S5002304

34 Mśeckś Żehrorice in Bohem i a

34 Mśeckś Żehrorice in Bohem i a

Survey by L. Janaovd in 1967

In Norember 1967 L. JanaovA carried out a sur-facc survey and dug a smali trench within the enciosed area (Jansovd 1968, 472-475). She described the visible remains of the walled enclosure and came to the conclusiao that the northera part (northem square) was canstructed la ter than the Southern part. She used a drainage excavator to dig a trench across the Southern bor-der of the enclosure near the cdge of the aand pit, probably in the vicinity of trench I ex-cavated by I. Borkovsk? (trench 1/67 in Fig. 7). The trench (9m long, 0.5 m wide, 140 cm deep) cut through the Southern ditch of the enclosure (580 cm wide, reconstructed depth measured from today*s surface c. 220 cm) which had sloping walls and dark grey fili (Jansovś 1968, Abb. 2). The bank was not revealed by the trench: it may have been destroyed during the work in the sand pit or possibly ploughed out. The trench confirmed the assumption that the Southern part of the rectangular enclosure was also delimited by the bank and ditch. The excava-tion produced no finds.

Grave from 1977

In 1977, on a field approŁ 300 m east of the walled enclosure, i.e. 70 m east of the presumed eastern limit of the La T6ne settlement (Fig. 1), V. Kfećek identified a feature considerably disturbed by ploughing out a field track. He recovered some bronze fragments from its fi11. By the time Fr. Sed-laćek and N. Venclovś arrived at the findplace the feature was in such a bad state of preserva-tion that its shape and characterisffcs could only be reconstructed approximately. It yielded three morę objects - two pottery sherds and a fragment of bonę. The finds apparently represent only a part of the original content of the pit.

Description of the feature recorded aa grace 1/1977: A pit, probably of an lrregular oval shape, 130x75 cm, 10-20 cm deep under the 20 cm thick ploughaoil. The fili (preeerved only in an insign iii cant amount) consistad of heavy black soil, interapereed with yeliow clay and a smali amount of charcoal.

Finds: 1. Two fragments of atypical prehistorie (La Ttae?) pottery. - 2. Fragment of a bronze ankiet: a ring of 7 east hollow undecorated hemispheres altemating with central-ly constricted spacera. It consiata of two hinged parto (5^-2 hemispheres), joined together by means of a square-sectioned tenon on one ond of the ankiet. The outar diameter 105x100 mm, max. diameter of homisphere 37 mm (Fig. 12 2). - 3. A fragment of an identieal'ankiet. Outside diameter 104x95 mm, mar diameter of hemi-■phere 37 mm (Fig. 12:1). - ^A * ^r

soi! 25 cm thick, lower 10-30 cm thick brown clsycy soil, aad the lowest layer cauutcd of błock clay. cut 1 m dccp (probably the subsoil).

Trenchcs north of the 'diagonal' bank, m the ‘central' part of the enclosure. 12 trenchcs (noc. 34, 10-14), c. 150 xl50 cm. with the exception ot trench 14 with dimensions of 13x1 m. There was an idcntical situation in aU trcnches: underlying 10 cm of forest humus was a layer of aand or grey clayey soil, 30-60 cm thick. on a subsoil of black clay. Id trench 10 loaee grey soil with finds (5 La T4ne shcrds, of which one with a grated surface. 62 sapropelite fragment*. a lump of bioomeiy slag with remains of clay lining). Infrequent La Tene (and modern) finds in trenchcs 13 and 14 lin trench 14, e.g., two iron knives with straight handles, of an ancertain data, see Fig. 13:1.3). TYcnch 3 was identified d u ring the 1967 investigations in trench 31A/B.

Northern half of the enclosure

A total of 18 trenchcs (nas. 15-32). Dimensions probab-ly 15il,5 m. trench 28 1.8x2 m. The situation within the trenchcs was similar to that in the trcnches of the N part of the S square. A frature with finds was located onlyl in trench 28 in the NE coraer of the enclosure (Le. in trench 11C of 1983 in which the origmal trench by I. Bor-kovsky was iwealed). According to Borhorsk^s notes it should hare been a pat 75 cm across, 70 cm deep, with a few poCtery and sapropelite fragment*, howerer the investigation of 1983-84 showed that the features uncorered in the trench were gullies (features 22/84 and 23/84) running through trench 11C. Borkovsky's trench 20 was uncorered in trench 3C/1980, trench 16 in trench 27A/1985.

The trenches dug by I. Borkovsky revealed that features or traces of occupation within the enclosure or in ita close SW vidnity occured only | rarely. However, the 1943 trenches of very smali dimensions would almost certainly detect the ezisting features only under ezceptionaJ circum-stances

As was demonstrated, the finds from the 1943 excavations that have been preserved in the Institute of Archaeology in Prague are not numerous. They comprise 49 fragments of pottery, most of which dates to the La Tene period in generał (LT B-D), in a few cases to LT C2-D, one La te Hallstatt period sherd (found probably out-side the SW coraer of the enclosure, Fig. 10:1), 32 fragments of medieval pottery and two smali iron knives of uncertain datę (trench 14, Fig. 13:1,3).

There were a total of 77 fragments of sapropelite representing raw materiał, half-fabricates and manufacturing waste, and also several lump* of iron bloomery slag. As the existence of a La Tdne settlement on the site was not known in 1943, all objects recovered within the walled enclosure or in its vicinity were considered to be closely related to the enclosure, with all the conseąuences it could have had for the determining of ita fiinction and chronology.

A.«./

/fzrf-

MuimY

Fig. 12. Crematiac grmve 1/1977: a pair of bronze ankieto.

bonę. Arcording to tbe professional opinion of J. Chochoł (report no. 2458/77 in tbe Archives of the Institute of Ar-chaeology in Prague), it u a cranium bonę of an indhidual of undetennined sex, of fully maturę or possibly a higber

Surface finds before 1979

Surface finds from the site were quite numerous. The mąjority of materia! was recovered from field-walking by Fr. Sedlaćek and further finds were gained by J. Fencl, V. Kfećek, and V. Liska. Ib this, the collections of the museum of Novć Stra-|ecf should be added, imfortunately lacking most of the data about their find contezt.

The pottery, sapropelite and slag from these collections correspond to the find materiał gained by the investigations of 1979-88 and are thus not described here in detail, with the ezcepdon of a few diagnostic objects recorded below.

Inddental find in a field in the areo af the settlement. Museum Nov4 Straśed inv.no. 819: Upper rotąry quem-atona, concave upper and lower tace, horuontal cylindiical handle hole, type BI (after Waldhauser 1981). Materiał: quartz parphyie originating from the area of Małe 2erno-seky - Oparno (determinatkin af M. Mig). D. 41 cm. h. 14 5 an. Fig. 13 ~9.

Surface finds in the field south er east af the enclosure (F. Sedlaćek in the 1970s). Collection Sedlaćek. Mieć 1. Fig. of iron ploughshare of a nairow dongated shape, L 140. Fig. 13:10. - 2. Frg. of an iron ćhisd of rectangular sectian. L 75, "»■» «. 18. Fig. 13:7. - 3. Iron spoon-shaped drill (aoger), L 107. Fig. ISA - 4. Frg. of a glass bracełet, blue docorated by white and yeUow wave-lines, with three rifas with diagonal groores, type Hneverntek Sb. d. 80, w. 13.5, th. SlS. Fig. 13.-6. - 5. A large agglomerate of at least siz lumpa of biooaany slag. The indmdal lumpa have difTerent stracture and direction of drops or strands. Maz. dim. 400x344x360, weight 525 kg. Fig. 14.

Surface finds in the oidnify of the enclosure (V. Liska in the 60-70*). Al Prague: Fig. of a glass bracełet, cobali blue, type 14 (after Haevernick 1960). d.?, w. 105, th. 6.5. Fig. 13:5. - Arcording to F. Sedlśfek. V. Liska feund a bronze bracełet with butler ends and sold it to V linka, in whose collection F.Sedliteksawitat the endof the 1960s. Traka s collection had been handed over after his death to tbe museum in Siany. bowever it did not include the bracełet (statement by V. Moucha, 1994) and it has imfortunately been miasing ev*r sińce.