Pages: 257-272 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.55086/sp243257272

In different years, several dugout-type chambers were excavated on the ancient hillfort Kartal. The chambers are similar to each other and have an unusual design and interior. There are no publications about such complexes in the scientific literature. One distinctive feature of these chambers is that they each contain three hearths or stoves with sloping hearths. These structures discovered in Kartal belong to the settlement of the Getae culture and date back to the middle to the second half of the 4th century BC. A few possible functions of these structures were discussed when residential, productional, and cultural ones were successively excluded. It was concluded instead that they were most likely used for processing agricultural products, specifically for drying grain for storage or transportation. This interpretation aligns with the generally recognized agrarian dominant in the economy of the Getae.

Keywords: Kartal, Getae culture, dugout chamber, grain production

Information about author:

Igor Bruyako (Odessa, Ukraine). Doctor of Historical Sciences. South Ukrainian National Pedagogical University named after K.  D. Ushinsky. Staroportofrankovskaya St., 26, Odessa, 65000, Ukraine
E-mail: [email protected]
ORCID: 0000-0001-6359-2806