#Exhibit of the Month

The 21 beads form part of a bronze hoard found in 2019 within a forested area close to the town of Nisporeni. Alongside the beads, the hoard included numerous bronze ornaments (2 Röschitz-Sanislău-type fibulae, 7 necklaces, 12 rings, 22 tubes, 23 bracelets, and approximately 80 appliqués), one coral bead and a pendant made from a wild animal's tooth. At present, the amber beads are preserved in the collections of the Muzeul Național de Istorie a Moldovei, while the remainder of the hoard is in the possession of a private collector.
The hoard was discovered accidentally in a pit about 50 cm deep. The objects in this hoard are of Western origin, with known parallels in archaeological complexes from Poland, Hungary, Serbia, and Slovakia, and, to a lesser extent, in Romania. The presence of this bronze hoard on the territory of the Republic of Moldova illustrates the cultural dynamics of the region during the Early Iron Age and a fundamental shift in the vector of cultural influences from east to west.

The amber bead strand comprises 16 whole beads and five fragmentary ones. They have an elongated biconical shape and vary in size. The beads are brown-reddish in color; their lengths range from 1.1 to 3.1 cm, widths from 0.6 to 1.4 cm, thicknesses from 0.6 to 1.1 cm, and the perforation diameter ranges between 0.2 and 0.3 cm.
Amber beads appear in several bronze hoards dated to the Late Bronze Age in the eastern half of Slovakia and in Transdanubian Hungary. Parallels are also known from the Cioclovina Cave in Romania. With the onset of the Iron Age, amber items disappear from the Carpathian Basin for approximately 300 years, reappearing alongside the arrival of Scythian elements.
The bronze hoard discovered at Nisporeni is dated to the HaA2-HaB1-2 interval (1050/1000 - 800/750 B.C.).

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Exhibitions

"From the Past of Chisinau"

The National Museum of Archaeology and History of Moldova in collaboration with the Scientific Archives of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova, the Cultural Heritage Institute of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova, and the Institute of Zoology of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova organizes the exhibition "From the Past of Chișinău" dedicated to the celebration of the 575^th anniversary of the first documentary evidence about Chișinău. The exhibition presents the objects reflecting the history of Chișinău from ancient times to the early 19th century.

An important section of the exhibition presents the archaeological remains discovered in Chișinău. Among these there are objects found at Valea Morilor, which cover several historical periods, from Paleolithic to the 15th century; a hoard of tools dated from the Bronze Age; objects found near the Mazarache church. Many of these artifacts will be exhibited for the first time.

For years in the city area there were discovered many coins, in hoards or as individual finds, which evidence the trade activity of the market town. The exhibition includes coin hoards found in Chișinău, which are kept in the collections of the National Museum of Archaeology and History of Moldova

In medieval times Chișinău and places in its vicinity, which now are the parts of the city, have been mentioned in a great number of gospodars' papers, in which Chișinău was represented as a market town, as a property of the Galata and St. Paraskevi Monasteries from Iași, etc. In these acts there are also mentioned other owners of the town, as well as founders of churches who contributed to the development of Chișinău. The collection of such documents is kept in the Scientific Archives of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova and will be presented to the public in this exhibition. Most of these papers will be exposed for the first time.

Opening of the exhibition took place on Thursday, October 13, 2011, at the National Museum of Archaeology and History of Moldova, 121"A" 31 August 1989 St., (Room no. 1, ground floor).

In the framework of the event "Poșta Moldovei" SE presented a series of postcards and stamps dedicated to the anniversary.

#Exhibit of the Month

Exhibit of the Month Amber beads from a bronze hoard discovered near the town of Nisporeni

"From the Past of Chisinau"

#Exhibit of the Month