The investigation concerns vessels that are decorated with oval facets, which were found in closed grave contexts. Thereby the question is discussed whether portery with this kind of omament can be designated as a chronologi· cal indicator. Oval facets are found foremost on bowls and pitchers as well as on jugs and some beakers, found in the entire area of the Santana de Mure~ Cernjachov culture. A total of 65 graves were studied, whose ceramic inventory contained mostly one vessel, or a maximum of three vessels, that were decorated with oval facets. The majority of the graves are inhumations, which are oriented north-south; only few graves are cremations. The burials are often furnished with many grave goods, with an average of 8.5 vessels in each.
In the study, the grave complexes were c1assified into two categories and individual groups, according to the numo ber and diagnostics of objects. Grave complexes of category 1, weU datable by other grave goods, point to their date to the transitional horizon from the younger Imperial Roman period to the early Migratíon period, that is, phase 5 of the Cernjachov culture according to E. lo Gorochovskij, or to the end of level C3 and the beginning of level Dl according to J. Tejral. Graves that indicate a broader date are also assigned to this time. However, there is no secure proof that this decoration first appeared after the beginníng of the Mi· gration periodo In the middle of phase S, that is, around the beginning of the 2nd decade of the Sth century AD, this decoration disappeared in the area of the Cernjachov culture. In view of its temporaUy Iimited appearance, pottery with oval·facet decoration serves as a chronological indicator for this area and, thus, enables settlements and other find complexes to be dated to the end of the 4th and the begin· ning of the Sth century AD.
Aside from the area under study here, oval-facetted pottery is found further in Tanais, where it is associated with a population group of the Cernjachov culture. In addition, it is also present in Central Europe and England, where it was common for an even longer time. Corre· spondingly, the mode of decorating pottery with oval fa· cets was distributed in very different areas, in some cases areas that were not at aH interconnected. The pottery can be traced back to Roman prototypes, especiaHy to glass vessels with engraved ovals and similarly decorated metal vessels. The decorative motif of oval facets was then adapted by the respective local spectrum of pottery and, thereby, adjusted to meet individual tastes.
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