EARLY BRONZE AGE BURIAL MOUNDS IN SOUTHEAST TRANSYLVANIA
EARLY BRONZE AGE BURIAL MOUNDS IN SOUTHEAST TRANSYLVANIA

Summary/Abstract: The Early Bronze Age (EBA) burial mounds of SE Transylvania are relatively less researched, compared to other regions of the Carpathian Basin, such as the Great Hungarian Plain or the Apuseni Mountains (Romania). This type of burial rite in the Late Copper Age – Early Bronze Age period is believed to originate from the north‑Pontic steppes (Yamnaya), although the presence of this group has not yet been proved in SE Transylvania. With just four cemeteries identified in the specialized literature (Ocland–Dealul Pietros, Brăduț–Dealul cu Cioturi, Dealul Rotund, Tortoma, Eresteghin–Zadogoș, Ariușd–Piatra Veghe), this deficiency is explained by historical events and the positioning of the mounds: these are found on higher grounds, on mountain ridges, which are rather difficult to access. Some of the known sites were already researched in the 19th century; however, significant new survey or excavation has been done more than a hundred years after their first discovery. The ongoing debate in the scientific community on some aspects of terminology and chronology of the archaeological cultures make interpretations difficult as well.

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