Pages: 397-406

The Dniester-Danube group of the Subbotsy type graves is noticeably geographically isolated from the main area of the early Magyar burials in the Northern Black Sea region. This makes it suitable in terms of studying the local characteristics of the material culture of the population.
The very rare finds of belt sets and harness ornaments is one of such conspicuous features. Despite the limited number of the toreutics objects from the Dniester-Danube group graves, they demonstrate heterogeneity, a mixture of two opposite cultural impulses. The first one is “Volga-Ural” impulse, it is represented by belt fittings from Slobodzeya grave 18, Buciumeni find and Răducăneni hoard. They repeat or imitate the types of belt sets from the outlet region of the early Magyar migration to the west. The second impulse — “Danubian” — is represented by a buckle from Slobodzeya grave 18, decorated by floral ornaments vessels No. 13, 14 and 20, 21 from the Nagyszentmiklós hoard, and by a strap-end from Buciumeni which imitates the decor of a strap-end from Mikulčice.
The appearance of the “Danubian” group of objects was the result of the interaction of the early Magyars with the local population, most likely, from the Bulgarian state, where several items of the “Nagyszentmiklós” style were also discovered. Written accounts confirm that such union did take place in 837, when the Magyars acted together with the Bulgarians against Byzantium.

Keywords: early Magyars, Subbotsy type graves, Nagyszentmiklós hoard, toreutics, belt sets

Information about author:

Oleksii Komar (Kyiv, Ukraine). Candidate of Historical Sciences. Institute of Archaeology, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. Geroev Stalingrada Ave., 12, Kyiv, 04210, Ukraine
E-mail: [email protected]