Kiskőrös - Avars on the asparagus field

A couple of years ago, a development-led excavation was conducted in the built area of Kiskőrös. We were halfway unearthing the features of an exquisite Copper Age settlement when a young man from the local construction workers (who were closely watching our progress from the beginning) presented us with a few arrow points in quite good condition and some Avar mounts, which he reported to have found on an asparagus field on the outskirts of the settlement. He led us to the findspot, and we conducted a metal detector-aided field walking survey on the loose, sandy terrain.

We observed several find concentrations and opened small test trenches to investigate them, only to reveal that no detectable archaeological feature belongs to any of them. We could, however, determine that landscaping has transformed the area significantly since the Avar Period. All recovered objects were found in a secondary position, that is, dislocated from their original context—they could even come from a nearby sand quarry, with the sand used for filling some depressions, and the whole cemetery is (or was) somewhere else.

The extent, dating, and location of the presumed cemetery could not be determined; based on the obtained items, the disturbed site must be a rich Avar Period cemetery which remained in use for a long time, as evidenced by the gold-foiled pressblech braid rings and belt mounts, the ornate bone plates of bows, the cast mounts decorated with gryphons, the sword, and the many arrow points.