A New Bronze Age Mega-fort in Southeastern Europe: Recent Archaeological Investigations at Gradište Iđoš and their Regional Significance

ABSTRACT

A newly discovered network of later Bronze Age fortified sites of unusually large size are discussed, with a primary focus on results of excavations at the site of Gradište Iđoš. Closely associated with the rivers Mureš, Tisza, and Danube, these sites are located in the southeast of the Carpathian Basin in central Europe. On current evidence, the main period of construction and occupation took place between 1400–1100 b.c., probably constituting successor communities of the tell-centred societies of the Middle Bronze Age. Geophysical survey and excavation results from Gradište Iđoš, the largest site in this network in Serbia, are presented in this paper within their regional context. We discuss preliminary insights into the structural development of the site, alongside a correlation of new ¹⁴C dates with relative ceramic chronological markers and the results of faunal analysis. These results provide new perspectives on settlement systems at the dawn of Urnfield cultural traditions in this region.

KEYWORDS:

• Urnfield settlement
• Bronze Age fortifications
• Belegiš
• Gava
• mega-forts

Acknowledgements

This research was funded by the Serbian Ministry of Culture and Information and the European Commission through an ERC Consolidator Grant: “The Fall of 1200 BC” (GA#772753). DFG (German Research Foundation) Graduate School Project (GSC 208) titled ‘Human Development in Landscapes’ at the Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes on Contributors

Barry Molloy (Ph.D. 2006, University College Dublin) is Associate Professor at the UCD School of Archaeology, University College Dublin and is the Principal Investigator of the European Research Council Consolidator Grant funded (GA 772753) “The Fall of 1200 BC” project. He directs the Bronze Age fieldwork at the site of Gradište Iđoš. His research interests include European and Mediterranean Bronze Age, prehistoric conflict and violence, mobility and migration in prehistory, material culture research, settlement archaeology.

Dragan Jovanović (Magisterium 2010, University of Belgrade) is a Bronze Age material culture specialist at the City Museum, Vršac. His research interests include Bronze Age ceramics and metalwork of the Balkans and Carpathian regions, the archaeology of hoards and hoarding, and settlement archaeology.

Neda Mirković-Marić (Ph.D. 2016, University of Belgrade) works for the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments in Serbia and is director of the Gradište Iđoš excavation project. Her research interests are pottery studies, the Neolithic of the Balkans, experimental archaeology, and cultural heritage studies.

Miroslav Marić (Ph.D. 2016, University of Belgrade) is a Researcher at the Institute for Balkan Studies SANU in Belgrade and is the field director of the Gradište Iđoš project. His research interests include Settlement archaeology, Landscape archaeology, the Neolithic and Bronze Age of the Balkans, and radiocarbon dating.

Jelena Bulatović (Ph.D. 2018, University of Belgrade) is a Researcher at the Laboratory for Bioarchaeology, Department of Archaeology, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Belgrade and a specialist in zooarchaeology. Her research interests are in prehistoric animal management strategies and ancient dietary patterns.

Patrick Mertl (M.A. 2014, Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz) is a research assistant in the Institute for Prehistoric Archaeology at the University of the Saarland and a specialist in geophysical prospection.

Christian Horn (Ph.D. 2011, Freie Universität Berlin) is a Researcher at the Department of Historical Studies, The University of Gothenburg and is a specialist in prehistoric rock art, 3D modelling of heritage objects, Bronze Age archaeology, and warfare.

Caroline Bruyere (M.A. 2018, University of Sheffield) is a PhD candidate at the UCD School of Archaeology working on The Fall of 1200 BC project. She specializes in Bronze Age archaeology of southeastern Europe, settlement archaeology, archaeological survey, prehistoric metalwork, and stable isotope studies.

Lidija Milašinović (Magisterium 2008, University of Belgrade) is Director of the National Museum at Kikinda and a prehistoric archaeologist.

ORCID

Barry Molloy http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2493-8859

Miroslav Marić http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3787-7829

Jelena Bulatović http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0672-067X

Christian Horn http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8042-3748