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FLINT MINING OF CENTRAL EUROPE 51

sia, in Opava Silesia, and in north-wcst Moravia. Jasper exploitation, connected with the communities of TRB, ftivnac and Globular Amphore culturc, deveIops in north-east Bohemia¹⁰. Among the new deposits, but of less signilicance, was the radiolarian flint from the minę at Sumeg-Mogyorósdomb in Hungary, and in Moravia it was the flint of Stranska skala type. Using the Pecel pottery fragmcnts (Fiilop 1973; 1975), on the minę at Tata-Kalvaria Hill, wc can dale the bcginnings of the local radiolarian chert exploitation back to the last cen-turies of the 3rd Mili. b.c.

The decline of the oldest mining in Central Europę is dated much better than its beginnings (Table 1). Studying the mines at Polany, Becov, Krasnoye Selo and Karpovcy, wc can assume that the decline of sili-ceous raw materials mining, to meet nccds of the chipped industries took place in the 15th century b.c., and in somc rcgions probably even later (Krasnoye Selo, Kar-povcy). Discoveries from the west Bohemia tumuli show that exploitation of Bavarian striped hornstone and of quartzite of Tusimice type was carried on until the Middle Bronze Age (Ćujanova-Jilkova 1970). Blades and tools madę of Bavarian striped hornstone are found in the museum of Pilsen, in the materials from the graves at Pilsen Nova Hospoda sitc — gravc 49; Zelene site — graves 15 and 25; Stahlavy site — graves 12 and 48 both Pilsen-South distr. An end scraper and a borer madę of Tuśimice type quartzite were found in grave No 1 at the Zakava site, dist. Pilsen-South. The prevalence of tools rather than waste flint in the grave materials suggests their utilization up to that time, and this argues against the theory that flints found casually were put into graves according to the older cultural tradition without practical meaning. This agrees with ¹⁴C dates for some flint mines in Central Europę, for Bećov in particular. Dates obtained for shafts No 1 and 5 corres-pond with the Tumulus culture from the Middle Bronze Age (Fridrich 1972, 250).

Comparing ¹⁴C dates for the mines in Central Europę and its neighbourhood (Table 1) with the dates for the rest of the European mines (Table 2) we can see some generał similarities. Certain differences are the result of too few carbon 14 dates. Flint mining is very clearly confirmed for the second half of the 4th Mili. b.c. both for the region of Spiennes “Camp-a-Cayaux” site and Mesvin 2 minę “Sans Pareil” and for the south of Eng-land — mines at Church Hill and Blackpatch (Sussex). It is true that wc do not have dates from the end of 5th and from the first half of the 4th Mili. b.c., but indirect data ever morę strongly confirm our thesis about the beginnings of flint mining among the early farming communities in north-west Europę, and their links with the LBK culture and Danubian cultures in generał (Lech, 1975 b, 71).

At the moment underground forms of mining in West Europę have earlier dates than in Central Europę. Except for the minę at Rijckholt—St. Geertruid, this is shown by the dates for the mines from the area of Ciss-bury: Church Hill, Blackpatch, and Harrow Hill (all in Sussex). On the other hand we should remember that thcrc have been fcwer invcstigations on the mining sites in Central Europę than in the West. This also applies to the minę at Krzemionki Opatowskie, for which we do not have ¹⁴C dates. There are no data indicating that the mining at Krzemionki was earlier than the dates for the settlement at Ćmielów. It is evcn probable that underground mining was later and that the first phase of exploitation was connectcd with open shafts.

A scrics of ¹⁴C dates for the minę at Grime’s Graves is in agreement with late dating of flint mining in Central Europę. It should be emphasized that this minę was still fully working in the period IXII at Stonehenge, for instance. Dates for Stonehenge I are: 2180±105 b.c. (1-2328) for the ditch construction and 1848^275 b.c. (C-602) for the Aubrey Hole 32 (Smith 1974, 136). Mcanwhilc, the dates for the big shaft with galleries, about 14.5 m deep which was investigated by R. Mercer, and for Canon GreenwelPs shaft which had galleries too, correspond with the 19th century b.c. (Table 2). Both de-manded vcry complicated work organization, and the effort of many people to sink them (P. J. Felder 1979). Radiolarian chert in the minę at Tata-KaIvariadomb was exp!oited at the same time (Table l)¹¹.

Translated by Anna Urban

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Abbreviations

A AC    — Acta Archaeologica Carpathica, Kraków

AP    — Archeologia Polski, Wrocław—Warszawa — Kra

ków

AR    — Archeologickć rozhledy, Praha

PA    — Przegląd Archeologiczny, Poznań, Wrocław

¹⁰ Persona! Information from Dr.Emilia PlesIova-Śtikovd C.Sc. from the Institutc of Archaeology ĆSAV in Prague, and Pleslova-Stikoya 1959.

PPSEA    — Procecdings of the Prehistorie Society of East

Anglia, London

SA    — Sprawozdania Archeologiczne, Wrocław—War

szawa—Kraków

/ Symposium — Eerslc Internationale Symposium over Yuursteen,

Maastricht 26—29April 1969, ,,Grondboor en Hamer”, 3.

¹¹ I am very grateful to my friend Dr.Richard J.Harrison from the Univcrsity of Bristol, who was kind enough to undertake the stylistic reyision of the English translation.