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. IX [XXIV], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie Chișinău, 2015
Abstract
This article is the result of research of the museum's collection of postcards on the theme of the First World War, which was carried out in connection with the centenary since the war began.
At the present stage of the evolution of historical science a special role belongs to the documentary sources that had previously been "less required", including illustrated postcards. At the beginning of the 20th century postcards know peak of their evolution. Being very popular, mobile and accessible, during the war they fulfilled several functions. In addition to performing the functions of postal items, they become an accessible form of propaganda and a source of supplementing military budget.
The collection of picture postcards relating to the First World War comprises three categories of documents. The first one includes black-and-white postcards with representations of weapons and ammunition, scenes of the battlefield, soldiers' lives in their leisure hours, the work of the military medical service, life behind the front.
The second category includes illustrated postcards calling on the public to support the army. These are color postcards of high quality, with a lot of printed text on the back side, containing, in addition to the publisher's data, the call to the public to support the army in the fight against the enemy.
The third category contains postcards with caricatures, which occupied a special place during the First World War, as they were used as an effective weapon against the enemy, the propaganda support both on the battlefield and in the rear.
Chronologically, these postcards were printed and circulated between 1914 and 1916. There are cards with blackand-white and color images that were printed in Russia by printing houses and private publishers, Red Cross soci eties, as well as the Moscow satirical magazine "Novoe Krivoe Zerkalo" ("New Distorting Mirror").
The article contributes to the study of the history of World War II in terms of the illustrative material, as well as provides information about the authors and publishers of postcards.
List of illustrations: Fig. 1. Postcard Prayer before the battle. Released by the St. Nicholas Community of the Russian Red Cross Society (NMHM, FB-21336-10).
Fig. 2. Postcard (reverse side). Every 2-3 sold cards provide an opportunity to make a respirator to protect against poison gases. Released by the St. Nicholas Community of the Russian Red Cross Society (NMHM, FB21336-10). Fig. 3. Postcard. 116. Cannon on a position. Released by G.V. Gruzintsev, the town of Luga, 1915; Phototype Scherer, Nabholz & Co., Moscow (NMHM, FB-21336-8). Fig. 4. Postcard. 54. Battery on a position. Released by G.V. Gruzintsev, the town of Luga, 1915; Phototype Scherer, Nabholz & Co., Moscow (NMHM, FB-21336-7). Fig. 5. Postcard. 127. Hair cutting near the dugout. Released by G.V. Gruzintsev, the town of Luga, 1915; Phototype Scherer, Nabholz & Co., Moscow (NMHM, FB-21336-9). Fig. 6. Postcard. 24. In the war. Sending wounded men from the regimental dressing station to the hospital. Released by O. Adamovich, Minsk; Phototype Scherer, Nabholz & Co. (NMHM, FB-20579). Fig. 7. Postcard. In Galicia. In the safe shelter during the shelling. Released by O. Adamovich, priest of the 64 Kazan Infantry Regiment; Phototype Scherer, Nabholz & Co. (NMHM, FB-20578). Fig. 8. Postcard. Bandaging of the wounded during the battle. Russia, 1915 (NMHM, FB-20577). Fig. 9. Postcard. Shells for the army the glory and prosperity of Russia. Released by the Skobelev Committee of the Assistance to the Wounded Soldiers. Petrograd, 1915 (NMHM, FB-7788-30). Fig. 10. Postcard. When the motherland needed guns, the factories are working day and night. Released by the Skobelev Committee of the Assistance to the Wounded Soldiers. Petrograd, 1915 (NMHM, FB-7788-31). Fig. 11. Postcard. French long-range gun. Released by the Skobelev Committee of the Assistance to the Wounded Soldiers. Petrograd, 1915 (NMHM, FB-7788-32). Fig. 12. Postcard. Romanian troops in the First World War. Balloon, 1916 (NMHM, FB-7788-33). Fig. 13. Postcard. On the strengthening of funds of the Northern Railway Committee to assist soldiers. Russia, 1914 (NMHM, FB-7788-5). Fig. 14. Postcard (reverse side). Take part in the accumulation of funds, buy war bonds. Russia, 1916 (NMHM, FB-7788-23). Fig. 15. Postcard. Help the Army in its great work and sign up for the military 5½ loan. Released by the Office for Small Loans. Petrograd, 1916 (NMHM, FB-7788-19). Fig. 16. Postcard. Anyone who signs up for military 5½ loan will help our heroes to destroy the enemies. Released by the Office for Small Loans. Petrograd, 1916 (NMHM, FB-7788-22). Fig. 17. Postcard. Sign up for the military 5½ loan. Released by the Office for Small Loans. Petrograd, 1916 (NMHM, FB-7788-21). Fig. 18. Postcard. Military 5½ loan. The more money, the more weapons and ammunition, the closer to victory. Released by the Office for Small Loans. Petrograd (NMHM, FB-7788-23). Fig. 19. Postcard. Military loan. Forward for the Motherland! Released by the Office for Small Loans. Petrograd, 1916 (NMHM, FB-7788-20). Fig. 20. The reverse side of the postcards released by the Office for Small Loans. Petrograd, 1916 (NMHM, FB7788-20). Fig. 21. The reverse side of the postcards released by the Skobelev Committee of the Assistance to the Wounded Soldiers. Petrograd, 1916 (NMHM, FB-7788-30). Fig. 22. Postcard. Caricature (color). Russian hen, Slavic chickens and German thieves. Released by "Novoe Krivoe Zerkalo". Moscow, 1914 (NMHM, FB-5935-11). Fig. 23. Postcard. Caricature (color). The prudent son. By L. Zolotarev. Petrograd, 1914 (NMHM, FB-59353). Fig. 24. Postcard. Caricature. The spirit of hatred and evil. By A. Tzenter. Petrograd, 1914 (NMHM, FB-59356). Fig. 25. Postcard. Caricature (color). Homeward. Russia, 1914 . (NMHM, FB-5935 12). Fig. 26. Postcard. Caricature (color). Finally, I am in Russia. Released by P. Khmelevsky. Russia, 1914 (NMHM, FB-5935-2). Fig. 27. Postcard. Caricature. "The Italian fig sign". Released by "Novoe Krivoe Zerkalo". Moscow, 1916 (NMHM, FB-5935-4). Fig. 28. Postcard. Caricature (color). On the way to Paris by 11 August. Russia, 1916 (NMHM, FB 59358). Fig. 29. Postcard. Caricature. What a pity that the world consists of only two hemispheres. Released by "Novoe Krivoe Zerkalo". Moscow, 1916 (NMHM, FB-5935-7). Fig. 30. Postcard. Caricature (color). Wolf in the kennel. Released by "Nov'", Kiev, 1914. (NMHM, FB-5935-10). Fig. 31. Postcard. Caricature. After the defeat of museums... "nah Fatherland". By A. Tzenter. Petrograd, 1914 (NMHM, FB-5935-8).
Fig. 32. Postcard. Caricature (color). Delusion of grandeur. Wilhelm II. Released by A.F. Postnov's Factory. Moscow, 1914 (NMHM, FB-59355). Fig. 33. Postcard. Caricature. Wilhelm the Bloody (see from a distance). Russia, 1914 (NMHM, FB-5935-1). Fig. 34. The reverse side of the postcard sent from Sevastopol (October 2, 1914) to the village of Răduleni (Guberniya of Bessarabia). Addressee: P.F. Sutulova (NMHM, FB-5935-5).
Ana Grițco
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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.
31 August 1989 St., 121 A, MD 2012, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova
