Vátyon középkori település mezőgazdaság-történeti kutatása non-destruktív módszerekre alapozott régészeti talajtani és régészeti növénytani adatok alapján
Agricultural history of the medieval settlement of Vátyon (Békés County, Hungary) based on the combination of non-destructive methods, pedological and archaeobotanical data

Summary/Abstract: In our research, we present the results of an interdisciplinary investigation of the medieval village of Vátyon, located near the village of Geszt in Békés County, Hungary. The aim of the research was twofold. In a methodological experiment, we wanted to combine non-destructive archaeological prospection methods (archaeological field survey and magnetometer survey) and geoarchaeological sampling methods in order to obtain anthropogenic sediment material without excavation, for further archaeobotanical analysis. The other aim was an agriculture historical interpretation based on the examination of the recovered archaeobotanical material and on the so-called flotation residues. The intensive surface survey yielded over 2,500 fragments of medieval pottery. A comprehensive typological, spatial, and statistical analysis of the ceramic assemblage, alongside the reconstruction of the settlement's spatial organization, will be addressed in a separate study. However, the spatial distribution and chronology of the finds, in conjunction with the results of the geophysical survey, have facilitated the localisation of the church, the main periods of the settlement's occupation, and provided an insight into the internal patterns of the settlement. With the help of the magnetometer and ground penetrating radar survey, not only the church and its surroundings, as well as several settlement objects (e.g. house foundations) became identifiable, but pit features were also designated. These were the subject of subsequent geoarchaeological soil drilling. After the so-called validation coring (augering) of the pits, we performed the sampling of the infill material using Edelman-type coring equipment. This semi-destructive method provided the opportunity to recover archaeobotanical remains from the infill of the pits. The absolute dating of charred cereal caryopses remains, ranging from the early 14th century to the first third of the 15th century, aligns with the settlement's period of activity as evidenced by both archaeological and historical data. Based on the remains of cultivated species (e.g. bread wheat, broomcorn millet, rye) discovered during the archaeobotanical investigation, it can be concluded that the population of Vátyon well adapted to the specific hydromorphic soil conditions and mosaic environmental conditions of the Kis-Sárrét at the beginning of the Little Ice Age. The results fit well both with the knowledge of the medieval agricultural history of the Carpathian Basin and with its environmental patterns from the Little Ice Age. The research contributes to the better understanding of the landscape use and settlement network of the Körös region, especially regarding the early stage of the Little Ice Age.

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