Pots for a purpose? Interdisciplinary analysis of small amphorae from the Late Bronze Age cemeteries of Maklár (Northeast Hungary)

Abstract

At the beginning of the Late Bronze Age (c. 1500 BC), the so‑called Tumulus culture/
phenomenon emerged across large parts of Central Europe, including the Great Hungarian Plain. In this region, profound changes occurred, including the abandonment of tell settlements, the emergence of new pottery styles and settlement organisation, and transformations in burial practices. Two contemporaneous cremation cemeteries dating to this period are known from the northern Great Hungarian Plain: Maklár‑Nagyrét II and Maklár‑Koszpérium. These sites are dated to c. 1500–1300/1200 BC (Br B2–C/D) and comprise both urn burials and scattered cremation graves containing diverse sets of vessels.
Among the most distinctive vessel forms is a group of small amphorae, represented by a range of shapes and decorative schemes at both sites. This paper presents a comprehensive analysis of these vessels, all of which exhibit traces of secondary burning. In addition to traditional archaeological and anthropological approaches, thin‑section petrography and X‑ray powder diffraction were employed to investigate their raw materials and firing history.
The results indicate that small amphorae were used throughout the entire Tumulus period and were deposited in the graves of both adults and children. Macroscopic observations suggest secondary burning, most probably on the funerary pyre during cremation, while raw material analyses indicate exposure to temperatures of approximately 850–900°C. All vessels were manufactured from broadly similar sandy clays, although minor compositional variations point to the involvement of multiple producers.