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.
Soviet propaganda posters of the Second World War in collections of the National Museum of History of Moldova
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. X [XXV], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
Keywords: collection, heritage, poster, propaganda, war. Abstract: This article is the result of studying the collection of Soviet propaganda posters of the Second World War from NMHM. During the research it was found that they are very different in content, format and design. Typologically they can be divided into two categories: posters made by using a stencil technique and printed posters. The number of stencil posters in the museum's collection is small - 50 objects; their theme is dedicated to the events of 1945 - the last year of the war. Most of the collection consists of printed posters. There are originals and copies multiplied during the war and after its end by tens of thousands of exemplars. It was found that the informative message of the posters varied depending on the situation at the front and in the rear. In wartime, the sole purpose of the posters was a justification for the war and denigrating the enemy. Their role has resulted in the mobilization of society against the enemy. At the same time the posters were a form of manipulation of citizens by the Soviet authorities; they concealed crimes and ugly phenomena that accompanied the Soviet policy throughout its existence.
List of illustrations: 1. Poster "From the speech of Comrade I.V. Stalin", 1941. 2. Poster "Mercilessly crush and destroy the enemy" by the Kukryniksy (Mikhail Kupriyanov, Porfiry Krylov and Nikolai Sokolov), 1941. 3. Poster "The Motherland Calls!" by I. Toidze, 1941. 4. Poster "Death to fascism!" by V. Vlasov, N. Pevzin, and T. Shishmareva, 1941. 5. Poster "Across the country, from end to end, girls-comrades-in-arms at their posts stand" by A. Deineka, 1942. 6. Poster "Comrades! Donate warm clothes for the Red Army!" by N. Baskakov, 1942. 7. Poster "Let's produce and give warm clothes to the front! Let's help the Red Army to destroy the German invaders!" by V.Biryukov, 1942. 8. Poster "Let's help the front by the participation in the second money and clothing lottery!", 1942. 9. Poster "The history of many German divisions" by Pankratov, 1944. 10. Poster "Revenge for them!" by N. Batolina, 1944. 11. Poster "Demolish the hydra" by P. Sargsyan, 1945. 12. Poster "So it will be with the fascist beast" by A. Kokorekin, 1945. 13. Poster "Inglorious end to the fascist aggressors" by V. Deni (Denisov), 1945. 14. Poster "Victory Day!" by B. Muhin, 1945.
Vera Stăvilă
Collection of anti-religious drawings and lithographs from the National Museum of History of Moldova
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. IX [XXIV], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie Chișinău, 2015
Vera Stăvilă
A forgotten painter – Nicolae A. Coleadici (1906-1937)
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. III [XVIII], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
Vera Stăvilă
Contribution to the study of the activity of the Chișinău orphanage “Children’s home”
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. I [XVI], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie Chișinău, 2007
Vera Stăvilă
The “Luceafărul” Republican Theatre for Children and Youth: Pages of History
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. V [XX], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
Vera Stăvilă
Concert posters from the National Museum of History of Moldova
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. VIII [XXIII], 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.