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.
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. I [XVI], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie Chișinău, 2007
In the 70-ies of the 20th century two medieval monetary and ware hoards were accidentally unearthed. The first treasure was found near Sîngerei town, Sîngerei district and contained four pieces of jewellery and twenty nine coins. The other hoard was discovered at Hîjdieni village, Glodeni district and contained four objects and three coins.
The hoard from Sângerei includes 26 Lithuanian coins: 2 half groshes of Alexander’s I emission of 1495-1501, 6 half groshes of Sigismund II; 16 half groshes and 1 grosh of Sigismund II; a three grosh coin of Sigismund III Wasa. Prussia is represented by a grosh of the time of Albrecht I. Mariengrosh (1553) and a thaler of the time of Rudolf II emitted in 1597 represent Göttingen and Lübeck which were parts of the German Holy Roman Empire. Therefore, the half grosh of Alexander I coined in 1495-1501 is the earliest coin of the Sîngerei treasure. Thaler of the time of Rudolf II emitted in 1597 is the latest of the coins. Judging by that the objects of this hoard may be presumably dated to the end of the 15th -16th c., and the hoard could be dated to the end of the 16th century.
Coins from Hîjdieni village include two leeuwendaalders minted in Utrecht (United Provinces) in 1647 and 1648, and 28 Stubers of Emden town (German Holy Roman Empire) minted during the rule of Friedrich III (1637-1668). The fourth coin is a Lithuanian shilling of the time of Ian Kazimir Wasa (1648-1668) emitted in 1652.
In this period foreign and internal policy of Moldova substantially depended on relations with Turkey and Poland. The war of 1593-1606 in which Moldova was involved lead to destructive devastations which caused anti-Turkish protests. A military conflict of 1648-1654 between Poland and the revolted Cossacks of Bogdan Hmelnitskiy substantially affected the territory of Moldova and lead to its devastation and famine of 1650. These events could possibly be the reason for placing of the two hoards.
Анна Никулицэ
Golden and silver adornment objects discovered at the Aeneolithic and Bronze Age monuments (on the materials from the NMAHM collections
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. III [XVIII], nr. 1, Arheologie. Istorie Antică
Ana Niculiță
Regarding two medieval coin hoards from Florești district, Republic of Moldova
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. II [XVII], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
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 National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.