164 Aurel Rustoiu Recently I have comprehensively discussed the problem of the grave with helmet from Ciumeşti 21 . After analysing the entire ‘archaeological dossier’ my conclusion was that the burial is quite clearly of cremation in a pit. The burnt traces are missing on several objects (helmet, greaves and javelin head), while the chainmail was fol<strong>de</strong>d before being placed in the pit. These observations suggest that some of the grave goods did not accompany the <strong>de</strong>ceased on the pyre, being laid in the pit separately from the cinerary remains. Chronologically an early dating in the 4 th century BC cannot be sustained anymore. The analysis of the funerary inventory indicates that the dating should be placed in the La Tène B2b–C1 sub-phases, or more likely only in the La Tène C1. At the same time, the presence of the iron chainbelt ma<strong>de</strong> of eight-shaped segments, commonly encountered in feminine graves from the Carpathian Basin, suggests a double burial. Another important aspect concerns the ‘i<strong>de</strong>ntity’ of the warrior interred at Ciumeşti. The rich funerary inventory indicates that the <strong>de</strong>ceased was an important person in the local community, a representative of the warlike Celtic elites from the Carpathian Basin of the second half of the 3 rd century BC. More than that, the mentioned recent analysis suggests that the warrior from Ciumeşti was a mercenary on the battlefields from the eastern Mediterranean in a period in which the recruitment of Celtic troops by various Hellenistic rulers became a habit. In this context the presence of the bronze greaves in the assemblage of military equipment is relevant. These pieces were each ma<strong>de</strong> from a single sheet of bronze (with a high percentage of tin). They were carefully hammered to copy the anatomic <strong>de</strong>tails of the legs 22 (Fig. 4). Similar items, ma<strong>de</strong> according to the anatomic characteristics of the owner, appeared in Greece at the end of the Archaic period, and were used during the Classical period 23 and occasionally later in the Hellenistic times 24 . The right greave from Ciumeşti, better preserved, has a length of 46 cm 25 , which suggest a tall owner of about 1.80–1.90 m. For example the greaves from Olympia (dated to the Classical period) have lengths of about 39–41 cm 26 , pointing to some anthropological differences between the two mentioned regions. These greaves were not simple ‘imported’ goods. J. V. S. Megaw noted four <strong>de</strong>ca<strong>de</strong>s ago that they have a Hellenistic origin and seem to be ‘the prize of some foray into the southern Balkans’ 27 . Still, their manufacturing required the precise measurements of the dimensions and anatomic characteristics of the owners, and this could have only been done by specialised craftsmen. The two gil<strong>de</strong>d greaves from the so-called grave of Philip II from Vergina, which have 21 RUSTOIU 2006; RUSTOIU 2008, 13–63. 22 RUSU 1969, 278–279, Fig. 6; RUSU/BANDULA 1970, 8, 13, Pl. 13. 23 KUNZE 1991, 76–80 (gr. IV); JARVA 1995, 96–97 (the anatomy group). 24 See for example the finds from the northern Black Sea region: GALANINA 1965. 25 RUSU 1969, 279, Fig. 6; RUSU/BANDULA 1970, 8, Pl: II; XIII. TELEAGĂ 2008, 442, no. 953, lists a length of 42 cm and 42.5 cm respectively (!?). I am won<strong>de</strong>ring if these differences are resulting from the way in which the artefacts were restored in the laboratory and preserved in the stores of the Museum of Baia Mare during the last <strong>de</strong>ca<strong>de</strong>s (some differences can be observed between the images published by M. Rusu and the more recent ones). Still, even if the new dimensions are taken into consi<strong>de</strong>ration, the greaves from Ciumeşti are amongst those which exceed the upper limit of the size of similar artefacts from the Mediterranean region. 26 KUNZE 1991, 117–120. Some pairs of greaves which exceed the size of the commonly found ones in the Greek region are also known from graves from the northern Pontic region, dated to the 4 th –3 rd centuries BC. For example in different graves from Pervomaevka they have a length of 46–46.5 cm, while in another grave from Kertch they reach a length of 47 cm. On the other hand there are also pairs of greaves which are well below the limit. For example a pair of greaves from Aksjutincy has a length of only 33 cm (ČERNENKO 2006, 102–103, no. 649, 666–667, 681). All these variations <strong>de</strong>monstrate a wi<strong>de</strong> range of anthropological dimensions which had to be taken into consi<strong>de</strong>ration by the craftsmen who ma<strong>de</strong> such objects. 27 MEGAW 1970, 133 no. 211.
Commentaria Archaeologica et Historica (I) 165 Fig. 4. Greaves from Ciumeşti. County Museum of History and Archaeology, Baia Mare (photos Zamfir Şomcutean Baia Mare).
Change language