Page 96 - Studia Universitatis Hereditati, vol 6(1) (2018)
P. 96
dia universitatis her editati, letnik 6 (2018), številk a 1 96terial in question is non-charred organic matter.painted fragments correlating well with pot-
It is possible that the sample consisted of thin tery finds known from sites north of Drava river
hereditatibranches or some weed or seeds but during theand with dates from Versend-Gilencsa site, rep-
excavation the soil condition didn’t permit this resenting the last B-2 stage parallel to Vinča B
identification. and transition to Vinča C phase. However, the
beginning of this culture still remains unclear,
The second date from Ražište site corre- both related to dating and to its possible origin.
sponds to the date from Golinci – Selište site but
unfortunately these two dates fall into the small The beginning of Sopot culture was consid-
plateau in the calibration curve. The youngest ered parallel to Vinča B by S. Dimitrijević (1979,
date from Ražište site and two dates from Novi 268) and Z. Marković (1994, 63) in its core area,
Perkovci – Krčavina site also correspond to each i.e. the eastern Slavonia region. That would sug-
other. These last two conventional dates show gest the beginning of Sopot culture around or
obvious problems and can’t be considered as the after 5200 BC, duration of this initial phase un-
end dates for the middle Neolithic sequence. til 5000 BC (Vinča B – Borić 2009, 234) and the
possible phase II between 5000/4950 and 4850
Contemporaneity of some sites is further BC (Vinča C – Borić 2009, 234). However, most
stressed by architecture as it is the continuity of of the Sopot dates available correspond to the
pottery stiles on the others. Even in geographical time after the 5000 BC and the oldest phase ac-
terms sites situated west and closer to the LBK cording to Obelić et al. (2004) can’t be consid-
core area are dated older than the sites situated ered (Burić 2015) because the dates for Dubo-
further east. Of course, this is true for the cur- vo – Košno site situated about 20 km south of
rent state of research and for very small sample of tell Sopot are conventional dates, none origi-
radiocarbon dates but nevertheless it seems in- nating from a short-lived sample (Burić 2015,
dicative. The beginning of the middle Neolith- 152) and because that would mean the initial
ic sequence is a time of LBK expansion from its I-A phase would be older than Vinča A phase
core area (Jákucs et al. 2016, 323–324; Dubouloz (Burić 2015, 152; Botić 2017, 75, note 85). Consid-
et al. 2017) and sites such as Szederkény-Kukori- ering two published Sopot dates from Sormás–
ca-dűlő (Jákucs et al. 2016) and Versend-Gilenc- Mántai-dűlő site in Zala Conty (western Trans-
sa (Jákucs and Voicsek 2017) south-east of Pecs danubia), there must have been an earlier Sopot
in Hungarian Baranya appear at that time. The phase: VERA-3102, animal bone, 6115±35 BP,
former was dated between 5340–5315 BC and 5203–4984 cal BC (68.2%), 5208–4948 cal BC
5200–5180 BC, western part of the settlement (95.4%); VERA-3103, animal bone, 6045±50
containing Ražište pottery while eastern part BP, 5006–4849 cal BC (68.2%), 5198–4798 cal
contained Vinča A (both mixed with some LBK BC (95.4%) (Barna and Pásztor 2011, 189, Tab.
finds) (Jákucs et al. 2016, 278), while latter was 1). Again, this phase could have started around
dated between 5235–5215 BC and 5210–5195 BC, 5200 BC or slightly before in a core area which
western part containing Korenovo and Ražište would mean that Sopot culture spread quickly
finds while eastern part contained late Starče- to the west. There is, of course, possibility that
vo, early LBK and early Vinča finds (Jákucs and it wasn’t Sopot culture but rather Ražište type
Voicsek 2017, 176). Houses on both sites were that spread westwards around 5200 BC. In that
long houses of LBK type. case, appearance of Sopot culture in its core area
around 5200 BC is quite possible. Burić (2015,
Two questions remain open: the position of 151) considers eastern Slavonia, i.e. region be-
Korenovo culture and the appearance of classi- tween Bapska in the east, Vinkovci area in the
cal Sopot culture in the absolute chronological west and eastern Sava region in Bosnia in the
terms. For Korenovo culture only one partial south as a core area of Sopot culture while north-
date is known from northern Croatian territo-
ry which was published together with a few red
It is possible that the sample consisted of thin tery finds known from sites north of Drava river
hereditatibranches or some weed or seeds but during theand with dates from Versend-Gilencsa site, rep-
excavation the soil condition didn’t permit this resenting the last B-2 stage parallel to Vinča B
identification. and transition to Vinča C phase. However, the
beginning of this culture still remains unclear,
The second date from Ražište site corre- both related to dating and to its possible origin.
sponds to the date from Golinci – Selište site but
unfortunately these two dates fall into the small The beginning of Sopot culture was consid-
plateau in the calibration curve. The youngest ered parallel to Vinča B by S. Dimitrijević (1979,
date from Ražište site and two dates from Novi 268) and Z. Marković (1994, 63) in its core area,
Perkovci – Krčavina site also correspond to each i.e. the eastern Slavonia region. That would sug-
other. These last two conventional dates show gest the beginning of Sopot culture around or
obvious problems and can’t be considered as the after 5200 BC, duration of this initial phase un-
end dates for the middle Neolithic sequence. til 5000 BC (Vinča B – Borić 2009, 234) and the
possible phase II between 5000/4950 and 4850
Contemporaneity of some sites is further BC (Vinča C – Borić 2009, 234). However, most
stressed by architecture as it is the continuity of of the Sopot dates available correspond to the
pottery stiles on the others. Even in geographical time after the 5000 BC and the oldest phase ac-
terms sites situated west and closer to the LBK cording to Obelić et al. (2004) can’t be consid-
core area are dated older than the sites situated ered (Burić 2015) because the dates for Dubo-
further east. Of course, this is true for the cur- vo – Košno site situated about 20 km south of
rent state of research and for very small sample of tell Sopot are conventional dates, none origi-
radiocarbon dates but nevertheless it seems in- nating from a short-lived sample (Burić 2015,
dicative. The beginning of the middle Neolith- 152) and because that would mean the initial
ic sequence is a time of LBK expansion from its I-A phase would be older than Vinča A phase
core area (Jákucs et al. 2016, 323–324; Dubouloz (Burić 2015, 152; Botić 2017, 75, note 85). Consid-
et al. 2017) and sites such as Szederkény-Kukori- ering two published Sopot dates from Sormás–
ca-dűlő (Jákucs et al. 2016) and Versend-Gilenc- Mántai-dűlő site in Zala Conty (western Trans-
sa (Jákucs and Voicsek 2017) south-east of Pecs danubia), there must have been an earlier Sopot
in Hungarian Baranya appear at that time. The phase: VERA-3102, animal bone, 6115±35 BP,
former was dated between 5340–5315 BC and 5203–4984 cal BC (68.2%), 5208–4948 cal BC
5200–5180 BC, western part of the settlement (95.4%); VERA-3103, animal bone, 6045±50
containing Ražište pottery while eastern part BP, 5006–4849 cal BC (68.2%), 5198–4798 cal
contained Vinča A (both mixed with some LBK BC (95.4%) (Barna and Pásztor 2011, 189, Tab.
finds) (Jákucs et al. 2016, 278), while latter was 1). Again, this phase could have started around
dated between 5235–5215 BC and 5210–5195 BC, 5200 BC or slightly before in a core area which
western part containing Korenovo and Ražište would mean that Sopot culture spread quickly
finds while eastern part contained late Starče- to the west. There is, of course, possibility that
vo, early LBK and early Vinča finds (Jákucs and it wasn’t Sopot culture but rather Ražište type
Voicsek 2017, 176). Houses on both sites were that spread westwards around 5200 BC. In that
long houses of LBK type. case, appearance of Sopot culture in its core area
around 5200 BC is quite possible. Burić (2015,
Two questions remain open: the position of 151) considers eastern Slavonia, i.e. region be-
Korenovo culture and the appearance of classi- tween Bapska in the east, Vinkovci area in the
cal Sopot culture in the absolute chronological west and eastern Sava region in Bosnia in the
terms. For Korenovo culture only one partial south as a core area of Sopot culture while north-
date is known from northern Croatian territo-
ry which was published together with a few red
