HUNGARIAN ARCHAEOLOGY
E-JOURNAL • 2020 WINTER
www.hungarianarchaeology.hu
A STRATIGRAPHIC SEQUENCE OF SIX THOUSAND YEARS
Preliminary report on the rescue excavation at the site
of the former Óbuda Distillery (BUSZESZ)
GÁBOR SZILAS1 – TIBOR BUDAI BALOGH2 – BARBARA HAJDU3 – VIKTÓRIA KISJUHÁSZ4 – ADRIENN PAPP5 – NÓRA SZABÓ6
Hungarian Archaeology Vol. 9 (2020), Issue 4, pp. 1–13. doi: https://doi.org/10.36338/ha.2020.4.6
Árpád period pit houses with a stone oven, Roman period brick graves and a public bath, debris from
Middle Bronze Age buildings, an Early Bronze Age cemetery, and Late Copper Age clay pit complexes
– the thousands of archaeological features that appeared one below the other in a several metres thick
stratigraphic sequence, and the nearly thousand boxes of finds are only one side of the coin. The other is
represented by the constant roar of the machines, the deafening noise and the dust clouds from the pneumatic drill, the rhythmical sound of the suburban railway, the hubbub of construction workers, and the
tight archaeological deadlines. At the site of the former Óbuda Distillery, during the almost three years of
test and rescue excavations, we have encountered nearly all known elements of urban archaeology. We also
appreciate that, in spite of the difficulties, we were given a unique, extraordinary and perhaps unparalleled opportunity. The site, after all, lies at the edge of the historical cores of the Roman Military Town and
medieval Óbuda. The excavation site is noteworthy not only in terms of its vertical but also its horizontal
extent. Following the highly informative period of fieldwork, hopefully we can begin the analysis as soon
as possible, through which we may understand, step by step, the significance of this special place, where,
until now, there lay the stratigraphic sequence of six thousand years of human presence.
GENIUS LOCI – THE RECENT PAST AND RESEARCH HISTORY OF THE SITE
The area in the Third District of Budapest, enclosed
by Bogdáni Road, Folyamőr Street, Laktanya Street
and the HÉV suburban railway line to Szentendre, is
a busy, central part of Óbuda, with a prominent role
in the history of industrialisation in the capital, which
took off following the Austro-Hungarian Compromise
of 1867. It was here on this site that Jakab Deutsch
established in 1867 a factory producing industrial alcohol, which, under Vilmos Leipziger, became the largest
manufacturer of alcohol and vinegar in the country by
the turn of the century (Fig. 1). Industrial production,
after constant reorganisations, only came to an end at
the beginning of the 2010s. The new owner began the
demolition of the plant buildings in 2016. In view of
all this, it is by no means surprising that archaeological finds of varying source value have been coming to
light here for some 150 years now. Consequently, the
1
2
3
4
5
6
Fig. 1. The Vilmos Leipziger Alcohol and Sugar Factory,
Ltd. plant in 1930. Metropolitan Ervin Szabó Library, Reg.
no.: bibFSZ01472071
Archaeologist, Head of Department, BHM Aquincum Museum, Department of Prehistory and the Migration Period.
E-mail: szilasg@gmail.com
Archaeologist, BHM Aquincum Museum, Department of Ancient History. E-mail: budaibalogh@yahoo.com
Archaeologist, BHM Aquincum Museum, Department of Ancient History. E-mail: hajdubarbi91@gmail.com
Archaeologist, BHM Aquincum Museum, Department of Prehistory and the Migration Period. E-mail: kisjuhaszv@gmail.com
Archaeologist, BHM Aquincum Museum, Medieval Department. E-mail: adry.papp@gmail.com
Archaeologist, ELTE Institute of Archaeological Sciences. E-mail: szabonori91@gmail.com
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Fig. 2. The first graves found at the eastern cemetery, on the
site of the later ‘central hall’ (the 1868 excavation of Flóris
Rómer; summary plan (watercolour) by Gusztáv Zsigmondy,
BHM Aquincum Museum, Drawings archive)
archaeological significance of the site had been well
known among specialists also before the trial excavation in 2017 (Gyuricza 2008, 2–5).
The first pieces of information on the prehistoric
remains at the multi-period site come from the final
third of the 19th century. While later rescue works
and excavations mostly studied the Roman settlement
conditions, the Late Copper Age, Late Bronze Age,
and Early and Late Iron Age finds uncovered suggest
an intensive prehistoric occupation in the area (Havas
1892, 18; NaGy G. 1904, 111; NaGy L. 1937, 261;
Kaba 1984, 457: no. 2; Kőszegi 2000, 64, 81).
It was at the beginning of the plant’s construction
(1868) that the first Roman period graves, too, were
brought to light (RómeR 1868, 41–44, 65–68, 91–94;
Fig. 2). Their continual discovery (KuzsiNszKy 1897a,
102; KuzsiNszKy 1897b, 403) even led some to suspect for a short time that the entire area of the Distillery may have belonged to the northern cemetery of
the Aquincum Military Town (NaGy L. 1937, 266).
Later on, however, more and more houses, building
remains suggesting the presence of a baths, as well
as street and sewer sections from the Military Town
were uncovered in the southern half of the distillery
premises (NaGy L. 1942, 359, 363; sziLáGyi 1955,
Fig. 3. Timeline with the archaeological periods detected
403; Kaba 1976, 417: no. 86; Póczy 1983, 267).
during the 2017–2020 excavations marked red (Created by
Migration Period occupation was surmised based
Krisztián Kolozsvári, BHM Aquincum Museum)
on Late Avar period pottery vessels, collected as
stray finds (NaGy M. 1998, 39–40: FO 16), while prior to the start of the excavation series in 2017 medieval
archaeologists suspected, also based on stray finds, (Nagy T. 1973, 212; FehéR, éRy & KraLováNszKy 1962,
25: no. 110) a 10th century cemetery at the site of the Distillery.
With these in mind began in 2017, and continues to the present day, the most recent and most comprehensive research period of the site. As the first phase of the excavation series connected with the con-
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struction of a multifunctional housing estate, the
test excavation led by Tibor Budai Balogh refined
our previous understanding of the internal chronology of the site and the distribution of built remains.
From it we also gained valuable data, indispensible
for the planning of future research, regarding the
site’s stratigraphic context and the extent of disturbance (budai baLoGH 2020).
Afterwards, in September 2018, began the series
of rescue excavations, led first by Zoltán Havas and
later by Gábor Szilas, moving from north to south
immediately ahead of construction, in line with the
development plan. The research completed until
December 2020 comprised three major excavation phases, covering an area of around one hectare. There we unearthed – from at least fourteen
phases belonging to nine archaeological periods
(Fig. 3) – three and a half thousand archaeological
features (Fig. 4) resulting in almost one thousand
crates of finds. In terms of the degree to which the
site – displaying a significantly higher than average intensity and complexity – can be researched,
it is important to highlight that based on the test
excavation’s results, it is only in the southern half
of the construction site that we may expect to find
Roman period built remains in the context of the
densely built Roman town worthy of preservation.
Meanwhile, on the northern side we had – and have
– an opportunity for the complete excavation of the
entire stratigraphic sequence, relatively intact in
spite of modern disturbance. Our research is also
Fig. 4. Summary plan of the 2017-2020 excavations on the
noteworthy in terms of its horizontal extent, as in satellite image of the distillery premises (Geodetic survey by
István Fábián, Tibor Kovács, Gergő Juhász,
the latter section we expect to be able to excavate
BHM Aquincum Museum)
a nearly contiguous area of 15 000 sq m until 2022
(Fig. 5). Nevertheless, during our work we are faced by significant methodological challenges. Although
in terms of its size, budget and timeframe, ours belongs more to the category of open area excavations, we
have to carry out the complete investigation – while meeting professional standards – of a deeply stratified
site characteristic of historic town centres. Our goals, naturally, can only be reached through the efficient
work of a team: of archaeologists, archaeological technicians, surveyors responding quickly to developments at the dig, and colleagues carrying out on-site work (drone photography, sampling etc.) for scientific
analysis.7
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We would like to thank archaeologist Flóra Lamm, archaeological technicians Alfred Falchetto, Ferenc Barna, Zsófia Kelemen,
Dániel Langer, Eszter Solnay, Nikolett Schmidt, Balázs Szabó, Tícia Tóbel-Domonkos, draughtspersons Orsolya Kangyal
and Tamás Lajtos, geodetic surveyors Tibor Kovács, István Fábián and Gergő Juhász, who helped us greatly with on-site
documentation. Special thanks are due to metal detectorist Lajos Sándor for the countless valuable metal artefacts he found,
to László Rupnik (ELTE) for the drone imagery, to Magdolna Vicze and Gabriella Kovács (Matrica Museum Százhalombatta)
for micromorphological sampling, to István Viczián and János Balogh (ELKH Geographical Institute) for sedimentological
and pedological sampling, and to all those who played an active, even if brief, role in the excavation.
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THE SITE’S GEOMORPHOLOGICAL, PALAEOHYDROLOGICAL
AND STRATIGRAPHIC CONTEXT
Based on our environmental archaeological and geomorphological research, ever widening in scope, on
the Danube bank in Óbuda (sziLas et al. 2019), we can state that this area provided one of the most favourable conditions for settlement in the Budakalász-Óbuda bay microregion. Its former surface was partly
composed of a terrace surface, on average 102.8 m above sea level (Baltic Sea), formed through incisions
of the Danube during the Pleistocene. Its excellent
position in terms of transport geography was underpinned by the relative proximity of the main branch
of the river and the former mouth of the Aranyhegy
Stream – localised at Filatorigát. At the same time,
the zone of the neighbouring stretch of the main
branch, punctuated by islands (Small and Large
Óbuda Island), enhanced the defensive properties
and economic potential of the area (Fig. 5).
At the excavation site itself, the stratigraphic
context and the parameters of occupation in terms of
space and time, are essentially defined by the presence of two geographical-morphological elements
of different natures. In the 30-metre-wide strip in the
west, we find a loessy-sandy terrain – the remains
of terrace II/a mentioned above. Meanwhile, to the
east, we see the zone of a so-called high floodplain
(terrace I/b), sloping steeply at first then more gen-
Fig. 5. Geomorphological map of the Budakalász-Óbuda bay,
with the site of the excavation marked
(based on H. Kérdő & ScHweitzer 2010, Fig. 1)
Fig. 6. Aerial photograph in winter 2018 of the trench
opened in the higher, western strip of the site
(Photograph by László Rupnik)
Fig. 7. Settlement layers in the western baulk of surface “2D”. Section drawing. (Drawing by Orsolya Kangyal , BHM
Aquincum Museum)
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tly, showing some minor unevenness, formed on a clayey-loessy subsoil. While at the former, we mostly
found a 40–60 cm thick cultural layer (Fig. 6), the zone of the latter, similarly to the case of the riverbank
by Békásmegyer, produced a greater number of layers, allowing us to document an archaeological stratigraphic sequence, 1.5–2 m in thickness, containing both larger horizontal and smaller local levels (Fig. 7).
ARCHAEOLOGICAL PERIODS UNCOVERED DURING THE EXCAVATIONS
The research is currently at the on-site documentation stage; therefore the data we have so far allows us to
make inferences primarily about the topography. Nevertheless, some feature groups clearly have a greater
significance beyond their immediate context.
The millennia of Prehistory
For now, we only have indirect data regarding the earliest human settlement at the site. The finds – secondarily washed into a sediment basin of natural origin at the eastern third of the high floodplain – from
the Middle Neolithic (fragments with pinched ornaments and impressed knobs from the Notenkopf and
Zseliz phases of the Transdanubian Linear Pottery Culture,8 5300–5000/4950 B.C.) suggest the relative
proximity of a contemporaneous settlement. We have a relatively large amount of data regarding the Neolithic settlement network of the riverbank by Csillaghegy-Békásmegyer north of our site (sziLas & viráG
2017, 23–24.), and Neolithic occupation at the Danube islands next to our excavation can also be localised
(KéRdő & ViRág 2006).
The Late Copper Age Baden Culture’s (3500–3000 B.C.) pit complexes and refuse pits of various sizes –
primarily found in the thick, black clayey humus layer of the deeper eastern terrain – belong to a large settlement, which stretched for a long distance along the
riverbank. Based on fresh observations, to the north
the settlement can be traced as far as Filatorigát.9
From the fill of the settlement’s pits, in addition to
the large quantities of shell and fish scale remains
– indicating the intensive exploitation of natural
resources – we can highlight the intact bovine skeleton laid in a pit, which may be interpreted as the
remains of a ritual documented at several places in
this period. A similar, large settlement has also been
found at the riverbank by Békásmegyer (LaMM &
szilas 2020, 19–26, eNdRődi 2002).
Fig. 8. Grave goods from the early Bronze Age Bell Beaker
Culture – Csepel Group grave (Photograph by Nóra Szilágyi,
BHM Aquincum Museum)
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9
Zsuzsanna M. Virág, personal communication.
Excavation by Tibor Budai Balogh, 2017.
Fig. 9. Contracted inhumation of the early Bronze Age Bell
Beaker Culture – Csepel Group (Photograph by Viktória
Kisjuhász, BHM Aquincum Museum)
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In general, it can be said that the most intensive prehistoric occupation on the site appears during the
Bronze Age, as indicated by the large number of settlement features as well as the nearly 1-metre-thick
cultural layer, which also contains trodden surfaces and building debris. The section of a settlement established here during the Early Bronze Age by the Csepel Group of the Bell Beaker Culture (2500–2200/2100
B.C.) and a connected mixed-rite cemetery closer to the Danube to the east (Fig. 8–9) show the most
complex prehistoric settlement structure at our excavation site. Suggesting a remarkably dense settlement
network in this period is the fact that the chain of settlements and cemeteries dating to this period clearly
also continues in the riverbank zone north of our site (Graphisoft Park: eNdRődi 2001). The interpretation
– in addition to the beehive shaped storage pits of the settlement – of several post-rows and building debris
as potentially Early Bronze Age post-structure constructions will only be possible following the detailed
analysis of the find materials. Highly significant among the settlement features is a pit with a special, rectangular ground plan reflecting religious contexts. Through its unique stratigraphic sequence and finds as
well as the deposited canine skeletons, it shows a close connection with a sacrificial pit of a similar design
found in Szigetszentmiklós-Üdülősor in 1988 (eNdRődi 1992, 87, 98, 112, Fig. 6.100).
Connected with the Middle Bronze Age occupation
– detected on the whole site from the Late NagyrévEarly Vatya period to the Late Vatya-Koszider period
(2200/2100–1400 B.C.) – is a separate ashy-charcoaly layer with building debris covering the black
ancient humus, indicating its importance. Based on
the nature of the in situ features of this layer and the
pits dug from it as well as the quality of the finds (Fig.
10) it is clear that we are in the central zone of a horizontal settlement of several hectares similar to Vatya
sites along the Danube. In the northeastern section of
the excavation site, we had a unique opportunity to
excavate – on an area, enlarged with extensions, of
Fig. 10. Middle Bronze Age bird shaped rattle fragment
19×8 metres – a multi-period building complex with
(Photograph by Nóra Szilágyi, BHM Aquincum Museum)
upstanding walls dated to the later phase of the Vatya
Culture. During the excavation of the building debris, some 40 cm in thickness, we were able to document roof
and side wall remains. Underneath, we found the repeatedly renewed floors of the houses, the traces of hearths
and other fixtures, and, impressed in the substratum, the structure of postholes for the beams holding the roof
and forming the wall fabric also became clearly visible (Fig. 11). From this period, similar observations
until now could only be made at the Culture’s central, fortified, multi-layer tell settlements (Bölcske:
PoroszLai 1992, 144, Százhalombatta: Vicze 2013);
we have very little information concerning the architecture of so-called horizontal settlements. From the
fill of the houses we systematically collected a large
amount of soil samples for archaeobotanical, pollen,
and phosphate analysis; we also took micromorphological samples from the floors’ materials. Through
their joint analysis, in co-operation with the Matrica
Museum of Százhalombatta, we would also like to
create the architectural historical reconstruction of
the buildings.
Fig. 11. Middle Bronze Age post-structure building
In addition to the traces suggesting the presence
during excavation (Photograph by Gábor Szilas,
of buildings, we observed another highly intriguing
BHM Aquincum Museum)
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settlement feature. At several points of the site, in
six cases altogether, we found pits containing large
amounts of pottery fragments placed one above the
other in multiple layers (Fig. 12). These are notable
given the quantity of the finds as well as the composition of the vessels based on function and the secondary burn marks observed on them (deformed, blistered surfaces). Examination of the aforementioned
six cases shows that storages vessels are clearly
in the majority. In addition to urn shaped vessels
and deep bowls we also found there vessels with a
knobbed, ribbed and rusticated inside surface, used
for the fermentation of dairy products or alcoholic
beverages. The feature is special, though not comFig. 12. Middle Bronze Age vessel depot, final phase
pletely unique. After all, vessels in a similar situaof excavation (Photograph by Gábor Szilas,
BHM Aquincum Museum)
tion have been found also at the Middle Bronze Age
horizontal settlement at Budajenő – Hegyi-szántók
(Gucsi & szabó 2018). The placing of the assemblages in such a state in the pit was, in all likelihood, the
result of a deliberate choice. Therefore, in our opinion, what we observed too belonged to the vessel deposition practice which can be documented throughout the Bronze Age – although the composition, characteristics and reasons of deposition were rather varied depending on the period and cultural environment
(KaLLa, raczKy & szabó 2013, 24). Although the
Middle Bronze Age vessel depots documented were
primarily beaker assemblages (schReibeR 1967, 49;
Kovács 1978, 221; P. FiscHL, Kiss & KuLcsár 1999,
77), open area excavations in recent years have
shown that the deposition trend which also features
storage vessels – pointing towards the Late Bronze
Age – can be observed at settlements already in this
period (v. szabó 2004, 86; iLoN 2010, 19–30.).
The Late Bronze Age settlement section documented at the BUSZESZ site has an important place
in the reconstruction of the Urnfield settlement concentration – with iconic Urnfield assemblages to the
south of our site at Flórián Square (Kőszegi 1996)
and Harrer Pál Street (Kőszegi 1984) and with Urnfield settlement traces observed in multiple places
north of our site at Filatorigát (zsidi 2001, 60.) –
characteristic of the Late Bronze Age (1200–800
B.C.) settlement network on the right bank of the
Danube. The pit complexes with rich finds (graphite
slipped polished ware, grated oven baking surface
and andiron fragments, flange-hilted bronze sword
(Fig. 13), and arrowhead) and the remains of poststructure buildings characteristic of the Urnfield
period documented between them are clearly clustered in the higher, western terrain. The zone of the
eastern high floodplain in this period shows only
Fig. 13. Late Bronze Age flange-hilted sword fragment
(Photograph
by Nóra Szilágyi, BHM Aquincum Museum)
sporadic occupation.
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The settlement consisting of units with storage
pits and pit houses and containing find materials
characteristic of the Early-Middle Hallstatt Culture
(800–450 B.C.) is unambiguously concentrated – as
in the previous period – in the area which includes
the remains of the higher terrace II/a. The observations made here fit well into the settlement strategy
of the Early and Middle Iron Age. A site of similar
intensity has also been found to the north along the
Danube.
By the Late Iron Age, the entire width of the riverbank section under investigation became settled.
The finds from the village-like Celtic settlement’s pit
houses and storage and refuse pits (Fig. 14) can be
dated to the La Tène C2-D1 (180–60 B.C.) period.
At the edge of the Military Town
Researchers of Aquincum hoped to gain answers to a
number of important questions from the 2017 excavation. Based on the results, the border of the town’s
built-up area (which is not coterminous with its
administrative border) in the northeastern town quarter can be drawn with some certainty along the line
between the Akác Path distillery gate and the southeastern corner of the so-called ‘central hall’ (Fig. 15).
It also became clear that the century and a half of
distillery construction work left no serious damage
in the Roman period urban fabric. After all, in the
southern trenches the clay and cement floored rooms
of town houses and the hypocaust heated rooms of a
public baths (Fig. 16) as well as sewers came to light
in a rather good condition. Based on the quick on-site
analysis of the excavated features and finds, it appears
that the investigated strip of the town’s northeastern
corner was destroyed in the final third of the 3rd century, never to be rebuilt. Occupation, however, did
not cease in the 4th century either. As seen in other
parts of the town, the buildings and gardens of the
abandoned quarter came to be used as a cemetery by
the population which withdrew to the town centre.
The Late Roman use of this suburban area, however,
included a rather curious feature. This appeared in
the form of a buttressed wall, constructed across a
dwelling house which had been pulled down deliberately and filled in, postdating all building periods
of the house. The possibility that the Distillery site or
its surrounding area came to be used for military purposes is raised by the stamped bricks of Frigeridus,
commander of the border forces (dux Valeriae ripen-
Fig. 14. Late Iron Age refuse pit during documentation
(Photograph by Gábor Szilas, BHM Aquincum Museum)
Fig. 15. The location of the former Óbuda distillery on
the map with the ancient topography (Map by Krisztián
Kolozsvári, BHM Aquincum Museum)
Fig. 16. A section of rooms with underfloor heating at the
Roman public baths (Photograph by Nóra Szilágyi,
BHM Aquincum Museum)
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sis: AD 371–373/374), and other officers found at the
cemeteries located in the northern half of the distillery
premises (Fig. 17). It cannot be precluded that the site
clearance and the raising of the buttressed structure
were also connected with the border reinforcement
programme during the Valentinian period; although a
definitive answer requires further research.
While small scale sondage in the southern half
of the distillery premises only allowed for a limited
analysis of the latest building periods of the Military
Town, the systematic excavation of the northern half,
launched in 2018, revealed the complete periodisation
of extra-urban land use. Three large semi-subterranean
houses represent the earliest period (end of the 1st
century – beginning of the 2nd century A.D.). In spite
of the Iron Age lifestyle and housing culture, the finds
in these buildings are all provincial products, including some more expensive vessel types, while traditional Celtic products are completely absent. A broken amphora lying on the floor may serve as an indication of the Mediterranean taste taking hold among
the local population also in terms of gastronomy. The
full analysis of the finds will provide the probable date
when this small settlement was abandoned – likely at
the end of earliest period of the Military Town and the
establishment of the provincial capital.
Afterwards, in the western strip of the site a complex system of ditches and a row of wells were dug
for agricultural use (animal husbandry). In the fill
of the ditches – which cut through the earlier settlement features – and the wells, we uncovered finds
from the second-third centuries A.D.
The eastern strip of the site, from the middle third
of the 3rd century the latest, came to function as a
cemetery stretching north along a main road leading
from the town, built on the bank of the Small Danube branch. The cemetery was disturbed already in
1868, with the start of construction works on the
plant. Based on our observations so far, at least three
grave horizons can be identified in the cemetery
according to the stratigraphy, orientation and grave
type. The latest, 4th century gracile skeletons differ
also in terms of anthropology from members of the
earlier robust populace.
In the western strip of the site, distinct grave
groups appeared in the Late Roman period. At the
cemetery section in the northwestern corner of the
distillery premises, we found, in addition to simple earth graves, partial stone cist graves and brick
9
Fig. 17. Brick stamps dating to the tenure
of Frigeridus dux (Photograph by Tibor Budai Balogh,
BHM Aquincum Museum)
Fig. 18. Dress elements from the northwestern grave group
of the excavation site (Photograph by Nóra Szilágyi,
BHM Aquincum Museum)
Fig. 19. Deviant burials in the southern grave group
(Photograph by Tibor Budai Balogh,
BHM Aquincum Museum)
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graves as well. The graves are dated by characteristic 4th century artefacts – silvered belt buckle, cross-bow
brooches (Fig. 18). This grave group is separated by a system of ditches from another 4th century burial
ground to the south, which contained at least three grave horizons. The earliest of these is roughly contemporaneous with the latest graves of the eastern cemetery and can be connected with the gracile-framed
populace seen there. The latest grave was built using stamped bricks dating to the tenure of Frigeridus dux;
based on the grave goods it may not belong to much later than the Valentinian period. The southern grave
group stretches towards the town, becoming denser.
In the cemeteries discovered at the site of the distillery, the ratio of deviant burials – connected with
ghost belief or punishment – is unusually high. The two kinds of motivation manifest in essentially the same
procedure: keeping down the corpse – physically (with stones or bricks) or symbolically (with an iron nail
or a human skull placed on the corpse) – or tying up the dead body (Fig. 19). Those punished – as evil dead,
likely to haunt – were buried outside the grave group, far from the ‘decent people’, weighed down or tied
up. Exclusion could also be emphasised at times by the different orientation or greater depth of the grave,
or the face down burial of the corpse.
The cemetery sections uncovered so far only provide us limited insight concerning the relationships
between the individual grave groups. Cemetery investigation on a larger scale will be possible from the
next excavation season.
Árpád period village
It took us all by surprise when we uncovered a section of an early Árpád period village at the BUSZESZ
site, otherwise unattested in charters, which lay at the edge of two historic town centres. The ruins of
ancient Aquincum were still visible, and in the 11th century the first large churches and stone buildings had
already been erected in the town referred to at the time in medieval charters not as ‘Old’ Buda (Óbuda), but
as Buda/Budavára. On account of 19th and 20th century disturbances, the village – which also stretched
over the 4th century cemetery – could only be documented in patches. In the several dozen semi-subterranean, rectangular pit houses with an average floor space of 3×2.5 m, the stone-built ovens used for heating
were established in the northeastern corner. The oven dome was preserved intact in two cases. The semisubterranean ovens – in multiple cases equipped with a working hollow – and food storage pits between
the buildings provided the majority of the relatively poor find material. Of these we can highlight sherds of
pots characteristic of this period and a coin, based on which the village was established in the 12th century.
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Budai Balogh, T. (2020). Sörgyári capriccio. Topográfiai kutatások az aquincumi canabae északkeleti
határában (Capriccio in a distillery. Topographic research on the northeast border of the Aquincum canabae).
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