ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA TOMUS 5 (A MTA RÉGÉSZETI KÖZLEMÉNYEI, 1954)

5. kötet / 1-2. sz. - GY. MÉSZÁROS-L. VÉRTES: A Paint Mine from the Early Upper Palaeolithic Age near Lovas (Hungary, County Veszprém)

QY. MÉSZÁROS - L. VÉRTES The site itself, the dolomite gravel quarry, is a steep-walled pit, 3—4 metres deep, its entrance being 200 metres east of the Veszprém—Csopak highway. In 1951, at the time we examined it, While examining the site, it has been estab­lished that the wall of the pit containing colouring matter had been dug under while quarrying dolo­mite, the wall had caved in, and most of the debris had been carried away. At the time of our subsequent examination it was, therefore, difficult to ascertain the original features of the site. The quarrvmen present reported that during 1950 they came upon an unusually large cavity, 5—6 metres in diameter and about 5 metres in depth, which was filled with a crumbly, red-coloured material, finer in grain than the dolomite gravel. This layer was easily separated from the harder dolomite wall. Digging downwards in this apparently arti­ficial, crateriform cavity, beginning from a depth of some 3 metres animal bones, fragments of antlers and a boar's tusk had been unearthed. No other extraneous matter or striking feature, besides these bones, had been observed ; neither stone imple­ments nor hearth had been found, though there were sporadic finds of pieces of charcoal. Together with the examination of the site of pit No. 1, we undertook a close inspection of the whole territory of the gravel quarry. On the northern wall of this extensive system of pits thin layers of limonite came repeatedly to the surface without, however, showing any traces of prehistoric finds. But in the northern sector of most recent working, at the tapering end of the pit, in the upper third of a perpendicular, 3 metres high dolomite wall a nest-like red streak, 1 m deep, 1,20 m wide was discovered, under a layer of humus 50 — 60 cm in depth. The stratification of the red sediment, different in character from the undisturbed layers of gravel, warned us that in this layer we may expect to discover prehistoric finds. This point of the gravel quarry is situated to the NE of last year's site, at an angle of 50 degrees and a distance of 17 metres. By the time this new cultural layer was discov­ered, a considerable quantity of dolomite weathering its area covered 3600 square metres. Red bedding, containing limonite, has repeatedly been found in the quarry ; it has been dug out and used for painting houses and for ornamentation. It would have been important to clarify the relative position of this prehistoric pit to the ground level, the situation, shape, and measure­ments of the shaft leading down or, at least, its precise extent. But informations on these points lack precision. This is understandable since the workers engaged in quarrying dolomite gravel paid no special attention to the red layer which came to the surface ; this neglect is explained by the fact that red limonite nests, without any finds, had been found previously on the territory of the gravel pit. The only thing we could do was to examine thoroughly the limonitic matter found in the pit, which had been mixed and turned over previously. Only a few pieces of broken cortices were found, with old traces of breakage. We wish to point out, in this connection, that among the implements handed in there were several broken specimens showing fresh traces of fracture. The missing parts of these implements could not he traced. product, containing limonite, had been found at the foot of the wall rock, an indication that the red mineral matter has recently been quarried. On examining the fresh mound, we found in it a piece of charcoal as well as the fragment of a rib belonging to a fairly large mammal. We immediately started the work of excavation, partly standing on a ladder and digging in a per­pendicular direction, partly by means of a trench measuring 2 by 3 metres and dug from the surface. The dip, in shape originally like a swallow's nest, gave way to the pick easily and kept extend­ing in depth and width. The loose sediment which filled it seemed to crumble of itself, the pick was used only to scoop it out. But before the bottom of the surface trench could reach the level of the layer which contained the colouring matter, be­neath, at the side of the wall rock, progress in the hitherto loose soil was suddenly checked. After proceeding inward in a horizontal direction to a depth of some 60 centimetres, the trough-shaped 1. THE EXCAVATION OF PIT NO. 1 2. EXCAVATION OF PIT NO. 2

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