Tisza (Tisza-Hérpály-Csöszhalom)

Version 2.02

Maximilian O. Baldia

Introduction

The purpose of this text is to provide a general overview of the culture and is intended as a resource for students and teachers of European Archaeology.

List of Figures

Graph of C¹⁴ dates

List of Tables

Table of calibrated radiocarbon dates

Location

The Tisza culture complex includes the Tisza-Hérpály-Csöszhalom Groups of the Alföld (Great Hungarian Plain), and the Petreśti culture in adjacent Transylvania in northwestern Romania (Central Europe). The location is similar to the preceding Alföld Bandkeramik (AVK). More precisely, the Tisza culture is found along the Lower and Middle Tiza River, Hérpály in the upper Tisza region, and Csöszhalom is located on the eastern plain.

Dating

The Tisza culture ushers in the Late Neolithic of in eastern Hungary. Radiocarbon dates indicate that it starts around 5000 cal BC. This coincides roughly with the end of the East Hungarian Alföld Linear Pottery (AVK). At the same time the Transdanubian Bandkeramik (LBK) of western Hungary (and adjacent areas) is replaced by the Lengyel culture.

The end of the Tisza culture is more difficult to assess. A transition in pottery style, referred to as Proto-Tiszapolgár has been identified. On theoretical grounds, I guess that this transition starts around 4640 cal BC, although Proto-Tiszapolgár is usually dated 4570 – 4270 cal. BC (based on nine C¹⁴ dates). There is a considerable overlap between Proto-Tiszapolgár and Tiszapolgár. The latter is dated 4410 – 3760 cal BC (twenty-three dates). For these reasons, I would tentatively end the Tisza culture just before 4400 cal BC. However, even this point in time is to some extent arbitrary, since there seems to be a fair degree of cultural continuity in the Early Copper age. This is illustrated in the Herpály tell of Berettyóújfalu-Herpály. Here there seems to be an evolution of the pottery style from the Tisza related Herpály style to Proto-Tiszapolgár and Tiszapolgár. At the same time, numerous copper artifacts begin to appear. One wonders if the observable culture change after ca. 4400 cal BC may be of the same order (and perhaps even the same kind) found in the Lengyel interaction sphere, which continues long past this date.

Evolution

The Tisza culture complex appears during the breakup of the Central European Bandkeramik, which also includes the formation of the Lengyel interaction sphere in neighboring Transdanubia and adjacent regions. In fact, there seems to be a considerable similarity between the two cultural areas and the breakup, did not lead to a total abandonment of Bandkeramik traditions. Thus, the regional differences of the Hungarian Early Neolithic found in the later Alföld Bandkeramik (AVK), as marked by Szakálhát, Esztár, and Tiszadob, continue in the Tisza culture complex. Thus the Late Neolithic of eastern Hungary is similarly divided in into the Tisza, Hérpály, and Csőszhalom. The end of the Tisza culture complex also appears to be a more or less gradual transition via Proto-Tiszapolgár to Tiszapolgár.

Pottery

Early Tisza pottery from Szegvár-Tűköves includes vessels similar in shape and decoration to the Stroke Ornamented Pottery, or Stichbandkeramik (STK), in Germany, Poland and the Czech and Slovak Republic. The intersecting bands, filled with stokes were painted red.[1] Another sherd from the site exhibits incised, jagged, geometric patterns boasts a human stick figure with a triangular head.[2] Lids with handles sport similar geometric designs. Also from the same site is a pot with a slightly pedestal, serrated rim and curvilinear, incised double lines.[3] Furthermore, the site contains pots with curvilinear and checkerboard patters made from straw and glued on with “bitumen.” At Öcsöd-Kováshalom a similar design approach is used with a red painted and straw decorated vessel. A pedestal bowl with perforated (windowed or fenestrated) pedestal exhibits yellow paint, applied after firing. Black paint, also applied after firing, is evident. Stylized human knob-headed figurines of clay mark the Early Tisza culture, while elaborate seated, anthropomorphic (human-like) vassals and figurines represent the Classical (later) Tisza culture. A related “female” statue, dressed to the waste and wearing bracelets and arm rings, seated on a “thorne” (seat with handles on the side), was found together with other complex (ritual?) pottery objects on the floor of a house at Vésztő-Mágor.[4]

The tell settlement at Berettyóújfalu-Herpály (Herpály Group)[5] harbored monochrome and poly chrome pottery. Some of the pottery, from various levels of the site, was painted before firing. There is also “bitumen” covered pottery; lustrous matt black painted pottery, covering the entire surface, black on white; white with red; and white painted decoration. (The colors are thought to be of chronological importance.) There are delicately painted pedestal bowls and painted amphorae. Impressed dots and punctuates, common to the more recent levels of the tell, foreshadow the Tiszapolgár culture. The pottery was tempered with fine sand, but included small pebbles. The pottery was fired to a light or dark gray color, suggesting a variable, reduced firing atmosphere.

Other Artifacts

Artifacts include bone harpoons, fishhooks, combs, beads, and perforated spondylus shell disks.[6] Bone ladles were found at Vésztő-Mágor.[7]

Enclosures

There is evidence that Late Neolithic villages on the Hungarian Plain were partly or fully surrounded by ditches.[8] Wattle fences around multiple houses (house cluster) have been reconstructed.

The tell of Polgár-Csőszhalom consist of an early (inner) enclosure that was rebuilt and with houses in the center, surrounded by five ditches 7 m wide and 4 m deep. The summed probability of the radiocarbon dates is given as 4820 – 4530 cal BC. The structure is similar to Lengyel enclosures, called rondels.

Settlements

There are two kinds of settlements: tells and “flat” settlements. Tells are the result of rebuilding a village periodically, so that multiple layers develop. A “flat settlement” is more spread out and does not form a noticeable mound, although it too may have settlement layers due to long-term use.

Numerous tells occur in Hungary, primarily in the south. These compact settlements are thought to be a characteristic of the Balkan Peninsula, rather than Central Europe. However, in Northeast Hungary, at Polgár-Csőszhalom both types of settlement occur together in a 28 ha areas.[9] The tell turned out to be a circular enclosure. Excavation of 4 ha of the “flat” settlement produced 62 timber framed houses, 64 other structures and 238 pits. Burials, primarily of women, are associated with the house clusters.

Houses

Houses are rectangular, consisting of wattle and daub walls for Öcsöd-Kováshalom.[10] Complex house structures, containing multiple rooms, multiple ovens and other features, including typical jagged geometric wall designs, are reconstructed for Szegvár-Tűköves and Hódmezővásárhely-Gorza.[11]

From the eponymous tell settlement at Berettyóújfalu-Herpály, a Herpály house has been reconstructed as having two stories.[12] The house, littered with pottery, had clay ovens downstairs and clay basins on both floors. The lower floor appears to have been divided into three rooms. The rectangular house was constructed of waddle (basket like wicker work) and daub (clay). House floor dimensions vary between 11:00 : 4.7 m and 3.5 : 3.5 m.[13]

Burials

At Öcsöd-Kováshalom, Early Tisza burials exhibit crouched (flexed) inhumations, cremations, and the use of ocher.[14] (Ocher is a red to yellow pigment used throughout prehistory around the world during burial rituals). In addition, a flexed burial, resting on its left side in a plank-built coffin was discovered at the tell of Vésztő-Mágor.[15]

The 116 graves, associated with the “flat” settlement excavated at Polgár-Csőszhalom also exhibit similarities. Males rested on their right side, females on their left. The richly furnished burials include a female with beads, arm rings and a red ocher stain above her left shoulder. Children were rarely interred in the flat settlement, but occur frequently in the causewayed enclosure, which exhibits a majority of males.

Wells

So far 68 cylindrical wells have been uncovered at Polgár-Csőszhalom.

References and Credits

Hegedűs, K. and J. Makkay

1987 Vésztő-Mágor: A Settlement of the Tisza Culture. In Pál Raczky (Ed.), The Late Neolithic in the Tisza Basin. Kassuth Press. Budapest, Szolnok 1987:85-104.

Horváth, F.

1987 Hódmezővásárhely-Gorza: A Settlement of the Tisza Culture. In Pál Raczky (Ed.), The Late Neolithic in the Tisza Basin. Kassuth Press. Budapest, Szolnok 1987:31-46.

Kalicz, N. and P. Raczky

1987 Berettyóújfalu-Herpály: A Settlement of the Tisza Culture. In Pál Raczky (Ed.), The Late Neolithic in the Tisza Basin. Kassuth Press. Budapest, Szolnok 1987:105-126.

Korek, T.

1987 Szegvár-Tűköves: A Settlement of the Tisza Culture. In Pál Raczky (Ed.), The Late Neolithic in the Tisza Basin. Kassuth Press. Budapest, Szolnok 1987:47-60.

Raczky, Pál

1987 Öcsöd-Kováshalom: A Settlement of the Tisza Culture. In Pál Raczky (Ed.), The Late Neolithic in the Tisza Basin. Kassuth Press. Budapest, Szolnok 1987:61-84.

Raczky, Pál (Ed.)

1987 The Late Neolithic in the Tisza Basin. Kassuth Press. Budapest, Szolnok.1987.

Raczky, P., W. Meier-Arendt, A. Anders, Z. Hajdú, E. Nagy, K. Kurucz, L. Domboróczki, K. Sebők, P. Sümegi, E. Magiari, Z. Szántó, S. Gulyás, K. Dobó, E. Bácskay, K. Biró, C. Schwartz.

2002 Polgár-Csőszhalom (1989-2000) : Summary of Hungarian-German Excavations on a Neolithic Settlement in Eastern Hungary. In R. Alsen et al. (Eds.) Mauserschau: Festschrift für Manfred Korfmann 2. Greiner, Remshalden-Grunbach, Germany. 2002:833-860.

Raczky, P., A. Andres

2002? Significant Archaeological Excavations in Hungary. Institute for Archaeological Sciences, Loránd Eötvös University. Adu Print, Budapest.

Please send comments or questions to Max Baldia.