#Exhibit of the Month

This clay vessel was discovered in 1982 by archaeologist V. Sorochin during excavations of a burial mound (no. 1) located in the village of Speia, Dubăsari District. It originates from grave no. 5 and is dated to the 4th millennium BC, belonging to the Usatovo culture.
The vessel was found in a child's grave. The burial pit had an oval shape, and the deceased was laid in a crouched position (similar to the fetal posture), on the left side. A total of five vessels were uncovered in this grave: three near the back, one at the feet, and one in the pelvic area.
The cultural attribution of this funerary complex was determined based on the burial rite and grave goods. This culture is characterized by the specific construction of the burial pit, as well as the positioning and orientation of the deceased toward the east and northeast.

The vessel is shaped from clay mixed with finely crushed shell. Its walls curve gradually toward the top, with the widest diameter at the shoulder area. It has a short neck, a slightly flared rim, and a flat base. The surface is carefully polished, in some areas to a lustrous finish. The interior is reddish-brown, while the exterior is yellowish-brown with gray spots. The rim features groups of perforations, three of which are preserved in their original state. The diameter of the holes is 0.35 cm. The space between the groups of perforations is decorated with cord impressions. The transition from the neck to the shoulder is adorned with three horizontal lines made with cord, from which, in five places, three vertical lines descend, each 5 cm long, executed using the same technique. At the time of discovery, these lines were filled with a white paste. The space between the groups of lines is decorated at the top with short vertical lines (0.5 cm long), and in the center with a meander ornament made of two parallel lines impressed with cord. The base of the vessel retains the imprint of a textile.
Vessel dimensions: Height: 22 cm; Rim diameter: 15.7 cm; Maximum diameter: 22 cm; Base diameter: 10 cm.

Virtual Tour

Exhibitions

“Childhood in the Gulag”

“Iuliu Maniu” Memorial House in Bădăcin (Romania)

March 7 – May 10, 2024

On March 7, 2024, the Museum of Victims of Deportations and Political Repressions of the National History Museum of Moldova, in partnership with colleagues from the "Iuliu Maniu" Memorial House in Bădăcin (Sălaj county, Romania) and the County Museum of History and Art - Zalău (Romania), organized a new opening of the photo-documentary exhibition "Childhood in the Gulag" (curator Dr. Ludmila D. Cojocaru). The event took place within the commemorative actions devoted to the Day of Anti-Communist Political Detainees from the period 1944-1989, marked in Romania on March 9.

The exhibition "Childhood in the Gulag" presents photo-documentary images that reflect the life of Bessarabian children condemned to deportation, starvation, Russification, indoctrination and forced separation from their own families based on the repressive policies of the totalitarian-communist regime in the Moldavian SSR, in the period 1940-1941 and 1944-1953. The exhibition brings together about 180 photo-documentary images, accompanied by memories and archival documents from the collections of the National History Museum of Moldova, the Edineț County Museum, the Museum of History and Ethnography in Soroca, the Pro Memory Institute, from the archives of the memory communities, as well as the family archives of the victims of the totalitarian-communist regime in the Moldavian SSR.

The event was attended by Dr. Marin Pop, head of the Museography Section of the County Museum of History and Art - Zalău, Mr. Gheorghe Bancea, sub-prefect of Sălaj County, Mr. Paul Maghiu, administrator of Sălaj County, Dr. Ana-Maria Borz, museographer at the "Iuliu Maniu" Memorial House, and via video - the curator of the exhibition conf. Dr. Ludmila D. Cojocaru, from the Museum of Victims of Deportations and Political Repressions, branch of the National History Museum of Moldova. Among those present at the Opening were school teachers and students from the "Simion Bărnutiu" National College, the "Horia" Secondary School, and the "Silvania" Secondary School from Salaj county.

The exhibition can be visited at the "Iuliu Maniu" Memorial House in Bădăcin, Sălaj county (Romania) until May 10, 2024.

The photo-documentary exhibition "Childhood in the Gulag" was elaborated with the support of "The Development Cooperation and Democracy Promotion Programme" of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania.