#Exhibit of the Month

The ceramic vessel set was discovered accidentally in October 2025 in the southwestern part of the village of Bălceana, Hâncești District, approximately 1.2 km from the Lăpușnița River. The archaeological materials were recovered by the National Archaeological Agency.

The ceramic assemblage consists of a large storage vessel (pithos) with a capacity of 20 litres (h = 39.2 cm; d = 35.0 cm), decorated with a raised band below the rim; a medium-sized bowl with a capacity of 2.5 litres (h = 16.9 cm; d = 23.2 cm); a medium-sized jug with a capacity of 0.6 litres (h = 12.0 cm; d = 13.4 cm); and the base of a jar-shaped vessel.

The coarse handmade pottery was produced using the coil-building technique, by stacking and shaping coils of clay prepared from a paste tempered with crushed fired clay (grog) and sand. The vessel surfaces are uneven and covered with a yellowish-red slip featuring black patches, while the core of the vessel walls is black in colour.

The three vessels preserved intact display well-defined biconical shapes, with their maximum diameter at the middle of the body and straight or slightly oblique rims with rounded edges. Pottery of this type is characteristic of the Early Medieval cultural area of the northern and northwestern Black Sea region, dating from the 5th to the 7th centuries. East of the Dniester River, on the territory of present-day Ukraine, analogous pottery is found in Penkovka-type settlements, while in the Carpathian-Dniester region it is characteristic of settlements belonging to the Costișa-Botoșana-Hansca cultural group.

Within the Prut-Dniester region, coarse biconical pottery is generally represented by fragments and only relatively rarely by complete vessels, such as those discovered at Hansca, Dănceni, Recea, Seliște, Păhărniceni, and other sites. This type of pottery constituted an indispensable component of the local material culture during the 5th-7th centuries. In this context, the discovery at Bălceana of an almost intact set of coarse biconical vessels represents a relatively rare find of considerable scientific importance.

According to certain hypotheses, the tradition of coarse biconical pottery dating to the 5th-7th centuries originated in the North Pontic region. At the same time, it cannot be ruled out that these biconical ceramic vessels were the result of contemporary ethnocultural interactions, developing simultaneously across the vast territory extending from the Carpathian Mountains to the Dnieper River and the Seversky Donets.

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Events Archive

Festive meeting dedicated to the Professional Day of Historians

June 18, 2022

On Saturday, June 18, 2022, the Blue Room of the National Museum of History of Moldova hosted the festive meeting dedicated to the Professional Day of Historians, established by the decision of the Government of the Republic of Moldova no. 427 of June 10, 2011. The event was attended by historians, teachers, ethnographers, museographers, archivists, students and history lovers.

The meeting was moderated by Prof. Anatol Petrencu, Dr. habil. in history (President of the Alexandru Moșanu Association of Historians of the Republic of Moldova) and Dr. habil. Gheorghe Cojocaru (Director of the Institute of History). The event was opened by Dr. Anatolie Topală, Minister of Education and Research, who in addition to the congratulatory message addressed to the community of historians assured them on behalf of the Ministry of supporting their activities, as well as supporting the growth and education of active and responsible citizens.

Greetings and congratulations were made by Dr. Igor Sharov (Rector of the State University of Moldova); Dr. habil. Liliana Condraticova (Secretary General of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova); Dr. Ludmila Chiciuc (Vice-Rector of the Bogdan Petriceicu Hasdeu State University in Cahul); Ghenadie Donos (President of the Trade Union Federation for Education and Research); Mr. Nicolae Ciubotaru (the Ion Creangă State Pedagogical University), and other representatives of research institutes, universities, agencies, museums, and so on. Livia Sîrbu, Deputy Director of the host institution, also delivered a message of greetings and wishes for great achievements, emphasizing the role of museums in promoting history and national values.

During the celebratory meeting, diplomas were awarded as a token of high appreciation for the fruitful activity in the field of history, as well as on the occasion of the Historian's Day.

During the celebratory meeting, as a sign of high appreciation for the fruitful activity in the field of history, as well as on the occasion of the Historian's Day, certificates of honor were awarded.

In addition, there was a presentation of the book "Republic of Moldova in search of identity" edited by Dr. habil. Anatol Petrencu and Ion Negrei, in which the proceedings of the conference dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Moldova were published.

The event ended with a wonderful artistic performance by the members of the Ștefan Neaga Center of Excellence in Art Education.

Historia est magistra vitae!