of Crișana and few villages in Banat. The administrative center ...
) with an area of approximately 100 hectares or those at Ciceu-Corabia ( Bistrița-Năsăud County) and
Teleac NTR is a Dutch public-service broadcaster, supplying television and radio programming of an informational, educational, and cultural nature to the national public broadcasting system, Nederlandse Publieke Omroep (NPO). NTR was created in 2010, ...
( Alba County), each measuring 30 hectares, count among the largest in Europe. The first Iron Age fortifications are also known in the county of Cluj, in Dej, Huedin and Someşul Rece. The defense systems surrounding these regular
strongholds A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...
consisted of a ditch, rampart and
palisade A palisade, sometimes called a stakewall or a paling, is typically a fence or defensive wall made from iron or wooden stakes, or tree trunks, and used as a defensive structure or enclosure. Palisades can form a stockade. Etymology ''Palisade' ...
, the last of which was designed as a wooden wall erected on the ridge of the rampart representing the most important part of the system. So designed, the fortifications generally measured 7–8 m in height, but could reach 10-12 making them difficult to conquer. As tribal centers, the fortified settlements had multiple functions, the foremost of which was to ensure the defense of the community. The discovery of metallurgical workshops for manufacturing
tools A tool is an object that can extend an individual's ability to modify features of the surrounding environment or help them accomplish a particular task. Although many animals use simple tools, only human beings, whose use of stone tools dates ba ...
indicates that the settlements housed skilled craft activities, which included permanent exchange relations. Agriculture was still the main pursuit in the
First Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly a ...
and supplied food for the communities. Finding charred seeds indicates the cultivation of wheat, barley, rye, millet, as well hemp for linen, while the large size pots and the storage pits indicate how the harvests were preserved. The emergence of the first iron farming implements, scythes and grubbing
hoe Hoe or HOE may refer to: * Hoe (food), a Korean dish of raw fish * Hoe (letter), a Georgian letter * Hoe (tool), a hand tool used in gardening and farming ** Hoe-farming, a term for primitive forms of agriculture * Backhoe, a piece of excavati ...
s, indicate notable progress in the agricultural practice. The large quantity of bones discovered in the settlements, most originating from domestic animals, cattle, sheep, swine—as well as game—indicate the importance of domestic animals to supplement
hunting Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
, as well as the importance of meat in the daily diet. Finally, besides some such crafts as metallurgy which imply special skill, members of every family engaged in a series of activities such as weaving, spinning, and leather dressing, shown by the discovery in the dwellings of
spindle Spindle may refer to: Textiles and manufacturing * Spindle (textiles), a straight spike to spin fibers into yarn * Spindle (tool), a rotating axis of a machine tool Biology * Common spindle and other species of shrubs and trees in genus ''Euony ...
, spools, sewing needles, and scrapers for cleaning hide. The occurrence of
decorations Decoration may refer to: * Decorative arts * A house painter and decorator's craft * An act or object intended to increase the beauty of a person, room, etc. * An award that is a token of recognition to the recipient intended for wearing Other ...
on a large number of
vessels Vessel(s) or The Vessel may refer to: Biology *Blood vessel, a part of the circulatory system and function to transport blood throughout the body *Lymphatic vessel, a thin walled, valved structure that carries lymph *Vessel element, a narrow wat ...
, the most perishable of categories, as well as on numerous body ornaments (hair pins,
fibulae The fibula or calf bone is a leg bone on the lateral side of the tibia, to which it is connected above and below. It is the smaller of the two bones and, in proportion to its length, the most slender of all the long bones. Its upper extremity is ...
and others) shows that in the First Iron Age the artistic phenomenon was manifested especially in decorative art as
geometric pattern A pattern is a regularity in the world, in human-made design, or in abstract ideas. As such, the elements of a pattern repeat in a predictable manner. A geometric pattern is a kind of pattern formed of geometric shapes and typically repeated l ...
s. Religion was demonstrably a daily presence in prehistoric communities. Thus, besides the magic practice and the
fertility cult Fertility rites or fertility cult are religious rituals that are intended to stimulate reproduction in humans or in the natural world. Such rites may involve the sacrifice of "a primal animal, which must be sacrificed in the cause of fertility or ...
of ancient tradition, the depositing of offerings in appropriate ground holes, as well as the representations linked to the
Sun cult A solar deity or sun deity is a deity who represents the Sun, or an aspect of it. Such deities are usually associated with power and strength. Solar deities and Sun worship can be found throughout most of recorded history in various forms. The ...
, foreshadow the two components:
chtonian The word chthonic (), or chthonian, is derived from the Ancient Greek word ''χθών, "khthon"'', meaning earth or soil. It translates more directly from χθόνιος or "in, under, or beneath the earth" which can be differentiated from Γῆ ...
and Urano-solar to become the characteristics of the Geto-Dacian religion in the classical period. During the First Iron Age, the local culture was influenced by neighboring areas. Midway through the epoch, on the middle course of the Mureș there arrived from Banat elements of a culture called
Basarabi Murfatlar () is a town in Constanța County, Northern Dobruja, Romania. It officially became a town in 1989, as a result of the Romanian rural systematization program. Etymology The name of the town originates from the Turkish word of Arabic o ...
. Displaying ceramics with specific decorations (incised and impressed), the culture was assimilated by the autochthonous background. Subsequently, at the beginning of the late period of this epoch (6th century BC), a group of Scythian-Iranian extraction came into Transylvania from the direction of the
North-Pontic The Northwest Caucasian languages, also called West Caucasian, Abkhazo-Adyghean, Abkhazo-Circassian, Circassic, or sometimes ''Pontic languages'' (from the historical region of Pontus, in contrast to ''Caspian languages'' for the Northeast Cauc ...
. This group is marked by a series of inhumation graves with a typical inventory: arrow heads, lances called
akinakai The acinaces, also spelled akinakes ( Greek ) or akinaka (unattested Old Persian ''*akīnakah'', Sogdian ''kynʼk'') is a type of dagger or xiphos (short sword) used mainly in the first millennium BCE in the eastern Mediterranean Basin, especiall ...
, and animal art representations. Research shows that in about the mid-5th century BC this group disappears through assimilation into the local culture. Actually, the end of the century also delimits the First Iron Age. During the following centuries the
Geto-Dacians The Dacians (; la, Daci ; grc-gre, Δάκοι, Δάοι, Δάκαι) were the ancient Indo-European inhabitants of the cultural region of Dacia, located in the area near the Carpathian Mountains and west of the Black Sea. They are often consid ...
would attain a level of development that would lead them to form a state.


See also


References


Sources

*I. Andriţoiu, Civilizaţia tracilor din sud-vestul Transilvaniei în epoca bronzului,
București Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...
, 1992 *T. Bader, Epoca bronzului în nord-vestul Transilvaniei. Cultura pretracică şi tracică, București, 1978 *T. Bader, Die Schwerter in Rumänien, PBF IV, 8, Stuttgart, 1991 *M. Bitiri, Paleoliticul în Ţara Oaşului, București, 1972 *I. Bóna, Die mittlere Bronzezeit Ungars und ihre südöstlichen Beziehungen, Budapest 1975 *N. Boroffka, Die Wietenberg-Kultur. Ein Beitrag zur Erforschung der Bronzezeit in Südosteuropa, Bonn, 1994 *N. Chidioşan, Contribuţii la istoria tracilor din nord-vestul României. Aşezarea de la Derşida,
Oradea Oradea (, , ; german: Großwardein ; hu, Nagyvárad ) is a city in Romania, located in Crișana, a sub-region of Transylvania. The county seat, seat of Bihor County, Oradea is one of the most important economic, social and cultural centers in the ...
, 1980 *M. Cârciumaru, Le Paléolithique en Roumanie, Grenoble, 1999 *Fl. Draşoveanu, Cultura Vinća târzie (faza C) în Banat, Timișoara, 1996 *V. Dumitrescu, A. Vulpe, Dacia înainte de Dromihete, București, 1988 *V. Dumitrescu, Arta preistorică in România, București, 1974 *A. C. Florescu, Repertoriul culturii Noua – Coslogeni din România. Aşezări şi necropole, BiblThrac 1, Călăraşi, 1991 *F. Gogâltan, Bronzul timpuriu şi mijlociu în Banat ţi pe cursul inferior al Mureşului, Timișoara, 1999 *K. Horedt, Die Wietenbergkultur, Dacia, NS, IV, 1960, 107-137 *C. Kacsó, Beiträge zur Kenntnis des Verbreitunsgebietes und der Chronologie der Suciu de Sus-Kultur, Dacia N.S. 31, 1987, 51-75 *B. Kacsó, Die späte bronzezeit im Karpaten-Donau-Raum (14.-9. Jahrhundert v. Chr.), in Thraker und Kelten beidseits der Karpaten,
Cluj-Napoca ; hu, kincses város) , official_name=Cluj-Napoca , native_name= , image_skyline= , subdivision_type1 = Counties of Romania, County , subdivision_name1 = Cluj County , subdivision_type2 = Subdivisions of Romania, Status , subdivision_name2 ...
, 2000, 31-41 *T. Kovács, L'Age du Bronze en Hongrie, Budapest, 1977 *Gh. Lazarovici, Neoliticul în Banat, Cluj-Napoca, 1980 *Gh. Lazarovici, Z. Maxim, Gura-Baciului. Monografie arheologică, Cluj-Napoca, 1995 *A. S. Luca, Cultura Bodrogkeresztúr, Alba Iulia, 1998 *F. Mogoşanu, Paleoliticul din Banat, București, 1978 *S. Morintz, Contribuţii arheologice la istoria tracilor timpuriiI. Epoca bronzului în spaţiul carpato-balcanic, București, 1978 *I. Ordentlich, Contribuţia săpăturilor de pe "Dealul Vida" (comuna Sălacea, jud. Bihor) la cunoaşterea culturii Otomani, Satu Mare, 2, 1972, 63-84 *I. Paul, Cultura Petreşti, București, 1992 *I. Paul, Vorgeschichtliche Untersuchungen in Siebenburgen, Alba Iulia, 1995 *Al. Păunescu, Evoluţia uneltelor şi armelor de piatră cioplită descoperite pe teritoriul României, București, 1970 *Al. Păunescu, Paleoliticul, Epipaleoliticul, Mezoliticul, in Istoria Românilor, București, 2001 *M. Petrescu-Dâmboviţa, Depozitele de bronzuri din România, București, 1977 *P. Roman, Cultura Coţofeni, București, 1976 *P. Roman, I. Nemeti, Cultura Baden in România, București, 1978 *M. Rotea, Mittlere Bronzezeit im Carpaten-Donau-Raum (14.-9. Jahrhundert v. Chr.), in Thraker und Kelten beidseits der Karpaten, Cluj-Napoca, 2000, 22-30 *M. Rotea, Pagini din Preistoria Transilvaniei. Epoca Bronzului. Cluj Napoc. 2009 *M. Rotea, Prehistory. In: The History of Romania, Bucuresti 2008 *M. Roska, Erdély régészeti repertóriuma, Cluj, 1941 *M. Rusu, Consideraţii asupra metallurgiei aurului din Transilvania în Bronz D şi Hallstatt A, AMNapocensis, IX, 1972, 29-63 *T. Soroceanu, Studien zur Mureş-Kultur. Mit Beiträgen von V. V. Morariu, M. Bogdan, I. Ardelean und D. Săbădeanu und Mitarbeit von Ortansa Radu, Internationale Archäologie 7, Erlbach, 1991 *T. Soroceanu, Die Fundumstände bronzezeitlicher Deponierungen. Ein beitrag zur Hortdeutung beiderseitder Karpaten, in T. Soroceanu (Hrsg.), Bronzefunde in Rumänien, PAS 10, Berlin 1995, 15–80. *N. Ursulescu, Neoliticul, Eneoliticul, in Istoria Românilor, București, 2001 *N. Vlassa, Neoliticul Transilvaniei. Studii, articole, note, BMNapocensis III, Cluj-Napoca, 1976 *A. Vulpe, Die Äxte und Beile in Rumänien I, PBF IX, 2, München, 1970 *A. Vulpe, Die Äxte und Beile in Rumänien II, PBF IX, 5, München, 1975 *A. Vulpe, Epoca bronzului, in Istoria Românilor, București, 2001, {{DEFAULTSORT:Prehistory of Transylvania * *Transylvania Archaeological cultures in Romania Transylvania