Great Moravia

The study was published in the Proceedings of the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Brno. C. History Series. 1955, Vol. 4
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Die Studie wurde in den Proceedings der Philosophischen Fakultät der Universität Brno veröffentlicht. C. Geschichte Serie. 1955 Vol. 4

Тези доповідей наукового семінару присвячені актуальним питанням археології Буковини та сусідніх регіонів. Розглядається проблематика кам'яної доби, епохи палеометалу, раннього заліза, середньовіччя та раннього нового часу, а також історії вивчення, охорони та використання об'єктів археологічної спадщини, музеєфікації старожитностей краю. Результати досліджень представили науковці та краєзнавці з Чернівецької, Івано-Франківської, Львівської, Тернопільської областей, Києва, Ужгорода, Луцька, Кам'янця-Подільського (Україна), Кишинева (Молдова), Сучави (Румунія), Будапешта (Угорщина).

The submitted study analyses a part of the document The Deeds of Charlemagne. The report was written by Notker, the monk of St. Gallen abbey, in the end of 9th century. Notker´s narration about " The land of Huns " is underrated by the existing historiography for unrealistic description of Avar's settlements. Actually, the hidden message of Notker´s text, is significant for early medieval history of central Europe, especially for the Great Moravian period.

Early medieval cemetery in Dolní Věstonice - Na pískách (Břeclav district, South Moravia, Czech Republic) was used from 4th quarter of 8th century to the middle of 11th century. Systematic archaeological research took place in 1946-1959. With its 1300 graves the cemetery belongs to the largest cemeteries in the territory of the Great Moravia. The doctoral thesis comprises detailed archaeological analysis of all parts of material culture found in graves, attempt of the chronology of the iste, and contains also evaluation of the present state of early medieval chronology in Moravia.

Cílem příspěvku je definovat rozsah raně středověkého sídliště na lokalitě Břeclav-Líbivá. Na jaře roku 2007 zde byl proveden povrchový sběr v rámci analytických povrchových sběrů za účelem testování prediktivního modelu pro výzkum hospodářského zázemí raně středověkých center při sou-toku Moravy a Dyje, který zároveň navázal na archeologický výzkum z let 1995–1998. Sledovány budou zejména prostorové aspekty artefaktů, jejich rozptyl, koncentrace a fragmentarizace. Výsledky budou na závěr porovnány s geofyzikálním měřením, které proběhlo před povrchovým sběrem. Z lokality byl zpracován veškerý archeologický materiál. Největší část materiálu představoval soubor keramiky a dále kovové předměty, které byly vyhledávány detektorem. Na základě těchto dat byl definován rozsah sídliště v předvelkomoravském a velkomoravském stupni, kde lze pozorovat jistou návaznost osídlení. Centrum sídliště v obou fázích se nachází severně od odkryté plochy, výzkum tedy zachytil pouze jeho jižní okraj.
The aim of the paper is to define the extent of the early medieval settlement at Břeclav-Líbivá. Surface survey was carried out here in the spring of 2007 within the scope of an analytical surface survey, which should have tested a predictive model for the research into economic background of early medieval centres at the confluence of the rivers Morava and Thaya. This survey at the same time followed up the archaeological excavations in 1995–1998. Among the factors in question will mainly be spatial aspects of artefacts, their distribution, concentration and fragmentation. The results will finally be compared to geophysical measurement, which was carried out prior to surface survey. All archaeological finds from the site were analysed and evaluated. The major part of the material was represented by the pottery assemblage as well as by metal artefacts which were sought using a metal detector. These data helped to define the extent of the settlement in pre-Great Moravian and Great Moravian Periods, where a settlement continuity can be observed. The centre of the settlement in both phases is situated north of the excavated area. The archaeological research thus only captured its southern border.

In the last decades, historians intensely discussed the status of the Moravian prince Svatopluk I (871–894). All of them shared the idea that there was a clearly recognizable kingship in the ninth century with anointed and crowned kings. But the Frankish annalists called the Scandinavian princes kings, even though they were neither anointed nor crowned. To believe Frankish sources, however, means to accept their perspective, where there was only place for the Carolingian kings and where the princes were only obliged to obey them. Yet, in reality, the princes of the Moravians often followed their own interests and were respected partners of the Frankish kings. Culturally and socially, however, the world of the Frankish, Bavarian and Moravian leaders were closely connected. Therefore Svatopluk I might have been in one moment, especially in the confl ict with the East Frankish kingdom, an independent leader of the people from around the Morava River, Moravians, whereas in other situation, he might have presented himself as a member of the Frankish elites.

The Kiev Missal (or Kiev Fragments or Kiev Folios) is a seven-folio Glagolitic Old Church Slavonic canon manuscript containing parts of the Roman-rite liturgy. It is usually held to be the oldest and the most archaic Old Church Slavonic manuscript, and is dated at no later than the latter half of the 10th century. Seven parchment folios have been preserved in small format.

Kiev Folios were found in the 19th century in Jerusalem by the Archimandrite Andrej Kapustin (Antonin Kapustin), who donate

This paper discusses the pottery finds from the 2003-2005 excavation of the settlement at Pellendorf/Ga­ weinstal in the central eastern area of the Weinviertel district in Lower Austria. The early medieval settle­ ment was occupied from the 7 th to the 10 th centuries. The pottery finds from the 9 th /10 th century are characte­ rised by shapes typical of the Mikulčice and Blučina pottery groups and of the March pottery in southern Moravia, and thus revealing intensive contact to the Great Moravian centres on the River March in that period. The paper also mentions further sites with the same pottery in northern Lower Austria, which, taken as a whole, indicate that in the 9 th century the area was culturally, economically, and thus presumably also politically, closely connected to the Moravian Empire.

Výzkum sídlištní lokality Pellendorf/Gaweinstal ležící ve středu východní části oblasti Weinviertel (Dolní Rakousko) poskytl v letech 2003-2005 keramický materiál, který je diskutován v předložené studii. Sídliště bylo využíváno od 7. do 10. století. Keramika z přelomu 9. a 10. stol. se vyznačuje tvary a výzdobou, jež jsou typické pro soudobá velkomoravská centra na řece Moravě. Pozornost je věnována také dalším lokalitám v severní části Dolního Rakouska, z nichž pocházejí keramické nálezy obdobného charakteru. V celkovém pohledu tento nálezový inventář svědčí o úzkém kulturním, ekonomickém, a patrně i politickém propojení příslušných oblastí Dolního Rakouska s Velkou Moravou v 9. století.

""The aim of this paper is to present and interpret the finding situation around so-called north-western gate in the outer
bailey of the Great Moravian centre Mikulčice-Valy. In addition to the gate, this area revealed remains of a fortifi cation
wall and of a settlement, which was protected by the fortification wall. The analysed and interpreted finding situation
was surveyed in 1966 – 1968. The first sections of the paper define the objectives of the paper (chronology, structure,
decay of the fortification), introduces the method of revision processing (analysis of entities and qualities, spatial
analyses in the GIS environment) and describes the finding situation revealed in the monitored area. Then, the paper
focuses on the analysis of spatial relationships of documented contexts (stratigraphy). This analysis is a starting point
for a discussion with hypotheses about the chronology and construction of the gate and fortification wall published by
Z. Klanica, J. Poulík and B. Kavánová in the second half of the 20th century. Finally, the paper presents an interpretation
model about dating, construction and decay of the fortifications in outer bailey of the Mikulčice agglomeration.""

Great Moravia and Great Moravian Tradition of Generation of Kollár and Šafárik

This study focuses on factography and symbolism of Great Moravia in the works of Ján Hollý, Ján Kollár and Pavol Jozef Šafárik. It gives an insight in their the most important works for historism and historiography and tries to cast light on its connection to nationalism, Romanticism and forming of a modern nation. The analysis uncovered that main tendency of presented information about the Slavic empire was positive. All scholars believed to close interconnection between events of the 9th century and territory of Slovakia or straightly with Slovaks. The image of Great Moravia varied from historic Slovak kingdom to last Panslavic empire. They used similar heuristic base and showed sizeable knowledge of various sources and secondary literature. The distinction is visibly mostly in quantity and quality of the texts because references in Kollár’s works are only fragmentary; Hollý only wrote a few works and commentaries; Šafárik offered several times richer and more complex interpretation.

Key words: Great Moravia – Great Moravian tradition – Ján Hollý (1785–1849) – Ján Kollár (1793–1852) – Pavol Jozef Šafárik (1795–1861) – 19th century – Slovak historiography

Beginning of Late-Hillfort-Period Cemeteries in South Moravia. Article deals with the chronological analysis of the early medieval cemeteries in Dolní Věstonice, Holubice, Prušánky 2 and Diváky. Their Late-Hillfort phase (which brings the transformation of the burial rite nad material culture) beginns in the 1st quarter of the 11th century.

Резюме. Статья посвящена анализу ранее не публиковавшейся подписи к рисунку в рукописи Софийского собрания Российской национальной библиотеки № 84 и исследованию палеографических, орфографических и лингвистических особенностей этого кодекса. На основании палеографических данных Триодь Соф. 84 должна датироваться второй половиной XIV века. Отождествление одного из почерков данного кодекса с почерком Служебных миней из собрания Российского государственного архива древних актов Тип. 101, Тип. 106 и Тип. 111 позволяет поместить рукопись в круг псковских письменных памятников, включающий книги из известного скриптория Андрея Микулинского. Орфографический анализ представленных в Соф. 84 почерков подтверждает результаты палеографического исследования и показывает, что писцы большей части рукописи (до л. 199 и после л. 230) противопоставлены как консервативные для XIV в. писцам, переписывавшим л. 199-230. Возможно, переписчики "консервативной" части стремились точно передать орфографические особенности древнего антиграфа Триоди, восходящего, как полагают некоторые исследователи, к моравскому периоду развития славянской письменности; последний тезис подтверждается некоторыми западнославянскими языковыми чертами, сохраненными текстом Софийской триоди. Вместе с тем, у всех четырех книжников отмечены вкрапления фонетических диалектизмов: цоканье, жг на месте *zdj/*zg(i) и единичный пример соканья в первом почерке - важнейший аргумент в пользу псковского происхождения рукописи.

Ostentatious finger-rings from Early Medieval Moravia (9th-10th century). Remarks on chronology and origin of the Great Moravian luxurious jewellery.
This article deals with 29 Early Medieval finger-rings found, mostly in cemeteries, in Moravia (Czech Republic). They are made of gold, silver, gilded silver or gilded bronze. Each finger-ring consists of two parts – hoop and bezel – made of sheet metal and soldered together, and decorated with granulation, filigree, inlays of glass or semi-precious stones; only two finger-rings are cast as one piece. The finger-rings are classified into 8 types (A to H), some with subtypes. The author outlines the current state of chronology of Early Medieval jewellery in Moravia and discusses the dating of finger-rings: most of the precisely-datable pieces fall into the older period of the Great Moravian Empire, i.e. the first half of the 9th century. The main concern of the study is the question of the origin of Moravian finger-rings. The author sketches the current state of research of Early Medieval finger-rings in Central and South-eastern Europe (ca. 6th–12th century) and searches for parallels in the Moravian types. In Moravian material, he tries to identify structural and decorative elements that could distinguish imported pieces, their imitations and local products. However, in large measure the sorting of Moravian finger-rings into these three groups remains hypothetical. On the whole, it is evident that the finger-rings found in Moravian cemeteries are based on Mediterranean models. Probably the first specimens (or their immediate producers) came to Moravia in the 8th century, from Byzantine cities on the Adriatic coast, and local production of similar finger-rings in Moravian workshops followed soon afterwards.

Studie vychází z projektu „Hospodářské zázemí centra nebo jen osady v blízkosti zázemí centra?“ Grantové agentury ČR, který byl zaměřen na poznání nejbližšího okolí a zázemí velkomoravského opevněného centra na Pohansku u Břeclavi. Pomocí povrchové prospekce, mikrosondáží i archeologického výzkumu byla zkoumána a analyzována sídelní struktura v okolí lidnatého centra a její vývoj od starohradištního do mladohradištního období (od 8. do 12. století). Kromě hledání sídelní struktury byla sledována i problematika odhadu počtu obyvatel raně středověkého centra i jeho subsistenční strategie. Původní představy o síti zemědělských osad zásobujících obyvatele velkomoravského Pohanska byly kriticky revidovány. Byl představen nový model, který vychází z absence časově shodného osídlení, pokud jsme vůbec schopni takové v archeologickém materiálu identifikovat, kritické revize konstrukčních prvků tradičního modelu a nových, či doposud přehlížených dokladů aktivní účasti obyvatel centra na zemědělské činnosti.

The departure point of the study is the project “The Economic Hinterland of a Centre, or Mere Settlements in the Vicinity of a Centre’s Hinterland?” supported by the Grant Agency of the CR that explored the immediate surroundings and hinterland of the Great Moravian fortified centre of Pohansko, near Břeclav. The settlement structure in the vicinity of a densely populated centre and its development from the Early Hillfort period until the Late Hillfort period (8th – 12th centuries) were investigated by means of surface prospection, microprobes and archaeological research. Apart from defining the settlement structure, the number of inhabitants of the early medieval centre was estimated and the subsistence strategy of the population was examined. Earlier conceptions about a network of farming communities supplying the inhabitants of Great Moravian Pohansko were revised and a new model was introduced, based on the absence of chronologically parallel settlement (if this is at all possible to identify in the archaeological material), the revision of the construction elements of the traditional model and new or hitherto marginalized evidence of the active involvement of the centre’s inhabitants in farming.

This article considers the function of the Early Medieval centre at Pohansko near Břeclav. The source base and current state of knowledge regarding the site are briefly characterised. Discoveries made at Pohansko are presented in their broader context, and compared to similar sites elsewhere in Early Medieval Europe. The site is interpreted as a munitio, emporium and palatium of the Moravian Early Medieval rulers. It played an important role in the "mobilisation" of wealth and in the control of territory. Its origin is related to a so-called cyclical chiefdom.

Pokračování diskuse o raně středověké státnosti na Velké Moravě reaguje na příspěvky D. Kalhouse, N. a M. Profantových a I. Štefana. Zabývá se otázkami metodologickými, trhem a směnnými prostředky, funkcí Pohanska u Břeclavi a dalších velkomoravských hradisek, zdaněním společnosti, obchodem s otroky, pozemkovým vlastnictvím, postavením vládnoucích rodů, hranicemi Velké Moravy a v neposlední řadě i zánikem této „říše“, jehož příčiny jsou pro pochopení charakteru tehdejší společnosti klíčové. Předložená argumentace se opírá především o archeologické prameny.

On the subject of Great Moravia, early medieval archaeology and archaeologists in general.
The article,acontinuation of the discussion on early medieval statehood in Great Moravia, addresses methodologicalquestions, the market, exchange resources, the function of Pohansko near Břeclav and other Great Moravian fortified settlements, the taxation of society, the slave trade, land ownership, the standing of the ruling families, the borders of Great Moravia and finally the demise of this ‘empire’, the causes of which are of great importance in understanding the nature of society at the time. The following argumentation is based  primarily on archaeological sources.

Processes of identification were mostly studied on “barbarians” of late antique and early medieval post-Roman Europe. This book focuses on the polity of medieval inhabitants of Czech lands and examines, if the methodology developed by a Viennese group of scholars is also usable on high medieval central Europe. It shortly introduces and contextualises the beginnings and functioning of the Přemyslid principality in the Czech lands. An important layer of identification is an external image. Therefore, the image of that area and of its rulers and inhabitants, Bohemi, in medieval narratives written within the borders of Holy Roman Empire is analysed with the focus on its dynamics and main trends. This imagination of Bohemi is contextualized in each written source and compared with the image of Bohemi in the chronicles written in the Přemyslid principality. Both levels of comparison make it possible to understand the communication between those groups of texts and their intended recipients. In the next chapter, the communication between the Přemyslid principality and the Holy Roman Empire is analysed based on the St.-Wenceslas cult. This Přemyslid prince († 935) and soon patron saint of Bohemi and their principality became hero of seven legends until 1150. As he was also venerated outside the borders of the Přemyslid principality, the analysis of concrete material evidence of his cult offers another insight into the communication channels between the Czech lands and the rest of Europe. It, too, enables to identify especially those regions which had stronger links to the Czech lands and which seemed to be a bridge between them and the Holy Roman Empire. Finally, because historiographical narratives may become a powerful catalyst of self-identification, the author scrutinizes the possible impact of written texts on Bohemian elites. Based on this analysis, three historiographical narratives are observed and their importance for the self-identification of these elites is evaluated.

The work is conducted in two parallel research lines, whose goals complement and overlap. The first part of the work is of a theoretical nature, which concentrates and evaluates the state of research of the equestrian graves in question from the multidisciplinary point of view of selected humanities and natural sciences, which have contributed most to the development of the research. Namely, history, archeology, experimental archeology, bioanthropology, archaeozoology, paleopathology and archaeogenetics. The acquired knowledge is continuously applied and confronted in the second part of the work of a practical nature. This is a case study that analyzes Hungarian equestrian graves from the territory of today's Slovakia. This sample was artificially excluded from the area of the Carpathian Basin both due to the scope of work, but also due to the absence of work of this nature in the Slovak archaeological records. Subsequent linking of research results aims to give the reader a comprehensive view of the state of research of Hungarian equestrian graves, provide a detailed map and catalog corpus of monitored graves and sites from today's Slovakia, point out the problems of archaeological, interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary research on this topic, and at the same time postulate possible perspectives for the solutions of this problem.

The paper presents a compilation of the current knowledge on the so called ‘blatnica deposit’ and its individual components, extended by a series of my own studies dedicated particularly to the gilded set of bronze fittings. The article is divided into two main parts: the first one presents a more focused perspective on the issue and provides all the necessary pieces of information about each part of the deposit together with respective chronological and stylistic findings. The second part, on the other hand, introduces a broader perspective, embedding the history of the deposit and studies on it in the methodological context proposed by Thomas S. Kuhn. Based on the kuhnian model of science and the concept of paradigm i have analysed and then decomposed the so called Blatnica-Mikulčice horizon concept that proved to be based, at best, on some misunderstandings or, at worst, on a hoax. Detailed typological and stylistic analyses of these items became a starting point for re-evaluation of their chronology and led me to draw a conclusion that the youngest
components of the deposit cannot be older than the second third of the 9th  century. Both the archive query and the analysis of archaeological sources seem to disprove arguments used to support the hypothesis that the ‘Blatnica collection’ served as equipment of a nobleman grave. Most probably it was only a loose collection of relics co ming from different and so far unknown sources, later transferred in bulk to the museum. Therefore it seems reasonable to conclude that the source value of the ‘Blatnica relics’ has long been overestimated and in any case should no longer serve as a chronological benchmark for other archaeological materials.

Ungerman, Š. 2021: Frühmittelalterliche Ohrringe mit vier Blechbeeren in Nord-, Mittel- und Südosteuropa. Eine Fallstudie zur Entstehung des grossmährischen Prachtschmucks (Raně středověké náušnice se čtyřmi bubínky v severní, střední a jihovýchodní Evropě. Případová studie ke vzniku honosného velkomoravského šperku). Spisy Archeologického ústavu AV ČR Brno 69. Brno: Archäologisches Institut der Akademie der Wissenschaften der Tschechischen Republik, Brno.

you can buy the book (192 pages, hardcover, 14 €) here:  https://www.arub.cz/en/produkt/fruhmittelalterliche-ohrringe-mit-vier-blechbeeren-in-nord-mittel-und-sudosteuropa

The starting point of the study is the analysis of four-beaded earrings from Bohemia, Moravia, Slovakia and Lower Austria. Luxury pieces, made of gold or silver and decorated mainly with granulation and filigree, are divided into eight variants; the ninth variant is represented by cheaper bronze pieces. Most of the specimens were found in the 9th-century Great Moravian burial grounds, only a few pieces dated to the 10th century come from southern Slovakia. The main attention is paid to the origin of individual variants. To this end, the author summarizes the state of knowledge about four-beaded earrings occurring on the vast territory from Sweden to Greece and dated to the 9th–12th centuries. He pays attention to the similarities and differences in their construction and decoration compared to the assemblage from the territory of former Czechoslovakia and Lower Austria. The author concludes that the four-beaded earrings from Central and Southeastern Europe are based on Byzantine models. Earlier theories about the far-reaching influence of Great Moravia on jewellery production in the neighbouring regions can no longer be supported. On the basis of construction and decoration features, it is possible to distinguish between an earlier group of specimens, which is so far documented in Moravia, Lower Austria, Dalmatia and Serbia, and a later group, which is widespread in all parts of the studied area. The four-beaded earrings thus clearly demonstrate how attractive Byzantine jewellery was to elites in other parts of Europe, as Byzantine designs have been imitated and developed over a long period of time.

The collapse of the polity which Byzantine Emperor Constantine
VII Porphyrogennetos called ‘megale Moravia’
is undoubtedly one of the most noteworthy problems of
Central European history of the Early Middle Ages i.a.
also because it has no equivalent wide and far. How is it
possible that the still recently prospering society could entirely
disintegrate in a short timeframe? Through a structural
analysis of the Great Moravian polity, the author
attempts to show that the collapse at the beginning of the
tenth century was closely tied to its fragile socioeconomic
foundations and endeavours to offer an explanation for
the subsequent resignation on the renewal of the ‘Great
Moravian project’ as well. At the end, the study asks the
question of what level of complexity Great Moravia actually
attained, to what extent its structure built on foreign
models and what legacy it left in Central Europe.

Ungerman, Š. 2018: Frühmittelalterliche Schlaufenohrringe mit Drahtanhängern oder Kettchen. In: Daim, F. – Heher, D. – Rapp, C. (Hrsg.), Menschen, Bilder, Sprache, Dinge. Wege der Kommunikation zwischen Byzanz und dem Westen 1: Bilder und Dinge. Studien zur Ausstellung »Byzanz & der Westen. 1000 vergessene Jahre«. Byzanz zwischen Orient und Okzident 9, 1. Veröffentlichungen des Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Mainz. Mainz: Verlag des Römisch-Germanischen Zentralmuseums, 9-43.


Article deals with the Early Medieval earrings with loops on the lower half of the hoop.

Predmetom výkladu sú severné regióny stredného Podunajska v období včasného stredoveku z pohľadu výsledkov súčasného archeologického bádania. Vysokoškolská učebnica prináša charakteristiku kultúrno-historického vývoja sledovaného územia s osobitným dôrazom na tie archeologické pramene, ktoré sú kľúčové pre periodizáciu včasného stredoveku. Odlišnosti medzi jednotlivými časťami záujmového priestoru vystihuje rozdelenie do troch samostatných geografických celkov (juhozápadné Slovensko, južná a stredná Morava, rakúske Naddunajsko). Prehľad vývoja je členený do štyroch periodizačných stupňov, zohľadňujúc špecifiká jazykového prostredia a zaužívanej terminológie.

Calf strap mounts in Early Medieval Moravia. In some early medieval male graves in South Moravia (Czech Republic) metal mounts (buckles, strap-slides and strap-ends) were found at knee and calf level. They served for the fastening of leather straps tied cross-way around the calves over trousers, to hold up puttees or greaves (made from organic materials). Such graves are dated to the 9th or 10th centuries. The habit of fitting calf straps with mounts comes from western Europe: the earliest finds of analogical sets come from late Merovingian male graves; they were in use till the Carolingian and Ottonian period, only then they were no longer put into graves. The Moravian fittings and sets are divided into 5 groups based on the materials used and decoration techniques. Dating, provenance (some of them are Carolingian imports), practical vs. representative function, the location of graves and other grave goods (e.g. weapons) are analyzed; based on this analysis the social position of the men and boys buried can be ascertained.

The paper discusses the appearance of the Great Moravian warriors’ swords and fo cuses on sets of strap and belt fittings used to fasten the swords. It also comments on other elements decorating sword scabbards used in Great Moravia in the 9th and at the beginning of the 10th century. The paper analyses the composition of the sword sets known from Great Moravia in the context of a wider typology and chronology of finds from European areas under the influence of the Carolingian culture between the beginning of the 9th century and the 1st half of the 10th century.

The paper presents some remarks on the chronology and spatial distribution of the Late Avar, Carolingian, and Great Moravian finds in selected areas of the Western Slavic Territories. The main subject of this paper is to analyse a particular item found in Haliczany, Chełm County in Poland. The fitting from Haliczany has already been subjected to typological and chronological analyses twice. In each case, however, it led the authors to entirely different conclusions and since the space for its interpretation remains broad, it requires some clarification. The purpose of the study is to indicate possible origins of the fitting from Haliczany in terms of both typology and the route it travelled to finally reach the areas of today eastern Poland. There are two competing explanations that are examined in this paper concerning either Carolingian or nomadic origins of the item in question. In the methodological dimension, the paper provides arguments in favour of considering even single finds in a context broader than only stylistic speculations, including also cultural, historical, and when possible also ‘geopolitical’ determinants.

obrázky a literaturu viz v Ungerman, Š. 2021: Frühmittelalterliche Ohrringe mit vier Blechbeeren in Nord-, Mittel- und Südosteuropa. Eine Fallstudie zur Entstehung des grossmährischen Prachtschmucks. Spisy Archeologického ústavu AV ČR Brno 69. Brno: Archäologisches Institut der Akademie der Wissenschaften der Tschechischen Republik, Brno.

Východiskem studie je analýza náušnic se čtyřmi bubínky z Čech, Moravy, Slovenska a Dolního Rakouska. Honosné kusy, zhotovené ze zlata nebo stříbra a zdobené hlavně granulací a filigránem, jsou rozděleny do osmi variant; coby devátá varianta byly vyčleněny levnější výrobky z bronzu. Většina exemplářů byla nalezena na velkomoravských pohřebištích (9. století), pouze z jižního Slovenska pochází několik kusů datovaných do 10. století. Hlavní pozornost je věnována původu jednotlivých variant. Za tím účelem autor sumarizuje stav vědomostí o náušnicích se čtyřmi bubínky od Švédska po Řecko a sleduje shody i rozdíly v jejich konstrukci a výzdobě oproti souboru z území bývalého Československa a Dolního Rakouska. Dospívá k závěru, že náušnice se čtyřmi bubínky z celé střední a jihovýchodní Evropy vycházejí z byzantských předloh. Starší názory o dalekosáhlém vlivu Velké Moravy na šperkařskou produkci v okolních zemích dnes již nelze obhájit. Na základě konstrukčních a výzdobných znaků je možné rozlišit starší skupinu exemplářů, která je zatím doložena ve středním Podunají, v Dalmácii a v Srbsku, a mladší skupinu, která je s výjimkou dnešní Moravy rozšířena ve všech částech zpracovaného území. Náušnice se čtyřmi bubínky tak jasně dokládají, jakou přitažlivost mělo byzantské šperkařství pro elity v ostatních částech Evropy, neboť byzantské vzory byly napodobovány a rozvíjeny po dlouhou dobu.

The paper analyses components of early medieval burial equipment from grave 23 in Závada, district Topoľčany/SK after restoration that took place in 2017. The grave contained a type X sword, a pair of spurs, an incomplete set of sword belt fittings and a knife. Formerly accepted dating of the items found in grave 23, based on the concept of the Blatnica-Mikulčice Horizon, determined the chronology of the grave back to the first third of the 9 th century. However, based on more recent finds about the chronology of an equestrian's equipment, the chronology of the assemblage should be shifted rather to the period between the mid-9th century and the beginning of or even the mid-10th century.

The main objective of the article is to determine the territorial scope of the Great Moravian territory of Nitra based on an analysis of archaeological sources. Specific cultural manifestations identified in the focal area of the Danube lowland delimit the studied territory from the settlement of adjacent regions of Slovakia and from the central settled territory in the Morava River basin. An interpretation of the results, supported by a comparison with written sources and linguistic data a new view of the social-political identity of the Nitra population.